Hans-Günther Lange

Hans-Günther Lange
Born	28 September 1916 Hanover
Died	3 April 2014 (aged 97)
Allegiance	Nazi Germany  West Germany
Service/branch	Kriegsmarine  German Navy
Years of service	1937–45 1957–72
Rank	Kapitänleutnant (Kriegsmarine) Fregattenkapitän (Bundesmarine)
Unit	SSS Gorch Fock Schlesien U-431
Commands held	U-711
Battles/wars	World War II Battle of the Atlantic
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Hans-Günther Lange (28 September 1916 – 3 April 2014)^[1] was a German naval officer who was a Kapitänleutnant with the Kriegsmarine during World War II and later served with the Bundesmarine. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves of Nazi Germany.

Career

Lange served as 1st Watch Officer on U-431 from 15 December 1941 to 30 June 1942. He went on three war patrols on U-431 under the command of Wilhelm Dommes.

U-711 under the command of Lange attacked and sank the HMS Bluebell on 17 February 1945. On 4 May 1945 U-711 was damaged in Operation Judgement, an attack by the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy at Kilbotn aimed at the depot ships Black Watch and Senja, and sank after attempts by Lange and seven other crew members to keep it afloat. The rest of the crew, who had gone on board Black Watch, did not survive. Only a few hours earlier Lange had received the signal from Germany ordering all U-boats to cease attacks on allied shipping with immediate effect. He was interviewed in 2008 at the age of 92 for a book published in Norway which also contains information from Norwegian and British eyewitnesses.^[2] The book also reveals that Lange took U-711 on patrols far along the Arctic coast of North Russia, past Novaya Zemlya and into the Kara Sea. Isachsen's book describes how Lange was awarded the Oak Leaf Clasp by his commanding officer, who had no spares and presented Lange with one of his own.

The wreck of U-711 was filmed in 2007.^[3]

In October 1957 Lange joined the Bundesmarine. Here he took part in the construction of a new German U-boat force within NATO. For two years he commanded the 1. Ubootgeschwader (1st Submarine Squadron) and in January 1964 became commander of the entire U-boat force. Later he held several staff positions, ending his second naval career in 1972 as staff officer in the Marinedivision der Nordsee (naval forces in the North Sea).

Awards

• Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (7 June 1940) & 1st Class (12 December 1940)^[4]
• Destroyer War Badge (24 December 1940)^[4]
• U-boat War Badge (1939)^[5]
• U-boat Front Clasp in Bronze and Silver^[5]
• German Cross in Gold on 11 May 1944 as Oberleutnant zur See on U-711/13. Unterseebootsflottille^[6]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 26 August 1944 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-711^[7]
  • Oak Leaves on 29 April 1945 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-711^[7]
• Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht on 4 May 1944

References

Citations

1. Hans-Günther Lange
2. Isachsen 2009, p.
3. Film of U-711 at Kilbotn on YouTube
4. Busch & Röll 2003, p. 472.
5. Busch & Röll 2003, p. 473.
6. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 268.
7. Scherzer 2007, p. 492.

Bibliography

• Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (2003). Der U-Boot-Krieg 1939–1945 — Die Ritterkreuzträger der U-Boot-Waffe von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [The U-Boat War 1939–1945 — The Knight's Cross Bearers of the U-Boat Force from September 1939 to May 1945] (in German). Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn Germany: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 978-3-8132-0515-2.
• Isachsen, Harald (2009). Operation Judgement : angrepet på "Black Watch" Kilbotn 4. mai 1945 (in Norwegian). Harstad: Harald Isachsen. ISBN 978-82-998024-2-0.
• Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II [The German Cross 1941 – 1945 History and Recipients Volume 2] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.