After 25 years of research, a group of marine experts has produced a comprehensive and closely-guarded database of secret gold movements from Britain to the U.S. and elsewhere in World Wars I andII.

The gold was being sent by both the government and private institutions to pay their wartime bills. But a substantial amount ended up on the seabed, courtesy of the German U-boats which made everytrans-Atlantic voyage a game of Russian roulette.

Now some of it may be heading for the surface as the most ambitious treasure hunt of modern times gets underway. For, after painstakingly cross-referring classified Bank of England and governmentrecords with new archive material in Britain and overseas, the researchers believe they have pinpointed a series of Atlantic wrecks containing gold with a combined value of at least £4.5 billion.That is just a conservative estimate.

The research also revealed that many of these ships were attacked precisely because of their precious cargo. The enemy had worked out ways to identify which vessels might be carrying gold, andU-boat commanders were told to make them priority targets.

Not only would sinking them reduce Britain's ability to buy munitions and food but the plan was to return and salvage the gold after winning the war.

For there is now strong evidence that, sealed inside her at the bottom of the sea, lies a cargo of gold.

Armed with this fresh data, a pioneering £15 million recovery operation is due to get under way in a few weeks a few hundred miles west of Ireland.

Using precision robotics rather than human divers, the salvage team will target a 'cluster' of three ships in one area, two from World War I and one from World War II, and cut into them. All liein international waters. A second 'cluster' has been earmarked elsewhere.

If the first three wrecks yield just half of what they are believed to contain, the result should be a jackpot for the investors, as well as for the taxman and for charities, too. Between them,they contain an estimated £750 million in gold. And once the amount of recovered gold hits a certain level, a percentage of profits will go to maritime causes.

To read the complete article, see:
How a crack team of marine experts spent 20 years breaking secret wartime codes and scouringarchives to finally trace the £4.5BILLION of British gold sunk by the Nazis (www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-4325822/The-4-5BILLION-British-gold-sunk-Nazis.html)