O ataque do U 38 ao ancoradouro e à cidade do Funchal (1916) no quadro da guerra submarina alemã

摘要

The article analyses the U 38 attack on Funchal in the context of Germany's strategy to extendthe submarine war to the entire Atlantic. At the time of the attack in December 1916, the emperor ascommander-in-chief of the navy and the political leaders had postponed the unrestricted submarine war inorder to prevent the entry of the USA into the armed conflict on the allied side. The naval command,however, wanted to permit all means of U-boat warfare assuring an effective trade blockade against theAllies. The case study analyses how and why the captain of U 38, Max Valentiner, followed this line,accepting the breach of international law of warfare.