At the outbreak of war, all British owned merchant shipping came under the control of the Ministry of Shipping and later the Ministry of War Transport. The Merchant Navy often used older, less reliable and slower ships which were highly vulnerable to attack, therefore Royal Navy ships escorted them around the globe, protecting them and their cargo from enemy attack.

Meet some of the men who protected the convoys.

In 1939 Britain imported 68 million tonnes worth of raw materials, food and other consumable goods; by 1941 this had fallen to 26 million tonnes.

Supply lines were creaking the convoys were struggling to keep Britain afloat.

The winter of 1942/3 was the worst year of the war for shipping losses. But the tide had turned.

Meet the men and women who helped to do this.

The naval convoys fulfilled many functions. Not only did they enable Britain and her Allies to be kept supplied with food and raw materials, but they also fulfilled a political function.

In the convoy system, Royal Naval vessels would escort merchant shipping to protect them from sea and aerial attack.

However the Royal Navy were also needed for other tasks involving the war effort and this sometimes impacted upon the number of merchant vessels that were able to sail.

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