UB-2 was ordered in October 1914 and was laid down at the Germaniawerft shipyard in Kiel in November. UB-2 was a little more than 28 metres (92ft) in length and displaced between 127 and 142 tonnes (125 and 140 long tons), depending on whether surfaced or submerged. She carried two torpedoes for her two bow torpedo tubes and was also armed with a deck-mounted machine gun. She was launched and commissioned as SM UB-2 in February 1915.[Note 1]
When UB-2 sailed to join the Flanders Flotilla in May 1915, she became the only member of her class to not be shipped by rail to Antwerp to join the unit. While in the flotilla, UB-2 sank eleven British ships of 1,374gross register tons(GRT) under the command of Kptlt. Werner Fürbringer. The U-boat was assigned to the Baltic Flotilla in March 1916 relegated to a training role from December that same year. At the end of the war, UB-2 was deemed unseaworthy and unable to surrender at Harwich with the rest of Germany's U-boat fleet. She remained in Germany where she was broken up by Stinnes in February 1920.
Design and construction
After the German Army's rapid advance along the North Sea coast in the earliest stages of World War I, the German Imperial Navy found itself without suitable submarines that could be operated in the narrow and shallow environment off Flanders.[8][9] Project 34, a design effort begun in mid-August 1914,[9] produced the Type UB I design: a small submarine that could be shipped by rail to a port of operations and quickly assembled. Constrained by railroad size limitations, the UB I design called for a boat about 28 metres (92ft) long and displacing about 125 tonnes (123 long tons) with two torpedo tubes.[8][Note 2]UB-2 was part of the initial allotment of eight submarines—numbered UB-1 to UB-8—ordered on 15 October from Germaniawerft of Kiel, just shy of two months after planning for the class began.[8][10]
UB-2 was laid down by Germaniawerft on 1 November, one of the first two boats of the class started. She was launched at Kiel on 13 February 1915.[1] As built, UB-2 was 28.10 metres (92ft 2in) long, 3.15 metres (10ft 4in)abeam, and had a draft of 3.03 metres (9ft 11in). She had a single 59-brake-horsepower (44kW)Daimler 4-cylinder diesel engine for surface travel, and a single 119-shaft-horsepower (89kW)Siemens-Schuckertelectric motor for underwater travel, both attached to a single propeller shaft. Her top speeds were 6.47 knots (11.98km/h; 7.45mph), surfaced, and 5.51 knots (10.20km/h; 6.34mph), submerged.[2] At more moderate speeds, she could sail up to 1,650 nautical miles (3,060km; 1,900mi) on the surface before refueling, and up to 45 nautical miles (83km; 52mi) submerged before recharging her batteries. Like all boats of the class, UB-2 was rated to a diving depth of 50 metres (160ft), and could completely submerge in 33 seconds.
UB-2 was armed with two 45-centimeter (17.7in)torpedoes in two bow torpedo tubes. She was also outfitted for a single 8-millimeter (0.31in)machine gun on deck. UB-2's standard complement consisted of one officer and thirteen enlisted men.[11]
UB-2 sailed from Germany to Flanders to join the Flanders Flotilla (German: U-boote des Marinekorps U-Flotille Flandern) on 10 May 1915, and was the only UB I or UC I boat in the flotilla to not be shipped to Antwerp by rail.[1][11] When UB-2 joined the flotilla, Germany was in the midst of its first submarine offensive, begun in February. During this campaign, enemy vessels in the German-defined war zone (German: Kriegsgebiet), which encompassed all waters around the United Kingdom (including the English Channel), were to be sunk. Vessels of neutral countries were not to be attacked unless they definitively could be identified as enemy vessels operating under a false flag.[12]
The UB I boats of the Flanders Flotilla were initially limited to patrols in the Hoofden, the southern portion of the North Sea between the United Kingdom and the Netherlands.[13] On 9 and 10 June, while patrolling in this area 50 to 60 nautical miles (93 to 111km; 58 to 69mi) southeast of Lowestoft, UB-2 sank six British fishing smacks with a combined tonnage of just under 300GRT, the largest being Intrepid of 59 GRT.[14][15] All six of the smacks—sailing vessels traditionally rigged with red ochre sails[16]—were stopped, boarded by crewmen from UB-2, and sunk with explosives.[17]
The majority of UB-2's victims were fishing smacks, traditionally outfitted with red ochre sails.
After UB-2's sister boatUB-6 pioneered a route around past British anti-submarine nets and mines in the Straits of Dover in late June, boats of the flotilla began to patrol the western English Channel.[18]UB-2, UB-5, and UB-10 soon followed with patrols in the Channel. Even though none of the boats sank any ships, by successfully completing their voyages they helped further prove the feasibility of defeating the British countermeasures in the Straits of Dover.[18]
On 28 August, UB-2 was patrolling in the Corton–Yarmouth area when she sank the British trawlerMiura.[19] At 257 GRT, Miura bested Intrepid as the largest vessel sunk by UB-2 to-date.[14][20] Early the following month, UB-2 sank another two fishing smacks 44 nautical miles (81km; 51mi)east-southeast of Lowestoft: the 57 GRT Constance,[21] and the 44 GRT Emanuel.[22] Three days later, UB-2 sank 47 GRT smack Boy Ernie about 58 nautical miles (107km; 67mi) east of Cromer.[23] As with the six vessels sunk in June, all three were stopped by UB-2 and sunk with explosives.[17]
Germany's submarine offensive was suspended on 18 September by the chief of the Admiralstab, Admiral Henning von Holtzendorff, In response to American demands after German submarines had sunk the Cunard Line steamer Lusitania in May 1915 and other high-profile sinkings in August and September. Holtzendorff's directive from ordered all U-boats out of the English Channel and the South-Western Approaches and required that all submarine activity in the North Sea be conducted strictly along prize regulations.[24]UB-2 did not sink any vessels over the next four months.[14]
The German Imperial Navy began its second submarine offensive in February 1916, declaring, among other provisions, that all enemy vessels in the war zone were to be destroyed without warning.[25] On 26 February 1916, UB-2 torpedoed and sank the cargo shipArbonne,[26][27] in what was ultimately her last wartime success.[14] The British steamer—at 672GRT, the largest ship sunk by UB-2[14]—went down with a loss of all fourteen of her crew.[26]
In early March, Kapitänleutnant Fürbringer was succeeded by the former commander of UB-13, Kptlt. Karl Neumann, who had been in the same cadet class as Fürbringer.[5] Fürbringer went on to command six other U-boats, and was responsible for sinking nearly 100,000 tons of shipping.[4] In 1933 he published a memoir of his World War I U-boat service, Alarm! Tauchen!!: U-boot in Kampf und Sturm, which included an overview of his career, including his time on UB-2.[28]
By early February, the Flanders Flotilla was beginning to receive the newer, larger Type UB II boats.[29]UB-2 was transferred into the Baltic Flotilla (German: U-boote der Ostseetreitträfte V. U-Halbflotille) about a week after Neumann took command.[1][25] Boats of the Baltic flotilla were based at either Kiel, Danzig, or Libau,[29] but where UB-2 was stationed during this time is not reported in sources. While UB-2 was in the Baltic Flotilla, Neumann was succeeded by Oberleutnant zur See (Oblt.z.S.) Thomas Bieber in April, who was in turn succeeded by Oblt.z.S. Harald von Keyserlingk in July. In early December, Keyserlingk was reassigned from UB-2 to UB-36,[7] and UB-2 was transferred to training duties.[1] According to authors R.H. Gibson and Maurice Prendergast, submarines assigned to training duties were "war-worn craft" unfit for service.[30]
At the end of the war, the Allies required all German U-boats to be sailed to Harwich for surrender. UB-2 was one of eight U-boats deemed unseaworthy and allowed to remain in Germany.[31][Note 4]UB-2 was broken up by Stinnes on 3 February 1920.[1]
↑ "SM" stands for "Seiner Majestät" (English: His Majesty's) and combined with the U for Unterseeboot would be translated as His Majesty's Submarine.
↑ A further refinement of the design—replacing the torpedo tubes with mine chutes but changing little else—evolved into the Type UC I coastal minelaying submarine. See: Miller, p. 458.
Seiner Majestät UB-4 was a German Type UB I submarine (U-boat) in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. She was sunk by a British Q-ship disguised as a fishing smack in August 1915.
SM U-110 was a Type U 93 U-boat of the German Imperial Navy during World War I. She was ordered on 5 May 1916 and launched on 28 July 1917. She was commissioned on 25 September 1917 as SM U-110. and assigned to IV Flotilla of the High Seas Fleet, based on the German North Sea coast.
The Type UB I submarine was a class of small coastal submarines (U-boats) built in Germany at the beginning of the First World War. Twenty boats were constructed, most of which went into service with the German Imperial Navy Boats of this design were also operated by the Austro-Hungarian Navy and the Bulgarian Navy. In the Austro-Hungarian Navy, it was called the U-10 class.
SM UB-5 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the Imperial German Navy during World War I. She sank five ships during her career and was broken up in Germany in 1919.
SM UB-46 was a Type UB II submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-46 operated in the Mediterranean and the Black Seas, and was sunk by a mine in December 1916.
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.
SM UB-47 was a Type UB II submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-47 was sold to the Austro-Hungarian Navy during the war. In Austro-Hungarian service the B was dropped from her name and she was known as SM U-47 or U-XLVII as a member of the Austro-Hungarian U-43 class.
SM UB-43 was a Type UB II submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-43 was sold to the Austro-Hungarian Navy during the war. In Austro-Hungarian service the B was dropped from her name and she was known as SM U-43 or U-XLIII as the lead boat of the Austro-Hungarian U-43 class.
SM UB-45 was a Type UB II submarine or U-boat built for and operated by the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-45 operated in the Mediterranean and the Black Seas, and was sunk by a mine in November 1916.
SM UB-42 was a Type UB II submarine or U-boat for the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-42 operated in the Mediterranean and the Black Seas during the war. She was broken up at Malta in 1920.
SM UB-14 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The submarine was also known by the Austro-Hungarian Navy designation of SM U-26.
SM UB-10 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I.
SM UB-11 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. UB-11 was ordered in October 1914 and was laid down at the AG Weser shipyard in Bremen in November. UB-11 was a little under 28 metres (92 ft) in length and displaced between 127 and 141 tonnes, depending on whether surfaced or submerged. She carried two torpedoes for her two bow torpedo tubes and was also armed with a deck-mounted machine gun. She was launched and commissioned as SM UB-11 in March 1915.
SM UB-12 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The submarine disappeared in August 1918.
SM UB-13 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The submarine was probably sunk by a British mine net in April 1916.
SM UB-16 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The submarine was sunk by a British submarine in May 1918.
SM UB-17 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The submarine disappeared during a patrol in March 1918.
SM UB-6 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The submarine was interned after running aground in neutral Dutch waters, and was scuttled by her crew at Hellevoetsluis.
SM UB-7 was a German Type UB I submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. She disappeared in the Black Sea in September 1916.
SM UB-50 was a German Type UB III submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The U-boat was ordered on 20 May 1916. She was commissioned into the Pola Flotilla of the German Imperial Navy on 12 July 1917 as SM UB-50.
1 2 3 4 5 6 Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by UB 2". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Britannia". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net., Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Edward". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net., Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Laurestina". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net., Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Quivive". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net., Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Welfare". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net., Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Intrepid". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved on 3 March 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Miura". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Constance". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Emanuel". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Boy Ernie". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
1 2 Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit during WWI: Arbonne". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 4 March 2009.
Gibson, R. H.; Maurice Prendergast (2003) [1931]. The German Submarine War, 1914–1918. Annapolis, Maryland: Naval Institute Press. ISBN9781591143147. OCLC52924732.
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