While Waiting...

[Méo]

While waiting for some info/screens/video from ubisoft i thought it could be an idea to post some interesting reading/video about the u-boat war.

If you guys have QUICK and INTERESTING reading/video about it, post them! It's always good to know more.


Here's what i found for the moment (It's from uboat.net):


Although Dönitz was essentially on his own as far as training and organisation was concerned, he was looking forward to the task. He wrote that he had his "own ideas about the training of the Flotilla and had set myself certain, clearly defined fundamental objectives." He went on to give details of these objectives. He said:

1. Skip
2. Skip

3. As the range at which a U-boat should fire, both in surface and in submerged attack, I laid down the short range of 600 yards...During the summer of 1935 the UAS had been teaching the young crews that when a U-boat discharged its torpedoes submerged, it must do so at a range of over 3,000 yards from the target, in order to avoid detection by the British Asdic apparatus...I strenuously opposed this conception...

4. I considered that the U-boat was ideal as a torpedo carrier, even at night and in a surface attack.

5. Skip

a. It is essential, in an attack on any given objective, to be able to deliver the attack in as great strength as possible...to bring a number of U-boats to attack simultaneously the given objective...A massed target then, should be attacked by massed U-boats.

http://www.uboat.net/men/training/introduction.htm


I found it particularly interesting because it's a very daring strategy and i remember an interview with kretschmer saying that he got through a convoy, in surface, at night and shot the most valuable targets at close range.

Seems to me like those daring moves were almost impossible to achieve in SHIII.

[Méo]

Some interesting videos: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2q...que-1_politics

I can't find them with subtitles.

Nevertheless, the first 30 seconds of the clip are very interesting: we can see an underwater footage of torpedo launching (we can see better footage of this at 8:02) and the hit on the ship is very violent!

[oscar19681]

Originally Posted by Méo

Some interesting videos: http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x2q...que-1_politics

I can't find them with subtitles.

Nevertheless, the first 30 seconds of the clip are very interesting: we can see an underwater footage of torpedo launching (we can see better footage of this at 8:02) and the hit on the ship is very violent!

Allthought i dont understand a word or french the footage is good and i have never seen most of it before

[Méo]

If you check at the end of the clip you will see that the crew is giving bread to survivors.

The narrator says: ''What about survivors, we give them bread, a compass and wish them good luck''

So that differs a lot from Hollywood vision (particularly in the movie U-571) who almost describe u-boat crew as ''Evildoers''.

[Stormfly]

Originally Posted by Méo

If you check at the end of the clip you will see that the crew is giving bread to survivors.

The narrator says: ''What about survivors, we give them bread, a compass and wish them good luck''

So that differs a lot from Hollywood vision (particularly in the movie U-571) who almost describe u-boat crew as ''Evildoers''.

The "Waas-Report" is saying:

In a secret conference at Hitlers "Reichskanzlei" autumn 42 with Dönitz, Raeder and Waas, the Laconia occurrence was reviewed...

Hitler than dictated a direct order:
"Ships and crews are to exterminate, also crews in liveboats"

Keitel than grab his black pocket book and noted that order. After a gerneral silence,

Dönits stand up to enter a military posture and sayed:
"No my leader, It is violating a seaman´s honour fireing on helples shipwracked man. I cant give such a order. My u-boat man as volunteers, are fighting with heavy casualities with awareness to fight proper for a good thing. Such a order would undermine theier fighting morality. I request to cancel this order"

Hitler than sayed in his vienna dialect:
"Do what you want to do, but no more help or sailing instructions"

Keitel than grabed his black pocket book again and crossed out his last notes.

In this episode, no one except Hitler and Dönits talked.

Source: Jochen Brennecke, "Jäger-Gejagte" Deutsche U-Boote 1939-1945, ISBN 3-548-25214-1

[mookiemookie]

Ok, since I'm bored - somewhat controversial statement time:

Doenitz was convicted by the Allies at Nuremberg, not for the U-boat war, but for his role in being an unrepentant Nazi and the leader of the Reich after Hitler's suicide.

Discuss.

[Stormfly]

Originally Posted by mookiemookie

Ok, since I'm bored - somewhat controversial statement time:

Doenitz was convicted by the Allies at Nuremberg, not for the U-boat war, but for his role in being an unrepentant Nazi and the leader of the Reich after Hitler's suicide.

Discuss.

ohh thats explaining why he is speaking french in that videos above (he had some problems doing so)...

Shure he was a Nazi, for what he had also to pay for. But he had the courage to say no to Hitler, defending the Geneva Convention, and of course the morality of his man. This wont make him a hero (he knowed very well about other Nazi´s crimes), but tells me that in some devil, there must be a bit of humanity.

[Méo]

@Stormfly
I knew about the Laconia incident but i didn't know about this, cool!

Originally Posted by mookiemookie

Ok, since I'm bored

That's why i started this thread, since there's very little info from Ubi and most of people here seem to speculate on very technical matters, it's getting boring and i was looking for some cool info.

[Méo]

Originally Posted by mookiemookie

Doenitz was convicted by the Allies at Nuremberg, not for the U-boat war, but for his role in being an unrepentant Nazi and the leader of the Reich after Hitler's suicide.

Discuss.

Could you explain more about what you mean by ''being an unrepentant Nazi''.

Edit: Just an example: someone could support Bush without knowing or supporting what happened in the Abu Ghraib prison.

Maybe not a good example but you surely know what i mean.

[mookiemookie]

Originally Posted by Méo

Could you explain more about what you mean by ''being an unrepentant Nazi''.

http://books.google.com/books?id=qOE...itz%22&f=false

Dønitz was railroaded for ordering Unrestricted Submarine Wafare.
They convicted him in spite of two USN admirals (Nimitz and Lockwood) testifying in his defense.

[Jimbuna]

Originally Posted by Snestorm

Dønitz was railroaded for ordering Unrestricted Submarine Wafare.
They convicted him in spite of two USN admirals (Nimitz and Lockwood) testifying in his defense.

....and it is commonly believed that the testimonies saved him from the gallows.

[kptn_kaiserhof]

i belive it was luck