July 27, 2025 • 28 mins
Delve deep into the clandestine world of submarine warfare during WWI with the Journal of Submarine Commander Von Forstner. As the commander of the German U-boat U-28, Forstner provides an unvarnished account of the gritty realities of life under the sea, including detailed descriptions of torpedo attacks on Allied ships. First published in 1916, this 1917 English translation aimed to support the Allied war effort by revealing the fearsome nature of their invisible enemy. Inspired by a visit to the captured WWII German U-505 submarine at Chicagos Museum of Science and Industry, this audio reading offers a visceral understanding of the claustrophobic conditions endured by the submarines crew, exemplified by the cramped sleeping quarters nestled alongside 15-foot-long torpedoes. This is a journey into the heart of the submarine warfare experience. (Introduction by Sue Anderson)
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Part four of the Journal of Submarine Commander von Forsner.
This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please
visit LibriVox dot org. Recording by Sue Anderson. The Journal
of Submarine Commander von Forstner by Georg Gunter frachervon Forstner,
(00:26):
translated by Anna Kraftskodmen, with commentary by John Hays Hammond Junior.
The Journal Part four. Before making my official report, I
inspected my two prizes that were docked just behind us.
A chain parted them from the rest of the quay,
with sentries placed on guard. I gave the preference of
(00:49):
my first visit, naturally, as a polite man should. To
the steamer. With so many of the fair Sex on board,
I hoped that by appearing surrounded by my officers, I
should dispel their fear of the German barbarians. I was
told the ladies belonged to a variety troupe that was
(01:10):
to give a performance the next evening in London, Poor London,
to be deprived by our fault of an enjoyable evening.
Among the other passengers were Belgians, and French who had
waited six weeks in Holland for a chance to get across,
and also an American reporter of the Hearst newspaper. He
(01:31):
had a camera for taking moving pictures, and we discovered
later that he had photographed the whole occurrence of the
capture of the ship by our submarine. A few days later,
the Graphic of March twenty seventh, nineteen fifteen published several
of his pictures, which eventually found their way to many
American papers. I was ordered that evening to dine with
(01:55):
the Commanding Admiral of the Marine Corps, Excellency von Schroder,
and a motor called for me and took me to Bruges,
where he resided the peaceful landscape and the plowed fields
betrayed but few signs of war, and I saw Belgian
peasants and German soldiers planting together the seed for the
(02:16):
coming harvest. While the authorities were passing judgment on my
two prizes, I had a chance to visit the surrounding country.
The English had destroyed in their retreat. Everything in Zebruga,
except the new Palace, hotel, the new post office and
the Belgian bank. I made the most of this short
opportunity to observe the doings of our men in this
(02:39):
conquered land, paid for with German blood. I was interested
to note how our marines had been incorporated into every
branch of the army service, and how easily they adapted
themselves to this new life. They served as infantry in
the trenches, as artillery behind the great coast guns, and
(03:00):
also as cavalry mounted on big Flemish mares. They had
even been transformed into car conductors on the electric line
that runs behind the dunes between Zebruga and Ostend. In fact,
they filled every kind of position, and few Belgians were
to be seen. We had created here a second German
(03:22):
fatherland and home, notwithstanding the enemy's reports that we had
acted like huns and barbarians. But as neither the country
nor the people were of great interest to me, my
attention was centered on the study of our own troops. Meantime,
the unloading of our steamers had begun, and I had
(03:43):
to supervise it myself, as the cargoes were composed of
perishable foodstuffs. The usual delays were overcome, and hundreds of
sailors and soldiers were ordered to unload the ships. Out
of the hold rose newly slaughtered pigs in a sheep
and ducks, which were at once distributed among the various regiments.
(04:06):
Two hundred barrels of the best Munich beer were rolled
over the quays, and two barrels found their way on
board our little boat, which no one could be grudge us.
On the Zanstrm there were four thousand, four hundred boxes
of fresh eggs, each box containing one thousand, eight hundred eggs,
(04:27):
and I was told by an army officer that every
man of the Northern Army received eight eggs for the
Easter festival. On the following afternoon, the nationality of the
crew and of the passengers was recorded. A number of
them were sent as prisoners of war to concentration camps,
(04:48):
and many touching farewells ensued between the men and the
women who were left behind. The others were taken on
a special train under military guard to the Dutch frontier.
The German sailors on whom this mission devolved, looked very
jolly as they sat armed to the teeth in the
railway carriages by twos, watching over two pretty variety actresses.
(05:13):
And I think they would willingly have prolonged the journey further.
I walked along the train to say good bye to
the passengers who had so unwillingly made our acquaintance, and
I was warmly thanked by an old American to whom
I personally had done a small favor for my courteous treatment.
He spoke in the name of all the passengers, who
(05:34):
had experienced also the greatest civility at the hands of
the port authorities. I declined these words of thanks, for
they had only received the treatment that was their proper due.
After the train had left, the hour of our own
departure had struck. We cast off the lines that had
kept us bound for two such memorable days on the
(05:57):
Flemish coast. In passing by, I waved a farewell to
the two Dutch captains, and away we went westward ho
Chapter seven off the coast of England. Our boat carried
us speedily away, further and further towards the west, and
soon the lighthouse on the Mole and the outline of
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the country we had conquered faded away in the evening twilight.
Before long we should be surrounded by only hostile shores.
We first sighted the French port of Bologna, where the
imposing bronze statue of Napoleon the First stands on a
marble column fifty three meters high, with eyes turned toward
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the English coast. It was built to commemorate the expedition
planned by Napoleon in eighteen o three against the Sons
of Albion, whose descendants have so recently landed on French soil,
and as they lie there encamped, they may wonder, when
gazing at the statue of the Great Emperor, if he
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would have welcomed them with the same enthusiasm with which
they have been received by the present rulers of France.
On our very first day in the French Channel, we
were able to sink several steamers after the crews had
left in their lifeboats, and on general lines, a similar
picture was traced at every sinking. We were now granted
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our first opportunity to steer a submarine above and below
the waters of the North Atlantic. The ocean seemed to
rejoice at our coming and revealed itself to us in
all the glory of a march storm. Only those who
have seen such a storm can realize its proud majesty.
The gigantic, blue black waves, with their shining crests, lashed
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by the west wind, came rushing onward into the open
mouth of the channel, and the hemmed in waters, roaring
and surging, dashed themselves against the sharp rock points of
the French coast, or broke less violently but in ceaseless unrest,
on the chalk cliffs of England, which glimmered white in
(08:09):
the rays of the sun. It is a splendid sight
to watch this great spectacle from the high deck of
a steamer as it plows its way through the foaming flood,
or to be borne aloft on the top of the
waves with a ship under full sail. But it is
still more wonderful to behold nature's great display from the
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half submerged conning tower of a u boat, and to
dive through the mountainous breakers until they close, gurgling over
our heads, and hide us from all curious glances. Our
little nutshell, in perpetual motion, is drawn down into the
deep valleys of the ocean waves, or tossed upwards on
(08:50):
the comb of the following breaker. We are soaked to
the skin, and the spray covers us like a silvery veil.
Our boat, as well as ourselves, is daubed with a
salt crust. Our eyes smart, and our lips have a
briny tang. But to us sailors, it's a joy to
be the sport of the wild waves, and even those
(09:13):
few unfortunates who always suffer from sea sickness never lose
their love of the sea. We were thus in the
midst of a strong northwesterly gale, lying in wait for
our prey at the entrance of the English Channel, but
no ship was to be seen. Most of them took
the northerly course beyond the war zone around the Shetland Islands,
(09:37):
and it was not until the next morning, north of
the Scilly Islands in the Bristol Channel, that we caught
sight behind us of a big steamer running before the wind.
Like ourselves, the wind had somewhat fallen and the March
sun was shining bright and warm. The steamer was heading
for Cardiff, and we judged by her course that she
(09:58):
had sailed from some port inside America. Turning about and
breasting the waves, we faced the oncoming steamer and signaled
to her to stop. But hardly had she espied us
than she also turned about in the hope to escape.
She showed no flag to indicate her nationality, so surely
we had sighted an English vessel. Even after we had
(10:21):
fired a warning shot, she tried, by rapid and tortuous
curves to return to her former course and endeavor thereby
to reach her home port. Meantime, she sent up rockets
as signals of distress in quick succession to draw the
attention of British patrol ships that must be hovering in
the neighborhood. This obliged us to fire a decisive shot,
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and with a loud report, our first shell struck the
ship close to the captain's bridge. Instead of resigning himself
to his fate, the Englishman sent up more signals and
hoisted the British flag. This showed us he was game,
and the fight began in dead earnest. All honor to
(11:06):
the pluck of these English captains, But how reckless to
expose in this manner the lives of their passengers and crew,
as we shall see in the present instances. Circling around us,
he tried to ram us with his prow, and we
naturally avoided him by also turning in the same direction
every time he veered about, he offered us his broadside
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for a shot. With well directed aim. We took advantage
of this target, and our successful fire gave him full
proof of the skill of our gunners. The latter had
a hard time of it. The high seas poured over
the low deck, and they continually stood up to their
necks in the cold salt water. They were often dragged
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off the deck by the great receiving waves, but as
they were tied by strong ropes to the cannons, we
were able to pull them up again, and fortunately no
lives were lost. On seeing our gunners struggling in the seas,
our foe hoped to make good his escape, but with
each telling shot our own fighting blood was aroused, and
(12:12):
the wild chase continued. A well aimed shell tore off
the English flagstaff at the stern, but the Union jack
was quickly hoisted again on the foretop. This also was
shot down, and a third time the flag flew from
a line of the yard of the foretop, but the
flag had been raised too hastily and it hung reversed
(12:34):
with the Union jack upside down, and in this manner
it continued to fly until it sank with the brave ship.
The fight had lasted four hours without our being able
to deliver the death stroke. Several fires had started on
the steamer, but the crew had been able to keep
them under control. Big holes gaped open in the ship's side,
(12:58):
but there were none as yet below the water line,
and the pumps still sufficed to expel the water. It
often occurred that in the act of firing, the waves
choked our cannons, and the shot when hissing through tremendous
sheets of water, while we were blinded by a deluge
of foam. Of course, we were all wet through and through,
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but that was of no importance, for we had already
been wet for days. It was now essential for us
to put an end to this deadly combat, for English
torpedo boat destroyers were hurrying on to the calls of
distress of the steamer. Big clouds of smoke against the
sky showed they were coming towards us under full steam.
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The ship was by this time listing so heavily that
it was evident we need waste no more of our ammunition.
And besides, the appearance of another big steamer on the
southern horizon was an enticing inducement to quit the battle
scene and seek another victim. We cast a last look
on our courageous adversary, who was gradually sinking, and I
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must add it was the first and last prey whose
end we did not have the satisfaction to witness. We
had been truly impressed by the captain's brave endurance, notwithstanding
his lack of wisdom, and we knew that the men
of war were coming to his rescue. We read in
the papers on our return to a German port that
(14:28):
the Voge had sunk soon after we departed, and what
remained of the passengers and crew were picked up by
the English ships. The captain was rewarded for his temerity
by being raised to the rank of reserve officer, and
the crew were given sums of money, but all the
other officers had perished, as well as several sailors and
(14:50):
a few passengers who had been forced to help the stokers.
In order to increase the speed of the flying steamer,
we hurried away there therefore, in the direction of the
other ship, and as we approached we soon recognized the
Spanish colors flying from her flag staff and painted on
her sides. The captain willingly stopped at our bidding and
(15:14):
dispatched an officer to us bearing the ship's papers. The
stormy waves had somewhat subsided, and although the occupants of
the boat got very wet, yet they were able without
danger to come alongside our submarine. There was no contraband
on board the Spanish steamer, and before dismissing the officer,
(15:34):
I admonished him always to stop at the first signal
from a U boat. He assured me that since the
English were constantly hoisting the Spanish flag, he had lost
all desire to navigate again in the dangerous waters of
the war zone. Much relieved at getting away so easily,
he went on board his own steamer, which resumed its
(15:56):
voyage towards the lovely city of Santander on the Spanish coast.
I met an account later of our encounter with the
Augustina in a number of the Metin of April one,
nineteen fifteen. It was entitled to jour le lleu, and
spoke of our undesirable presence in French waters. A following
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number did us the honour to represent a large picture
of our boat with the officers standing on the bridge,
taken probably by a passenger on board the Spanish vessel
an Arrow, pointed to us with the inscription for la
lequipage du bundi. The English usually referred to us as
(16:39):
the pirates, and in their rage describe our activities as
those of the German submarine pest. We are accustomed to
these flattering illusions, and it amused me to preserve and
frame our picture from the metin. In the next few days,
we stopped and searched several neutral steamers and sank many
(17:03):
English ones. The captains were occasionally stubborn and refused to
obey our signals, so a few accidents occurred. In one case,
for instance, a stray shot struck some passengers in a
lifeboat which collapsed. But as a rule, passengers and crews
were picked up by the many sailboats and fishing boats
(17:25):
which circulate in the Irish Sea and in Saint George's Channel,
and it was we who generally summoned these fishermen to
go to the rescue of their shipwrecked countrymen. The method
of capture was always the same, and now our ammunition
being nearly exhausted, we steered a homeward course with the
(17:46):
hope of securing a few more steamers on the way.
We were again favored by good luck, for at the
entrance of the English Channel we ran across a large
steamer coming from America and heading for a French port,
heavily laden with all the fine things that the Americans
at present so willingly export. The chase began in the
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usual fashion, as we followed closely in the enemy's wake.
Although the captain made an effort to escape, yet he
evidently felt certain from the beginning that he would be
unable to do so, for he immediately swung out the
lifeboats ready to be lowered. We were economizing our ammunition
and did not, according to our custom, fire a warning shot.
(18:34):
But as we drew near the steamer, we suddenly saw
dark round objects thrown overboard. The man at the helm
beside me exclaimed, they are throwing mines, but I was
not of the same opinion. We proceeded quietly to examine
these suspicious objects more closely, and we discovered they were
(18:55):
simply bundles of clothes. The sailors were trying to save
them into the lifeboats. They had missed the mark, and
the bundles had fallen into the sea. A report had
apparently spread through the English seaports that the men had
but scant time to save their belongings when they were
sighted by one of our submarines, and since that time
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their clothes were strapped together, ready for a sudden emergency.
The steamer stopped and the crew on this occasion took
to the boats with a perfect discipline we were little
accustomed to witness. The Flaminian was sent to the bottom
of the sea with one of our last torpedoes. The
following morning, before bidding the west coast of England a
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temporary farewell, we made another good catch. We sighted a
broad bottomed, fore masted steamer, also coming from America, laden
down as we soon ascertained, with five thousand tons of oats,
and making its way to Havre. We started after it,
and as usual it tried to escape, but a well
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directed shot through the bridge and chart house brought it
to a stop, and it signaled that the engines were
being reversed. The boats were lowered, and on drawing near
we perceived the captain with others on the bridge, holding
up their hands as a token of surrender. As soon
as those on board had taken their places in the lifeboats.
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They rowed toward us and showed the liveliest interest in
the final torpedoing of their steamer. They looked upon it
as a new kind of sport, and under the present
conditions they could watch the performance in the most comfortable way.
The sea was like a mirror and reflected the smiling
spring sunshine, whose warming rays were most agreeably felt. The
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English captain had scarcely been on board by submarine a
moment when he begged that we might go together and
verify the excellent aim of our first shot through the
forward part of his ship, which which he told me,
had nearly grazed his ear. I consented to go on
his lifeboat and admire with him, to our mutual enjoyment,
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the irreproachable marksmanship of my gunner. Although I did not
accept a drink of whisky one of the English officers
offered me. Unseeing the gaping hole in the forecastle, the
captain and his men clapped their hands and cried out
a very good shot. The captain congratulated me for securing,
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as he asserted, the richest prize I had ever made,
But I assured him we had sunk even more valuable
cargoes than the present one. I decided, as the sea
was calm and no ship was in sight, to spare
our torpedoes and shells, and to put an end to
the steamer with little hand grenades. The Englishman took a
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sportsmanlike interest in the proceedings, and one of the officers
even volunteered to show me the most effective position for
the explosive. I naturally did not gratify his wish to
place it there himself, for I knew myself very accurately
the most vulnerable spot in the ship. In a few moments,
(22:12):
a big hole was torn in the side of the
Crown of Castile, and with a gurgling sound, the waters
rushed in. At the same time, long yellow threads of
the finest oats floated out on the sea, and, glistening
with a golden shimmer, gave proof long after the steamer
had sunk of the precious cargo which had lain within
(22:35):
its flanks. You poor French army horses, I fear your
rations were cut short. For a while. I had made
an interesting study of the manner in which the English
crews of the present day were composed. Apart from the
British officers. There were but few experienced seamen on board.
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This was made evident by the awkward way the men
usually handled the lifeboats. Even with the enormous increase of wages,
sailors could not be found to risk their lives in
the danger zone, and a lot of untrained fellows, nebros
and chinamen revealed by their clumsy rowing that they had
only recently been pressed into service. Various other interesting incidents
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occurred on our return trip, which I shall not mention now,
But having safely reached our newly conquered port of Ostend,
we read, to our amusement in a French paper that
our U boat had been sunk in the channel by
a fleet of six fishing steamers. We were again warmly
welcomed by our comrades from the Army and Navy, all
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anxious to hear the news we had to tell, and
we had the special honor of a visit from His
Royal Highness, the Crown Prince Rupert of Bavaria, who, after
inspecting our boat, permitted me to give him a detailed
account of our recent splends. We had many other experiences
during the quiet, warm summer months, with their long, clear
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nights which enabled us to achieve the further destruction of
a large number of steamers. It was glorious to work
in fine weather on our U boat on the waters
of the Atlantic Ocean, so peaceful at this season of
the year, and so doing we indulged in much friendly
intercourse with the various fishermen we met. Fishing steamers have
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replaced the old sailboats to a great extent, and they
represent an enormous fishing industry. Our larder was daily replenished
with fresh fish, which was a greatly appreciated item on
our monotonous bill of fare. One windy evening in August
we captured a Belgian steamer bringing home coal from Cardiff,
(24:53):
the crew having left the ship. The latter was rapidly sinking, when,
to our astonishment, a man sprang on deck from below.
He had evidently been forgotten, and our shot going through
the steamer had warned him of his danger. He hesitated
to obey my repeated orders to jump overboard, until finally
(25:15):
encased in two life belts, he plunged into the water
and began to swim, but the screw was still slowly revolving,
and he was drawn deep down by the suction of
the water. We had given him up for lost, when
we were amazed to see him reappear on the other
(25:35):
side of the ship. The screw, which had slowly pulled
him down, had thrown him up again, and he swam
towards us a big wave having tossed him onto our
low deck. We were glad to find he was unhurt,
and we gave him the best of care. He was
a Dutchman, and after a fortnight spent in our midst
(25:57):
he was so happy he no longer wished to leave us.
When it came to our sinking of the Midland Queen,
a similar incident occurred. A negro had been forgotten by
his white fellow countrymen, and on finding himself abandoned and alone,
he was so greatly scared that he did not dare
(26:18):
to leave the sinking ship. We watched him and beckoned
to him to come to us, but he refused and
swore at us furiously. Presently, the Midland Queen pitched violently
forward and stood nearly erect with her nose in the water. Then,
with a shrill whistling sound, she dived below the surface
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of the waves. The negro's black head vanished in the
turmoil of the waters. Then suddenly a loud detonation occurred.
An explosion of compressed air within the ship threw up
sky high barrels and boards, and among them, to our
unbelieving eyes we saw the wriggling body of the Negro.
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He was projected into the sea and swam towards us,
apparently none the worse After this strange and violent experience.
We rescued him and handed him over to his mates,
who had rowed back to his assistance. On our return
voyage through the North Sea, we met a large sailboat
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with the Swedish flag flying from the topmast. She lay
completely becalmed and signaled for us to draw near. We
saw a large crowd gathered on her deck, and we
approached cautiously, fearing some trap, when, to our joyful surprise,
we found she had one hundred and fifty German officers
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and sailors on board. They belonged to one of our
auxiliary cruisers, the Meteor. Her captain, after many exploits, had
been pursued by several English cruisers, and to save his
little vessel from being captured, he had liberately centered to
the bottom of the sea, and the Swedish sailboat had
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picked up the crew. Our shipwrecked comrades told us they
were desperately hungry, but our own provisions were exhausted, so
we took them in tow. For not a breath of
wind stirred the sails. By clear sunshine, we merrily covered
the short distance to our nearest port, and towards midday
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the sailing ship and ourselves let down our anchors, once
more off the German coast. End of Part four
Part four of the Journal of Submarine Commander von Forsner.
This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please
visit LibriVox dot org. Recording by Sue Anderson. The Journal
of Submarine Commander von Forstner by Georg Gunter frachervon Forstner,
(00:26):
translated by Anna Kraftskodmen, with commentary by John Hays Hammond Junior.
The Journal Part four. Before making my official report, I
inspected my two prizes that were docked just behind us.
A chain parted them from the rest of the quay,
with sentries placed on guard. I gave the preference of
(00:49):
my first visit, naturally, as a polite man should. To
the steamer. With so many of the fair Sex on board,
I hoped that by appearing surrounded by my officers, I
should dispel their fear of the German barbarians. I was
told the ladies belonged to a variety troupe that was
(01:10):
to give a performance the next evening in London, Poor London,
to be deprived by our fault of an enjoyable evening.
Among the other passengers were Belgians, and French who had
waited six weeks in Holland for a chance to get across,
and also an American reporter of the Hearst newspaper. He
(01:31):
had a camera for taking moving pictures, and we discovered
later that he had photographed the whole occurrence of the
capture of the ship by our submarine. A few days later,
the Graphic of March twenty seventh, nineteen fifteen published several
of his pictures, which eventually found their way to many
American papers. I was ordered that evening to dine with
(01:55):
the Commanding Admiral of the Marine Corps, Excellency von Schroder,
and a motor called for me and took me to Bruges,
where he resided the peaceful landscape and the plowed fields
betrayed but few signs of war, and I saw Belgian
peasants and German soldiers planting together the seed for the
(02:16):
coming harvest. While the authorities were passing judgment on my
two prizes, I had a chance to visit the surrounding country.
The English had destroyed in their retreat. Everything in Zebruga,
except the new Palace, hotel, the new post office and
the Belgian bank. I made the most of this short
opportunity to observe the doings of our men in this
(02:39):
conquered land, paid for with German blood. I was interested
to note how our marines had been incorporated into every
branch of the army service, and how easily they adapted
themselves to this new life. They served as infantry in
the trenches, as artillery behind the great coast guns, and
(03:00):
also as cavalry mounted on big Flemish mares. They had
even been transformed into car conductors on the electric line
that runs behind the dunes between Zebruga and Ostend. In fact,
they filled every kind of position, and few Belgians were
to be seen. We had created here a second German
(03:22):
fatherland and home, notwithstanding the enemy's reports that we had
acted like huns and barbarians. But as neither the country
nor the people were of great interest to me, my
attention was centered on the study of our own troops. Meantime,
the unloading of our steamers had begun, and I had
(03:43):
to supervise it myself, as the cargoes were composed of
perishable foodstuffs. The usual delays were overcome, and hundreds of
sailors and soldiers were ordered to unload the ships. Out
of the hold rose newly slaughtered pigs in a sheep
and ducks, which were at once distributed among the various regiments.
(04:06):
Two hundred barrels of the best Munich beer were rolled
over the quays, and two barrels found their way on
board our little boat, which no one could be grudge us.
On the Zanstrm there were four thousand, four hundred boxes
of fresh eggs, each box containing one thousand, eight hundred eggs,
(04:27):
and I was told by an army officer that every
man of the Northern Army received eight eggs for the
Easter festival. On the following afternoon, the nationality of the
crew and of the passengers was recorded. A number of
them were sent as prisoners of war to concentration camps,
(04:48):
and many touching farewells ensued between the men and the
women who were left behind. The others were taken on
a special train under military guard to the Dutch frontier.
The German sailors on whom this mission devolved, looked very
jolly as they sat armed to the teeth in the
railway carriages by twos, watching over two pretty variety actresses.
(05:13):
And I think they would willingly have prolonged the journey further.
I walked along the train to say good bye to
the passengers who had so unwillingly made our acquaintance, and
I was warmly thanked by an old American to whom
I personally had done a small favor for my courteous treatment.
He spoke in the name of all the passengers, who
(05:34):
had experienced also the greatest civility at the hands of
the port authorities. I declined these words of thanks, for
they had only received the treatment that was their proper due.
After the train had left, the hour of our own
departure had struck. We cast off the lines that had
kept us bound for two such memorable days on the
(05:57):
Flemish coast. In passing by, I waved a farewell to
the two Dutch captains, and away we went westward ho
Chapter seven off the coast of England. Our boat carried
us speedily away, further and further towards the west, and
soon the lighthouse on the Mole and the outline of
(06:19):
the country we had conquered faded away in the evening twilight.
Before long we should be surrounded by only hostile shores.
We first sighted the French port of Bologna, where the
imposing bronze statue of Napoleon the First stands on a
marble column fifty three meters high, with eyes turned toward
(06:41):
the English coast. It was built to commemorate the expedition
planned by Napoleon in eighteen o three against the Sons
of Albion, whose descendants have so recently landed on French soil,
and as they lie there encamped, they may wonder, when
gazing at the statue of the Great Emperor, if he
(07:02):
would have welcomed them with the same enthusiasm with which
they have been received by the present rulers of France.
On our very first day in the French Channel, we
were able to sink several steamers after the crews had
left in their lifeboats, and on general lines, a similar
picture was traced at every sinking. We were now granted
(07:24):
our first opportunity to steer a submarine above and below
the waters of the North Atlantic. The ocean seemed to
rejoice at our coming and revealed itself to us in
all the glory of a march storm. Only those who
have seen such a storm can realize its proud majesty.
The gigantic, blue black waves, with their shining crests, lashed
(07:48):
by the west wind, came rushing onward into the open
mouth of the channel, and the hemmed in waters, roaring
and surging, dashed themselves against the sharp rock points of
the French coast, or broke less violently but in ceaseless unrest,
on the chalk cliffs of England, which glimmered white in
(08:09):
the rays of the sun. It is a splendid sight
to watch this great spectacle from the high deck of
a steamer as it plows its way through the foaming flood,
or to be borne aloft on the top of the
waves with a ship under full sail. But it is
still more wonderful to behold nature's great display from the
(08:29):
half submerged conning tower of a u boat, and to
dive through the mountainous breakers until they close, gurgling over
our heads, and hide us from all curious glances. Our
little nutshell, in perpetual motion, is drawn down into the
deep valleys of the ocean waves, or tossed upwards on
(08:50):
the comb of the following breaker. We are soaked to
the skin, and the spray covers us like a silvery veil.
Our boat, as well as ourselves, is daubed with a
salt crust. Our eyes smart, and our lips have a
briny tang. But to us sailors, it's a joy to
be the sport of the wild waves, and even those
(09:13):
few unfortunates who always suffer from sea sickness never lose
their love of the sea. We were thus in the
midst of a strong northwesterly gale, lying in wait for
our prey at the entrance of the English Channel, but
no ship was to be seen. Most of them took
the northerly course beyond the war zone around the Shetland Islands,
(09:37):
and it was not until the next morning, north of
the Scilly Islands in the Bristol Channel, that we caught
sight behind us of a big steamer running before the wind.
Like ourselves, the wind had somewhat fallen and the March
sun was shining bright and warm. The steamer was heading
for Cardiff, and we judged by her course that she
(09:58):
had sailed from some port inside America. Turning about and
breasting the waves, we faced the oncoming steamer and signaled
to her to stop. But hardly had she espied us
than she also turned about in the hope to escape.
She showed no flag to indicate her nationality, so surely
we had sighted an English vessel. Even after we had
(10:21):
fired a warning shot, she tried, by rapid and tortuous
curves to return to her former course and endeavor thereby
to reach her home port. Meantime, she sent up rockets
as signals of distress in quick succession to draw the
attention of British patrol ships that must be hovering in
the neighborhood. This obliged us to fire a decisive shot,
(10:45):
and with a loud report, our first shell struck the
ship close to the captain's bridge. Instead of resigning himself
to his fate, the Englishman sent up more signals and
hoisted the British flag. This showed us he was game,
and the fight began in dead earnest. All honor to
(11:06):
the pluck of these English captains, But how reckless to
expose in this manner the lives of their passengers and crew,
as we shall see in the present instances. Circling around us,
he tried to ram us with his prow, and we
naturally avoided him by also turning in the same direction
every time he veered about, he offered us his broadside
(11:29):
for a shot. With well directed aim. We took advantage
of this target, and our successful fire gave him full
proof of the skill of our gunners. The latter had
a hard time of it. The high seas poured over
the low deck, and they continually stood up to their
necks in the cold salt water. They were often dragged
(11:50):
off the deck by the great receiving waves, but as
they were tied by strong ropes to the cannons, we
were able to pull them up again, and fortunately no
lives were lost. On seeing our gunners struggling in the seas,
our foe hoped to make good his escape, but with
each telling shot our own fighting blood was aroused, and
(12:12):
the wild chase continued. A well aimed shell tore off
the English flagstaff at the stern, but the Union jack
was quickly hoisted again on the foretop. This also was
shot down, and a third time the flag flew from
a line of the yard of the foretop, but the
flag had been raised too hastily and it hung reversed
(12:34):
with the Union jack upside down, and in this manner
it continued to fly until it sank with the brave ship.
The fight had lasted four hours without our being able
to deliver the death stroke. Several fires had started on
the steamer, but the crew had been able to keep
them under control. Big holes gaped open in the ship's side,
(12:58):
but there were none as yet below the water line,
and the pumps still sufficed to expel the water. It
often occurred that in the act of firing, the waves
choked our cannons, and the shot when hissing through tremendous
sheets of water, while we were blinded by a deluge
of foam. Of course, we were all wet through and through,
(13:21):
but that was of no importance, for we had already
been wet for days. It was now essential for us
to put an end to this deadly combat, for English
torpedo boat destroyers were hurrying on to the calls of
distress of the steamer. Big clouds of smoke against the
sky showed they were coming towards us under full steam.
(13:43):
The ship was by this time listing so heavily that
it was evident we need waste no more of our ammunition.
And besides, the appearance of another big steamer on the
southern horizon was an enticing inducement to quit the battle
scene and seek another victim. We cast a last look
on our courageous adversary, who was gradually sinking, and I
(14:07):
must add it was the first and last prey whose
end we did not have the satisfaction to witness. We
had been truly impressed by the captain's brave endurance, notwithstanding
his lack of wisdom, and we knew that the men
of war were coming to his rescue. We read in
the papers on our return to a German port that
(14:28):
the Voge had sunk soon after we departed, and what
remained of the passengers and crew were picked up by
the English ships. The captain was rewarded for his temerity
by being raised to the rank of reserve officer, and
the crew were given sums of money, but all the
other officers had perished, as well as several sailors and
(14:50):
a few passengers who had been forced to help the stokers.
In order to increase the speed of the flying steamer,
we hurried away there therefore, in the direction of the
other ship, and as we approached we soon recognized the
Spanish colors flying from her flag staff and painted on
her sides. The captain willingly stopped at our bidding and
(15:14):
dispatched an officer to us bearing the ship's papers. The
stormy waves had somewhat subsided, and although the occupants of
the boat got very wet, yet they were able without
danger to come alongside our submarine. There was no contraband
on board the Spanish steamer, and before dismissing the officer,
(15:34):
I admonished him always to stop at the first signal
from a U boat. He assured me that since the
English were constantly hoisting the Spanish flag, he had lost
all desire to navigate again in the dangerous waters of
the war zone. Much relieved at getting away so easily,
he went on board his own steamer, which resumed its
(15:56):
voyage towards the lovely city of Santander on the Spanish coast.
I met an account later of our encounter with the
Augustina in a number of the Metin of April one,
nineteen fifteen. It was entitled to jour le lleu, and
spoke of our undesirable presence in French waters. A following
(16:18):
number did us the honour to represent a large picture
of our boat with the officers standing on the bridge,
taken probably by a passenger on board the Spanish vessel
an Arrow, pointed to us with the inscription for la
lequipage du bundi. The English usually referred to us as
(16:39):
the pirates, and in their rage describe our activities as
those of the German submarine pest. We are accustomed to
these flattering illusions, and it amused me to preserve and
frame our picture from the metin. In the next few days,
we stopped and searched several neutral steamers and sank many
(17:03):
English ones. The captains were occasionally stubborn and refused to
obey our signals, so a few accidents occurred. In one case,
for instance, a stray shot struck some passengers in a
lifeboat which collapsed. But as a rule, passengers and crews
were picked up by the many sailboats and fishing boats
(17:25):
which circulate in the Irish Sea and in Saint George's Channel,
and it was we who generally summoned these fishermen to
go to the rescue of their shipwrecked countrymen. The method
of capture was always the same, and now our ammunition
being nearly exhausted, we steered a homeward course with the
(17:46):
hope of securing a few more steamers on the way.
We were again favored by good luck, for at the
entrance of the English Channel we ran across a large
steamer coming from America and heading for a French port,
heavily laden with all the fine things that the Americans
at present so willingly export. The chase began in the
(18:10):
usual fashion, as we followed closely in the enemy's wake.
Although the captain made an effort to escape, yet he
evidently felt certain from the beginning that he would be
unable to do so, for he immediately swung out the
lifeboats ready to be lowered. We were economizing our ammunition
and did not, according to our custom, fire a warning shot.
(18:34):
But as we drew near the steamer, we suddenly saw
dark round objects thrown overboard. The man at the helm
beside me exclaimed, they are throwing mines, but I was
not of the same opinion. We proceeded quietly to examine
these suspicious objects more closely, and we discovered they were
(18:55):
simply bundles of clothes. The sailors were trying to save
them into the lifeboats. They had missed the mark, and
the bundles had fallen into the sea. A report had
apparently spread through the English seaports that the men had
but scant time to save their belongings when they were
sighted by one of our submarines, and since that time
(19:18):
their clothes were strapped together, ready for a sudden emergency.
The steamer stopped and the crew on this occasion took
to the boats with a perfect discipline we were little
accustomed to witness. The Flaminian was sent to the bottom
of the sea with one of our last torpedoes. The
following morning, before bidding the west coast of England a
(19:40):
temporary farewell, we made another good catch. We sighted a
broad bottomed, fore masted steamer, also coming from America, laden
down as we soon ascertained, with five thousand tons of oats,
and making its way to Havre. We started after it,
and as usual it tried to escape, but a well
(20:03):
directed shot through the bridge and chart house brought it
to a stop, and it signaled that the engines were
being reversed. The boats were lowered, and on drawing near
we perceived the captain with others on the bridge, holding
up their hands as a token of surrender. As soon
as those on board had taken their places in the lifeboats.
(20:23):
They rowed toward us and showed the liveliest interest in
the final torpedoing of their steamer. They looked upon it
as a new kind of sport, and under the present
conditions they could watch the performance in the most comfortable way.
The sea was like a mirror and reflected the smiling
spring sunshine, whose warming rays were most agreeably felt. The
(20:48):
English captain had scarcely been on board by submarine a
moment when he begged that we might go together and
verify the excellent aim of our first shot through the
forward part of his ship, which which he told me,
had nearly grazed his ear. I consented to go on
his lifeboat and admire with him, to our mutual enjoyment,
(21:08):
the irreproachable marksmanship of my gunner. Although I did not
accept a drink of whisky one of the English officers
offered me. Unseeing the gaping hole in the forecastle, the
captain and his men clapped their hands and cried out
a very good shot. The captain congratulated me for securing,
(21:29):
as he asserted, the richest prize I had ever made,
But I assured him we had sunk even more valuable
cargoes than the present one. I decided, as the sea
was calm and no ship was in sight, to spare
our torpedoes and shells, and to put an end to
the steamer with little hand grenades. The Englishman took a
(21:51):
sportsmanlike interest in the proceedings, and one of the officers
even volunteered to show me the most effective position for
the explosive. I naturally did not gratify his wish to
place it there himself, for I knew myself very accurately
the most vulnerable spot in the ship. In a few moments,
(22:12):
a big hole was torn in the side of the
Crown of Castile, and with a gurgling sound, the waters
rushed in. At the same time, long yellow threads of
the finest oats floated out on the sea, and, glistening
with a golden shimmer, gave proof long after the steamer
had sunk of the precious cargo which had lain within
(22:35):
its flanks. You poor French army horses, I fear your
rations were cut short. For a while. I had made
an interesting study of the manner in which the English
crews of the present day were composed. Apart from the
British officers. There were but few experienced seamen on board.
(22:56):
This was made evident by the awkward way the men
usually handled the lifeboats. Even with the enormous increase of wages,
sailors could not be found to risk their lives in
the danger zone, and a lot of untrained fellows, nebros
and chinamen revealed by their clumsy rowing that they had
only recently been pressed into service. Various other interesting incidents
(23:21):
occurred on our return trip, which I shall not mention now,
But having safely reached our newly conquered port of Ostend,
we read, to our amusement in a French paper that
our U boat had been sunk in the channel by
a fleet of six fishing steamers. We were again warmly
welcomed by our comrades from the Army and Navy, all
(23:45):
anxious to hear the news we had to tell, and
we had the special honor of a visit from His
Royal Highness, the Crown Prince Rupert of Bavaria, who, after
inspecting our boat, permitted me to give him a detailed
account of our recent splends. We had many other experiences
during the quiet, warm summer months, with their long, clear
(24:07):
nights which enabled us to achieve the further destruction of
a large number of steamers. It was glorious to work
in fine weather on our U boat on the waters
of the Atlantic Ocean, so peaceful at this season of
the year, and so doing we indulged in much friendly
intercourse with the various fishermen we met. Fishing steamers have
(24:30):
replaced the old sailboats to a great extent, and they
represent an enormous fishing industry. Our larder was daily replenished
with fresh fish, which was a greatly appreciated item on
our monotonous bill of fare. One windy evening in August
we captured a Belgian steamer bringing home coal from Cardiff,
(24:53):
the crew having left the ship. The latter was rapidly sinking, when,
to our astonishment, a man sprang on deck from below.
He had evidently been forgotten, and our shot going through
the steamer had warned him of his danger. He hesitated
to obey my repeated orders to jump overboard, until finally
(25:15):
encased in two life belts, he plunged into the water
and began to swim, but the screw was still slowly revolving,
and he was drawn deep down by the suction of
the water. We had given him up for lost, when
we were amazed to see him reappear on the other
(25:35):
side of the ship. The screw, which had slowly pulled
him down, had thrown him up again, and he swam
towards us a big wave having tossed him onto our
low deck. We were glad to find he was unhurt,
and we gave him the best of care. He was
a Dutchman, and after a fortnight spent in our midst
(25:57):
he was so happy he no longer wished to leave us.
When it came to our sinking of the Midland Queen,
a similar incident occurred. A negro had been forgotten by
his white fellow countrymen, and on finding himself abandoned and alone,
he was so greatly scared that he did not dare
(26:18):
to leave the sinking ship. We watched him and beckoned
to him to come to us, but he refused and
swore at us furiously. Presently, the Midland Queen pitched violently
forward and stood nearly erect with her nose in the water. Then,
with a shrill whistling sound, she dived below the surface
(26:39):
of the waves. The negro's black head vanished in the
turmoil of the waters. Then suddenly a loud detonation occurred.
An explosion of compressed air within the ship threw up
sky high barrels and boards, and among them, to our
unbelieving eyes we saw the wriggling body of the Negro.
(27:02):
He was projected into the sea and swam towards us,
apparently none the worse After this strange and violent experience.
We rescued him and handed him over to his mates,
who had rowed back to his assistance. On our return
voyage through the North Sea, we met a large sailboat
(27:23):
with the Swedish flag flying from the topmast. She lay
completely becalmed and signaled for us to draw near. We
saw a large crowd gathered on her deck, and we
approached cautiously, fearing some trap, when, to our joyful surprise,
we found she had one hundred and fifty German officers
(27:44):
and sailors on board. They belonged to one of our
auxiliary cruisers, the Meteor. Her captain, after many exploits, had
been pursued by several English cruisers, and to save his
little vessel from being captured, he had liberately centered to
the bottom of the sea, and the Swedish sailboat had
(28:04):
picked up the crew. Our shipwrecked comrades told us they
were desperately hungry, but our own provisions were exhausted, so
we took them in tow. For not a breath of
wind stirred the sails. By clear sunshine, we merrily covered
the short distance to our nearest port, and towards midday
(28:25):
the sailing ship and ourselves let down our anchors, once
more off the German coast. End of Part four
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