| German submarine U-56 (1938) | |
|---|---|
| Career (Nazi Germany) |  |
| Name: | U-58 |
| Ordered: | 17 June 1937 |
| Builder: | Deutsche Werke AG, Kiel |
| Laid down: | 21 September 1937 |
| Launched: | 3 September 1938 |
| Commissioned: | 26 November 1938 |
| Fate: | Sunk April 1945, by British aircraft at Kiel |
| General characteristics | |
| Class & type: | Type IIC U-boat |
| Displacement: |
291 long tons (296 t) surfaced 341 long tons (346 t) submerged 435 long tons (442 t) total |
| Length: |
43.9 m (144 ft 0 in) o/a 29.6 m (97 ft 1 in) pressure hull |
| Beam: |
4.1 m (13 ft 5 in) o/a 4 m (13 ft 1 in) pressure hull |
| Height: | 8.4 m (27 ft 7 in) |
| Draught: | 3.8 m (12 ft 6 in) |
| Propulsion: |
2 × MWM RS127S 6-cylinder diesel engines, 700 hp (522 kW) 2 × SSW PGVV322/26 double-acting electric motors, 402 hp (300 kW) |
| Speed: |
12 knots (14 mph; 22 km/h) surfaced 7 knots (8.1 mph; 13 km/h) submerged |
| Range: |
6,100 km (3,300 nmi) at 8 kn (15 km/h) surfaced 67 km (36 nmi) at 4 kn (7.4 km/h) submerged |
| Test depth: | 150 m (490 ft) |
| Complement: | 22 to 24 men |
| Armament: | 3 × torpedo tubes (bow), five torpedoes |
| Service record | |
|---|---|
| Part of: |
5th U-boat Flotilla 1st U-boat Flotilla 24th U-boat Flotilla 22nd U-boat Flotilla 19th U-boat Flotilla[1] |
| Commanders: |
Kptlt. Wilhelm Zahn (26 November 1938–21 January 1940) |
| Operations: |
Twelve: 1st patrol: 25 August–8 September 1939 2nd patrol: 12–19 September 1939 3rd patrol: 23 October–13 November 1939 4th patrol: 27 November– 5 December 1939 5th patrol: 27 December 1939– 11 January 1940 6th patrol: 27 January– 17 February 1940 7th patrol: 14– 20 March 1940 8th patrol: 4– 26 April 1940 9th patrol: 21 May– 14 June 1940 10th patrol: 29 June– 21 July 1940 11th patrol: 25 July– 14 August 1940 12th patrol: 19 August– 15 September 1940 |
| Victories: | Three ships sunk, total 8,860 GRT (gross register tonnage); one auxiliary warship sunk 16,923 GRT; one ship damaged, 3,829 GRT[2] |
German submarine U-56 was a Type IIC U-boat of the Nazi German Kriegsmarine that served in the Second World War. She was built by Deutsche Werke AG, Kiel as 'werk' 255. Ordered on 17 June 1937, she was laid down on 21 September, launched on 3 September 1938 and commissioned on 26 November under the command of Kapitänleutnant Wilhelm Zahn.
U-56 was initially assigned to the 5th U-boat Flotilla during her training period, until 31 December 1939, when she was re-assigned to the 1st U-boat Flotilla for operations. She carried out twelve war patrols, sinking three ships for a total 8,860 GRT and one auxiliary warship of 16,923 GRT; she also damaged one vessel of 3,829 GRT.
Service History[]
1st, 2nd and 3rd patrols[]
U-58's first three patrols, completed during her workup and training period, were relatively uneventful cruises in the North Sea. No ships were attacked during this period; even though on her third sortie, she circumnavigated the Shetland Islands.
4th patrol[]
The submarine's luck changed for the better on her fourth foray. She damaged the Eskdene on 2 December 1939, 70 mi (110 km) northeast of the Tyne. The following day, she sank the Rudolf 40 mi (64 km) east of May Island (in the mouth of the Firth of Forth).
5th, 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th patrols[]
The fifth patrol was also uneventful and took the boat into the southern North Sea.
Patrol numbers six and seven were both more of the same.
The boat's eighth sortie ranged far and wide; across the North Sea to the Scottish west coast, north of Shetland, then the other side of the North Sea to the coast of Norway, but further success continued to elude her.
Her ninth effort was to the north of the Hebrides and again round the Shetland Islands.
10th patrol[]
U-56's tenth patrol took her to the newly captured port of Lorient on the French Atlantic coast. She departed Wilhelmshaven on 29 June 1940; her route was to the west of Ireland, culminating in her arrival on 21 July.
11th patrol[]
She was near Ireland once more when she sank the Boma on 5 August 1940 northwest of Malin Head.[3]
In a similar location, she sank the armed merchant cruiser HMS Transylvania 40 mi (64 km) northwest of Malin Head on 10 August.
12th patrol[]
U-56 was attacked by the British submarine HMS Tribune about 15 nautical miles northeast of St Kilda on 6 September. All the torpedoes missed; the Germans were unaware of the situation. The boat was on her way, via the 'gap' between the Faroe and Shetland Islands, back to Germany. She arrived in Kiel on the 15th.
Summary of raiding history[]
| Date | Ship | Nationality | Tonnage | Fate |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 December 1939 | Eskdene |  Great Britain |
3,829 | Damaged |
| 3 December 1939 | Rudolf |  Sweden |
2,119 | Sunk |
| 23 January 1940 | Onto |  Finland |
8151,333 | Sunk (mine) |
| 5 August 1940 | Boma | Great Britain |
5,408 | Sunk |
| 10 August 1940 | HMS Transylvania | Great Britain |
16,923 | Sunk |
See also[]
References[]
- ↑ http://uboat.net/boats/u.56/htm
- ↑ "Ships Hit by U-56". U-boat.net. 8 November 2012. http://www.uboat.net/boats/successes/details.php?boat=56.
- ↑ The Times Atlas of the World - Third edition, revised 1995, ISBN 0 7230 0809 4, p. 10
External links[]
- U-56 at uboat.net
- http://www.ubootwaffe.net/ops/boat.cgi
- http://www.u-boot-archiv.de/dieboote/u0056.html (German)
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The original article can be found at German submarine U-56 (1938) and the edit history here.