Wolf pack Leuthen
Encyclopedia
Leuthen was a wolf pack of German
U-boat
s that operated during the battle of the Atlantic in World War II
.
Following the defeats of May 1943, and the devastating losses incurred by the U- boat Arm (U-Bootwaffe,UBW) then, Adm Dönitz
had withdrawn from attacks on the North Atlantic route while awaiting tactical and technical improvements.
By September 1943 these were ready.
Leuthen operated against convoys ONS.18 and ON 202, which were travelling together; U-boat
s from Leuthen sank 6 ships (of 36,442 GRT
and 3 escorts in this battle, but lost 3 boats ( U-229, U-338, and U-341) destroyed, and 3 forced to return with damage, in attacks by aircraft and surface vessels.
Leuthen was disbanded after this assault, at the end of September; of the remaining 15 boats, 3 returned to base and 12 formed the core of a new patol line, code-named Rossbach
.
fought by Frederick the Great during the Seven Years War.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
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...
s that operated during the battle of the Atlantic in 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...
.
Service history
Leuthen was formed in September 1943 and was established to renew the attack on the North Atlantic route.Following the defeats of May 1943, and the devastating losses incurred by the U- boat Arm (U-Bootwaffe,UBW) then, Adm 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...
had withdrawn from attacks on the North Atlantic route while awaiting tactical and technical improvements.
By September 1943 these were ready.
Leuthen operated against convoys ONS.18 and ON 202, which were travelling together; 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...
s from Leuthen sank 6 ships (of 36,442 GRT
Tonnage
Tonnage is a measure of the size or cargo carrying capacity of a ship. The term derives from the taxation paid on tuns or casks of wine, and was later used in reference to the weight of a ship's cargo; however, in modern maritime usage, "tonnage" specifically refers to a calculation of the volume...
and 3 escorts in this battle, but lost 3 boats ( U-229, U-338, and U-341) destroyed, and 3 forced to return with damage, in attacks by aircraft and surface vessels.
Leuthen was disbanded after this assault, at the end of September; of the remaining 15 boats, 3 returned to base and 12 formed the core of a new patol line, code-named Rossbach
Wolf pack Rossbach
Rossbach was a wolfpack of German U-boats that operated during the battle of the Atlantic in World War II.-Service history:Rossbach was formed in October 1943 to operate against the North Atlantic convoy routes and comprised 21 boats....
.
U-boats involved
- U-229German submarine U-229German submarine U-229 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II.The submarine was laid down on 3 November 1941 at the Friedrich Krupp Germaniawerft yard at Kiel, launched on 20 August 1942, and commissioned on 3 October 1942 under the command of Oberleutnant zur See...
- U-238
- U-260
- U-270
- U-275
- U-305
- U-338
- U-341
- U-377German submarine U-377German submarine U-377 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 8 April 1940 at the Howaldtswerke yard at Kiel, launched on 15 August 1941, and commissioned on 2 October 1941 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Otto Köhler.U-377 was...
- U-378
- U-386
- U-402German submarine U-402German submarine U-402 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for the German Kriegsmarine for service during World War II.U-402 commanded by Kapitänleutnant Siegfried von Forstner carried out eight combat patrols sinking 14 merchantmen and one warship during the Second World War. U-402 also damaged three...
- U-442German submarine U-442German submarine U-442 was a Type VIIC U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II.The submarine was laid down on 19 October 1940 at the Schichau-Werke at Danzig, launched on 17 January 1942, and commissioned on 21 March 1942 under the command of Fregattenkapitän Hans-Joachim Hesse.U-442...
- U-584
- U-603
- U-641
- U-645
- U-666
- U-731
- U-758German submarine U-758German submarine U-758 was a Type VIIC U-boat built for the German Kriegsmarine for service during World War II. Commissioned on 5 May 1942, she served with the 6th U-boat Flotilla until 1 November as a training boat, and as a front boat until 14 October 1944 mostly under the command of...
- U-952
The name
The name "Leuthen" was a reference to the battle of LeuthenBattle of Leuthen
In the Battle of Leuthen or Lissa, fought on 5 December 1757, Frederick the Great's Prussian army used maneuver and terrain to decisively defeat a much larger Austrian army under Charles of Lorraine, thus ensuring Prussian control of Silesia during the Seven Years' War.- Background :While Frederick...
fought by Frederick the Great during the Seven Years War.