Type VII-B German U-Boat

The Type VII-B was slightly enlarged over the initial variant and the saddle tanks were modified to improve seaworthiness as well as extend bunker capacity and range. More powerful
More VII-B boats were built than the initial variant, but still not so many. They were U-45 through U-55; U-73 through U-76; U-83 through U-87 and U-99 through U-102. The three top ACES of the early years drove Type VII-B boats. All three were sunk early in the war – Prien on 7 March 1941 then Schepke and KRETSCHMER within hours of one another on 17 March 1941.
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Günther Prien U-47 | KRETSCHMER (122-1985) U-99 | Joachim Schepke U-100 |
Displacement: 753/857 tons | Length: 218′ 3″ | Beam: 20′ 3″ | Draft: 15′ 6″ |
Power (diesel): 2,800 hp | Power (electric): 750 hp | Speed (diesel): 17.5 knots | Speed (electric): 8 knots |
Bunkers: 108 tons diesel fuel | Range (diesel): 6,500 miles @ 12 knots | Range (electric): 80 miles @ 4 knots | Crew: 44 men * |
Deck gun: single 3.5 inch ** | AA guns: single 20mm *** | Tubes (fwd): four | Tubes (aft): one |
The Type VII-B boat carried twelve torpedoes or fourteen mines
* Crew complement varied up to perhaps 60 depending on the mission.
** Deck guns were removed later in the war.
*** Later increased to two individual 20mm plus a single 37mm automatic guns.
History of the German Submarine U-48



SHARKHUNTERS International
History of the German submarine U-48 the MOST Successful Submarine of World War II
Conning Tower Emblems – above left, three Skippers = three black tomcats; above right – tonnage totals
Below left is the Mützenabzeichen (cap badge)


TYPE | BUILDER | LAUNCHED |
---|---|---|
VII-B | Germania Werft (Kiel) | 8 March 1939 |
COMMISSIONED | FELDPOST Nr. | SUNK |
22 April 1939 | M27354 | 3 May 1945 |
SUNK BY | LOCATION SUNK | POSITION SUNK |
her crew | Neustadt bay | unknown |
The wear and tear of war is evident in the conning tower badly in need of repainting.
Under three different Skippers, U-48 became the MOST successful submarine of any navy in World War II. It is generally accepted that the I.W.O. (First Watchkeeping Officer) Reinhard “Teddy” Suhren did much of the shooting. In fact, when Heinrich Bleichrodt was going to be decorated with his Knights Cross, he said that he would refuse it unless Suhren was also decorated with the Knights Cross.
No Men lost.
Commanders of U-48 include:
LAST NAME | FIRST NAME | FROM> | TO | OTHER BOATS | COMMENTS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
SCHULTZE | HERBERT | 22 April 1939 | 22 Apr 1940 | U-2 | |
RÖSING | HANS-RUDOLF | 22 April 1940 | 29 Aug 1940 | ||
Bleichrodt | Heinrich | 29 Aug 1940 | 16 Dec 1940 | U-67 and U-109 | |
SCHULTZE | HERBERT | 16 Dec 1941 | 21 Jun 1941 | ||
Atzinger | U-618 and U-827 | ||||
Todenhagen | Diether | U-1008 and U-365 | KIA aboard U-365 |
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HERBERT SCHULTZE (191-1986) | HANS-RUDOLF RÖSING (313-1987) | Bleichrodt |
NOTE – Sharkhunters Member’s names appear in bold capital letters followed by their Membership Number.
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I.W.O. “Teddy” Suhren |
U-48 was initially attached to the U-Flottille Wegener then to the 7th U-Bootflottille based at St. Nazaire, France. She was transferred to the 26th U-Bootflottille based at Pillau as a Schulboot (school boat) and used there for training until March 1942. U-48 was then transferred to the 3rd ULD (U-Boot Lehr Division or submarine training division). At the end of the war, she was scuttled by her own crew.
U-48 had 12 Feindfahrten (war patrols) in her short combat life, but sank more ships and more tonnage than any other submarine in World War II. There were patrols in the North Atlantic but also a minelaying patrol off Portland, England; operations against British forces off Narvik in April 1940; and the unsuccessful search for survivors of BISMARCK. | ![]() |
SHIPS SUNK BY U-48 (SCHULTZE commanding):
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRT |
---|---|---|---|---|
5 Sep 1939 | ROYAL SCEPTER | England | Steamer | 4,853 tons |
8 Sep 1939 | WINKLEIGH | England | Steamer | 5,055 tons |
11 Sep 1939 | FIRBY | England | Steamer | 4,869 Tons |
12 Oct 1939 | EMILE MIGUET + | France | Tanker | 14,115 Tons |
12 Oct 1939 | HERONSPOOL + | England | Steamer | 5,202 Tons |
12 Oct 1939 | LOUSIANE | France | Steamer | 6,903 Tons |
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ROYAL SCEPTER | WINKLEIGH | FIRBY | ||
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EMILE MIGUET | HERONSPOOL | LOUSIANE |
+ The Captain of the American liner PRESIDENT HARDING radioed that he had rescued the entire crew of 36 from HERONSPOOL. Captain Batson, Master of HERONSPOOL said that at 6 o’clock Friday evening he saw the EMILE MIGUET being shelled about six miles distant, so he steered his ship away to the north eastward. About 8 o’clock they heard an explosion and saw a column of water rise on the starboard beam. Half an hour later the submarine approached and signaled ‘What ship?”
“As soon as we could make him out,” Captain Batson said, “we fired two shots at him whereupon he dived. I hauled to the westward for two hours then zig-zagged. About 11pm the submarine appeared in sight nearly aft. We quickly fired two shots at him in succession. He disappeared but reappeared at midnight and fired a shot which exploded close to our starboard beam. Then we sighted him on the starboard quarter and again we fired.”
After a while the submarine submerged again but soon there was a violent explosion in the forepart of the HERONSPOOL. She had been torpedoed. Captain Batson continues, “We then abandoned ship in two lifeboats and after pulling away for some diistance, we lay to. We saw that the forepart of the ship appeared to have been blown away and that she was listing to port. The submarine appeared in full view a short distance away 20 minutes later but seemed not to notice us. We sighted PRESIDENT HARDING about 5:30am and shortly after that HERONSPOOL disappeared”
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRT |
---|---|---|---|---|
14 Oct 1939 | SNEATON | England | Steamer | 3,677 Tons |
17 Oct 1939 | CLAN CHISHOLM | England | Steamer | 7,256 Tons |
26 Oct 1939 | GUSTAV E. REUTER | Sweden | Tanker | 6,336 Tons |
9 Dec 1939 | BRANDON | England | Steamer | 6,668 Tons |
9 Dec 1939 | SAN ALBERTO | England | Tanker | 7,397 Tons |
15 Dec 1939 | GERMAINE | Greece | Steamer | 5,217 Tons |
10 Feb 1940 | BURGERDIJK | Netherlands | Steamer | 6,853 Tons |
14 Feb 1940 | SULTAN STAR | England | Steamer | 12,306 Tons |
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SNEATON | CLAN CHISHOLM | GUSTAV A. REUTER |
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GERMAIN | BURGERDIJK | SULTAN STAR |
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRT |
---|---|---|---|---|
15 Feb 1940 | DEN HAAG | Netherlands | Steamer | 8,971 Tons |
17 Feb 1940 | WILJA | Finland | Steamer | 3,396 Tons |
1 Feb 1941 | NICOLAOS ANGELOS | Greece | Steamer | 4,351 Tons |
24 Feb 1941 | NAILSEA LASS | England | Steamer | 4,289 Tons |
29 Mar 1941 | GERMANIC | England | Steamer | 5,352 Tons |
29 Mar 1941 | LIMBOURG | Belgium | Steamer | 2,483 Tons |
29 Mar 1941 | EASTLEA | England | Steamer | 4,267 Tons |
29 Mar 1941 | HYLTON * | England | Steamer | 5,197 Tons |
2 Apr 1941 | BEAVERDALE | England | Steamer | 9,957 Tons |
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DEN HAAG | WILJA | NICOLAOS ANGELOS |
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NAILSEA LASS | GERMANIC | BEAVERDALE |
* As one might imagine. firing into a convoy such as this attack on Convoy HX.115, is a chaotic thing. U-48 reported two different ships hit, but her torpedoes actually missed them and hit two other ships. They thought they had sunk ATHELPRINCEbut she was not even hit. They did hit and sink EASTLEA but they erroneously reported her as MASUNDA.
SHIPS SUNK BY U-48 (RÖSING commanding):
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRT |
---|---|---|---|---|
6 Jun 1940 | STANCOR | England | Steamer | 798 Tons |
7Jun 1940 | FRANCES MASSEY | England | Steamer | 4,212 Tons |
11 Jun 1940 | VIOLANDO N. GOULANDRIS | Greece | Steamer | 3,598 Tons |
19 Jun 1940 | TUDOR | Norway | Motorship | 6,607 Tons |
19 Jun 1940 | BARON LOUDOUN | England | Steamer | 5,661 Tons |
19 Jun 1940 | BRITISH MONARCH | England | Steamer | 5,661 Tons |
20 Jun 1940 | MOERDRECHT | Netherlands | Tanker | 7,493 Tons |
16 Aug 1940 | HEDRUN | Sweden | Steamer | 2,325 Tons |
19 Aug 1940 | VILLE de GAND | Belgium | Steamer | 7,590 Tons |
24 Aug 1940 | LE BREA | England | Steamer | 6,665 Tons |
25 Aug 1940 | ATHELCREST | England | Tanker | 6,825 Tons |
25 Aug 1940 | EMPIRE MERLIN | England | Steamer | 5,763 Tons |
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STANCOR | VIOLANDO N. GOULANDRIS | TUDOR |
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BARON LOUDOUN | MOORDRECHT | HEDRUN |
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VILLE de GAND (sunk) | EROS (damaged) |
SHIPS DAMAGED BY U-48 (RÖSING commanding):
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRT |
---|---|---|---|---|
7 Jun 1940 | EROS | England | Steamer | 5,888 Tons |
21 Aug 1940 | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown |
21 Aug 1940 | unknown | unknown | unknown | unknown |
SHIPS SUNK BY U-48 (Bleichrodt commanding):
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRT |
---|---|---|---|---|
15 Sep 1940 | HMS DUNDEE | England | Corvette | 1,060 Tons |
15 Sep 1940 | ALEXANDROS | Greece | Steamer | 4,343 Tons |
15 Sep 1940 | EMPIRE VOLUNTEER | England | Steamer | 5,319 Tons |
15 Sep 1940 | KENDOROC ** | England | Steamer | 1,780 Tons |
18 Sep 1940 | CITY OF BENARES | England | Steamer | 11,081 Tons |
18 Sep 1940 | MARINA | England | Steamer | 5,088 Tons |
18 Sep 1940 | MAGDELENA | England | Steamer | 3,118 Tons |
21 Sep 1940 | BLAIRANGUS | England | Steamer | 4,409 Tons |
11 Oct 1940 | BRANDANGER | Norway | Motorship | 4,624 Tons |
11 Oct 1940 | PORT GISBORNE | England | Motorship | 10,144 Tons |
17 Oct 1940 | DAVANGER | Norway | Tanker | 7,102 Tons |
17 Oct 1940 | LANDGUEDOC | England | Tanker | 9,512 Tons |
17 Oct 1940 | SCORESBY | England | Steamer | 3,843 Tons |
18 Oct 1940 | SANDSEND | England | Steamer | 3,612 Tons |
20 Oct 1940 | SHIREK *** | England | Tanker | 6,023 Tons |
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HMS DUNDEE | CITY OF BENARES | MAGDELENA | ||
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BRANDANGER | PORT GISBORNE | SCORESBY |
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SANDSEND | SHIREK |
** Not certain if U-48 sank KENDOROC; there are reports another U-Boat sank her with gunfire.
*** SHIREK was first hit by U-47 four hours earlier and left in flames. U-48 sank her with a coup d’grace.
SHIPS DAMAGED BY U-48 (Bleichrodt commanding)
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRT |
---|---|---|---|---|
15 Sep 1940 | EMPIRE SOLDIER **** | England | Steamer | 6,000 Tons (prox) |
21 Sep 1940 | BROOMPARK | England | Steamer | 5,136 Tons |
17 Oct 1940 | HASPENDEN | England | Steamer | 4,678 Tons |
**** EMPIRE SOLDIER swerved to avoid torpedo from U-48 and hit another ship causing minor damage.
U-48 was scuttled by her own crew off Neustadt Bay while under command of Todenhagen in the unofficial Operation Regenbogen (Rainbow) against orders from Großadmiral Karl Dönitz. Sometime between 1947 and 1953 she was raised by the Allies and broken up.
History of the German Submarine U-96
One of the MOST Famous Submarines of World War II
Much of this information, the data, the photos etc. comes directly from the veterans, the veterans’ organizations and is the most accurate available anywhere …much of this information is not even known elsewhere.
TYPE | BUILDER | LAUNCHED |
---|---|---|
VII-B | Germania Werft (Kiel) | 4 August 1940 |
COMMISSIONED | FELDPOST Nr. | SUNK |
14 September 1940 | M29052 | 30 March 1945 |
SUNK BY | LOCATION SUNK | POSITION SUNK |
her crew | Wilhelmshaven Harbor | unknown |
No Men lost.
Commanders of U-96 include:
LAST NAME | FIRST NAME | FROM | TO | OTHER BOATS | COMMENTS |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
LEHMANN-WILLENBROCK (120-1985) | HEINRICH | 14 Sep 1940 | March 1942 | U-8, U-5 and U-256 | |
Hellriegel | Heinz-Jürgen | March 1942 | March 1943 | U-543 | KIA aboard U-543 |
Willner | Horst | Training | |||
Rix | Robert | Training |
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HEINRICH LEHMANN-WILLENBROCK (120-1985) | Heinz-Jürgen Hellriegel |
NOTE – Sharkhunters Member’s names appear in bold capital letters followed by their Membership Number.
U-96 was initially attached to the 7th U-Bootflottille based at St. Nazaire, France as a Frontboot until March 1943. She was transferred to the 22nd U-Bootflottille based at Gottenhafen as a Schulboot (school boat) and used there for training until she was destroyed dockside 30 March 1945 by an American bombing raid.
U-96 undertook 11 Feindfahrten (War Patrols), mostly in the North Atlantic. In November 1941, she was ordered into the Mediterranean and stopped in the harbor at Vigo, Spain to replenish fuel and supplies from the ‘interned’ German supply ship BESSEL on the night of 27/28 November. She attempted the break-through the night of 30 November/1 December 1941 but was so badly damaged that she had to withdraw back to St. Nazaire for repairs. Over February and March 1942 she operated for one Feindfahrt off Nova Scotia and New England.
If this war history and the emblem appear familiar, this was part of the plot for the excellent movie “Das Boot” because during one patrol, LEHMANN-WILLEMBROCK had a PK (Propaganda Kompanie) sketch artist/photographer aboard named Lothar-Günther Buchheim! He was to later become the author of the book turned movie “Das Boot” and to be quite frank, pretty well hated by most surviving U-Bootfahrer.
SHIPS SUNK BY U-96 (LEHMANN-WILLENBROCH commanding)
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRTons |
---|---|---|---|---|
11 Dec 1940 | ROTORUA | England | Steamer | 10,890 |
11 Dec 1940 | TOWA | Netherlands | Steamer | 5,419 |
12 Dec 1940 | STUREHOLM | Sweden | Motorship | 4,575 |
12 Dec 1940 | MACEDONIER | Belgium | Steamer | 5,227 |
14 Dec 1940 | WESTERN PRINCE | England | Motorship | 10,926 |
16 Jan 1941 | OROPESA (1) | England | Steam liner | 14,118 |
17 Dec 1941 | ALAMEDA STAR (2) | England | Steam liner | 14,935 |
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ROTORUA | STUREHOLM | MACEDONIER | ||
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WESTERN PRINCE | OROPESA | ALEMEDA STAR |
(1) OROPESA was still afloat two and a half hours after the initial attack, so she was finally sunk by a coup d’grace shot.
(2) ALEMEDA STAR evaded three separate attacks by U-96 before finally being hit and even then, it took three more torpedoes to sink her.
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRTons |
---|---|---|---|---|
13 Feb 1941 | CLEA | England | Motorship | 8,074 |
13 Feb 1941 | ARTHUR F. CORWIN (3) | England | Motorship tanker | 10,516 |
18 Feb 1941 | BLACK OSPREY | England | Steamer | 5,589 |
22 Feb 1941 | SCOTTISH STANDARD (4) | England | Steamer | 6,668 Tons |
23 Feb 1941 | HUNTINGDON | England | Steamer | 10,946 |
24 Feb 1941 | LINARIA | England | Steamer | 3,385 |
24 Feb 1941 | SVEIN JARI | Norway | Steamer | 1,908 |
24 Feb 1941 | SIRIKISHNA | England | Steamer | 5,458 |
28 Apr 1941 | OILFIELD | England | Motorship | 8,516 |
28 Apr 1941 | CALEDONIA | Norway | Motorship tanker | 9,892 |
28 Apr 1941 | PORT HARDY | England | Steamer | 8,897 |
19 May 1941 | EMPIRE RIDGE | England | Steamer | 2,922 |
5 Jul 1941 | ANSELM (5) | England | Steamer transport | 5,954 |
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ARTHUR F. CORWIN | BLACK OSPREY | SCOTTISH STANDARD |
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CALEDONIA | PORT HARDY | ANSELM |
(3) ARTHUR F. CORWIN was first hit by two torpedoes from U-123; two more torpedoes from U-96 sank this ship. (4) SCOTTISH STANDARD was damaged by bombs from an FW 200 CONDOR (similar to the photo right) of I/KG 40, then she was finally sunk by U-96. | ![]() |
(5) U-96 fired one torpedo each at the armed merchant cruiser HMS CATHAY and the yacht HMS CHALLENGER in a group escorted by three destroyers. Both torpedoes missed their intended target and hit ANSELM, sinking her.
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRTons |
---|---|---|---|---|
31 Oct 1941 | BENNEKOM | Netherlands | Steamer | 5,998 |
19 Feb 1942 | EMPIRE SEAL | England | Motorship | 7,955 |
20 Feb 1942 | LAKE OSWEGA (6) | United States | Motorship | 2,398 |
22 Feb 1942 | TORUNGEN | Norway | Steamer | 1,948 |
22 Feb 1942 | KARS | England | Motorship | 8,888 |
9 Mar 1942 | TYR | Norway | Motorship | 4,265 |
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BENNEKOM | TORUNGEN | |
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KARS (after section beached) | TYR |
(6) This ship LAKE OSWEGA was built in 1918, owned and operated by Ford Motor Company and her master was Karl Prinz. Her armament consisted of two 3” guns and she carried 2,398 tons of general cargo. She was bound from New York to Iceland by way of Halifax. U-96 had sunk EMPIRE SEA some hours earlier and then went after this zigzagging freighter. One torpedo hit this old ship amidships, breaking her in two, and she sank quickly. The log of U-96 indicates that three lifeboats were launched, but none of the eight officers, twenty-two men and seven Armed Guards was ever found.
SHIPS DAMAGED BY U-96 (LEHMANN-WILLENBROCH commanding)
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRTons |
---|---|---|---|---|
14 Dec 1940 | EMPIRE RAZORBILL | England | Steamer | 5,118 |
18 Dec 1940 | PENDRECHT | Netherlands | Motorship | 10,746 |
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PENDRECHT | ELISABETH von BELGIE |
SHIPS SUNK BY U-96 (Hellriegel commanding):
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | GRTons |
---|---|---|---|---|
10 Sep 1942 | ELISABETH von BELGIE | Belgium | Steamer | 4,241 |
10 Sep 1942 | SVEVE | Norway | Motorship | 6,313 |
11 Sep 1942 | BELAES (7) | Portugal | Trawler | 415 |
25 Sep 1942 | NEW YORK | England | Steamer | 4,989 |
(7) BELAES was sunk by gunfire from the deck gun.
SHIPS DAMAGED BY U-96 (Hellriegel commanding)
DATE | NAME | NATION | TYPE | <grtons< th=””> </grtons<> |
---|---|---|---|---|
10 Sep 1942 | F. J. WOLFE(8) | England | Motorship tanker | 12,190 |
(8) This damaged tanker continued in convoy all the way to St. Johns where she arrived on 19 September.