The book is the true story of how, on Sept 22, 1914, a German U-boat which had been shadowing three British Crusiers patrolling the North Sea torpedoed and sunk all three before breakfast. By mid-morning, the Cruisers Aboukir, Hogue and Cressy lay at the bottom of the North Sea, 1500 British seamen were dead and the triumphant U-boat commander would go on to be made a Knight-Commander of the Iron Cross. The triple sinking caused an outrage at the time and accusations were flung at Prince Louis of Battenburg (the First Sea Lord) and Winston Churchill. A Court of Enquiry followed, but as the pace of the war stepped up and rigorous censorship followed, the incident was all but forgotten. However, the sinking was to reshape tactics for every navy in the world.