Otto Schuhart

Otto Schuhart
Otto Schuhart
Born	1 April 1909(1909-04-01) Hamburg
Died	10 March 1990(1990-03-10) (aged 80) Stuttgart
Allegiance	Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany (to 1945)  West Germany
Service/branch	Reichsmarine  Kriegsmarine  German Federal Navy
Years of service	1929–1945, 1955–1967
Rank	Korvettenkapitän (Wehrmacht) Kapitän zur See (Bundeswehr)
Commands held	U-8 U-25 U-29
Battles/wars	World War II Battle of the Atlantic (1939-1945)
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Cross of Merit 1st class

Otto Schuhart (1 April 1909 – 10 March 1990) was a Korvettenkapitän with the Kriegsmarine during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (German: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes). The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. Schuhart commanded the U-29, sinking twelve ships on nine patrols, for a total of 67,277 gross register tons (GRT) of Allied merchant shipping. Schuhart is credited for the sinking of the aircraft carrier HMS Courageous on 17 September 1939, the first British warship to be lost in the war.

Career

Schuhart began his naval career with the Reichsmarine on 1 April 1929 as a member "Crew 1929" (the incoming class of 1929).^{[Note 1]}. After training on the sailing ship Niobe he entered the Naval Academy at Mürwik. He served on the light cruiser Emden, which served as a school ship and in the light cruiser Karlsruhe. In 1932 Schuhart was assigned to the old pre-dreadnought Schleswig-Holstein. After service as a company commander in the II. Marine-Artillerieabteilung, Schuhart joined Unterseebootsflottille Weddingen as officer of the watch on board of U-25, based in Wilhelmshaven. In 1938 he became commander of U-8 in the U-Bootschule. In December 1938 he was given command of U-25.

Courageous sinking after being torpedoed by U-29

In 1939 Schuhart was transferred to U-29. Oberleutnant zur See Georg Lassen was U-29's I. Wachoffizier (first watch officer) on all seven patrols under the command of Schuhart. Right after the outbreak World War II, on 17 September 1939, Schuhart encountered the British carrier HMS Courageous. After stalking her for two hours, Schuhart saw his opportunity when Courageous turned into the wind to launch her aircraft. This manoeuvre put the ship right across the bow of the U-29, which then fired three torpedoes. Two of the torpedoes struck the ship on her port side, and she capsized and sank in 15 minutes with the loss of 518 of her crew, including her captain. During the war Schuhart sank twelve ships on nine patrols, for a total of 67,277 tons of Allied merchant shipping. After transferring back to land, Schuhart became commander of 1. U-Lehr Division ("1st U-boat Training Division") and later of 21st U-boat Flotilla in Pillau. From 1944-1945 he was commander of I./Marineschule Flensburg-Mürwik. After the German capitulation he commanded a marine battalion until August 1945. Until December 1945 he served in the German mine clearing service.

In 1955 Schuhart entered the Bundeswehr where he served in various land based capacities. Upon his retirement on 30 September 1967, he received the Bundesverdienstkreuz I class.

Awards

• Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th Class (2 October 1936)^[1]
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (26 September 1939)^[1]
  • 1st Class (26 September 1939)^[1]
• War Merit Cross
  • 2nd Class (30 January 1944)^[2]
  • 1st Class (1 September 1944)^[2]
• U-boat War Badge (1939) (16 December 1939)^[1]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 16 May 1940 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-29^[3][4]
• Cross of Merit 1st class (30 September 1967)^[2]
• Mentioned three times in the Wehrmachtbericht (19 September 1939, 14 March 1940 and 3 July 1940)

References in the Wehrmachtbericht

Date	Original German Wehrmachtbericht wording	Direct English translation
Tuesday, 19 September 1939	Die von der britischen Admiralität bekanntgegebene Versenkung des Flugzeugträgers "Courageous" ist durch die Meldung des angreifenden deutschen Unterseebootes bestätigt worden.[5]	The by the British Admiralty announced sinking of the aircraft carrier "Courageous" has been confirmed by the message of the attacking German submarine .
Thursday, 14 March 1940	Kapitänleutnant Schuhart konnte nach Rückkehr seines Unterseebootes von der letzten Fahrt gegen den Feind die Versenkung von 24 000 BRT melden. Damit hat Kapitänleutnant Schuhart, der im September des vergangenen Jahres auch den britischen Flugzeugträger "Courageous" vernichtet, im Verlauf zweier Feinfahrten insgesamt 66 566 BRT versenkt.[6]	Captain Lieutenant Schuhart, after the return of his submarine from the last patrol against the enemy, reported the sinking of 24 000 tons. Thus, Captain Lieutenant Schuhart, who had destroyed the British aircraft carrier "Courageous" in September of last year, sunk in the course of two patrols against the enemy in total 66 566 tons of shipping.
Wednesday, 3 July 1940	Kapitänleutnant Schuhart hat mit seinem Unterseeboot 24 000 BRT feindlichen Handelsschiffsraums, darunter den britischen Dampfer "Athellaird" (8900 BRT) versenkt.[7]	Captain Lieutenant Schuhart has sunk with his submarine 24 000 tons of enemy merchant shipping, including the British steamer "Athellaird" (8900 GRT).

Notes

1. ^ The German Reichsmarine which was renamed the Kriegsmarine on 1 June 1935.

References

Citations

1. ^ ^{a b c d} Busch and Röll 2003, p. 33.
2. ^ ^{a b c} Busch and Röll 2003, p. 34.
3. ^ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 391.
4. ^ Scherzer 2007, p. 688.
5. ^ Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939-1945 Band 1, p. 27.
6. ^ Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939-1945 Band 1, p. 90.
7. ^ Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939-1945 Band 1, p. 250.

Bibliography

• Busch, Rainer & Röll, Hans-Joachim (2003). Der U-Boot-Krieg 1939-1945 - Die Ritterkreuzträger der U-Boot-Waffe von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 (in German). Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn Germany: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 3-8132-0515-0.
• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000). Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945 (in German). Friedburg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 3-7909-0284-5.
• Kurowski, Franz (1995). Knight's Cross Holders of the U-Boat Service. Schiffer Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-88740-748-X.
• Range, Clemens (1974). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Kriegsmarine (in German). Stuttgart, Germany: Motorbuch Verlag. ISBN 3-87943-355-0.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Miltaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
• Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 1, 1. September 1939 bis 31. Dezember 1941 (in German). München: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG, 1985. ISBN 3-423-05944-3.

External links

Military of Germany portal

• uboat.net : Otto Schuhart

Persondata
Name	Schuhart, Otto
Alternative names
Short description	German World War II U-boat commander
Date of birth	1 April 1909
Place of birth	Hamburg
Date of death	10 March 1990
Place of death	Stuttgart