Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock
| Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock | |
|---|---|
|
Erich Topp (left) and Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock after a war patrol | |
| Nickname(s) | Recke |
| Born |
11 December 1911 Bremen |
| Died |
18 April 1986 (aged 74) Bremen |
| Allegiance |
.svg.png){kind=small} Weimar Republic (to 1933).svg.png){kind=small} Nazi Germany |
| Service/branch |
.svg.png){kind=small} Reichsmarine.svg.png){kind=small} Kriegsmarine |
| Years of service | 1931–45 |
| Rank | Fregattenkapitän |
| Unit |
SSS Horst Wessel cruiser Karlsruhe 7th U-boat Flotilla 9th U-boat Flotilla 11th U-boat Flotilla |
| Commands held |
U-8 U-5 U-96 9th U-boat Flotilla U-256 11th U-boat Flotilla |
| Battles/wars | |
| Awards |
U-boat War Badge Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves |
| Other work | Captain in the merchant fleet |
Fregattenkapitän Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock (11 December 1911 – 18 April 1986) was a German naval officer and submarine commander during World War II. He was sixth among the top ten Aces of the Deep during the Battle of the Atlantic against the Allies, in terms of tonnage of merchant ships sunk. He commanded four U-boats, and his most notable and successful tour was commanding the U-96 a Type VIIC U-boat, which gained widespread recognition when one of its patrols was documented and publicized by an accompanying war correspondent Lothar-Günther Buchheim. He was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves (German: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub) for his achievements as a U-boat commander. The story of the U-96 was eventually made into a mini-series and film called Das Boot, in which he was portrayed by Jürgen Prochnow.
Biography
Lehmann-Willenbrock was born on 11 December 1911 in Bremen, German Empire. He joined the Reichsmarine of the Weimar Republic in April 1931 as a member "Crew 31" (the incoming class of 1931), with the rank of Seekadett, serving on a light cruiser and a sailing school ship before he transferred to the U-Bootwaffe in April 1939, five months before World War II began. Upon serving as an executive officer on U-8, he was promoted to Kapitänleutnant and took command of U-5 in December 1939. Both U-8 and U-5 were Type II submarines. His first patrol, which lasted 15 days, was along the coast of Norway during Operation Hartmut, the U-boat operation in support of the invasion of Norway. No ships were sunk.
Upon the return of U-5, Lehmann-Willenbrock was transferred to the newly commissioned U-96, a Type VIIC U-boat whose crew underwent three months of training before being put onto active duty. During three patrols under Willenbrock's command, U-96 sank 125,580 tons of enemy shipping. The third patrol alone resulted in seven ships sunk, for 49,490 tons. In 1941 Willenbrock's sinkings with U-96 included three British troop ships: Oropesa (16 January), Almeda Star (17 January) and Anselm (15 July); each with considerable loss of life. The seventh patrol was the approximate time that Lothar-Günther Buchheim boarded U-96 and documented the boat's successes in his book Das Boot. Willenbrock earned all of his medals during his patrols with U-96.
Lehmann-Willenbrock left U-96 in March 1942 to be promoted to Korvettenkapitän and appointed Flottillenchef of the 9th U-boat Flotilla, stationed in Brest. On 2 September 1944 he assumed command of U-256 and escaped the besieged Brest just a few days before the town's surrender. He reached Bergen, Norway on 23 October. In Bergen he was appointed Flottillenchef of the 11th U-boat Flotilla in December, and held the position until the German surrender in Norway on 9 May 1945.
After a year in captivity, Lehmann-Willenbrock returned to Germany in May 1946, salvaging ships in the River Rhine. In 1948, he left Germany aboard his ship, Magellan, with three of his friends to Buenos Aires. Here he was skipper on several trade ships. After returning to Germany, he served as captain on several merchantmen, and was appointed captain of the German freighter Otto Hahn, the first of only four merchant cargo nuclear ships. Buchheim's book Der Abschied ("The Goodbye") describes one of its voyages, which Buchheim joined as a passenger.
He was decorated in 1974 with the Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. In 1982, Lehmann-Willenbrock accompanied Wolfgang Petersen and the Das Boot cast and crew as an advisor to the film. Afterwards, he returned to his home at Bremen, where he remained until his death.
Summary of career
During his patrols with U-96, Lehmann-Willenbrock was awarded with the Iron Cross 2nd Class, the Iron Cross 1st Class, the U-Boat War Badge, the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves for his achievements. He sank 24 ships for 170,237 gross register tons (GRT), damaged two ships for 15,864 GRT and damaged one ship as a total loss for 8,888 GRT.
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Awards
- Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th Class (2 October 1936)[2]
- Iron Cross (1939)
- U-boat War Badge (1939) (2 January 1941)[2]
- Italian Croce di Guerra with Swords (1 November 1941)[2]
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
- Knight's Cross on 26 February 1941 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-96[4][5]
- 51st Oak Leaves on 31 December 1941 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-96[4][6]
- Wound Badge (1939) in Black (8 May 1942)[7]
- War Merit Cross 2nd Class with Swords (30 January 1944)[2]
- U-boat Front Clasp in Bronze (19 October 1944)[7]
- Mentioned three times in the Wehrmachtbericht (14 December 1940, 25 February 1941 and 20 May 1941)
- Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
References
Citations
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.
- Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
- 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.
- Thomas, Franz (1998). Die Eichenlaubträger 1939–1945 Band 2: L–Z [The Oak Leaves Bearers 1939–1945 Volume 2: L–Z] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2300-9.
- Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 1, 1. September 1939 bis 31. Dezember 1941 [The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 1, 1 September 1939 to 31 December 1941] (in German). München, Germany: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. 1985. ISBN 978-3-423-05944-2.
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 17 February 2007.
| Military offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Kapitänleutnant Wolf-Harro Stiebler |
Commanding officer, U-8 14 October 1939 – 30 November 1939 |
Succeeded by Kapitänleutnant Georg-Heinz Michel |
| Preceded by Kapitänleutnant Günter Kutschmann |
Commanding officer, U-5 5 December 1939 – 11 August 1940 |
Succeeded by Kapitänleutnant Herbert Opitz |
| First | Commanding officer, U-96 14 September 1940 – 28 March 1942 |
Succeeded by Kapitänleutnant Hans-Jürgen Hellriegel |
| Preceded by Kapitänleutnant Ernst-Günther Brischke |
Commanding officer, U-256 2 September 1944 – 18 October 1944 |
Ship struck |
| Preceded by Kapitänleutnant Jürgen Oesten |
Commander of the 9th U-boat Flotilla May 1942 – September 1944 |
Succeeded by disbanded |
| Preceded by Fregattenkapitän Hans Cohausz |
Commander of the 11th U-boat Flotilla December 1944 – May 1945 |
Succeeded by disbanded |
