German submarine U-755
Encyclopedia
German submarine U-755 was a German Type VIIC submarine U-boat
built for the German
Kriegsmarine
for service during World War II. Under the command of Kapitänleutnant Walter Göing U-755 served with 9th U-boat Flotilla in the Atlantic, and later with 29th U-boat Flotilla operated in the Mediterranean.
. She was commissioned on 3 November 1941, under the command of Kapitänleutnant Walter Göing and trained with 5th U-Boat Flotilla until 31 July 1942.
Serving with 9th U-boat Flotilla, she served in two patrols. On 9 September 1942 – thirty-four days into her first patrol- U-755 sank her first ship. At 15.16 hours on 9 Sep 1942, she fired a spread of three torpedoes at the USS Muskeget, two hits were reported. Of the 121 onboard, all were killed. U-755 docked at Brest on 6 October, after sixty-four days at sea.
On 1 November, U-755 began travelling from Brest to La Spezia
in Italy
, after a further twenty-two days at sea.
On 1 December 1942, U-755 was transferred from 9th U-Boat Flotilla, to 29th U-Boat Flotilla. She began her twenty-five day long third voyage on 27 January 1943. She returned to La Spezia from Algeria on 20 February.
U-755 set out on her fourth patrol on 21 March, where she was to head to Morocco, and then head off to Toulon
in Vichy France
. At 02.07 hours on 26 March, U-755 fired three torpedoes at a convoy north of Ceuta and confirmed a hit in the bow of FFL Sergent Gouarne (P-43), which broke in two and sank in approximately ninety seconds, killing five of its nineteen-man complement. The U-boat attacked the same convoy with another spread of three torpedoes at 04.13 hours and reported a hit after 12 minutes, but this was probably an end-of-run detonation.
On 2 April, the French trawler Simon Duhamel II was spotted off Cape d´Alboran, some time after 06:00, after straggling from convoy TE-20 due to a problem with her engines. U-755 fired at the trawler at 06:24, with one confirmed hit to the midship. This hit caused an explosion that broke the vessel apart, sinking in a mere four minutes. Only one man of her fifty-three-man crew survived, being rescued two days later.
On 18 May, U-755 set sail from Toulon on her fifth, and last patrol. Two days in, she was attacked by the British submarine HMS Sickle
, but the fired torpedoes missed.
Eight days in, at 06.26 hours, U-755 was attacked by a British Lockheed Hudson
aircraft of No. 500 Squadron RAF
, flown by pilot S/L H.G. Holmes, DFC, thirteen miles north of Alboran Island. The aircraft was hit in the port engine by AA fire during the first attack run, but dropped three depth charges. The Hudson then made two dive-bombing attacks and dropped first two and then one A/S bomb, one of them exploding just five yards off the port beam. The damaged engine then forced the pilot to return to base. Strafing had killed one crewman and wounded two others on U-755, which was forced to return to port due to heavy damages but was sunk in another air attack only 2 days later. Of her complement of forty, only nine crewmen survived, her commander was not one of them.
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
built for the German
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
Kriegsmarine
Kriegsmarine
The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
for service during World War II. Under the command of Kapitänleutnant Walter Göing U-755 served with 9th U-boat Flotilla in the Atlantic, and later with 29th U-boat Flotilla operated in the Mediterranean.
Record
Work on U-755 began on 11 January 1940 at werk 138 of the Kriegsmarinewerft in WilhelmshavenWilhelmshaven
Wilhelmshaven is a coastal town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the western side of the Jade Bight, a bay of the North Sea.-History:...
. She was commissioned on 3 November 1941, under the command of Kapitänleutnant Walter Göing and trained with 5th U-Boat Flotilla until 31 July 1942.
Serving with 9th U-boat Flotilla, she served in two patrols. On 9 September 1942 – thirty-four days into her first patrol- U-755 sank her first ship. At 15.16 hours on 9 Sep 1942, she fired a spread of three torpedoes at the USS Muskeget, two hits were reported. Of the 121 onboard, all were killed. U-755 docked at Brest on 6 October, after sixty-four days at sea.
On 1 November, U-755 began travelling from Brest to La Spezia
La Spezia
La Spezia , at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the Liguria region of northern Italy, is the capital city of the province of La Spezia. Located between Genoa and Pisa on the Ligurian Sea, it is one of the main Italian military and commercial harbours and hosts one of Italy's biggest military...
in Italy
Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...
, after a further twenty-two days at sea.
On 1 December 1942, U-755 was transferred from 9th U-Boat Flotilla, to 29th U-Boat Flotilla. She began her twenty-five day long third voyage on 27 January 1943. She returned to La Spezia from Algeria on 20 February.
U-755 set out on her fourth patrol on 21 March, where she was to head to Morocco, and then head off to Toulon
Toulon
Toulon is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence....
in Vichy France
Vichy France
Vichy France, Vichy Regime, or Vichy Government, are common terms used to describe the government of France that collaborated with the Axis powers from July 1940 to August 1944. This government succeeded the Third Republic and preceded the Provisional Government of the French Republic...
. At 02.07 hours on 26 March, U-755 fired three torpedoes at a convoy north of Ceuta and confirmed a hit in the bow of FFL Sergent Gouarne (P-43), which broke in two and sank in approximately ninety seconds, killing five of its nineteen-man complement. The U-boat attacked the same convoy with another spread of three torpedoes at 04.13 hours and reported a hit after 12 minutes, but this was probably an end-of-run detonation.
On 2 April, the French trawler Simon Duhamel II was spotted off Cape d´Alboran, some time after 06:00, after straggling from convoy TE-20 due to a problem with her engines. U-755 fired at the trawler at 06:24, with one confirmed hit to the midship. This hit caused an explosion that broke the vessel apart, sinking in a mere four minutes. Only one man of her fifty-three-man crew survived, being rescued two days later.
On 18 May, U-755 set sail from Toulon on her fifth, and last patrol. Two days in, she was attacked by the British submarine HMS Sickle
HMS Sickle (P224)
HMS Sickle was an S class submarine of the Royal Navy, and part of the Third Group built of that class. She was built by Cammell Laird and launched on 27 August 1942...
, but the fired torpedoes missed.
Eight days in, at 06.26 hours, U-755 was attacked by a British Lockheed Hudson
Lockheed Hudson
The Lockheed Hudson was an American-built light bomber and coastal reconnaissance aircraft built initially for the Royal Air Force shortly before the outbreak of the Second World War and primarily operated by the RAF thereafter...
aircraft of No. 500 Squadron RAF
No. 500 Squadron RAF
No. 500 Squadron AAF was formed in 1931 as a Special Reserve squadron and in 1936 became part of the Auxiliary Air Force. It served in a number of roles before being disbanded in 1957.-Formation and early years:...
, flown by pilot S/L H.G. Holmes, DFC, thirteen miles north of Alboran Island. The aircraft was hit in the port engine by AA fire during the first attack run, but dropped three depth charges. The Hudson then made two dive-bombing attacks and dropped first two and then one A/S bomb, one of them exploding just five yards off the port beam. The damaged engine then forced the pilot to return to base. Strafing had killed one crewman and wounded two others on U-755, which was forced to return to port due to heavy damages but was sunk in another air attack only 2 days later. Of her complement of forty, only nine crewmen survived, her commander was not one of them.