Heino von Heimburg
Encyclopedia
Heino von Heimburg was a German U-boat
commander
in the Kaiserliche Marine
during World War I and served also as Vice Admiral
in the Kriegsmarine
during World War II.
.
On 16 July, Heimburg sailed for the Dardanelles
. This was at a time when the range of submarines was very limited, unlike today. To reach Bodrum
, UB-14 had to be towed a considerable part of the distance by an Austrian destroyer
. Even so her engine broke down off Crete
and her compass became defective. Despite these problems she arrived safely at Bodrum on 24 July. On arrival she recharged the batteries of the UC-14
which had arrived four days earlier with engine problems. A maintenance team then had to travel from Constantinople
to carry out necessary repairs to both submarines. At the time this journey was not easy being made partly by train
and partly by camel
.
On 12 August, Heimburg sailed from Bodrum for the known steamer route between Alexandria
and the Dardanelles. After leaving, Heimburg's first sighting was a fully lit hospital ship seen that evening which was not attacked. On 13 August he first sighted the liner in service as a hospital ship. He then sighted the sailing unescorted for Madras. He fired one torpedo
from under a mile away which hit her stern. The Royal Edward sank quickly in position 36°13′N 25°51′E 6 miles west from Kandeliusa in the Aegean Sea
. The after deck was awash in three minutes and the ship had sunk with her bows in the air in six minutes. 132 members of her crew died.
The survivors were picked up by the Soudan, two French destroyers and some trawlers. Heimburg and the UB-14 did not stay on to harass the rescue effort, but headed back to Bodrum with some technical problems where she arrived on the morning of the 15 August.
Later in August Heimburg and the UB-14 sank the Australian troopship
Southland
bound for Gallipoli
. Approximately thirty men were killed and the remaining troops and crew were rescued by nearby ships. A skeleton crew of volunteers managed to keep the ship afloat and beach it in Moudros
harbour.
On 4 September, the British submarine
became entangled in enemy torpedo nets off Nagara Point in the Dardanelles
. All attempts to free the submarine failed. However, they had caught the attention of Heimburg, currently in harbour with UB-14 which was undergoing repairs at nearby Çanakkale
. He visited the spot in a small skiff
, from which he lowered a small explosive charge. E7 was forced to the surface and her crew scuttled it before they were taken as prisoners of war.
On 5 November, Heimburg with UB-14 torpedoed and sank the British submarine and after taking command of UC-22
he also torpedoed and sank the French submarine Ariane on 19 June 1917. On 11 August, Heino von Heimburg was awarded the Pour le Mérite
.
at the end of the Second World War despite being on the naval list as retired. He died in a POW camp
near Stalingrad in 1945.
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...
commander
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
in the Kaiserliche Marine
Kaiserliche Marine
The Imperial German Navy was the German Navy created at the time of the formation of the German Empire. It existed between 1871 and 1919, growing out of the small Prussian Navy and Norddeutsche Bundesmarine, which primarily had the mission of coastal defense. Kaiser Wilhelm II greatly expanded...
during World War I and served also as Vice Admiral
Vice Admiral
Vice admiral is a senior naval rank of a three-star flag officer, which is equivalent to lieutenant general in the other uniformed services. A vice admiral is typically senior to a rear admiral and junior to an admiral...
in the 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...
during World War II.
World War I
On 10 June 1915, Heimburg, in command of UB-15 sank the Italian submarine Medusa off Porto di Piave Vecchia in the northern Adriatic. On 6 July 1915, Heimburg, in command of UB-14 with a crew of 14, torpedoed and sank the while operating under the Austrian flag off VeniceVenice
Venice is a city in northern Italy which is renowned for the beauty of its setting, its architecture and its artworks. It is the capital of the Veneto region...
.
On 16 July, Heimburg sailed for the Dardanelles
Dardanelles
The Dardanelles , formerly known as the Hellespont, is a narrow strait in northwestern Turkey connecting the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara. It is one of the Turkish Straits, along with its counterpart the Bosphorus. It is located at approximately...
. This was at a time when the range of submarines was very limited, unlike today. To reach Bodrum
Bodrum
Bodrum is a port city in Muğla Province, in the southwestern Aegean Region of Turkey. It is located on the southern coast of Bodrum Peninsula, at a point that checks the entry into the Gulf of Gökova. The site was called Halicarnassus of Caria in ancient times and was famous for housing the...
, UB-14 had to be towed a considerable part of the distance by an Austrian destroyer
Destroyer
In naval terminology, a destroyer is a fast and maneuverable yet long-endurance warship intended to escort larger vessels in a fleet, convoy or battle group and defend them against smaller, powerful, short-range attackers. Destroyers, originally called torpedo-boat destroyers in 1892, evolved from...
. Even so her engine broke down off Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
and her compass became defective. Despite these problems she arrived safely at Bodrum on 24 July. On arrival she recharged the batteries of the UC-14
SM UC-14
SM UC-14 was a German Type UC I minelayer submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The U-boat was ordered on 23 November 1914, laid down on 28 January 1915, and was launched on 13 May 1915...
which had arrived four days earlier with engine problems. A maintenance team then had to travel from Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
to carry out necessary repairs to both submarines. At the time this journey was not easy being made partly by train
Train
A train is a connected series of vehicles for rail transport that move along a track to transport cargo or passengers from one place to another place. The track usually consists of two rails, but might also be a monorail or maglev guideway.Propulsion for the train is provided by a separate...
and partly by camel
Camel
A camel is an even-toed ungulate within the genus Camelus, bearing distinctive fatty deposits known as humps on its back. There are two species of camels: the dromedary or Arabian camel has a single hump, and the bactrian has two humps. Dromedaries are native to the dry desert areas of West Asia,...
.
On 12 August, Heimburg sailed from Bodrum for the known steamer route between Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
and the Dardanelles. After leaving, Heimburg's first sighting was a fully lit hospital ship seen that evening which was not attacked. On 13 August he first sighted the liner in service as a hospital ship. He then sighted the sailing unescorted for Madras. He fired one torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
from under a mile away which hit her stern. The Royal Edward sank quickly in position 36°13′N 25°51′E 6 miles west from Kandeliusa in the Aegean Sea
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
. The after deck was awash in three minutes and the ship had sunk with her bows in the air in six minutes. 132 members of her crew died.
The survivors were picked up by the Soudan, two French destroyers and some trawlers. Heimburg and the UB-14 did not stay on to harass the rescue effort, but headed back to Bodrum with some technical problems where she arrived on the morning of the 15 August.
Later in August Heimburg and the UB-14 sank the Australian troopship
Troopship
A troopship is a ship used to carry soldiers, either in peacetime or wartime...
Southland
HMT Southland
HMT Southland was an ocean liner launched in July 1900 as SS Vaderland for Red Star Line service between Antwerp and New York. During her passenger career, the ship initially sailed under British registry, but was re-registered in Antwerp in 1903...
bound for Gallipoli
Gallipoli
The Gallipoli peninsula is located in Turkish Thrace , the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles straits to the east. Gallipoli derives its name from the Greek "Καλλίπολις" , meaning "Beautiful City"...
. Approximately thirty men were killed and the remaining troops and crew were rescued by nearby ships. A skeleton crew of volunteers managed to keep the ship afloat and beach it in Moudros
Moudros
Moudros is a town and a former municipality on the island of Lemnos, North Aegean, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Lemnos, of which it is a municipal unit. It covers the entire eastern peninsula of the island, with a land area of 185.127 km²,...
harbour.
On 4 September, the British submarine
Submarine
A submarine is a watercraft capable of independent operation below the surface of the water. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability...
became entangled in enemy torpedo nets off Nagara Point in the Dardanelles
Dardanelles
The Dardanelles , formerly known as the Hellespont, is a narrow strait in northwestern Turkey connecting the Aegean Sea to the Sea of Marmara. It is one of the Turkish Straits, along with its counterpart the Bosphorus. It is located at approximately...
. All attempts to free the submarine failed. However, they had caught the attention of Heimburg, currently in harbour with UB-14 which was undergoing repairs at nearby Çanakkale
Çanakkale
Çanakkale is a town and seaport in Turkey, in Çanakkale Province, on the southern coast of the Dardanelles at their narrowest point. The population of the town is 106,116 . The mayor is Ülgür Gökhan ....
. He visited the spot in a small skiff
Skiff
The term skiff is used for a number of essentially unrelated styles of small boat. The word is related to ship and has a complicated etymology: "skiff" comes from the Middle English skif, which derives from the Old French esquif, which in turn derives from the Old Italian schifo, which is itself of...
, from which he lowered a small explosive charge. E7 was forced to the surface and her crew scuttled it before they were taken as prisoners of war.
On 5 November, Heimburg with UB-14 torpedoed and sank the British submarine and after taking command of UC-22
SM UC-22
SM UC-22 was a German Type UC II minelaying submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy during World War I. The U-boat was ordered on 26 August 1915 and was launched on 1 February 1916...
he also torpedoed and sank the French submarine Ariane on 19 June 1917. On 11 August, Heino von Heimburg was awarded the Pour le Mérite
Pour le Mérite
The Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
.
World War II
Heimburg was kidnapped by the SovietsSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
at the end of the Second World War despite being on the naval list as retired. He died in a POW camp
Prisoner-of-war camp
A prisoner-of-war camp is a site for the containment of combatants captured by their enemy in time of war, and is similar to an internment camp which is used for civilian populations. A prisoner of war is generally a soldier, sailor, or airman who is imprisoned by an enemy power during or...
near Stalingrad in 1945.
Awards
- Eisernes Kreuz (1914) II. und I. Klasse
- Ritterkreuz des Königlichen Hausordens von Hohenzollern mit Schwertern
- U-Boot-Kriegsabzeichen (1918)
- Pour le MéritePour le MériteThe Pour le Mérite, known informally as the Blue Max , was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I....
am 11. August 1917 - Ritterkreuz II. Klasse des Oldenburgischen Haus- und Verdienstordens des Herzogs Peter Friedrich Ludwig mit Schwertern
- Friedrich-August-KreuzFriedrich-August-KreuzThe Friedrich-August Cross was a German decoration of the First World War. It was set up on 24 September 1914 by Frederick Augustus II, Grand Duke of Oldenburg, with two classes, for "all persons of military or civilian status, who have shown outstanding service during the war itself".-...
I. Klasse - Ritterkreuz des Österreichischen Leopold-Ordens
- Orden der Eisernen Krone III. Klasse mit der Kriegsdekoration
- Silberne Imtiaz-Medaille mit Säbel
- Goldene Liakat-Medaille mit Säbel
- Ritterkreuz des Bulgarischen Militärverdienstordens mit Krone
External links
- axishistory.com webpage - Forum about the most decorated soldiers of the Wehrmacht including Heino von Heimburg
- raundswarmemorials.org webpage - History of RMS Royal Edward
- militaryhistoryonline.com Article mentioning sinking of SS Southland