German submarine U-205
History | |
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Nazi Germany | |
Name | U-205 |
Ordered | 16 October 1939 |
Builder | Germaniawerft, Kiel |
Yard number | 634 |
Laid down | 19 June 1940 |
Launched | 20 March 1941 |
Commissioned | 3 May 1941 |
Fate | Sunk 17 February 1943 by HMS Paladin at 32.56N, 22.01E |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Type VIIC submarine |
Displacement | |
Length |
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Beam |
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Draught | 4.74 m (15 ft 7 in) |
Installed power |
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Propulsion |
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Speed |
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Range | |
Test depth |
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Complement | 4 officers, 40–56 enlisted |
Armament |
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Service record[1][2] | |
Part of: |
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Identification codes: | M 38 350 |
Commanders: |
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Operations: |
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Victories: |
1 warship sunk (5,450 tons) |
German submarine U-205 was a
She was sunk on 17 February 1943 by HMS Paladin at 32°56′N 22°01′E / 32.933°N 22.017°E.
Design
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).
Service history
Part of the 3rd U-boat Flotilla, U-205 carried out two patrols in the North Atlantic. Joining 29th U-boat Flotilla, she carried out a further nine patrols in the Mediterranean.
First patrol
U-205's first patrol began when she left Trondheim on 24 July 1941; she travelled through the gap between Greenland and Iceland (the Denmark Strait) and docked at Brest in occupied France, on 23 August 1941.
Second patrol
Leaving Lorient on 23 September 1941, U-205 was attacked and damaged by aircraft on 27 September and returned to port, arriving in Lorient on 2 October 1941.
Third patrol
On 3 November 1941 U-205 left Lorient and joined Wolfpack Arnauld. Breaking through the Gibraltar barrage, U-205 joined the 29th U-Flotilla in La Spezia on 10 December 1941.
Fourth patrol
U-205 left La Spezia on 5 January 1942 and returned on 10 February.
Fifth patrol
Having left La Spezia on 17 March, U-205 reached Salamis on 6 April 1942.
Sixth patrol
Sailing from La Spezia on 6 May 1942, U-205 reached Salamis on 8 June 1942.
Seventh patrol
On the return leg, U-205 successfully attacked the British light cruiser HMS Hermione on 16 June 1942, guarding convoy MW-11 killing the ship's cat 'Convoy' and 87 of his crew-mates. The U-boat docked in La Spezia on 23 June.
Eighth patrol
On 3 August 1942, U-205 sailed from La Spezia for Pula, arriving there on 10 September 1942.
Ninth patrol
Pola, 20 October 1942 – La Spezia, 19 November 1942 and La Spezia, 20 November 1942 – Pola, 24 November 1942
Tenth patrol
Pola, 12 January 1943 – Salamis 26 January 1943
Last patrol and sinking
Leaving Salamis on 2 February 1943, U-205 was manoeuvering to attack a convoy off
Wolfpacks
U-205 took part in one wolfpack, namely:
- Arnauld (5 – 18 November 1941)
Aftermath
U-205 is widely believed to be the submarine with the erroneous number U-307 in Peter Keeble's book Ordeal by Water, in which he describes his dive to recover encrypting equipment from a sunken U-boat.
Summary of raiding history
Date | Ship Name | Nationality | Tonnage (Tons) |
Fate[4] |
---|---|---|---|---|
16 June 1942 | HMS Hermione | Royal Navy | 5,450 | Sunk |
See also
- Mediterranean U-boat Campaign (World War II)
- Convoy HG 73
References
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-205". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 3 February 2012.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrols by U-205". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 3 February 2013.
- ^ a b c d Gröner 1991, pp. 43–46.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-205". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
Bibliography
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, 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; Röll, 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.
- Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. Vol. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
- Jak Mallmann Showell, Enigma U-boats, 2000, p. 95.
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC boat U-205". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
- Hofmann, Markus. "U 205". Deutsche U-Boote 1935–1945 - u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved 9 December 2014.