U 56 (Navy)
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U 56 (Kriegsmarine) ( previous / next - all submarines ) |
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| Type : | II C |
| Field Post Number : | M-22 134 |
| Shipyard: | German works , Kiel |
| Construction contract: | June 17, 1937 |
| Build number: | 254 |
| Keel laying: | September 21, 1937 |
| Launch: | September 3, 1938 |
| Commissioning: | November 26, 1938 |
| Commanders: |
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| Calls: | 12 patrols |
| Sinkings: |
4 ships (25,783 GRT, 48 dead) |
| Whereabouts: | Bombed on April 28, 1945 in Kiel and sunk on May 3, 1945 (no casualties) |
U 56 was a submarine of type II C , which in World War II by the German navy was used. On its 12 operations it sank 4 ships with 25,783 GRT, whereby 48 people died. From 1941 to 1945 it served as a training boat . On April 28, 1945, it was destroyed in the port of Kiel in an air raid without people on board were, and on May 3, scuttled .
history
The order for the boat was awarded to Deutsche Werke , Kiel on June 17, 1937 . The keel was laid on September 21, 1937, the launch on September 3, 1938, the commissioning under Lieutenant Wilhelm Zahn finally took place on November 26, 1938.
After its commissioning on November 26, 1938, until December 31, 1939, the boat belonged to the U-Flotilla “Emsmann” in Kiel as a training and front boat . After the reorganization of the flotillas, U 56 belonged to the 1st U-Flotilla as a front boat from January 1, 1940 to October 31, 1940 . After his active service, the boat served from November 1, 1940 to December 18, 1940 as a training boat in the 24th U-Flotilla in Memel and from December 19, 1940 to June 30, 1944 as a school boat in the 22nd U-Flotilla in Gotenhafen , before it came to Pillau as a school boat for the 19th U-Flotilla from July 1, 1944 to April 28, 1945 . The boat was decommissioned on April 28, 1945 in Kiel and sunk at the end of the war.
U 56 took twelve during his service patrols on which it four ships with a total tonnage of 25,783 GRT could sink.
Use statistics
First patrol
The boat left Wilhelmshaven on August 25, 1939 at 4.40 a.m. and entered Kiel on September 9, 1939. No ships were sunk or damaged on this 16-day expedition to the North Sea and the Großer Fischerbank.
Second patrol
The boat left Kiel on September 12, 1939 at 10:00 a.m. and returned there on September 19, 1939 at 11:51 a.m. No ships were sunk or damaged on this eight-day expedition into the North Sea.
Third patrol
The boat left Kiel on October 23, 1939 at 2:42 a.m. and returned there on November 13, 1939 at 5:45 a.m. No ships were sunk or damaged on this 21-day expedition to the North Sea and west of the Orkneys .
Fourth patrol
The boat left Kiel on November 27, 1939 at 4:00 a.m. and returned there on December 5, 1939 at 5:33 p.m. On this nine-day and approximately 1,100 nm over and 98 nm underwater expedition into the North Sea and the British east coast, a ship with 2,119 GRT was sunk and a ship with 3,829 GRT was damaged.
- December 2, 1939: Damage to the British steamer Eskdene with 3,829 GRT. The steamer was damaged by a G7e torpedo . He had loaded wood and was on his way from Arkhangelsk to Hull .
- December 3, 1939: sinking of the Swedish steamer Rudolf ( Lage ) with 2,119 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a G7e torpedo. He had loaded coal and was on his way from Gothenburg to Great Britain. There were nine dead.
Fifth patrol
The boat left Kiel on December 27, 1939 at 1.30 a.m. and returned there on January 11, 1940 at 7:01 p.m. During this 14-day fighting and mining operation in the North Sea, a ship with 1,333 GRT was sunk.
- January 23, 1940: sinking of the Finnish steamer Onto ( Lage ) with 1,333 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a mine hit . He drove in ballast and was on the way from Zeebrugge to the Tyne . There were no losses.
Sixth patrol
The boat left Kiel on January 27, 1940 at 4:45 p.m. and entered Wilhelmshaven on February 17, 1940 at 3:45 p.m. No ships were sunk or damaged during this 17-day and approx. 1,600 nm above and 273 nm underwater venture into the North Sea and the British east coast.
Seventh patrol
The boat left Wilhelmshaven on March 4, 1940 at 9.15 a.m. and returned there on March 20, 1940 at 2.02 a.m. U 56 arrived in Helgoland on March 4, 1940 at 3:28 p.m. and left again at 4:23 p.m. and returned at 11:30 p.m. On March 5, 1940 at 7:30 a.m. the boat left Helgoland again and arrived in Wilhelmshaven at 1:15 p.m. It finally left for the patrol on March 14, 1940 at 2:40 p.m. No ships were sunk or damaged during this eight-day and approx. 800 nm over and 89 nm underwater expedition into the North Sea.
Eighth patrol
The boat left on April 4, 1940 at 8:17 a.m. for the Weser Exercise Company in Wilhelmshaven, and arrived in Kiel on April 26, 1940 at 9:10 p.m. No ships were sunk or damaged during this 23-day and approx. 1,600 nm above and 493 nm underwater undertaking in front of Bergen .
Ninth patrol
The boat left KIel on May 21, 1940 at 2.13 p.m. and entered Wilhelmshaven on June 14, 1940. During this 24-day and approximately 2,350 nm above and 369 nm underwater expedition into the North Sea, west of the Orkneys and in North Minch , no ships were sunk or damaged.
Tenth patrol
The boat was launched on 29 June 1940 at 8.10 am from Wilhelmshaven, and expired on July 21, 1940 at 9:43 pm in Lorient one. On this 23-day and about 2,800 nm over and 346 nm underwater venture into the North Atlantic , North Minch and the North Canal , the English troop transport Dunera , which was with several thousand prisoners (mainly with German and Austrian men of Jewish faith German communists, but also Italian prisoners of war and imprisoned Nazis) and was on the way to Australia, was slightly damaged in an attack on July 12, 1940 with two torpedoes. Both torpedoes did not explode.
Eleventh patrol
The boat left Lorient on July 25, 1940 at 8:00 p.m., and returned there on August 14, 1940 at 8:38 a.m. During this 13-day and approx. 210 nm over and 358 nm underwater expedition in the North Atlantic and the North Canal, two ships with 22,331 GRT were sunk.
- 5th August 1940: sinking of the British steamer Boma ( Lage ) with 5,408 GRT. The steamer was sunk by a torpedo. He had loaded 1,000 tons of coal and was on the way from Cardiff to Lagos . The ship belonged to convoy OB-193 with 48 ships. There were three dead and 50 survivors.
- August 10, 1940: sinking of the British auxiliary cruiser Transylvania ( Lage ) with 16,923 GRT. The auxiliary cruiser was sunk by a G7e torpedo. The ship belonged to the 10th cruiser squadron. It could still be towed at first, but sank before reaching the coast. There were 36 dead and 300 survivors. She was the largest ship sunk by U 56 .
Twelfth patrol
The boat left Lorient on August 19, 1940 at 8 p.m. and entered Kiel on September 15, 1940 at 10.30 p.m. No ships were sunk or damaged on this 28-day, 2,709 nm above and 349 nm underwater undertaking in the North Atlantic, the North Canal, the Hebrides and the North Sea.
Whereabouts
U 56 was on April 28, 1945 in Kiel in an air raid by the British RAF destroyed without people on board were, and in accordance there on May 3, 1945 the long-standing Rainbow command of his crew scuttled .
literature
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 1: The German submarine commanders. Preface by Prof. Dr. Jürgen Rohwer, Member of the Presidium of the International Commission on Military History. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg / Berlin / Bonn 1996, pp. 50, 83, 89, 117, 161, 179, 195, 201, 261. ISBN 3-8132-0490-1 .
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 2: Submarine construction in German shipyards. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg / Berlin / Bonn 1997, pp. 20, 26, 190. ISBN 3-8132-0512-6 .
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 3: The German submarine successes from September 1939 to May 1945. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg / Berlin / Bonn 2008, pp. 54f. ISBN 978-3-8132-0513-8 .
- Rainer Busch, Hans-Joachim Röll: The submarine war 1939-1945. Volume 4: The German submarine losses from September 1939 to May 1945. ES Mittler und Sohn, Hamburg / Berlin / Bonn 2008, p. 346. ISBN 978-3-8132-0514-5 .
- Erich Gröner , Dieter Jung, Martin Maas: The German warships 1815-1945. Volume 3: Submarines, auxiliary cruisers, mine ships, net layers. Bernhard & Graefe Verlag, Munich 1985, ISBN 3-7637-4802-4 .
- Clay Blair : The Submarine War - The Hunters 1939–1942 . Heyne Verlag, 1998. pp. 77, 217, 224. ISBN 3-453-12345-X .
- Clay Blair: The Submarine War - The Hunted 1942–1945 . Heyne Verlag, 1999. P. 74. ISBN 3-453-16059-2 .
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