Why Did U-Boat Captains Wear White Caps?

[Gustav Schiebert]

What it says on the tin really. Can anyone else shed some light on the origins of this tradition? Did it start in the U-boat arm, or from sometime before?

I've done a bit of digging, so far:

White caps were just navy summer issue, not a special 'U Boat issue'
Most commanders wore them - but not all. Bleichrodt and Teddy Suhren being two who didn't
An oft-quoted reason is 'to identify the commander' - fine, but where did this tradition in itself start? Why did no other arms adopt it?
Gunther Prien's propaganda biography, which covers his merchant career, makes mention of the master of a merchant ship also wearing a white cap 'by tradition', so maybe it wasn't a specifically U-boat tradition.


Realise that isn't strictly SH3 related but hopefully some of you old sea dogs might know this one ;) being a young sea pup, no-one's told me this so far.

[Sailor Steve]

To keep their heads warm! :O:

[Reinhard Hardegen]

What it says on the tin really. Can anyone else shed some light on the origins of this tradition? Did it start in the U-boat arm, or from sometime before?

I've done a bit of digging, so far:

White caps were just navy summer issue, not a special 'U Boat issue'
Most commanders wore them - but not all. Bleichrodt and Teddy Suhren being two who didn't
An oft-quoted reason is 'to identify the commander' - fine, but where did this tradition in itself start? Why did no other arms adopt it?
Gunther Prien's propaganda biography, which covers his merchant career, makes mention of the master of a merchant ship also wearing a white cap 'by tradition', so maybe it wasn't a specifically U-boat tradition.


Realise that isn't strictly SH3 related but hopefully some of you old sea dogs might know this one ;) being a young sea pup, no-one's told me this so far.

The uniform for an enlisted sailor consisted of a jacket, a pair of trousers, a white and a blue shirt, matching collars edged with three stripes, a silk neckerchief, grey gloves and a cap with two ribbons. An officer wore a midnight-blue [1] double-breasted jacket with ten brass buttons and a matching peaked cap. U-boat personnel also wore jackets and overtrousers of brown or grey leather. As an unwritten rule, the captain of a U-boat wore a white peaked cap.

When U-boats were at sea, there were few dress restrictions. Full uniforms were typically worn on departure from and return to base, but due to the cramped and humid conditions, U-boat crews wore more comfortable civilian clothing on patrol. These included seaman's jumpers and sleeveless shirts. Lookouts wore oilskins and sou'westers on duty. A grey-brown denim "battle-dress" uniform was also worn on patrol, the original issue being from British uniform stocks abandoned at Dunkirk.

So from what I have been reading it was to quickly identify the commander in times of need, as if the lights go out from damage, you can see the white cap better then the blue in close quarters. Which is why only the boat commander wore it, unlike the other ships within the navy.

Hope that helps.

[Jimbuna]

The uniform for an enlisted sailor consisted of a jacket, a pair of trousers, a white and a blue shirt, matching collars edged with three stripes, a silk neckerchief, grey gloves and a cap with two ribbons. An officer wore a midnight-blue [1] double-breasted jacket with ten brass buttons and a matching peaked cap. U-boat personnel also wore jackets and overtrousers of brown or grey leather. As an unwritten rule, the captain of a U-boat wore a white peaked cap.

When U-boats were at sea, there were few dress restrictions. Full uniforms were typically worn on departure from and return to base, but due to the cramped and humid conditions, U-boat crews wore more comfortable civilian clothing on patrol. These included seaman's jumpers and sleeveless shirts. Lookouts wore oilskins and sou'westers on duty. A grey-brown denim "battle-dress" uniform was also worn on patrol, the original issue being from British uniform stocks abandoned at Dunkirk.

So from what I have been reading it was to quickly identify the commander in times of need, as if the lights go out from damage, you can see the white cap better then the blue in close quarters. Which is why only the boat commander wore it, unlike the other ships within the navy.

Hope that helps.

Rgr that.

[Rhodes]

And then, there also the special, maybe secret for some, club of u-boat captains, that used a tea cozy! One very famous does come to mind!

[HW3]

And then, there also the special, maybe secret for some, club of u-boat captains, that used a tea cozy! One very famous does come to mind!

You would be referring to the great one, Balz, and his sidekick Bernard I presume. I miss those stories. Every once in a while, while on patrol, I swear I hear the banana's fart.:O:

:subsim:

[Jimbuna]

Ah yes, the great Balz

http://img694.imageshack.us/img694/9603/16760293.jpg (http://imageshack.us/photo/my-images/694/16760293.jpg/)

[Gustav Schiebert]

Thanks for the responses, chaps! Its original roots may be lost in the depths of time but spotting the Captain in dim emergency lighting may well have been the reason. This is my personal favourite headress, from Jürgen Oesten:

http://www.uboat.net/media/men/commanders/oesten2.jpg

[Vince82]

Why did no other arms adopt it?


On a ship it's hard to get sniped. And it looks rediculous if ur not on a ship or in the navy.

:()1:

[flag4]

Why Did U-Boat Captains Wear White Caps?

to get to the other side.

[Sailor Steve]

to get to the other side.
And exactly what does that have to do with Bears and Popes? :O:

[Madox58]

Why Did U-Boat Captains Wear White Caps?

Cause Fuchsia just didn't work.

[J0313]

Why Did U-Boat Captains Wear White Caps?

Cause Fuchsia just didn't work.

Are you sure you spelled Fuchsia right? LOL!

[Herr-Berbunch]

Why did U-Boat Captains wear white caps?

Less cleaning with gull poop. :hmmm:

[Jimbuna]

Why Did U-Boat Captains Wear White Caps?

Cause Fuchsia just didn't work.

LOL :)

It certainly worked for Todd :03:

[RustySubmarine]

BECAUSE

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/7/76/Persil_logo.png/200px-Persil_logo.png (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Persil_logo.png)

WASHES WHITER

:rotfl2::rotfl2::rotfl2:

[scramasax]

Well. It's tradition. ;)

My father was weapon specialist on... what you call this? rocket boat? fast attack boat? Rocket weapon specialist, but on his badge was torpedo and trident. (if you ask me it's fork and knife) Why? Tradition...

[sharkbit]

Easier to spot when it floats up to the surface after his boat is depth charged into oblivion.

:)

[Hitman]

If there's one thing where sailors actually surpass the number of their traditions, that's in superstitions ... :) The sea is a really peculiar environment, and has interesting influx on men. Since we come out of it, there seems to be something ringing in the deepest and most primitive part of our brain when we are there. The white cap thing is just another of those things with an origin lost in time, I also read that the merchant marine captains did, so I don't think it was only a uboat thing :ping:

[RustySubmarine]

During the war the Royal Navy wore dark caps and all lower deck ratings cap tallies, just had H.M.S. with no ship name. White caps came in after the war for all ranks and lower deck ratings had the name of their ship displayed.

Submariners (lower deck ratings) that is, never have had the sub names on their caps. They have always been H.M. Submarines.

I am not sure, but I think the lower deck square rig uniform has now been replaced, but I may be wrong.

[Karl Heinrich]

It was an unofficial (but near-universal) practice of wearing the white summer covers on the schirmmütze to identify them clearly as commander. This was a relatively new practice during WW2 as far as I'm aware.

[AndreasT]

The captain is on top of the waves. The top of the wave is white.
Is it called spume?
I would think it comes from something like that.
Why did the tank guys have black berets? Because it is dark inside a tank.