Knight Of The North Atlantic Baron Siegfried Von Forstner And The War Patrols Of U 402 1941 1943

Author : Aaron S. Hamilton
Publisher : Seaforth Publishing
Page : 364 pages
File Size : 42,8 Mb
Release : 2022-05-30
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9781399096737

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Knight of the North Atlantic by Aaron S. Hamilton Pdf

As World War II recedes further into the past, still each year hundreds of new books are published about some aspect of this global conflict. Many offer new insights from recently declassified documents. Other’s look to reinterpret what was thought to be well understood events. This book is no exception. The history of U-402, a Type VIIC German U-boat, is another tile in the mosaic of the war, and more specifically the Battle of the Atlantic. U-402’s conning tower was emblazoned with the shield of its sponsoring German city of Karlsruhe. Upon that shield was the Latin word ‘Fidelitas’ – Fidelity – and Baron Siegfried Freiherr von Forstner, the U-boat’s captain, embodied that word through his deep sense of loyalty to his profession, country, and crew. Born of an aristocratic military family, with a tradition of U-boat service, von Forstner served without the pretentiousness of title, even after winning the Ritterkreuz (Knight’s Cross). He fought the war like a knight of old, with a defined code of chivalry, as he dueled with escorts, went to the aid of fellow U-boats, and rescued his enemy from the sea. As the North Atlantic battlefield grew deadlier with each successive patrol, von Forstner remained focused on his duty to sink Allied tonnage while keeping his crew alive. His daring and conduct at sea captured the respect of Captain, US Coast Guard (Ret) John M Waters, who was a Watch Officer onboard the escort USCGC Ingham that fought U-402 in several convoy battles. After the war, he became the unexpected chronicler of his former enemy, and established an enduring friendship with von Forstner’s family. The story of von Forstner and U-402 parallels the rise and fall of the Wolfpack, and reflects the ebb and flow of the Battle of the Atlantic from the early operations in European waters, to Operation Paukenschlag (Drumbeat) off the US East Coast, to the climatic convoy battles of the North Atlantic in 1943. This is a truly gripping account of the Atlantic conflict, and the large selection of photographs adds a realism and authenticity found in very few accounts of the U-boat war.

Author : Daniel Morgan,Bruce Taylor
Publisher : Seaforth Publishing
Page : 492 pages
File Size : 51,5 Mb
Release : 2011-11-09
Category : History
ISBN : 9781848321182

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U-Boat Attack Logs by Daniel Morgan,Bruce Taylor Pdf

During the Second World War over 250 Allied warships from a dozen navies were sent to the bottom by German U-boats. This ground-breaking study provides a detailed analysis of every sinking for which source material survives from both the Allied and the German sides, resulting in detailed treatment of the fate of 110 vessels, with the remainder summarised in an extensive appendix. Uniquely, each entry is built around a specialist translation of the relevant segment of the war diary (log) of the U-boat in question, taken directly from the surviving originals – remarkably, this represents the first large-scale publication of the U-boat war diaries in any language. The book offers a wealth of new information, not only with respect to the circumstances of the sinkings from both the Allied and German perspectives, but also to the technical environment in which they lived as well as the fate of the crews. The entries include background details on the vessels concerned and the men involved, with a selection of rare and carefully chosen photos from archives and collections around the world. Each entry is itself a compelling narrative, but is backed with a list of sources consulted, including documents, published works and websites. A decade in the making, this is probably the most important book on the U-boat war to be published for many a year

Author : Luc Braeuer
Publisher : Schiffer Military History
Page : 80 pages
File Size : 48,9 Mb
Release : 2017
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 0764354019

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German U-Boat Ace Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock by Luc Braeuer Pdf

With the international success of the classic film Das Boot, U-96 is arguably the most famous of all German U-boats. Here is the true story of U-96, and its legendary commander Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock. In continuous combat from September 1940 to March 1945, follow the crew of U-96 from their bases in Kiel, Germany, as well as Lorient and St. Nazaire on the west coast of France, to intense combat against Allied shipping. During eleven combat patrols in the North Atlantic under Lehmann-Willenbrock, U-96 sank twenty-four Allied ships, eventually earning its commander the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves. One of their patrols was documented by war correspondent Lothar-Günther Buchheim, which was later novelized and made into the film Das Boot. This biography of Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock, and history of U-96 is based on the WWII captain's log as well as the recollections of crewmembers.

Author : Pablo Sagarra,Oscar Gonzalez,Lucas Molina
Publisher : Frontline Books
Page : 208 pages
File Size : 41,8 Mb
Release : 2017-08-30
Category : History
ISBN : 147387887X

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Hitler's Spanish Division by Pablo Sagarra,Oscar Gonzalez,Lucas Molina Pdf

On 22 June 1941, Hitler's armies launched Operation Barbarossa and swept in to the Soviet Union. On the same day, the Spanish Foreign Minister, Ramon Serrano Suner, contacted the German embassy in Madrid with an extraordinary proposal - would the German government welcome the addition of a force of Spanish volunteers in the war against the Russians? Officially designed by the Wehrmacht as the 250th Infantry Division, but commonly referred to as the Azul or Blue Division after the color of Spain's Falangist (Fascist) Party, this force initially amounted to some 18,000 volunteers under the command of the fiercely anti-communist General Agustin Munoz-Grandes. Of the first 18,694 men who entrained for Germany during July 1941, seventy percent, including every officer from captain on up, were from the regular army, whilst most of the rest were Spanish Civil War veterans. By the time that the Blue Division returned home, 47,000 Spaniards had been involved in fighting on the Russian front. There were 22,000 casualties: 4,500 dead, 8,000 wounded, 7,800 sick and 1,600 suffering from frostbite. As the authors reveal, Spaniards also volunteered or served in other units or organization. This highly illustrated book examines the history, personalities, and uniforms and equipment of those men and women who volunteered to serve alongside Hitler's armies. Along with full color drawings, there are many rare photographs provided by survivors.

Author : John M. Waters
Publisher : Naval Inst Press
Page : 285 pages
File Size : 53,6 Mb
Release : 1994
Category : Naval convoys
ISBN : 1557509123

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Bloody Winter by John M. Waters Pdf

A chilling story of the Allies' narrow escape from defeat at the hands of Nazi submarines in the North Atlantic.

Author : Aaron S Hamilton
Publisher : Seaforth Publishing
Page : 400 pages
File Size : 55,6 Mb
Release : 2020-05-30
Category : History
ISBN : 9781526778833

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Total Undersea War by Aaron S Hamilton Pdf

During the last year of World War II the once surface-bound diesel-electric U-boat ushered in the age of ‘total undersea war’ with the introduction of an air mast, or 'snorkel' as it became known among the men who served in Dönitz's submarine fleet. U-boats no longer needed to surface to charge batteries or refresh air; they rarely communicated with their command, operating silently and alone among the shallow coastal waters of the United Kingdom and across to North America. At first, U-boats could remain submerged continuously for a few days, then a few weeks, and finally for months at a time, and they set underwater endurance records not broken for nearly a quarter of a century. The introduction of the snorkel was of paramount concern to the Allies, who strived to frustrate the impact of the device before war's end. Every subsequent wartime U-boat innovation was subordinated to the snorkel, including the new Type XXI Electro-boat ‘wonder weapon’. The snorkel's introduction foreshadowed the nearly un-trackable weapon and instrument of intelligence that the submarine became in the postwar world. This exhaustive study, the first of its kind, draws upon wartime documents from archives around the world to re-evaluate the last year of the U-boat's deployment, all its key technological innovations, the evolving operations and tactics, and Allied countermeasures. It provides answers to many long-standing questions about the last year of the war: How and why did U-boats patrol so close inshore? How effective was acoustic and anti-radar camouflage? Why was U-boat wireless communication so problematic? How did U-boats navigate so effectively submerged? What were the health implications of staying submerged for a month or more? What does an accurate snorkel-configuration look like? This new study is destined to become the authoritative reference for all these issues and many more.

Author : Gordon Williamson
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 160 pages
File Size : 42,8 Mb
Release : 2012-05-20
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
ISBN : 9781780967929

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Knight's Cross and Oak-Leaves Recipients 1939–40 by Gordon Williamson Pdf

In 1939 a new grade in the Iron Cross series was introduced, the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes). It was awarded for a variety of reasons, from skilled leadership to a single act of extreme gallantry, and was bestowed across all ranks, grades, and branches of service. As the war progresed, further distinctions were created for bestowal on existing winners, namely Oak-Leaves (Eichenlaub); Oak-Leaves with Swords (Eichenlaub und Schwertern); and Oak-Leaves with Swords and Diamonds (Eichenlaub, Schwerter und Brillanten). This book, the first in a sequence of four, covers winners of the Knights Cross and the Oak-Leaves distinction in the period 1939-40.

Author : Geoffrey Patrick Jones
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 232 pages
File Size : 40,5 Mb
Release : 1984
Category : History
ISBN : UOM:39015009050983

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Autumn of the U-boats by Geoffrey Patrick Jones Pdf

Author : Norman Franks,Eric Zimmerman
Publisher : Unknown
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 40,6 Mb
Release : 1998
Category : Anti-submarine warfare
ISBN : 1902304020

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U-boat Versus Aircraft by Norman Franks,Eric Zimmerman Pdf

The claims of victories by the German U-boats are compared with the lists of RAF losses and the results are not always what has been previously recorded.

Author : Carlos Caballero Jurado
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 146 pages
File Size : 51,9 Mb
Release : 2013-09-20
Category : History
ISBN : 9781472806376

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Blue Division Soldier 1941–45 by Carlos Caballero Jurado Pdf

The all-volunteer 'Blue Division' was a formation that allowed Franco's technically neutral Spain to support Nazi Germany's invasion of Russia. Following initial training in Germany, the Blue Division's units were sent to the Eastern Front in August 1941, where, after a 40-day march to the front, the Division fought in several major actions including Leningrad. In 1943, with the tide turning against the Axis forces in Russia, the Division was ordered to be withdrawn, yet many men chose to stay on and serve with the Volunteer Legion. Even after the collapse in the East, some volunteered to serve with Waffen-SS units through to the fall of Berlin in 1945. This book narrates the experiences of the common soldier, exploring his motivation for serving the Wehrmacht, and detailing his dramatic experiences in a brutal and hostile theatre of World War II.

Author : Erich Kempka
Publisher : Frontline Books
Page : 177 pages
File Size : 41,9 Mb
Release : 2010-02-19
Category : History
ISBN : 9781781599723

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I Was Hitler's Chauffeur by Erich Kempka Pdf

“An insider view of Hitler’s closest circles, providing an invaluable account of the final months of the war” (History of War). Erich Kempka served as Adolf Hitler’s personal driver from 1934 through to the Führer’s dramatic suicide in 1945. His candid memoirs offer a unique eyewitness account of events leading up to and during the war, culminating in those dark final days in the Führer’s headquarters, deep under the shattered city of Berlin. He begins by describing his duties as a member of Hitler’s personal staff in the years preceding the war, driving the Führer throughout Germany and abroad, and accompanying him to rallies. The crux of his memoir, however, covers his life with Hitler in the Berlin Führerbunker. Crucially, Kempka witnessed Hitler’s marriage to Eva Braun and his last dinner and personal farewell to all those present, before he and his wife committed suicide. Hitler’s final order to Kempka was that he have ready enough petrol to burn him and his wife. Under constant Soviet artillery fire, Kempka, Linge, and others poured petrol over the bodies and burnt them. The account concludes with Kempka’s hazardous escape out of a burning Berlin more than 800 kilometers through Allied-occupied Germany, his arrest, and interrogation before being sent to serve as a witness at Nuremburg.

Author : Luc Braeuer
Publisher : Schiffer Military History
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 50,5 Mb
Release : 2015
Category : Submarine captains
ISBN : 076434823X

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German U-Boat Ace Adalbert Schnee by Luc Braeuer Pdf

Few commanders symbolize the evolution of the German U-boat arm during the Second World War as does Adalbert "Adi" Schnee. In 1940, Schnee successively commanded three Type II U-boats--U-6, U-60 and U-121-- in which he registered his first successes in the Atlantic. From the beginning of 1941, he was appointed commander of U-201, the first Type VIIC U-boat allotted to I Flotilla. During seven patrols with this U-Boot, which would take him to the coasts of America and Africa, he would receive the Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves. With 15 ships sunk in convoys in the mid-Atlantic, he became the specialist in this form of attack. Commanding U-2511 in May 1945, he alone carried out an actual combat mission in the Type XXI U-boat. With the aid of logbooks and the recent discovery of a considerable collection of images from a war correspondent on one of U-201's missions, this book examines Schnee's incredible combat career.

Author : Luc Braeuer
Publisher : Schiffer Military History
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 51,8 Mb
Release : 2015
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 0764348353

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German U-Boat Ace Rolf Mützelburg by Luc Braeuer Pdf

German naval officer Rolf Mützelburg was one of the outstanding figures of the WWII German U-boat arm. After obtaining regular successes against the North Atlantic convoys during his first four missions, he found new victims directly along the shores of Canada. Mützelburg received the highest decorations of the period and became one of the top U-boat aces. Furthermore, he shared with Adalbert Schnee, Teddy Suhren, and Erich Topp, the rare privilege of being affectionately nicknamed by Admiral Dönitz as "The Four Aces." The discovery of a photo album from a U-203 crew member, complemented by images sourced at the U-Boat Archive at Cuxhaven, allows us to illustrate the astonishing history of this U-boat with 240 photographs and documents. The eleven combat missions of U-203 are precisely described thanks to numerous maps and sketches and the complete translation of its logbook.

Author : Sepp de Giampietro
Publisher : Greenhill Books
Page : 393 pages
File Size : 41,9 Mb
Release : 2019-02-28
Category : Biography & Autobiography
ISBN : 9781784383428

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Blood and Soil by Sepp de Giampietro Pdf

Available for the first time in English, a memoir of a member of the World War II Brandenburg German special forces unit. The Brandenburgers were Hitler’s Special Forces, a band of mainly foreign German nationals who used disguise and fluency in other languages to complete daring missions into enemy territory. Overshadowed by stories of their Allied equivalents, their history has largely been ignored, making this memoir all the more extraordinary. First published in German in 1984, de Giampietro's highly-personal and eloquent memoir is a vivid account of his experiences. He delves into the reality of life in the unit from everyday concerns and politics to training and involvement in Brandenburg missions. He details the often foolhardy missions undertaken under the command of Theodor von Hippel, including the June 1941 seizure of the Duna bridges in Dunaburg and the attempted capture of the bridge at Bataisk where half of his unit was killed. Given the very perilous nature of their missions, very few of these specially-trained soldiers survived World War II. Much knowledge of the unit has been lost forever, making this is a unique insight into a slice of German wartime history. Widely regarded as the predecessor of today’s special forces units, this fascinating account brings to life the Brandenburger Division and its part in history in vivid and compelling detail.

Author : Angus Konstam
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing
Page : 49 pages
File Size : 48,9 Mb
Release : 2021-10-28
Category : History
ISBN : 9781472848680

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Warships in the Spanish Civil War by Angus Konstam Pdf

This detailed study of the naval Spanish Civil War describes how the Spanish Navy, torn in two and comprising a Republican and Nationalist part, fought a civil war at sea involving both Hitler's and Mussolini's navies. In July 1936, a pro-fascist coup orchestrated by General Franco tore Spain apart and plunged the country into a bitter civil war. Like Spain itself, the Spanish Navy was torn in two: crews and most ships remained loyal to the Republican government but many of the Navy's officers joined Franco's rebels, and warships under repair or 'mothballed' in southern ports soon fell to the rebel advance. These formed the basis of Franco's 'Nationalist fleet,' and with both Italian and German help, the rebels were able to contest the Republic's control of Spanish waters. Overall the Republican Navy held its own, despite mounting losses, until the collapse of the Republican Army led to the fleet seeking internment in French North Africa. Packed with contemporary photographs and full colour illustrations, this study examines the composition and organization of the two rival fleets, the capabilities of their ships and submarines, and the performance of their crews. It also covers the warships of the Basque Auxiliary Navy - an offshoot of the Republican Fleet - and other navies who played a part in the conflict, most notably the Italian Regia Marina.