Hitler’s U-Boat War- The Hunted 1942-45
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Many other persons assisted us in our research, and for that help we are deeply grateful. We would especially like to thank Marcia Carr; my wife’s brother, Charles H. (“Ham”) Rutledge; and Frederic Sherman. Marcia, the chief librarian of the Washington Island Library, obtained for us literally hundreds of books and periodicals (some of them quite obscure) through the Wisconsin Interlibrary Loan system. Ham Rutledge, a professional computer wizard, created a program to compile the indices and nursed Joan through countless PC complications and challenges. Purely as a favor, our dear friend Fred, a retired newspaper editor, read and suggested corrections on the manuscripts of both volumes before I turned them over to the publisher. His suggestions, gratefully received, significantly improved the manuscripts.
We are also deeply indebted to the noted Enigma historian Ralph Erskine, who lives in Northern Ireland. He read the pages in Volume II that pertain to Enigma and Allied bombes, correcting errors and freely sharing his vast knowledge of Enigma with us. It needs pointing out that much of this story was not declassified by NSA until the spring of 1996 and that many more thousands of documents remain to be released before historians are satisfied that the full story is available from primary documents.
Finally, we thank the many persons at Random House, Inc., who supported this work and helped see it to completion. These include, notably, our editor, the incomparable Robert D. Loomis; our production editor, Sybil Pincus; and our copy editor, Chuck Thompson.
Others who have helped us over the years in (audiotaped) interviews or by correspondence include Joachim Ahme; Debbie Anderson (née Desch); Phillip Bochichio; Horst Bredow; Gus Britton; Colin Burke; Otto von Bülow; Robert M. Cop-pock; Joseph J. Eachus; Alfred Eich; Wolfgang von Eickstedt; Carl Emmermann; Kristina Engstrom; Wilhelm Grap; Lucille Gutterman; Reinhard Hardegen; Hans-Georg Hess; Veronica Mackey Hulick; Walter Kaeding; Frank Kaspras; Siegfried Koitschka; Hans-Günther Lange; Georg Lassen; Robert W. Love, Jr.; Bruce I. Meader; Hans Meckel; Allan Rockwell McCann; George P. McGinnis; Timothy P. Mulligan; Jürgen Oesten; Helmut Pich; Georg von Rabenau; Alfred Radermacher; Jürgen Rohwer; Hans-Rudolf Rösing; Heinrich Schroeteler; Friedrich Schumann-Hindeberg; Herbert Sohler; Hans-Harald Speidel; Werner Techand; Louis W. Tordello; Robert H. Weeks; Otto Westphalen.
The massive research collected in the preparation of this work, including thousands of pages of documents and microfilm and microfiche, has been deposited with my papers for Silent Victory: The U.S. Submarine War Against Japan and other books and papers relating to my professional and personal activities at the American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming in Laramie. Serious researchers of World War II naval operations and Allied codebreaking should find this collection especially of value.
UNPUBLISHED DOCUMENTS
FROM THE NAVAL HISTORICAL CENTER (NHC/NARA)
When I began research for, I found a rich source of primary documents at the Naval Historical Center (NHC), located at the Washington, D.C., Navy Yard. In the mid-1990s, almost all of this material was transferred to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in College Park, Maryland, a suburb of Washington. Many of the documents are copied onto microfilm and duplicates are obtainable from NARA.
In our work at the Center, as in other work before, we were ably—and cheerfully—assisted by Bernard Cavalcante and Kathy Lloyd of the staff of the Operational Archives (hereafter NAVOPARCH). We owe them many thanks. We also wish to thank Dr. Timothy Francis in the Ship’s History Division and the staff of the Navy Library. Unpublished documents at the Center that were especially useful:
Administrative Histories of the U.S. Navy in World War II. Rare typescripts at the Navy Library, NHC. Some histories are available on microfiche. A printed guide to the histories is also available. We consulted:
#44 Fleet Air Wings.
#138 Commander in Chief, U.S. Atlantic Fleet.
2 vols. 758 pp. Appendices.
#139 Commander Task Force Twenty-Four. Vol. 2. 208 pp. Appendices.
See also the document “Task Force 24” listed below.
#141 Destroyers, Atlantic Fleet. 80 pp. Appendices.
#142 Air Force Atlantic Fleet History. 208 pp.
#146 Commander South Atlantic Force. 245 pp.
#160 Commander Caribbean Sea Frontier. 44 pp. Appendices.
#161 History of the Eastern Sea Frontier. 67 pp.
#162 Commander Gulf Sea Frontier. 337 pp. Appendices.
Authorship attributed to Jack A. Reynolds.
#164 Aruba-Curaçao Command Headquarters. 57 pp. Appendices.
#165 The Guantánamo Sector. 458 pp. Appendices.
#166 The Trinidad Sector. 195 pp. Appendices.
Authorship attributed to Robert F. Millett and Kenneth S. Wales.
#168 Naval Operating Base, Iceland. 107 pp.
Assmann, Kurt. “Headline Diary.” 228 pp. In English. GNR Boxes T-64 and T-78. (Microreels T-10, T-11, T-54.)
Assmann, Kurt, and Walter Gladisch. “Aspects of the German Naval War.” Essay. 29 pp. In English.
GNR Boxes T-64 and T-81.
“Blockade Running Between Japan and Germany.” 8/27/45. Essay. 34 pp. GNR Box T-78. (Microreel T-23.)
Boehm, Hermann. “The War at Sea.” Essay. 11 pp. In English. GNR Box T-66. (Microreel T-47.) Clark, William Bell. “Submarines in the Western Hemisphere 1942 and 1943.” 3 vols. (Scrapbooks of newspaper clippings re U-boat campaign.) Unique. Navy Library, NHC.
Daily Position Reports of Allied Warships, Merchant-Ship Convoys, and Axis Submarines. (On large Atlantic maps.) Chief of Naval operations: World War II Command File.
Dönitz, Karl. “Capitulation Address.” 5 pp. In English. GNR Box T-66. .
——.“The Conduct of the War at Sea.” 34 pp. Essay. In English. 1/15/46. GNR Box T-66. (Microreel 1985.)
——. Documents about or relating to. From German records and other sources. Includes his official fitness reports (in German), a secret USN interrogation of him on 8/16/45, and a copy of the USSBS interrogation of him on 6/28/45 (see NARA documents). GNR Box T-87 TR-50. (Microreel T-50.)
——. “Talk to the Officers’ Corps.” [Circa 5/8/45.] In English. GNR Box T-66. Dossiers of Some German U-boat Officers. (Microreel T-51.)
1. Wilhelm Canaris
2. Karl Dönitz
3. Hans-Georg von Friedeburg
4. Werner Hartmann
5. Fritz-Julius Lemp
6. Heinrich Liebe
7. Karl-Heinz Moehle
8. Günther Prien
9. Erich Raeder
10. Joachim Schepke
11. Viktor Schütze
Freiwald, Kurt. [CO. U-18L] “U-boat Activity in the Indian Ocean.” 1/13/50. Essay. 16 pp. In English. GNR Box T-66. (Microreels T-27 and T-47.)
Fuerbringer, Wagner. ‘The U-4T’s Scapa Flow Undertaking.” 4/3/48. Essay. 6 pp. In English. GNR Box T-66. (Microireel T-47.)
German Arctic Operations. Twenty essays based on data provided by German naval officers who fought in the Arctic. GNR Box T-94. (Microreel T-48, Misc. Series 118-A to 118-U.) See especially:
118-M U-boat War versus USSR shipping, 23 pp.
118-0 U-boat mine laying, 6 pp.
118-S U-boat Ops, technical, 13 pp.
German Arctic Operations. The Arctic sea route of the German auxiliary cruiser Komet, 8/14/40 to 9/5/40. Admiralty Report 12/4/45. GNR Box T-80.
German Midget Submarines: Marder, Biber, Molch, Hecht, Seehund. GNR Box T-95.
German Minesweeping and Estimated Shipping Losses to Allied Mines. Two reports by USN Historical Team, 1950.43 pp. GNR Box T-93.
German Naval Air 1933-1945. Historical essay, based on German Naval Staff documents. Office of Naval Intelligence, 1/15/47. 37 pp. (Microreel T-48, Misc. Series, Item 4.)
German Naval Policy in Face of the Air Menace from the West (Summary). Report of British Bomber Survey Unit, 9/7/45. 85 pp. GNR Box T-79.
German Submarine Type XXI. Method of production. Admiralty Report of January 1945. (Based on about 5,000 do
cuments captured at the Hermann Göring Werke, Strassburg.) 27 pp. GNR Box T-79.
German Submarine Type XXI. Report from USN Portsmouth Naval Shipyard, March 1946. (Technical evaluation.) Submarines/Undersea Warfare Division. Series 3, File 3, Box 9. (Microreel NRS 517.)
German Technical Aid to Japan: A Survey by the Division of Naval Intelligence. 6/15/45. GNR Box T-95.
“German U-boats from Which Prisoners Were Taken During Hostilities by British and American Forces.” 15 pp. N.d. (Postwar.) Lists showing U-boat, type, date, skipper, Allied agency responsible for the destruction, and numbers of officers and enlisted men captured per boat. GNR Box T-76.
Godt, Eberhard. “Critical Review” of an essay, “Die Unterseebootswaffe im Dritien Weltkrieg” [“The Submarine Arm in World War II”], by Karl-Heinz Moehle. 11/27/50. 20 pp. In English. GNR Box T-67.
“The War At Sea.” Essay. 17 pp. November 3, 1945. GNR Box T-64. (Microreel 1985.) Handbook for U-boat Commanders, 1942 edition. 117 pp. In English. (Microreel T-50, Item TR 41.) See similar item by E. J. Coates, listed in Books section.
Heye, Hellmuth. “The Naval Aspects of the War.” Essay. 33 pp. In English. GNR Box T-66. (Microreel NRS 1985.)
Operation of German Small Battle Units (KdK). (Midget Submarines.) 5/22/45. 8 pp. GNR Box T-100.
Holtorf, Erich, and Alfred Behr. “Defensive Measures Against Enemy Type XXI and Walter Type XXVI U-boats.” 2/14/51. 14 pp. In English. GNR Box T-68.
“Fighting Enemy Submarines with Three-Dimensional Torpedoes.” 33 pp. In English. GNR Box T-69.
“German Torpedo Fire-Control Systems in WW II.” 5/22/51. Essay. 17 pp. In English. GNR Box T-69. (Microreel NRS T-47.)
“LUT Torpedo Firing Method from Depth.” 2/26/51. Essay. 18 pp. In English. GNR Box T-69.
Interrogation of U-boat Survivors, 1942-1944 (American “post mortems”): History, sinking and technical details of some U-boats destroyed by American forces, based on information from POW survivors. Most of these are extensive reports running to scores of pages and in a few cases, many more. Except in the five instances noted, these documents are also on microfilm (NRS 1979-107 and NRS 1980-28). An NRS number in parentheses designates additional information on other microfilm from the American forces that made the kill.
No. 1. U-85 (NRS 1973-98) No. 10. U-606
No. 2. U-352 (NRS 1973-106) No. 11. U-203 (NRS 1973-105)
No. 3. U-701 (NRS 1973-110) No. 12. U-569
No. 4. U-210 No. 13. U-128 (NRS 1973-99)
No. 5. U-94 No. 14. U-521 (NRS 1973-107)
No. 6. U-162 No. 15. U-118
No. 7. U-595 No. 16. U-67
No. 8. U-164 No. 17. U-598
No. 9. U-512 No. 18. U-513
No. 19. U-527 No. 33. U-801
No. 20. U-487 (not micro) No. 34. U-177 and U-195
No. 21. U-615 (not micro) No. 35. U-856 (NRS 1983-34)
No. 22. U-199 No. 36. U-515 and U-68 (NRS 1980-64)
No. 23. U-591 (not micro) No. 37. U-1059
No. 24. U-409 (not micro) No. 38. U-66 (NRS 281)
No. 25. U-662 (not micro) No. 39. U-860
No. 26. U-185 and U-604 No. 40. U-371 and U-410 (NRS 1976-30)
No. 27. U-664 No. 41. U-616 (NRS 1972-101)
No. 28. U-848 and U-841 No. 42. U-490
No. 29. U-172 (NRS 40) No. 43. U-453
No. 30. U-231 No. 44. U-960
No. 31. U-761 No. 45. U-233
No. 32. U-575 No. 46. U-1229
Note: Rough drafts and duplicates of the above and in some cases added documents and photos may also be found in NARA, Record Groups 38, 80, and 165. See below.
In addition, documents relating to the following U-boats, which surrendered after hostilities, may be found in the Command File:
U-234 U-1228
U-805 U-1230
Documents regarding the sinking or surrender of the following U-boats by or to American forces are on microfilm:
Kennedy, Joseph P., Jr. Papers relating to the Navy career and wartime death of. (Microreel NRS 1974-74.)
King, Ernest J. Papers of. Series XI, Box 13. Folder: "Review of Marshall, Arnold and King correspondence re ASW, 1942-1943,"
Knowles, Kenneth A., H.Q. USN, and K. E. Donegar, H.Q. British Admiralty. "German U-boat Fleet in World War Ilk Final Disposition." (Sunk, scuttled, etc.) 9/1/45, 144 pp. GNR Box T-97. (Microreel NRS T-48, Misc. Series Item 155.)
Leuthen, Group. Attack on convoy ON 202 ("Zaunkönig convoy"). September 1943. Narrative, translated from German with a Dönitz comment. 13 pp. GNR Misc. Series, Box T-95.
Location of U.S. Naval Forces. Chief of Naval Operations: World War %o Command File. (A daily listing of the location and readiness of all warships and patrol bombers.)
Lockwood, C[harles] A. Jr. (Naval Attaché, London.) "Translation of Operation Order of 5120141 captured from German tanker Gedania." 14 pp. GNR Box T-96.
Low, Francis S. "A Personal Narrative of Association with Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King, U.S. Navy." 49 pp. 1961. (Microreel NRS 1975-61.)
Lüth, Wolfgang. "Problems of Leadership in a Submarine." Or, alternatively, "On Being a U-boat Captain." 15 pp. GNR Boxes T-69 and T-84. (Microreel NRS 1973-1 10.)
Lüdden, Siegfried. Document re Far East U-boat operations he prepared at sea 5/6/44. Captured by French Resistance forces. Forwarded to ONI 11/9/44. 14 pp. In English. GNR Box T-76. (Microreel NRS T-23.)
Mejer, Otto, and H. Reinecke. “Cooperation of U-boats and Luftwaffe in Attacks on Convoys.” 8 pp. In English. GNR Box T-69. (Microreel NRS T-47.)
Merker, Otto. USN interview with, re German shipbuilding, with emphasis on types XXI and XXIII U-boats. (Microreel NRS T-25.)
Metcalf, Martin K. See Tenth Fleet.
Moehle, Karl-Heinz. “Report on, with Reference to Orders Alleged to Have Been Given to the 5th U-Boat Flotilla.” Box T-77. (Laconia order interpretation.)
Mommsen, Hans-Günther. USN interview with, re labor and materials for German shipbuilding. (Microreel NRS T-25.)
Peters, Rudolph. (FdU U-boats, Arctic 1942.) “Submarine War in the Arctic Ocean.” 55 pp. In English. GNR Boxes T-69 and T-92. (Microreel NRS T-30.)
“Q-Ships, Reports and Documents Concerning Operations in World War II.” (Atik, Asterion, Eagle, Big Horn, Irene Forsyte.) World War Two Command File. See also ESF War Diary, Oct. 1943, ch. 2. Approx. 190 pp. (Microreels NRS 478 and NRS 1975-94.) See also War Diary, ESF, etc.
Raeder, Erich. Memo to Admiral [Kurt] Assmann re Hitler’s decision to mount Barbarossa, the invasion of the USSR. 1/10/44. GNR Box T-80.
Rösing, Hans-Rudolf. USN interview with, re U-boat logistics and French Bases. (Microreels NRS T-22 and NRS T-25.)
Ruge, Friedrich, et al. “The Soviet Union as Opponents at Sea.” The naval war between Germany and the Soviet Union, 1941-1945, as experienced and analyzed by the Germans. GNR Box T-70. (Microreel NRS T-33.) Also published in book format by USNI: See Ruge.
Schill, Group. Attack on convoy MKS 28/SL 138, October 1943. Narrative, translated from German with a Dönitz comment. 13 pp. GNR Misc. Series, Box T-95.
chlicke, Heinz. “Electronic Research in the German Navy.” Transcripts of ten lectures given to the U.S.N. 7/19/45 to 7/31/45. In English. GNR Box T-73. (Microreel NRS T-40.)
Schrader, Albert E. “War Diary, Naval Attaché, Berlin 9/1/39 to 3/24/41.” (Microreel NRS 542.)
Schuessler, Captain. “The [German] Navy’s Battle Against the Treaty of Versailles, 1919-1935.” Essay.’ 53 pp. In English; pp. 26-34 re submarines. GNR Boxes T-73 and T-84. (Microreels NRS T-34 and NRS 1985.)
Schuster, Captain, and Otto Schniewind. “The War at Sea.” 76 pp. GNR Box T-73. (Microreel NRS 1985.)
Stark, Harold R. Private papers and letters of, from London to SecNav, Cominch et al., re antisubmarine warfare, 1942-1945. About 200 pp. (Microreel NRS 235.)
Talbot, Melvin F. (USN observer at the Nuremberg Trials.) “The Case Against Grand Admiral Doentiz.” 7/12/46. typescript. 51 pps. GNR Box T-105.
Task Force 2
4, History of. (January-December 1941.) 150 pp. World War Two Command File. (Microreel NRS 11-453.) See also USN Administrative Histories.
Tenth Fleet. “Assessment Committee: ASW by ‘Incident’ Number in World War II.” (A chronological index to documents re 9,328 “incidents” or Allied attacks on U-boats.) (Microreel NRS 167.)
—. “Assessment Committee: Reports on Damage to Enemy Submarines, 6/4/42-1/7/46.” Rpts
nos. 1 to 72. World War Two Command File, Box 260.
—. Convoy and Routing. Extracts of miscellaneous documents from the files: RCAF weekly ASW
intelligence summaries, 3/21/43-6/14/44. Letter, Noble to King, enclosing minutes and addenda of the 21st meeting of War Cabinet Anti-U-boat Committee, 6/23/43. Atlantic Convoy Conference, February and March 1943: Minutes, subcommittee reports, etc. Documents and messages re convoy policy and operations 7/25/42-12/3/43. (Microreel NRS 1969-57.)
—. “History of the Anti-Submarine Measures.” World War Two Command File. 67 pp. Plus 18- page “Chronology.” (Microreel NRS 11-457.)
—. “History of Convoy and Routing.” World War Two Command File. 145 pp. By Martin K. Met calf. 1949. (Microreel NRS 1971-36.)
U-Boat Standing Orders. 143 pp. In English. GNR Boxes T-91 and T-92.
United States, German, Italian, and Japanese Submarine Losses in World War II. Edition of 1963. (Microreel NRS 1976-107.) See also listing at Naval History Division in Books section.