SMS Vulkan
Encyclopedia
SMS Vulkan was a 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...
salvage tug
Salvage tug
A salvage tug is a specialized type of tugboat which is used to rescue or marine salvage ships which are in distress or in danger of sinking, or which have already sunk or run aground....
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...
laid down in 1907 and commissioned 1908. The ship displaced 1595 tons and had a top speed of 12 knots.
The famous U-boat ace Max Valentiner
Max Valentiner
Captain Christian August Max Ahlmann Valentiner was a German U-boat commander during World War I.He was the third highest-scoring U-boat commander of the war, and was awarded the Pour le Mérite, the highest Prussian military order until the end of the war, for his achievements.He was also branded...
served as salvage officer on Vulkan in early 1911. On 17 January 1911, he and the crew saved all 30 men from U-3
SM U-3 (Germany)
SM U-3 Is the third German U-Boat created by the German Empire in their history, and is the first of two submarines in its class. The boat was built by Kaiserliche Werft Danzig and was launched on March 27, 1909. U-3 began its career in World War I as a training boat from August 1, 1914 to November...
by getting them out of the torpedo tube
Torpedo tube
A torpedo tube is a device for launching torpedoes. There are two main types of torpedo tube: underwater tubes fitted to submarines and some surface ships, and deck-mounted units installed aboard surface vessels...
after it was sunk near Kiel
Kiel
Kiel is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 238,049 .Kiel is approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the north of Germany, the southeast of the Jutland peninsula, and the southwestern shore of the...
harbour in Heikendorfer Bay because of an unclosed valve in the ventilation shaft. Amongst the saved crew was Otto Weddigen
Otto Weddigen
Otto Eduard Weddigen was a German U-boat commander during World War I.-Biography and career:He was born in Herford and started his military career in the Kaiserliche Marine in 1901...
, the later commander of and Paul Clarrendorf, the commander of U-boot-Abnahme-Kommando in Kiel which enlisted u-boat crews.
Vulkan is also famous for salvaging two U-boats, on 27 August 1915 and on 17 September 1917.
Vulkan was taken out of service 11 November 1918 and surrendered to the British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
forces together with the bigger salvage tug, SMS Cyclop. Being pulled to Harwich
Harwich
Harwich is a town in Essex, England and one of the Haven ports, located on the coast with the North Sea to the east. It is in the Tendring district. Nearby places include Felixstowe to the northeast, Ipswich to the northwest, Colchester to the southwest and Clacton-on-Sea to the south...
it was sunk 6 April 1919 in position 54°54′N 06°18′E.