SM U-151

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German submarine activities on the Atlantic coast of the United States and Canada (1920) (14596181448).jpg
U-151 at sea
History
German Empire
Class and typeType U-151 U-boat
NameU-151
Ordered29 November 1916
BuilderReiherstieg Schiffswerfte & Maschinenfabrik, Hamburg
Yard number303
Launched4 April 1917
Commissioned21 July 1917
CapturedSurrendered to France at Cherbourg
FateSunk as target ship at Cherbourg, 7 June 1921
General characteristics [1]
Class and typeGerman Type U 151 submarine
Displacement
  • 1,512 tonnes (1,488 long tons) (surfaced)
  • 1,875 tonnes (1,845 long tons) (submerged)
  • 2,272 tonnes (2,236 long tons) (total)
Length
  • 65.00 m (213 ft 3 in) (o/a)
  • 57.00 m (187 ft) (pressure hull)
Beam
  • 8.90 m (29 ft 2 in) (o/a)
  • 5.80 m (19 ft) (pressure hull)
Height9.25 m (30 ft 4 in)
Draught5.30 m (17 ft 5 in)
Installed power
  • 800 PS (590 kW; 790 bhp) (surfaced)
  • 800 PS (590 kW; 790 bhp) (submerged)
Propulsion2 × shafts, 2 × 1.60 m (5 ft 3 in) propellers
Speed
  • 12.4 knots (23.0 km/h; 14.3 mph) surfaced
  • 5.2 knots (9.6 km/h; 6.0 mph) submerged
Range25,000 nmi (46,000 km; 29,000 mi) at 5.5 knots (10.2 km/h; 6.3 mph) surfaced, 65 nmi (120 km; 75 mi) at 3 knots (5.6 km/h; 3.5 mph) submerged
Test depth50 metres (160 ft)
Complement6 officers, 50 enlisted
Armament
Service record
Part of:
Commanders:
Operations: 4 patrols
Victories:
  • 34 ships sunk for a total of 88,395 GRT
  • 7 ships damaged for a total of 14,292 GRT

SM U-151 or SM Unterseeboot 151 ( ex U Oldenburg) was a World War I U-boat of the Imperial German Navy, constructed by Reiherstieg Schiffswerfte & Maschinenfabrik at Hamburg and launched on 4 April 1917. From 1917 until the Armistice in November 1918 she was part of the , and was responsible for 34 ships sunk (88,395 tons) and 7 ships damaged (14,292 tons).[2]

Background[]

U-151 was originally one of seven Deutschland class U-boats designed to carry cargo between the United States and Germany in 1916. Five of the submarine freighters were converted into long-range cruiser U-boats (U-kreuzers) equipped with two 15 cm (5.9 in) SK L/45 deck guns, including U-151 which was originally to have been named Oldenburg. The Type U 151 class were the largest U-boats of World War I.

Service history[]

U-151 was commissioned on 21 July 1917. From 21 July to 26 December 1917 she was commanded by Waldemar Kophamel who took U-151 on a long-range cruise which eventually covered a total of 12,000 miles. On 19 September 1917 U-151 claimed her first victim, the 3,104-ton French sailing ship Blanche in the Atlantic Ocean. On 2 or 12 October 1917 (sources differ), she collided with the Royal Navy Q-ship in the Atlantic Ocean off Casablanca, French Morocco, sinking Begonia.[3][4] On 20 November 1917 U-151 captured the steamship Johan Mjelde, and scuttled her on 26 November after transferring 22 tons of her cargo of copper.

American cruise[]

U-151 in French hands after the war, circa 1920

U-151 left Kiel on 14 April 1918 commanded by Korvettenkapitän Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff, her mission to attack American shipping. She arrived off the United States East Coast on 21 May, laid mines off the Delaware Capes and cut the submerged telegraph cables which connected New York City with Nova Scotia. On 25 May she stopped three American schooners off Virginia, took their crews prisoner, and sank the three ships by gunfire.

On 2 June 1918, known to some historians as "Black Sunday", U-151 sank six American ships and damaged two others off the coast of New Jersey in the space of a few hours. The next day the tanker Herbert L. Pratt struck a mine previously laid by U-151 in the area but was later salvaged.[5] Thirteen people died in the seven sinkings, their deaths caused by a capsized lifeboat from SS Carolina.[6]

On 9 June 1918, U-151 stopped the Norwegian cargo ship Vindeggan off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Scuttling charges were rigged aboard her, then she was escorted outside the shipping lane under a prize crew. Von Nostitz then transferred 70 tons of copper ingots from Vindeggan to U-151.[7]

On 14 June, U-151 sank the Norwegian barque Samoa, en route from Walvis Bay, South-West Africa, to Perth Amboy, New Jersey, with a cargo of copper ore, by gunfire 90 miles off the Virginia coast. There were no casualties.[8]

On the 18 June, U-151 sank the steamship SS Dwinsk, and then loitered near Dwinsk′s lifeboats in the hopes that more Allied shipping would be attracted to them.[9] Through this ruse, she launched torpedoes at the U.S. Navy auxiliary cruiser and troopship USS Von Steuben (ID-3017), but missed and was instead depth charged by Von Steuben.

On 28 June 1918, U-151 captured the SS Dictator and made its crew prisoners of war. Among those taken were four men from Newfoundland: Thomas Fiander, Edgar Banfield, Charles Blagdon, and Thomas Bowdridge.

U-151 returned to Kiel on 20 July 1918 after a 94-day cruise in which she had covered a distance of 10,915 nmi (20,215 km; 12,561 mi). Her commander reported that she had sunk 23 ships totalling 61,000 tons and had laid mines responsible for the sinking of another four vessels.[10]

Fate[]

At the end of the war U-151 surrendered to France at Cherbourg. The French Navy sank her as a target on 7 June 1921.[11]

Summary of raiding history[]

Date Commander Name Type Tonnage[Note 1] Country Fate[2]
19 Sep 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Blanche Sailing vessel 3,104  France sunk
1 Oct 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Etna Steamer 5,604  Italy sunk
2 Oct 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Viajante Sailing vessel 377  Portugal sunk
4 Oct 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Bygdønes Steamer 2,849  Norway sunk
12 Oct 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Parthian (HMS) Destroyer 1,025  United Kingdom Damaged
13 Oct 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Caprera Steamer 5,040  Italy sunk
19 Oct 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Harpon Steamer 1,484  France Damaged
20 Oct 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Moyori Maru Steamer 3,746  Japan sunk
21 Oct 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Gryfevale Steamer 4,437  United Kingdom sunk
2 Nov 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Acary Steamer 4,275  Brazil sunk
2 Nov 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Guahyba Steamer 1,891  Brazil sunk
16 Nov 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Margaret L. Roberts Sailing vessel 535  United States sunk
21 Nov 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Sobral Steamer 1,075  Norway sunk
22 Nov 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Tijuca Sailing vessel 2,543  France sunk
23 Nov 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Trombetas Sailing vessel 235  Portugal sunk
26 Nov 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Johan Mjelde Steamer 2,049  Norway sunk
4 Dec 1917 Waldemar Kophamel Claudio Steamer 2,588  Spain sunk
24 May 1918 Waldemar Kophamel Edna Sailing vessel 325  United States Damaged
25 May 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Hattie Dunn Sailing vessel 435  United States sunk
25 May 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Hauppauge Sailing vessel 1,446  United States Damaged
2 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Carolina Passenger steamer 5,093  United States sunk
2 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Edward H. Cole Sailing vessel 1,791  United States sunk
2 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Edward R. Baird Jr Sailing vessel 279  United States Damaged
2 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Isabel B. Wiley Sailing vessel 776  United States sunk
2 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Jacob M. Haskell Sailing vessel 1,778  United States sunk
2 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Texel Steamer 3,210  United States sunk
2 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Winneconne Steamer 1,869  United States sunk
3 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Samuel C. Mengel Sailing vessel 915  United States sunk
3 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Herbert L. Pratt Tanker 7,145  United States Damaged
4 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Eidsvold Steamer 1,570  Norway sunk
5 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Harpathian Steamer 4,588  United Kingdom sunk
5 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Vinland Steamer 1,143  Norway sunk
8 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Pinar Del Rio Steamer 2,504  United States sunk
10 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Henrik Lund Steamer 4,226  Norway sunk
10 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Vindeggen Steamer 3,179  Norway sunk
14 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Kringsjaa Sailing vessel 1,750  Norway sunk
14 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Samoa Sailing vessel 1,138  Norway sunk
18 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Dwinsk Passenger steamer 8,173  United Kingdom sunk
22 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Chilier Steamer 2,966  Belgium sunk
23 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Augvald Steamer 3,406  Norway sunk
28 Jun 1918 Heinrich von Nostitz und Jänckendorff Dictator Sailing vessel 125  United Kingdom sunk

See also[]

  • USS Von Steuben, one of the ships she unsuccessfully attacked in 1918.

Annotations[]

  1. ^ Tonnages are in gross register tons

Bibliography[]

Notes

  1. ^ Gröner 1991, pp. 20–21.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U 151". German and Austrian U-boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  3. ^ "BRITISH NAVAL VESSELS LOST AT SEA Part 1 of 2 - Abadol (oiler) to Lynx (destroyer)". Naval History. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
  4. ^ "HMS BEGONIA". Clydebuilt. Archived from the original on 11 March 2016. Retrieved 3 February 2013.CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  5. ^ Evening Public Ledger 1918, p. 1
  6. ^ ""Black Sunday" – Victims of U-151". Scuba Diving – New Jersey & Long Island New York. Archived from the original on 2 March 2009.
  7. ^ Hadley, Michael L.; Roger Flynn Sarty (1991). Tin-pots and Pirate Ships. McGill-Queen's Press. pp. 244–245. ISBN 0-7735-0778-7.
  8. ^ http://www.wrecksite.eu/wreck.aspx?19943
  9. ^ "S/S C. F. Tietgen, Scandinavian America Line". Norway-Heritage. Retrieved 20 February 2008.
  10. ^ Gibson 2002, p. 308.
  11. ^ McCartney 2002.

References

  • Evening Public Ledger (5 June 1918). "Stung by the Sea Asp, the Tanker Pratt lay partially submerged off Lewes". Evening Public Ledger. Philadelphia. OCLC 701513196. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  • Gibson, R.H.; Prendergast, Maurice (2002). The German Submarine War 1914-1918. Periscope Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-904381-08-1.
  • Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
  • Jung, Dieter (2004). Die Schiffe der Kaiserlichen Marine 1914-1918 und ihr Verbleib [German Imperial Navy ships 1914-1918 and their fate] (in German). Bonn: Bernard & Graefe. ISBN 3-7637-6247-7.
  • McCartney, Innes (2002). Lost Patrols: Submarine Wrecks of the English Channel.

External links[]

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