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The Kriegsmarine was the navy of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war Reichsmarine (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches, along with the Heer and the Luftwaffe, of the Wehrmacht, the German armed forces from 1935 to 1945.
U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. The term is an anglicised version of the German word U-Boot, a shortening of Unterseeboot, though the German term refers to any submarine. Austro-Hungarian Navy submarines were also known as U-boats.
Type XXI submarines were a class of German diesel–electric Elektroboot submarines designed during the Second World War. One hundred and eighteen were completed, with four being combat-ready. During the war only two were put into active service and went on patrols, but these were not used in combat.
German submarine U-573 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II.
German Type XXIII submarines were the first so-called elektroboote to become operational. They were small coastal submarines designed to operate in the shallow waters of the North Sea, Black Sea and Mediterranean Sea, where larger Type XXI electric boats were at risk in World War II. They were so small they could carry only two torpedoes, which had to be loaded externally. As with their far larger sisters—the Type XXI—they were able to remain submerged almost all of the time and were faster than conventional U-boats, due to the improved streamlining of their shape, batteries with larger capacity and the snorkel, which allowed the diesel engines to be used while submerged. The Type XXI and XXIII U-boats revolutionized post-war submarine design. Nearly a thousand Type XXIII boats were projected towards the close of World War II, but most of these were either cancelled, scrapped incomplete, or only projected.
The Austro-Hungarian U-boat fleet was created in the decade prior to the First World War. They were built to a variety of designs, many under licence from Germany. They served throughout the war against Italian, French and British shipping in the Mediterranean Sea with some success, losing eight of the twenty eight boats in service in return. They were reinforced by the Imperial German Navy’s Pola Flotilla, mainly comprising coastal U-boats transported by rail from Germany's northern shipyards to the Austrian ports on the Adriatic Sea. Following the end of the war in 1918, all Austrian submarines were surrendered to the Entente powers, who disposed of them individually. As both Austria and Hungary became landlocked in the aftermath of the war, no Austrian or Hungarian submarines have been commissioned since.
German submarine U-48 was a Type VIIB U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II, and the most successful that was commissioned. During her two years of active service, U-48 sank 51 ships for a total of 299,477 GRT and 1,060 tons; she also damaged four more for a total of 27,877 GRT over twelve war patrols conducted during the opening stages of the Battle of the Atlantic.
German submarine U-718 was a short-lived Type VIIC U-boat built by Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II. Due to an accident during training exercises five months after completion, U-718 never saw active service in the Kriegsmarine. Built at Hamburg during 1942 and 1943 and taking a year to complete, U-718 was a Type VIIC submarine and was intended for service in the Battle of the Atlantic.
German submarine U-227 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine built for service in the Battle of the Atlantic. She was cursed with repeated bad luck during her brief service life. Her commander was Kapitänleutnant Jürgen Kuntze, an officer with just five months U-boat experience at the time of his promotion.
German submarine U-964 was a Type VIIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine built for service during World War II. A short-lived boat, U-964 is most noted for being one of three new boats ordered by the Kriegsmarine to attack Convoy ON 206 in the Western Approaches. To do this, the three boats had to travel a long distance on the surface during daylight hours in a region patrolled by Allied aircraft. This had fatal consequences for all U-boats involved.
German submarine U-530 was a Type IXC/40 U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II. She was laid down at the Deutsche Werft in Hamburg on 8 December 1941 as yard number 345, launched on 28 July 1942 and commissioned on 14 October 1942 with Kapitänleutnant Kurt Lange in command, who led her in six patrols. Lange was replaced in January 1945 by Oberleutnant zur See Otto Wermuth, who led her escape to Argentina after Germany's surrender. The submarine's voyage to Argentina had transported escaping Nazi leaders and/or Nazi gold to South America, and it has been primarily accused for the sinking of the Brazilian cruiser Bahia, however later investigations led by the U.S. and Brazilian Navies proved that the cruiser was sunk in an accident during exercises with depth charges.
German submarine U-301 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for the German Navy (Kriegsmarine) during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 12 February 1941 at the Flender Werke yard at Lübeck, launched on 25 March 1942, and commissioned on 9 May 1942. During her short career the U-boat sailed on three combat patrols, without sinking or damaging any ships, before she was sunk on 21 January 1943 by a British submarine in the Mediterranean Sea.
German submarine U-74 was a Type VIIB U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.
The Black Sea Campaigns were the operations of the Axis and Soviet naval forces in the Black Sea and its coastal regions during World War II between 1941 and 1944, including in support of the land forces.
The U-10 class was a class of five submarines or U-boats of the Austro-Hungarian Navy during World War I. The class was similar to the German Type UB I submarine of the German Imperial Navy ; the first two boats delivered to Austria-Hungary had previously been commissioned in the German Navy.
SM U-69 was a Type U 66 submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during the First World War. She had been laid down in February 1914 as U-10 the fourth boat of the U-7 class for the Austro-Hungarian Navy but was sold to Germany, along with the others in her class, in November 1914.
SM U-70 was a Type U 66 submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during the First World War. She had been laid down in February 1914 as U-11 the final boat of the U-7 class for the Austro-Hungarian Navy but was sold to Germany, along with the others in her class, in November 1914.
German submarine U-415 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine for service during World War II.
A coastal submarine or littoral submarine is a small, maneuverable submarine with shallow draft well suited to navigation of coastal channels and harbors. Although size is not precisely defined, coastal submarines are larger than midget submarines, but smaller than sea-going submarines designed for longer patrols on the open ocean. Space limitations aboard coastal submarines restrict fuel availability for distant travel, food availability for extended patrol duration, and number of weapons carried. Within those limitations, however, coastal submarines may be able to reach areas inaccessible to larger submarines, and be more difficult to detect.
The Type XXVI was a German submarine project towards the end of the Second World War. Only five boats went into production, none of which were completed.
References
- ↑ Trevor Lenton, German Submarines 2 (1965) in the Macdonald & Co series Navies of the Second World War.