German submarine U-300
History | |
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Nazi Germany | |
Name | U-300 |
Ordered | 23 March 1942 |
Builder | Bremer Vulkan, Bremen-Vegesack |
Yard number | 65 |
Laid down | 9 April 1943 |
Launched | 23 November 1943 |
Commissioned | 29 December 1943 |
Fate | Sunk on 22 February 1945 by British warships[1] |
General characteristics | |
Class and type | Type VIIC/41 submarine |
Displacement | |
Length |
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Beam |
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Height | 9.60 m (31 ft 6 in) |
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[2][3] | |
Part of: |
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Identification codes: | M 05 631 |
Commanders: |
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Operations: |
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Victories: |
German submarine U-300 was a
.The submarine was laid down on 9 April 1943 by the Bremer Vulkan yard at Bremen-Vegesack as yard number 65. She was launched on 23 November 1943, and commissioned on 29 December 1943 under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Fritz Hein. U-300 served with the 8th U-boat Flotilla for training, the 7th U-boat Flotilla from 1 August 1944 to 30 September 1944 and the 11th U-boat Flotilla from 1 October 1944 to 22 February 1945 for operations. She carried out three patrols, sinking two ships, and damaged two more before she was sunk on 22 February 1945 off Quarteira, Portugal.
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
First patrol
U-300 departed
Second patrol
The U-boat left Trondheim on 4 October 1944 for another patrol south of Iceland. On 10 November she sank two ships from
She hit the British 6,017 GRT tanker Shirvan[6] setting her on fire, and when the Icelandic 1,542 GRT cargo ship Godafoss[7] stopped, against orders, to pick up survivors from the tanker, she was also torpedoed, and sank within seven minutes with the loss of 24 lives, including four young children.[8] The abandoned Shirvan foundered the next day.
U-300 returned to Stavanger, Norway on 2 December.[9]
Third patrol
U-300 sailed from Stavanger on 21 January 1945 on her third and final patrol to the Atlantic waters off Spain.[10] There on 17 February, 27 miles from Gibraltar, she attacked Convoy UGS-72, firing two spreads of two torpedoes, hitting the American 7,176 GRT Liberty ship Michael J. Stone[11] and the British 9,551 GRT tanker Regent Lion.[12]
The Michael J. Stone was flooded in both holds and the steering room. However, she managed to reach Gibraltar under her own power where she was dry-docked and repaired. The Regent Lion, which had already been damaged by a torpedo from another U-boat the previous day, had to be taken in tow. She was grounded on Perl Rock, a mile south of Carnero Point in the Bay of Gibraltar, and was later declared a total loss.
Sinking
U-300 was sunk on 22 February 1945 in the North Atlantic south of Quarteira, in position 36°29′N 08°20′W / 36.483°N 8.333°W, by gunfire from the British Algerine-class minesweepers HMS Recruit and HMS Pincher, after being badly damaged by depth charges from the British armed yacht HMS Evadne on 19 February. Nine of the crew were lost, there were 41 survivors.[2]
Summary of raiding history
Date | Ship Name | Nationality | Tonnage ( GRT )
|
Fate[13] |
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10 November 1944 | Godafoss | Iceland | 1,542 | Sunk |
10 November 1944 | Shirvan | United Kingdom | 6,017 | Sunk |
17 February 1945 | Michael J. Stone | United States | 7,176 | Damaged |
17 February 1945 | Regent Lion | United Kingdom | 9,551 | Total loss |
References
- ^ Kemp 1999, pp. 233–4.
- ^ a b Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VIIC/41 boat U-300". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "War Patrols by German U-boat U-300". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
- ^ a b c d Gröner 1991, pp. 43–46.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-boat U-300 from 18 Jul 1944 to 17 Aug 1944". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Shirvan (Steam tanker)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Godafoss (Steam merchant)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
- ^ "Morgunblaðið Nov. 12 1944". timarit.is. Retrieved 10 January 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-boat U-300 from 4 Oct 1944 to 2 Dec 1944". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrol of U-boat U-300 from 21 Jan 1945 to 22 Feb 1945". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Michael J. Stone (Steam merchant)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Regent Lion (Motor tanker)". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 2 January 2010.
- ^ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-300". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 29 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.
- Bishop, Chris (2006). Kriegsmarine U-Boats, 1939-45. London: Amber Books. ISBN 978-1-904687-96-2.
- Kemp, Paul (1999). U-Boats Destroyed - German Submarine Losses in the World Wars. London: Arms & Armour. ISBN 1-85409-515-3.
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type VII/C41 boat U-300". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
- Hofmann, Markus. "U 300". Deutsche U-Boote 1935-1945 - u-boot-archiv.de (in German). Retrieved 6 December 2014.