German World War II submarine
|
History
|
Nazi Germany
|
Name
| U-556
|
Ordered
| 25 September 1939
|
Builder
| Blohm & Voss
,
Hamburg
|
Yard number
| 532
|
Laid down
| 2 January 1940
|
Launched
| 7 December 1940
|
Commissioned
| 6 February 1941
|
Fate
| Sunk on 27 June 1941
|
General characteristics
|
Class and type
| Type VIIC
submarine
|
Displacement
| |
Length
| |
Beam
|
- 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in) o/a
- 4.70 m (15 ft 5 in) pressure hull
|
Height
| 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in)
|
Draught
| 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in)
|
Installed power
|
- 2,800?3,200 PS (2,100?2,400 kW; 2,800?3,200 bhp) (diesels)
- 750 PS (550 kW; 740 shp) (electric)
|
Propulsion
| |
Speed
|
- 17.7
knots
(32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) surfaced
- 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph) submerged
|
Range
|
- 8,500
nmi
(15,700
km
; 9,800
mi
) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph) surfaced
- 80 nmi (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph) submerged
|
Test depth
| |
Complement
| 4 officers, 40?56 enlisted
|
Armament
| |
Service record
[2]
[3]
|
Part of:
|
|
Identification codes:
|
M 36 839
|
Commanders:
|
|
Operations:
|
- 2 patrols:
- 1st patrol:
- 1 ? 30 May 1941
- 2nd patrol:
- 19 ? 27 June 1941
|
Victories:
|
- 6 merchant ships sunk
(29,552
GRT
)
- 1 merchant ship damaged
(4,986
GRT
)
|
German submarine
U-556
was a
Type VIIC
U-boat
of
Nazi Germany
's
Kriegsmarine
during
World War II
. She was
laid down
on 2 January 1940 at the
Blohm & Voss
yard in
Hamburg
as yard number 532,
launched
on 7 December 1940, and
commissioned
on 6 February 1941 under the command of
Kapitanleutnant
Herbert Wohlfarth
, who commanded her for her entire career.
U-556
conducted only two patrols, sinking six ships totalling 29,552
gross register tons
(GRT) and damaging one other of 4,986 GRT, before she was sunk on 27 June 1941.
Design
[
edit
]
German Type VIIC submarines
were preceded by the shorter
Type VIIB submarines
.
U-556
had a displacement of 769 tonnes (757 long tons) when at the surface and 871 tonnes (857 long tons) while submerged.
She had a total length of 67.10 m (220 ft 2 in), a
pressure hull
length of 50.50 m (165 ft 8 in), a
beam
of 6.20 m (20 ft 4 in), a height of 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in), and a
draught
of 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in). The submarine was powered by two
Germaniawerft
F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder
supercharged
diesel engines
producing a total of 2,800 to 3,200 metric horsepower (2,060 to 2,350 kW; 2,760 to 3,160 shp) for use while surfaced, two
Brown, Boveri & Cie
GG UB 720/8
double-acting electric motors
producing a total of 750 metric horsepower (550 kW; 740 shp) for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m (4 ft)
propellers
. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres (750 ft).
The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.7 knots (32.8 km/h; 20.4 mph) and a maximum submerged speed of 7.6 knots (14.1 km/h; 8.7 mph).
When submerged, the boat could operate for 80 nautical miles (150 km; 92 mi) at 4 knots (7.4 km/h; 4.6 mph); when surfaced, she could travel 8,500 nautical miles (15,700 km; 9,800 mi) at 10 knots (19 km/h; 12 mph).
U-556
was fitted with five 53.3 cm (21 in)
torpedo tubes
(four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen
torpedoes
, one
8.8 cm (3.46 in) SK C/35 naval gun
, 220 rounds, and a
2 cm (0.79 in) C/30
anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a
complement
of between forty-four and sixty.
Service history
[
edit
]
First patrol
[
edit
]
U-556
sailed from
Kiel
for her first patrol on 1 May 1941. She headed out into the waters of the northern Atlantic, south of
Greenland
.
[5]
She made her first kill on 6 May, sinking the 166 GRT Faroese
fishing trawler
Emanuel
with her
deck gun
west of the
Faroe Islands
.
[6]
On 10 May she joined the
wolfpack
West
[7]
attacking Convoy OB 318 south-east of
Cape Farewell
. Her first victim was the 4,986 GRT British merchant ship
Aelybryn
, hit by one of the torpedoes fired by the U-boat at 04:42. Badly damaged, but suffering only a single casualty, the ship was towed to
Reykjavik
by
HMS
Hollyhock
.
[8]
The convoy scattered, but at 07:52
U-556
torpedoed and sank the 4,861 GRT British merchant ship
Empire Caribou
. Nine crew members and two gunners were later picked up by
HMS
Malcolm
, but the master, 31 crewmen, and two gunners were lost.
[9]
The U-boat had her third success of the day at 20:37, sinking the 5,086 GRT Belgian merchant ship
Gand
. One crew member was lost and another wounded. The master, 38 crewmen and four gunners were rescued by
HMS
Burwell
.
[10]
Ten days later, on 20 May, the wolfpack attacked
Convoy HX 126
. Between 14:48 and 15:16
U-556
fired torpedoes at the convoy and sank two British merchant ships, the 4,974 GRT
Darlington Court
[11]
and the 5,995 GRT
Cockaponset
,
[12]
and the 8,470 GRT
tanker
British Security
. Loaded with 11,200 tons of
benzine
and
kerosene
, the tanker caught fire and burned for three days before sinking. There were no survivors from her crew of 53.
[13]
The sinking of
Bismarck
[
edit
]
On 26 May, while returning from patrol, low on fuel and having fired all her torpedoes,
U-556
was ordered to reconnoitre the most recently reported position of the
battleship
Bismarck
.
U-556
and
Bismarck
had been neighbours in the ways at Blohm & Voss and their construction was completed at about the same time. (
Bismarck
was
commissioned
on 24 August 1940.) In January 1941, as
U-556
'
s commissioning ceremony approached, Wohlfarth wanted a band for the celebration, but could not afford to hire one.
Kapitan
Ernst Lindemann
, commanding officer of
Bismarck
, lent him his ship's band.
[2]
[14]
As thanks, Wohlfarth drew up a humorous
Patenschaftsurkunde
("Certificate of Sponsorship") promising that
U-556
would protect
Bismarck
. A drawing shows Wohlfarth as the knight
Parzival
[Percival] (his nickname) on the deck of
U-556
simultaneously bringing down planes with a sword and reaching underwater to stop a torpedo with his thumb. A second drawing then shows the submarine towing the battleship to safety.
[14]
The text accompanying the drawing reads:
[14]
Wir U556 (500 to) erklaren hiermit vor Neptun, dem Herrscher uber Ozeane, Meere, Seen, Flusse, Bache, Teiche und Rinnsale daß wir unserem grossen Bruder, dem Schlachtschiff Bismarck (42.000 to) in jeder Lage, zu Wasser, unter Wasser, zu Lande wie in der Luft beistehen wollen.
- Hamburg, den 28. Januar 1941
- Kommandant u
- Besatzung U556
We,
U-556
(500 tons), hereby declare before
Neptune
, Lord over oceans, seas, lakes, rivers, brooks, ponds, and rivulets, that we will provide any desired assistance to our Big Brother, the battleship
Bismarck
(42,000 tons), at any place on the water, underwater, on land, or in the air.
- Hamburg, 28 January 1941
- Commander &
- Crew U556
Around 19:50, Wohlfahrt saw the
battlecruiser
HMS
Renown
and the
aircraft carrier
HMS
Ark Royal
coming out of the mist at high speed. He recorded in his log, "Enemy bows on, 10 degrees to starboard, without destroyers, without zigzagging," but without any torpedoes, could only submerge and avoid them. Wohlfahrt saw activity on
Ark Royal
'
s flight deck, which transpired to be the launching of the second, fatal attack on
Bismarck
. At 20:39, Wohlfahrt surfaced and transmitted, "Enemy in view, a battleship, an aircraft carrier, course 115, enemy is proceeding at high speed. Position 48° 20′ N, 16° 20′ W."
Renown
'
s and
Ark Royal
'
s course toward
Bismarck
coincided almost exactly with his own; he proceeded on the surface at full speed behind them.
[14]
Wohlfahrt's War Diary contains these entries for 27 May 1941:
[14]
- 00:00, (wind) north-west 5, seaway 5, rain squalls, moderate visibility, very dark night. Surfaced. What can I do for Bismarck? I can see
star shells
being fired and flashes from Bismarck's guns. It is a terrible feeling to be near and not to be able to do anything. All I can do is reconnoitre and lead in boats that have torpedoes. I am keeping contact at the limit of visibility, reporting the position, and sending directional signals to call up the other boats.
- 03:52: I am moving around on the east side to the south, in order to be in the direction of the activity. I soon reach the limit of what I can do in view of my fuel supply. Otherwise, I won't get home.
- 04:00: The seas are rising ever higher. Bismarck still fighting. Reported weather for the
Luftwaffe
.
Around 06:30 Wohlfahrt sighted
U-74
and transferred the mission of maintaining contact with
Bismarck
to
Kapitanleutnant
Eitel-Friedrich Kentrat
. He gave Kentrat
Bismarck
'
s position based on his observations of the star shells fired during the night, adding: "I have not seen her directly. You assume contact. I have no more fuel." Wohlfahrt then submerged and did not surface again until noon, a time at which radio signals were routinely repeated. That was when he heard for the first time the order radioed to him between 07:00 and 08:00 to pick up
Bismarck
'
s War Diary. He replied to the
Befehlshaber der U-Boote
("Commander-in-Chief for Submarines")
Karl Donitz
, asking that this mission be transferred to Kentrat, who received the radio order, "U-boat Kentrat pick up Bismarck War Diary," but was unable to locate
Bismarck
. The battleship had been sunk before Wohlfahrt had received the first message at noon.
[14]
U-556
arrived at
Lorient
, in occupied France on 30 May 1941 after 30 days at sea,
[3]
where Wohlfahrt received the
Knight's Cross
(
Ritterkreuz
) from Donitz personally.
Second patrol
[
edit
]
U-556
departed from Lorient on 19 June 1941, and once more headed out into the Atlantic.
[15]
However, on 27 June, she was sunk south-west of Iceland, in position
60°24′N
20°00′W
/
60.400°N 20.000°W
/
60.400; -20.000
, by
depth charges
from the British
Flower-class corvettes
HMS
Nasturtium
,
Celandine
and
Gladiolus
. Five of the crew were killed and 41 survived.
[2]
Wolfpacks
[
edit
]
U-556
took part in one
wolfpack
, namely:
Summary of raiding history
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"The Type VIIC boat U-556"
.
German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
a
b
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"War Patrols by German U-boat U-556"
.
German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Patrol of U-boat U-556 from 1 May 1941 to 30 May 1941"
.
U-boat patrols - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Emanuel (Steam trawler)"
.
Ships hit by U-boats - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Wolfpack West"
.
Wolfpacks - German U-boat Operations - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Aelybryn (Steam merchant)"
.
Ships hit by U-boats - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Empire Caribou (Steam merchant)"
.
Ships hit by U-boats - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Gand (Steam merchant)"
.
Ships hit by U-boats - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Darlington Court (Motor merchant)"
.
Ships hit by U-boats - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Cockaponset (Steam merchant)"
.
Ships hit by U-boats - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"British Security (Motor tanker)"
.
Ships hit by U-boats - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
"Bismarck ? The Special Bond between the Bismarck and the U-556"
.
bismarck-class.dk
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Patrol of U-boat U-556 from 19 Jun 1941 to 27 Jun 1941"
.
U-boat patrols - uboat.net
. Retrieved
15 February
2010
.
- ^
Helgason, Guðmundur.
"Ships hit by U-556"
.
German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net
. Retrieved
28 December
2014
.
Bibliography
[
edit
]
- Busch, Rainer; Roll, Hans-Joachim (1999).
German U-boat commanders of World War II : a biographical dictionary
. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press.
ISBN
1-55750-186-6
.
- Busch, Rainer; Roll, Hans-Joachim (1999).
Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945
[
German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945
]. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German). Vol. IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler.
ISBN
3-8132-0514-2
.
- Groner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991).
German Warships 1815?1945, U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels
. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press.
ISBN
0-85177-593-4
.
- Kemp, Paul (1997).
U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars
. Arms & Armour.
ISBN
1-85409-515-3
.
External links
[
edit
]
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Type VIIA
| |
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Type VIIB
| |
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Type VIIC
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Type VIIC/41
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Type VIID
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Type VIIF
| |
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Shipwrecks and maritime incidents in June 1941
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Shipwrecks
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Other incidents
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