Operation Kiebitz
Encyclopedia
Operation Kiebitz was a failed Kriegsmarine
operation during World War II
in 1943 to organize an escape of four skilled German U-boat
commanders from a Canadian
POW camp (Camp 30
in Bowmanville
, Ontario
). Its counterattack by the Royal Canadian Navy
, Operation Pointe Maisonnette in Chaleur Bay
became a key operation in the Battle of the St. Lawrence
.
(captain of U-99) and Hans Joachim Knebel-Döberitz (executive officer
from U-99 and former adjutant
of Karl Dönitz
) escape from Camp 30 and make their way 1400 kilometres (869.9 mi) through eastern Canada to northern New Brunswick
where they would rendezvous with a U-boat off Pointe de Maisonnette
, New Brunswick on Chaleur Bay
.
This plan was developed in 1942 by and was to be executed in September 1943. Knebel-Döberitz was the former adjutant of Admiral Karl Dönitz
and along with Kretschmer (a top U-boat
ace), were thought to be the primary reason behind this risky operation. Had it been successful, it would have been sensational propaganda
material for the German war machine.
Coded messages were sent by mail through the International Committee of the Red Cross
to the German prisoners at Camp 30 in Bowmanville, east of Toronto
. These messages were intercepted by Canadian military intelligence and Canadian police who were screening all prisoner communications. The Canadian authorities did not tip off the prisoners that their plans were detected as the RCN was hoping to get a rare chance to seize a German U-boat in Canadian waters; a feat that would have been an intelligence coup for the Allied navies.
(RCMP) and camp guards monitored the German POWs as they began to secretly dig several tunnels, at least one of which would eventually lead outside the camp boundaries. The POW tunnellers created a crude railway that could haul the soil out of the tunnel, allowing the work to proceed more quickly and efficiently. At one point the excavated dirt from one of the tunnels collapsed part of the ceiling in a camp building where it was being hidden, however the camp guards, aware of the ruse, did not stop the project.
As the date of the escape attempt drew closer, the RCMP and military guards moved in and seized the POWs as they sought to implement their plan and collapsed the tunnel. In desperation, one of the Kriegsmarine officers, Wolfgang Heyda
, managed to escape over the camp walls using a crude zip-wire on electrical cables. Heyda eluded search parties and the massive police response and somehow made his way on Canadian National Railways passenger trains from southern Ontario to Pointe de Maisonnette in northern New Brunswick on Chaleur Bay. Heyda arrived at the location at the appointed time only to be arrested by RCMP and RCN personnel who were waiting to co-ordinate a surface task force that would attempt to attack and/or seize the U-boat.
The RCN implemented Operation Pointe Maisonnette to attack and/or seize the U-boat. This involved RCN and Canadian Army personnel on shore at the Pointe de Maisonnette lighthouse where a portable surface radar
array was established, along with a task force of several warships centred on that was hidden nearby. Rimouski was outfitted with an experimental diffuse lighting system that was considered revolutionary at the time.
U-536, which had been tasked with picking up the escaping naval officers, arrived off Pointe de Maisonnette at the appointed time in September 1943. The RCN and Canadian Army personnel on shore signaled with a light that the escapees were to have used, however the U-boat commander was suspicious, particularly after his hydrophones picked up the sound of vessels (the RCN task group) nearby. He opted to remain submerged and began to evade the RCN warships which searched throughout the night and attempted unsuccessfully to attack U-536 with depth charges.
Despite evading the RCN's trap in Chaleur Bay that September, U-536 was sunk the following month before it returned to its German homeport.
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...
operation during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in 1943 to organize an escape of four skilled German U-boat
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...
commanders from a Canadian
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
POW camp (Camp 30
Bowmanville POW camp
The Bowmanville POW camp Camp 30 was a Canadian-run POW camp for German soldiers during World War II located in Bowmanville, Ontario.Prisoners Otto Kretschmer and Wolfgang Heyda were the subject of an elaborate escape attempt named Operation Kiebitz....
in Bowmanville
Bowmanville, Ontario
Bowmanville is the largest community in the Municipality of Clarington in Durham Region, Ontario, Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario about 75 km east of Toronto and 15 km east of Oshawa along Highway 2...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
). Its counterattack by the Royal Canadian Navy
Royal Canadian Navy
The history of the Royal Canadian Navy goes back to 1910, when the naval force was created as the Naval Service of Canada and renamed a year later by King George V. The Royal Canadian Navy is one of the three environmental commands of the Canadian Forces...
, Operation Pointe Maisonnette in Chaleur Bay
Chaleur Bay
frame| Satellite image of Chaleur Bay . Chaleur Bay is the large bay opening to the east;the [[Gaspé Peninsula]] appears to the north and the [[Gulf of St...
became a key operation in the Battle of the St. Lawrence
Battle of the St. Lawrence
The Battle of the St. Lawrence involved a number of submarine and anti-submarine actions throughout the lower St. Lawrence River and the entire Gulf of Saint Lawrence, Strait of Belle Isle and Cabot Strait from May-October 1942, September 1943, and again in October-November 1944...
.
Prisoner escape plan
The Kriegsmarine developed a plan to have Horst Elfe (captain of U-93), Hans Ey (captain of U-433), Otto KretschmerOtto Kretschmer
Flotilla Admiral Otto Kretschmer was a German U-boat commander in the Second World War and later an admiral in the Bundesmarine. From September 1939 until being captured in March 1941, he sank 47 ships, a total of 274,333 tons. For this he received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak...
(captain of U-99) and Hans Joachim Knebel-Döberitz (executive officer
Executive officer
An executive officer is generally a person responsible for running an organization, although the exact nature of the role varies depending on the organization.-Administrative law:...
from U-99 and former adjutant
Adjutant
Adjutant is a military rank or appointment. In some armies, including most English-speaking ones, it is an officer who assists a more senior officer, while in other armies, especially Francophone ones, it is an NCO , normally corresponding roughly to a Staff Sergeant or Warrant Officer.An Adjutant...
of Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner...
) escape from Camp 30 and make their way 1400 kilometres (869.9 mi) through eastern Canada to northern New Brunswick
New Brunswick
New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...
where they would rendezvous with a U-boat off Pointe de Maisonnette
Pointe de Maisonnette, New Brunswick
Point de Maisonnette is a cape located in northeastern New Brunswick, Canada. Its geographic coordinates are 47º50'15"N, 65º00'13"W.It is the dividing point for delineating the northern limits of Caraquet Bay from Chaleur Bay...
, New Brunswick on Chaleur Bay
Chaleur Bay
frame| Satellite image of Chaleur Bay . Chaleur Bay is the large bay opening to the east;the [[Gaspé Peninsula]] appears to the north and the [[Gulf of St...
.
This plan was developed in 1942 by and was to be executed in September 1943. Knebel-Döberitz was the former adjutant of Admiral Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner...
and along with Kretschmer (a top U-boat
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...
ace), were thought to be the primary reason behind this risky operation. Had it been successful, it would have been sensational propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
material for the German war machine.
Coded messages were sent by mail through the International Committee of the Red Cross
International Committee of the Red Cross
The International Committee of the Red Cross is a private humanitarian institution based in Geneva, Switzerland. States parties to the four Geneva Conventions of 1949 and their Additional Protocols of 1977 and 2005, have given the ICRC a mandate to protect the victims of international and...
to the German prisoners at Camp 30 in Bowmanville, east of Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
. These messages were intercepted by Canadian military intelligence and Canadian police who were screening all prisoner communications. The Canadian authorities did not tip off the prisoners that their plans were detected as the RCN was hoping to get a rare chance to seize a German U-boat in Canadian waters; a feat that would have been an intelligence coup for the Allied navies.
Tunnelling
The military, Royal Canadian Mounted PoliceRoyal Canadian Mounted Police
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police , literally ‘Royal Gendarmerie of Canada’; colloquially known as The Mounties, and internally as ‘The Force’) is the national police force of Canada, and one of the most recognized of its kind in the world. It is unique in the world as a national, federal,...
(RCMP) and camp guards monitored the German POWs as they began to secretly dig several tunnels, at least one of which would eventually lead outside the camp boundaries. The POW tunnellers created a crude railway that could haul the soil out of the tunnel, allowing the work to proceed more quickly and efficiently. At one point the excavated dirt from one of the tunnels collapsed part of the ceiling in a camp building where it was being hidden, however the camp guards, aware of the ruse, did not stop the project.
As the date of the escape attempt drew closer, the RCMP and military guards moved in and seized the POWs as they sought to implement their plan and collapsed the tunnel. In desperation, one of the Kriegsmarine officers, Wolfgang Heyda
Wolfgang Heyda
Wolfgang Heyda was a German U-boat commander during World War II.-War service:After U-boat commander training aboard , Lieutenant Commander Heyda took command of on 21 June 1941, and began his first war patrol on 11 November 1941...
, managed to escape over the camp walls using a crude zip-wire on electrical cables. Heyda eluded search parties and the massive police response and somehow made his way on Canadian National Railways passenger trains from southern Ontario to Pointe de Maisonnette in northern New Brunswick on Chaleur Bay. Heyda arrived at the location at the appointed time only to be arrested by RCMP and RCN personnel who were waiting to co-ordinate a surface task force that would attempt to attack and/or seize the U-boat.
The RCN implemented Operation Pointe Maisonnette to attack and/or seize the U-boat. This involved RCN and Canadian Army personnel on shore at the Pointe de Maisonnette lighthouse where a portable surface radar
Radar
Radar is an object-detection system which uses radio waves to determine the range, altitude, direction, or speed of objects. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, weather formations, and terrain. The radar dish or antenna transmits pulses of radio...
array was established, along with a task force of several warships centred on that was hidden nearby. Rimouski was outfitted with an experimental diffuse lighting system that was considered revolutionary at the time.
U-536, which had been tasked with picking up the escaping naval officers, arrived off Pointe de Maisonnette at the appointed time in September 1943. The RCN and Canadian Army personnel on shore signaled with a light that the escapees were to have used, however the U-boat commander was suspicious, particularly after his hydrophones picked up the sound of vessels (the RCN task group) nearby. He opted to remain submerged and began to evade the RCN warships which searched throughout the night and attempted unsuccessfully to attack U-536 with depth charges.
Despite evading the RCN's trap in Chaleur Bay that September, U-536 was sunk the following month before it returned to its German homeport.