Early Submarines
The dream of travelling underwater is ancient, but the first practical submarine was not built until 1620, when Cornelius Drebbel constructed a leather-covered rowing boat that could submerge in the River Thames. During the American Civil War, the Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley became the first submarine to sink an enemy warship, though tragically it sank itself in the process. By World War I, German U-boats had demonstrated the devastating potential of submarine warfare, sinking thousands of Allied ships and nearly starving Britain into submission.
How Submarines Work
A submarine dives and surfaces by controlling its buoyancy. Between the outer hull and the inner pressure hull are ballast tanks that can be filled with seawater to make the submarine heavier, causing it to sink, or filled with compressed air to make it lighter, bringing it back to the surface. Modern nuclear submarines carry a small nuclear reactor that generates steam to power turbines, giving them virtually unlimited range. They can stay submerged for months at a time, limited only by the amount of food they can carry for the crew. The deepest-diving military submarine was the Soviet K-278 Komsomolets, which reached a depth of over 1,000 metres.
Submarines Today
Today's submarines serve many purposes beyond warfare. Research submarines like Alvin have explored the wreck of the Titanic and discovered entirely new ecosystems around deep-sea hydrothermal vents. Tourist submarines take visitors to view coral reefs in clear tropical waters. Submarines remain a fascinating subject for children because they combine engineering, physics, and the pure wonder of exploring the ocean's depths. The Maritime Domino Game features submarines alongside surface ships, giving children a complete picture of maritime history both above and below the waves.