Unterseeboot 556 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the Kriegsmarine. Type VIIA The Type VIIA boats were designed in 1933 until 1934 as the first of a new generation of attack U-boats Most were built at Deschimag AG Weser in Bremen with U33-36 U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word, itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot ( undersea boat) and refers The Kriegsmarine (English "War navy" was the name of the German Navy between 1935 and 1945 during the Nazi regime superseding the Her keel was laid down on 2 January 1940 by Blohm + Voss of Hamburg. Events 366 - The Alamanni cross the frozen Rhine River in large numbers invading the Roman Empire. Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Blohm + Voss is a German shipbuilding and engineering works It was founded on April 5, 1877, by Hermann Blohm and Ernst Voss as a Hamburg (English, German: ˈhambʊɐk local pronunciation Low German / Low Saxon: Hamborg) is the second-largest city in Germany She was commissioned on 6 February 1941, with Kapitänleutnant Herbert Wohlfarth in command. Events 46 BC - Julius Caesar defeats the combined army of Pompeian followers and Numidians under Metellus Scipio Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Herbert Wohlfarth (5 June 1915&ndash13 August 1982was a successful World War II U-boat commander Wohlfarth commanded her for her entire career.
U-556 and the battleship Bismarck were neighbors in the ways at Blohm + Voss as they finished construction at about the same time. A battleship is a large heavily armored Warship with a main battery consisting of the largest Calibre of Guns Battleships were Background Design of the ship started in the early 1930s following on from Germany's development of the ''Deutschland'' class cruisers and the ''Scharnhorst'' class Blohm + Voss is a German shipbuilding and engineering works It was founded on April 5, 1877, by Hermann Blohm and Ernst Voss as a (Bismarck was commissioned on 24 August 1940. Events 49 BC - Julius Caesar 's General Gaius Scribonius Curio is defeated in the Second Battle of the Bagradas River Year 1940 ( MCMXL) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full 1940 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. ) In January 1941, as U-556's commissioning ceremonies approached, Wohlfarth wanted a band for the celebration, but could not afford to hire one. Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Kapitän Ernst Lindemann, commanding officer of Bismarck, loaned him his ship's band. Ernst Lindemann ( March 28, 1894 – May 27, 1941) was the captain of the German battleship Bismarck.
As thanks, Wohlfarth drew up a humorous Patenschaftsurkunde (Certificate of Sponsorship) promising that U-556 would protect Bismarck. A drawing shows Wohlfarth as the knight Parzival (his nickname) on the deck of U-556 simultaneously shooting down planes with a pistol and reaching underwater to stop a torpedo with his thumb. Percival or Perceval is one of King Arthur 's legendary Knights of the Round Table. A second drawing then shows the submarine towing the battleship to safety.
The text accompanying the drawing reads:
- Wir U556 (500 to) erklären hiermit vor Neptun, dem Herrscher über Ozeane, Meere, Seen, Flüsse, Büche, Teiche und Rinnsale daß wir unserem grossen Bruder, dem Schlachtschiff Bismarck (42. 000 to) in jeder Lage, zu Wasser, unter Wasser, zu Lande wie in der Luft beistehen wollen.
- Hamburg, den 28. Januar 1941
- Kommandant u
- Besatzung U556
- We, U-556 (500 tons), hereby declare before Neptune, Lord over oceans, seas, lakes, rivers, brooks, ponds, and rivulets, that we will provide any desired assistance to our Big Brother, the battleship Bismarck (42,000 tons), at any place on the water, under water, on land, or in the air. Neptune (Neptūnus is the god of water and the sea in Roman mythology, a brother of Jupiter and Pluto.
- Hamburg, 28. January 1941
- Commander &
- Crew U556
U-556 conducted two patrols, sinking six ships totalling 29,552 tons and damaging one other grossing 4,986 tons.
On 26 May 1941, just four months after Wohlfahrt had sworn to defend Bismarck, U-556 was returning from patrol, low on fuel and entirely out of torpedoes, when she was ordered to reconnoiter in the area of Bismarck's most recently reported position. Events 451 - The Battle of Avarayr between Armenian rebels and the Sassanid Empire takes place Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Background Design of the ship started in the early 1930s following on from Germany's development of the ''Deutschland'' class cruisers and the ''Scharnhorst'' class
Around 19:50, Wohlfahrt saw the battlecruiser HMS Renown and the aircraft carrier HMS Ark Royal coming out of the mist at high speed. Battlecruisers were large Warships in the first half of the 20th century that were first introduced by the British Royal Navy. An aircraft carrier is a Warship designed with Design In 1923 the Admiralty prepared plans for a ten year building programme which included a new aircraft carrier and 300 aircraft for the Fleet Air Arm He recorded in his log, "Enemy bows on, 10 degrees to starboard, without destroyers, without zigzagging," but without torpedoes, could only submerge and avoid them. Wohlfahrt saw activity on Ark Royal's flight deck, which transpired to be the launching of the second, fatal attack on Bismarck.
At 20:39, Wohlfahrt surfaced and transmitted, "Enemy in view, a battleship, an aircraft carrier, course 115, enemy is proceeding at high speed. Position 48° 20′ N, 16° 20′ W. " The course of Renown and Ark Royal toward Bismarck coincided almost exactly with his own; he proceeded on the surface at full speed behind them.
Wohlfahrt's War Diary contains these entries for 27 May 1941:
- 00:00, (wind) northwest 5, seaway 5, rain squalls, moderate visibility, very dark night. Events 927 - Simeon the Great, Tsar of Bulgaria, dies 1120 - Richard III of Capua is anointed Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Surfaced. What can I do for Bismarck? I can see star shells being fired and flashes from Bismarck's guns. It is a terrible feeling to be near and not to be able to do anything. All I can do is reconnoiter and lead in boats that have torpedoes. I am keeping contact at the limit of visibility, reporting the position, and sending directional signals to call up the other boats.
- 03:52: I am moving around on the east side to the south, in order to be in the direction of the activity. I soon reach the limit of what I can do in view of my fuel supply. Otherwise I won't get home.
- 04:00: The seas are rising ever higher. Bismarck still fighting. Reported weather for the Luftwaffe. ( German 'luftvafe is a generic German term for an Air force.
Around 06:30 Wohlfahrt sighted U-74 and transferred the mission of maintaining contact with Bismarck to Kapitänleutnant Eitel-Friedrich Kentrat. He gave Kentrat Bismarck's position based on his observations of the star shells fired during the night, adding: "I have not seen her directly. You assume contact. I have no more fuel. "
Wohlfahrt then submerged and did not surface again until noon, a time at which radio signals were routinely repeated. That was when he heard for the first time the order radioed to him between 07:00 and 08:00 to pick up Bismarck's War Diary. He replied to the Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote (Commander-in-Chief for Submarines, Karl Dönitz) asking that this mission be transferred to Kentrat. Karl Dönitz (ˈdøːnɪts) (16 September 1891 &ndash 24 December 1980 was a German naval Commander who served
Kentrat received the radio order, "U-boat Kentrat pick up Bismarck War Diary," but was unable to locate Bismarck. The battleship had sunk before Wohlfahrt had received the first message at noon.
U-556 did not suffer any casualties to her crew during her career until 27 June 1941, when depth charges from the British corvettes Nasturtium, Celandine, and Gladiolus sank her in the North Atlantic south-west of Iceland. Events 1358 - Republic of Dubrovnik is founded 1709 - Peter the Great defeats Charles XII of Sweden Year 1941 ( MCMXLI) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (the link will display 1941 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. A corvette is a small maneuverable lightly armed Warship, originally smaller than a Frigate and larger than a coastal patrol craft, although many HMS Gladiolus (K34 was the lead ship of Flower class corvettes and served in the Royal Navy. Five died, 41 survived.
See Also: List of U-boats
The list of U-boats includes all U-boats built or operated by Germany.Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic