Yes, OTTO was a great guy. Sir Donald even returned the binoculars he had taken from Kretschmer when he was captured. Correct optics: how the binoculars of the best underwater ace of the Reich became a symbol of relations with Britain #___historydocs He participated in the 2nd officers training course held at the former NS-Ordensburg Sonthofen. He enrolled at the university, which was then known as University College of the South West of England. One hugely successful patrol saw him sink the 1,300 ton British fleet destroyer Daring with a solitary torpedo, before speeding off into the night undetected. The crew remained in lifeboats nearby for reboarding once the attack was over. Flotilla Admiral Otto Kretschmer (1 May 1912 - 5 August 1998) was a German U-boat commander in the Second World War and later an admiral in the Bundesmarine. He was called Silent Otto because he refused to make the fiery, bombastic political speeches as many other German war heroes did. "[3] Kretschmer was too young to enlist at 17 and his father sent him to England to broaden his horizons. His English improved greatly, and his respect for British society and education increased with it. left no doubt that he wanted his boat and his crew back at sea in the shortest possible time. [36] Kretschmer's tenth patrol (27 June21 July) yielded over 20,000GRT. Two men one German U-Boater ad one Royal Navy sailor went over the side and pulled an exhausted OTTO KRETSCHMER aboard, flopping him, in OTTOs words, like a fish on the deck. Kretschmer achieved good results in mathematics and chemistry and passed his Abitur (school-leaving certificate) at 17. His particularly brazen and risky innovation was to execute these night surface attacks inside the convoy. Three days later he departed for his seventh war patrol. He studied under Professor Jacob Wilhelm Schopp, a Germanborn naturalised Briton who took him under his wing, but rather than study science, he chose literature. When my boat returned to port, we lay to outside the harbor and every man shaves and takes a salt water shower, then puts on clean coveralls even the Captain. For 13 days Kretschmer sailed without success. While on vacation in Bavaria in the summer of 1998, after an accident on a boat on the Danube, while celebrating his 50th wedding anniversary, he stumbled and was unconscious, he died two days later, old age 86, on 05-08-1998. Patroclus of 11.314 brt as well as the armed Britsish merchantman Casanare of 5.376 brt. From September 1939 until being captured in March 1941, he sank 47 ships, a total of 274,333 tons. The Emden made stops in Ceylon, the Philippines, China and Japan; then Guam, South Africa, Angola and Spain on the return journey. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. He was the best of the best he knew how to penetrate a destroyer screen and because he had lived in England and studied at Cambridge prior to the war, he read the English and French tactical books on anti-submarine warfare in the captured French HQ in Brest he knew what depth settings the Royal Navy used and so he kept his boat at depths they did not set on their charges. [63] On 7 March Kretschmer sank two ships from the convoy including the 20,638GRT Terje Viken. This definitive work details his personal story and the political backdrop from his earliest days. A high achiever at school, he wanted nothing more than to join the navy, but he was not old enough upon leaving at the age of 17. [72], Once in London, Royal Navy interrogators questioned the crew. Comes with leather case and all lens protectors.- 3) Swift Falcon wide angle fully coated optics. As they were going below, OTTO slipped and fell down the stairwell, striking his head. He survived the sinking of his submarine but he was not clear yet. [18], In 1955, Sir Donald McIntyre returned Kretschmer's binoculars, which he had kept in 1941. Admiral Sir George Creasy considered the manoeuvre so dangerous he thought it had been done by mistake. The commanding officer was killed ashore in a car accident, so Kretschmer took command for two weeks. The boat slipped beneath the waves, leaving him stranded in freezing waters. After fully resting and cleaning up, KRETSCHMER was invited by MacIntyre to play bridge..with officers of some of the merchant ships that OTTO had just sunk! OTTO felt a sudden rush of air out of the open hatch past him and the boat was going down quickly. [5] He underwent basic military training in the 2nd department of the standing ship division of the Baltic Sea in Stralsund (1 April 1930 30 June 1930). There were two reasons for this; He was tough but he had a heart and was chivalrous as well. He prided himself on being able to take advantage of whatever the passing moment offered and made no elaborate plans for attacking convoys. On the night of 18/19 October, Berndt escaped from the camp. When U-23 was stabilized at her depth and the sound man could no longer hear any noises of the other boat, they came to periscope depth, confirmed that all was safe, and KRETSCHMER was ready to begin the hopeless task of looking for Schnees body. Here, however, we focus on OTTO KRETSCHMER, the man. Kretschmer was also involved in the Battle of Bowmanville. He then moved to a Realgymnasium (secondary school). One of the Sharkhunters Members asked COOPER if he thought OTTO KRETSCHMER would really be with them. "He prided himself on being able to take advantage of whatever the passing moment offered and made no elaborate plans for attacking convoys. 19 men were killed in the sinking; only two were saved. For some reason, little Juli came running at the cygnets, barking like mad. His I.W.O. They were sent to Lime Street Station to be transported to London for interrogation. Kretschmer experienced This is a trusted computer. Serving on a U-boat was a very dangerous task, and one that many did not want. The people were all seated at their tables in the dining room and COOPER was table-hopping to make sure that everything was going well. 176 men died. He enrolled at Exeter University (then University College of the South West of England) and studied under Professor Jacob Wilhelm Schopp (b. [41] A notable failure on the patrol occurred in the interception of HMS Manistee. Pyers Symon. OTTO KRETSCHMER got his first command; the Type II-B coastal boat ( dugout canoe ), U-23. U-99 was returning from her seventh Feindfahrt (war patrol) and this was to be OTTOs last Feindfahrt. [39], Among the victims was the Estonian ship, Merisaar, 2,126GRT. [70], Kretschmer and his crew were landed in Liverpool. Kretschmer then met Hitler at the Reich Chancellery and he repeated his opinions on the war situation. Out of the stormy night, Schnee spotted another submarine close at hand and he ordered an ALARM dive! A keen scientist with a talent for chemistry and maths, Kretschmer travelled to Devon to broaden his academic horizons and life experience. His wife was so devastated that she just gave up and died two years later, almost to the day. He then sank the 5,200-ton cargo ship Tiberton the Loch Maddy, weighing 5,000 tons. [26] Kretschmer's next success came in the Inganess Bay, Kirkwall, where he attacked and sank the Danish 10,517GRT tanker Danmark on 12 January 1940[27] while she lay at anchor. unread, Aug 20, 1998, 3:00:00 AM 8/20/98 . A single torpedo was fired, then Kretschmer ordered a u-turn and sped away on the surface; the destroyers neither sighted him nor detected him with ASDIC. Only five sailors survived. His body was cremated, and his ashes were scattered at sea. Kretschmer travelled the world as he rose up through the ranks, before joining the U-boat service in 1936. Prien and Kretschmer cooperated frequently during the course of this patrol, which neither completed. [47] The following month, Kretschmer formed part of the pack that attacked and devastated Convoy SC 7. He fired a single torpedo that missed before he lost the ship in thick mist. U-99 tried in vain to assist Prien in U-47, against OB290. He captured the number one German U-boat ace Otto Kretschmer (whose Zeiss binoculars he took and used for the rest of the war); in the same battle, he directed the attack that killed the second-scoring ace Joachim Schepke. Otto had 4 siblings: Cecilie Hulda and 3 other siblings. Kretschmer also favoured surfaced attacks as opposed to the recommended submerged engagement, listing 11 Points of Submarine Warfare: [16], The 'one torpedo, one ship' tactics implemented by Kretschmer resulted in a very effective usage of torpedoes, as each attack was designed to maximize the chances of a hit. When clear of the battle scene, he turned in to his bunk and gave strict orders to his new I.W.O. Kretschmer joined the German navy at eighteen years of age, which is interesting since many young, German men avoided service in the navy. One British admiral thought Kretschmer's move so aggressive, it had to have been a mistake, Kretschmer looked back with great fondness at his time at the University of Exeter, Otto Kretschmer died in 1998 after a successful career in the navy. [9], In 1933 Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party came to power. Browse 597 otto kretschmer stock photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. [43] Kretschmer hit and sank the cargo ship Jersey City 70 nautical miles (130 kilometres; 81 miles) northwest of Tory Island[44] while damaging three others, including the 10,973GRT Strinda. OTTO KRETSCHMER made only seven Feindfahrt in World War Two but his daily average tonnage was equal to that of de la Perrier. I gratefully acknowledge the help of Marianna Colasuonno for patiently reading the manuscript and providing valuable suggestions throughout the drafting of this paper. The skilled U-Boat captain sank more than 40 ships with a combined weight of over a. He departed from Wilhelmshaven for his eighth war patrol on 9 February. An illegal "Court of Honour" was convened and headed by Kretschmer. Kretschmer waited for the crew to take to the lifeboats before destroying the ship with a torpedo. Footnote: Otto Kretschmer (May 1, 1912 - August 5, 1998) was the most successful German U-boat commander in the Second World War and later an admiral in the Bundesmarine. [56] Laurentic and Patroclus had been loaded with wooden barrels to increase buoyancy. At Eckernfrde on the 25/26 July 1934 Hitler boarded the ship to observe the exercise. [29] U-23 returned to port on 29 January. During the Spanish Civil War, Kretschmer was involved in several patrols as part of the international non-intervention force. Petersen had served as Kretschmer's helmsman on every war patrol on both U-23 and U-99. Brother of Cecilie Hulda Kretschmer; Ernest Gustav Albert Kretschmer; Bertha Bianca Kretschmer and Carl Theodor Otto Kretschmer. [31] 157 of the Daring crew were killed, including Commander Sydney Cooper. "He spoke English quite well, though he lacked practice. Kretschmer purportedly confined his remarks to the lack of air support from the Luftwaffe, a point Raeder was fully aware of. Prien achieved several sinkings, Kretschmer did not; the pair was chased off by destroyers. Two days later on 5 August, Silent OTTO succumbed to his head injuries without ever regaining consciousness. [22], U-23 departed from Kiel on 8 January 1940 for its sixth war patrol and Schnee had been replaced by Oberleutnant zur See Hans-Dietrich von Tiesenhausen. The report contained the remark, "Kretschmer demonstrated his extraordinary courage in many instances. The 28-ship convoy was poorly defended by a destroyer and a corvette. After the war he served in the German Federal Navy, from which he retired in 1970 with the flag rank of commodore. For this he received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords, among other awards. He stopped a ship and told the Captain to get all the passengers and crew into lifeboats before he would sink the ship. From September 1939 until his surrender in March 1941, he sank 47 ships, a total of 274,333 tons. Kretschmer was deployed to the Bay of Biscay during the Spanish Civil War on U-35. He was aware that the battleship was in the Home Fleet anchorage at Scapa Flow and he was formulating a way to enter and sink the ship. a legeredmnyesebb nmet tengeralattjr-parancsnok volt a msodik vilghborban. This included key points such as only firing one torpedo per ship, attacking at close range, staying on the surface for as long as feasible, and rescuing as many survivors as possible. Kretschmer was guided onto convoy OB-191. Click on the prints to see their descriptions. Note that OTTO KRETSCHMER (arrow) is wearing the regulation navy blue cap, not the traditional nut non-regulation White Cap. OTTO knew that the battleship was in this protected harbor, but he felt that a small boat, like his Type II-B, could penetrate the narrow entrance, make a successful attack and withdraw safely. He very nearly drowned as, in the icy water, he no longer had the strength to climb up himself, only for a British sailor to clamber down and rescue him from the ocean. Seeing that the boat was still diving and the hatch beneath him to the Zentralle had slammed shut, Schnee had the presence of mind to close and secure the hatch above him to the bridge, thus saving the boat and himself. He clung to the periscope in the hope of being seen through the optics. Otto Kretschmer was only in combat from September 1939 until March 1941 but was Germany's highest-scoring U-boat commander, sinking 47 ships totaling 274,333 tons. [6] On 2 October 1933, Kretschmer was transferred to the pocket battleship Deutschland as a gunnery officer during a trip to Denmark. The ships used barrels for ballast to prevent them sinking. [62] Kretschmer attempted a surface night attack using his favourite tactic. The Reichsmarine was renamed the Kriegsmarine, a Nazi creation. [68] U-99 was driven down to 700 feetbeyond the recognised crush depth before control was regained and the ballast tanks blown. OTTO KRETSCHMER and Sharkhunters President HARRY COOPER (1-LIFE-1983) were close friends, and when COOPER asked him why there were no photos of him with the traditional White Cap, OTTO explained he said;The white hat was not issue, it was tradition but not regulation and I am a Prussian officer. This definitive work details his personal story and the political backdrop from his earliest days. This was not OTTO KRETSCHMER! As U-99 returns from an early Feindfahrt, we see that the crew is neatly arranged (photo left) on the deck and there is no White Cap on the Skipper. [49], In November and December 1940 U-99 sank three British armed merchant cruisers (AMC), HMS Laurentic, HMS Patroclus and HMSForfar. [20], On 2 April 1940, after eight patrols on U-23, Kretschmer was ordered to the Germaniawerft, the shipbuilding works in Kiel, for construction training of the new Type VIIB U-99. He went on to sink almost 280,000 tons of Allied shipping to become Germany's most successful U-boat captain of the war. [21] He returned to Kiel, rather than Wilhelmshaven, on 16 October. Kretschmer indulged in sporting pastimes and scientific interests. On March 16, his boat was badly damaged by British depth charges, and it began to sink to the bottom of the ocean. Kretschmer was taken to London for interrogation. One may read of all the great accomplishments by this outstanding gentleman in many places some accurate, some merely hoping they are close to being accurate and on some forums just plain fantasy. He spoke English quite well, though he lacked practice. Con su legendario submarino Tipo VII, el U-99, se apunt desde Septiembre de 1.939 hasta Marzo de 1.941, 47 barcos hundidos con un total de 274.333 toneladas. Kretschmer and U-23 had departed from Wilhelmshaven on 25 August, one week before the start of World War II. This third patrol on U-99, took the boat into the North Atlantic, into the North Channel and west of Ireland. El Otto Kretschmer (1 de maig de 1912 - 5 de maig de 1998) va ser un comandant de submarins alemany durant la Segona Guerra Mundial, sent l' amb ms xit. [20] Another neutral Scandinavian ship was sunk. In a rush of roiling water that must have looked like a surfacing submarine, Papa Swan came roaring out of the water heading right at Juli who decided that it was time to leave but with about six feet of wingspan flailing about and huge clawed feet ripping chunks of OTTOs grass up, Papa Swan was hot after Juli all the while making a tremendous hissing sound. His whole demeanour was calm and quiet, and he seemed anxious to be friendly; he was also less suspicious of British officers than was his First Lieutenant. The presentation was made by Dnitz following his return to Lorient. After sinking the Magog, he gave his crew brandy as a reward. There, they would meet a German U-boat to take them back to Germany. [18] Kretschmer served in this function until 18 June 1964 when he was appointed chief-of-staff of the Befehlshaber der Seestreitkrfte der Nordsee (German national Commander Naval Forces North Sea). [38] Acts of compassion in submarine warfare were "selective and fickle", one historian wrote when describing Kretschmer's rescue of a lone man in a raft. He was transported to the London Cage, a facility for MI19 to hold valuable enemy prisoners. It took nine torpedoes and one dud to sink them; the latter was sunk after it stopped to pick up survivors from the former. [20], On 18 February, Kretschmer sank the 1,300 ton British fleet destroyer Daring off the Pentland Firth while she was escorting convoy HN12 from Norway. Note that the crew is all wearing fresh coveralls and beards neatly trimmed. She had been married before, to a doctor who was killed in action with the Afrika Korps. Comes with leather case. On 19 March 1934, his stay on Deutschland ended and he was transferred to the light cruiser Kln (20 March 26 September 1934). He then attended a training course (16 October 1957 28 February 1958) for amphibious forces in the United States. I obey the rules. Bleichrodt reported it and Dnitz succeeded in bringing a number of boats in on it. Exhausted and unable to move, OTTO ordered one of his men to go back over the side, into the cold sea, and retrieve his cap from the water. [65] British reports of the action mention a large red glow appearing deep below the surface amid the depth charge explosions. Suddenly one of the men spotted him and yelled the alarm and Captain MacIntyre stopped the ship. In later years, Kretschmer was often interviewed for television and radio programmes - including an appearing in the landmark British 1974 documentary series The World at War. His command ended on 31 March 1969. He was understandably upset when he and all the other Type II boats in the area were ordered to get back into the North Sea, far away from Scapa Flow. A prize crew boarded to sail it to Bordeaux. For this he received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords (German language: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes . Miraculously, power was restored and it limped back to the surface. From September 1939 until his capture in March 1941 he sank 44 ships, including one warship, a total of 274,333 tons. On 26 September 1935, he was transferred to the 1st department of the standing ship division of the North Sea in Wilhelmshaven where he served as a company officer until 25 January 1936. [50] 51 men died aboard Laurentic, 367 survived. Haunted by him, Kretschmer ordered the boat to backtrack until the survivor was found. He rode his luck at times though - once his boat was badly damaged by a German plane which thought he was an Allied submarine. During this conversation, COOPER asked OTTO why it was necessary for him to send a sailor back in the water for his hat. Des de setembre de 1939 fins que va ser capturat al mar de 1941, va enfonsar 47 vaixell, amb un total de 274.333 tones. He continued to serve as Watch Officer of U-35 until 30 September 1937. The establishment of the Wehrmacht (Nazi German Armed Forces) in 1935 divided the major branches of the armed forces. Again, there is no White Cap and we see KRETSCHMER directly behind the deck gun and next to the crewmember who is wearing a white cap of sorts this is the Weiemtze worn by the Smutje, the ships cook. COOPER stated that KRETSCHMER was one of the absolutely finest men he had ever known totally honest and honorable. The German crew failed to sink the stationary vessel with torpedoes while the weather ruled out the use of the gun. [76] During his captivity, Kretschmer was promoted in rank to Korvettenkapitn (Lieutenant-Commander) on 19 March 1941, effective as of 1 March 1941, and to Fregattenkapitn (Commander) on 1 September 1944. 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Otto Kretschmer (Straubing, 1912. mjus 1. Otto Kretschmer was the most successful U-boat commander of the Second World War. But Canadian intelligence had cracked their code in Red Cross letters, and the police seized them before their breakout. Laurentic of 18.724 brt and H.M.S. The Golden Horseshoe: The Wartime Career of Otto Kretschmer, U-Boat Ace by Terence Robertson and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at AbeBooks.com. Her eyes misted up and a smile came to her lips, and then she said; A canal ran along behind the Kretschmer house and here we see Mrs. Kretschmer feeding the ducks with their little Schnauzer Juli. Otto Kretschmer (1 May 1912 - 5 August 1998) was a German naval officer and submariner in World War II and the Cold War . [31] Kretschmer sighted the British submarine Thistle(N24) soon afterwards, and fired a second torpedo which missed. The renaming of the navy was a symbolic gesture, to erase the unpleasant memories of the 1920s and symbolise a new era. The crew felt that this would bring them good luck so they cleaned the horseshoe, painted it gold and screwed it to the fairweather as we see in the photo to the right. Rsing brought his own watch officer, and Kretschmer was demoted to second watch officer. The single torpedo attack killed 11 men. Kretschmer sank all but one of the ships lost by the convoy. [14] U-35 returned to Germany after an uneventful patrol during which no ships were sunk. It is well known that this was the nickname of OTTO KRETSCHMER, but there are several explanations given as to how he came by this nickname most of them incorrect. OTTO KRETSCHMER indeed, was a fine man! The air crews sank eight and damaged several more. It was not this way with, . Sign up to get updates about new releases and event invitations. They opened the drain valve to drain the flooded conning tower into the Zentralle but only a small amount of water came through. Kretschmer was born in Heidau in what is now part of Poland, but then belonged to Germany. Today's London Daily Telegraph carries the obituary of Otto Kretschmer who has died at the age of 86. U-99 attacked the armed merchant cruisers HMS Laurentic and HMS Patroclus. In the following, the amplitude of the wave vector k 0 = /c = 2/ 0 of illumination will be useful. In the Atlantic, Kretschmer became bolder and bolder. KRETSCHMER was quickly at the con, but once the boat went under and they were detected, there was no escape. In fact, out of 116 torpedoes fired in action, Kretschmer scored 74 hits (equivalent to a 69.8% success rate). [40] The BdU acquired new bases along the French Atlantic coast after the Battle of France. There are as many reports, theories, and wild-eyed guesses as there are forums on the Internet most of which are pure speculation and fiction. So how was it that he was sunk? 3 binoculars included in this lot. He was eventually promoted to the rank of flotilla admiral, before becoming chief-of-staff of the NATO command. OTTO and COOPER were splashed with the flying mud and water as Juli and Papa Swan ran madly around the yard, tearing up the soft green grass and leaving ruts and tracks in their wake. Under heavy fire and wit no hope of escape, he loaded his men into life rafts and evacuated U-99 before scuttling it. Otto Kretschmer (1 May 1912 - 5 August 1998) was a German naval officer and submariner in World War II and the Cold War. At 2250hrs on 3 November, 1940, one of the most dramatic battles of the U-boat war began. He was rushed to a nearby hospital in Mnchen but it was to no avail. Kretschmer docked in Lorient on 21 July. [75] In March 1942, the prisoners were transported to Bowmanville Camp near Lake Ontario in Canada. My family is complete.. The convoy suffered heavy losses while the U-boats escaped unscathed. They provided clothes and alcohol, then transferred him to a lifeboat at the first opportunity. [23] Kretschmer targeted the Danish Scotia, a 2,400GRT on 7 December. These excerpts are from that first interview and you can hear some of the hubbub in the . We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. Knights Cross ALMOST HOME CONVOY IN SIGHTwith Oak Leafand Crossed Swords, U-99 vs. HMS LAURENTIC and HMS PATROCLEUS, OTTO KRETSCHMER served ten years on our Sharkhunters Advisory Boats.Click here to view the entire Board. He hand signed some of our very rare fine art prints. He moved back into the North Sea and this action almost cost the life of his I.W.O., Adalbert Schnee, who later commanded U-201. A young RN ensign was removing the binoculars from around KRETSCHMERs neck when MacIntyre yelled down that those were now his binoculars as a prize of war, so the young ensign brought them to the bridge. While his wartime actions have been narrated several times, his tactics, summarized by the famous motto one torpedo, one ship, have never been systematically analysed. In this work, Kretschmers success is appraised through the analysis of the key characteristics of his attacks, and the conditions of the battlefield in which he operated. [6], Following his journey on Emden, Kretschmer attended a naval infantry course for cadets at Stralsund (5 January31 March 1932), before starting with the main cadet course at the Naval Academy Mrwik on 1 April 1932, including his first U-boat course at Mrwik (25 September 1 October 1933). [67] During a counterattack by the escorts U-99 was disabled after repeated depth charge attacks by the destroyers Walker and Vanoc. [20] On his fifth patrol (515 December) he was ordered to explore the inner waters around the Orkney Islands and engage any remaining Home Fleet units that had departed from Scapa Flow in the aftermath of Gnther Prien's attack. He did not return to England from his hiatus, but travelled through France, Switzerland and Italy. Officer of U-35 until 30 September 1937, on 16 October 1957 28 February 1958 ) for amphibious in... Atlantic coast after the war the man crew back at sea in the,. Erase the unpleasant memories of the gun made by Dnitz following his return to England broaden. The top right dining room and COOPER was table-hopping to make sure that everything was well... This third patrol on U-99, took the boat slipped beneath the waves, leaving stranded. Sea in the water for his hat to enlist at 17 scientist with a combined weight of over.! 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