German submarine U-859

"U-859" was a German Type IXD2 submarine built during World War II. She was one of a select number of U-boats to join the "Monsun Gruppe" or Monsoon Group, which operated in the Far East alongside the Imperial Japanese Navy.

Construction

"U-859" was built in Bremen during 1942 and 1943, and was heavily adapted following her completion in July 1943, with the addition of a Snorkel to enable her to stay underwater for longer during the hazardous passage to Penang in Malaya. Thus she was not ready for war service until the spring of 1944, when following her working up period and modifications she departed Kiel for the East.

ervice history

Although "U-859" only had a single war patrol from which she never returned, her six month career was highly eventful and carried her halfway across the world and into an entirely different theatre of conflict. Following her departure on the 4 April, the boat avoided shipping lanes and remained underwater for as long as possible during the dangerous daylight hours, when allied aircraft constantly patrolled the Northern Atlantic Ocean. "U-859" was participating in the trade of vital low-bulk war supplies with the Japanese, and was reported to be carrying mercury and possibly Uranium-oxide for use by Japanese scientists. It was vitally important for both industrial and diplomatic reasons that this trade link was kept open and so Kptlt. Johann Jebsen was instructed to avoid all unnecessary contact with allied units.

Three weeks into the cruise however, Jebsen saw a target he could not refuse. The MV "Colin", formerly an Italian freighter taken over by American authorities and registered in Panama, was slowly steaming unescorted in the North Atlantic following engine failure. Three torpedoes sank her before the "U-859" went on her way southwards. [ [http://uboat.net/allies/merchants/3237.html uboat.net - Allied Ships hit by U-boats - Colin (Motor merchant) ] ] The passage of the boat continued smoothly for the next two months, and she rounded the Cape of Good Hope and entered the Indian Ocean without further trouble. On the 5 July she was spotted by a Lockheed Ventura aircraft, which swooped down on the boat only to be brought down by the 88mm flak gun on the conning tower. There were no survivors from the aircraft's crew.

Her second victim was her most famous, and became one of the most famous treasure shipwrecks of the Twentieth Century. The unescorted liberty ship SS "John Barry" was transporting a cargo of 3 million silver one-riyal coins to Saudi Arabia as part of an American government agreement with the Saudi royal family. The silver coins were stacked in huge boxes in the hold, and went down with the ship when she was torpedoed about 100 miles south of the entrance to the Arabian Sea. A massive salvage operation succeeded in retrieving many of the lost coins in 1994. [ [http://uboat.net/allies/merchants/3340.html uboat.net - Allied Ships hit by U-boats - John Barry (Steam merchant) ] ] Three days later another unescorted merchant, the British SS "Troilus" was also sunk, [ [http://uboat.net/allies/merchants/3345.html uboat.net - Allied Ships hit by U-boats - Troilus (Steam merchant) ] ] with six hands drowned.

Loss

Setting sail for Penang, "U-859" was nearing the end of her exhausting patrol, when on the 23 September disaster struck. In the Far East, unlike in the Western theatre, it was allied submarines, not German ones who were the top hunters, and as Penang was a Japanese-held port, it was unsurprising that there would be a predator waiting nearby. In the Malacca Straits hid the British submarine HMS "Trenchant", who saw the "U-859" sail past on the surface one evening and did not let the opportunity escape. A single torpedo hit the U-boat which sank immediately in convert|50|m|abbr=on of water with several compartments flooded, and 47 men drowned, including her commander.

Twenty of the crew did manage to escape however, opening the hatch in the relatively shallow sea and struggling to the calm surface, where they remained for sometime until picked up. Of the 20 survivors, 11 were picked up by HMS "Trenchant" immediately following the sinking, and the remaining 9 were picked up by the Japanese after being adrift for 24 hours and were taken ashore to await repatriation. [cite web | last = | first = | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = Interview with U-859 survivor Arthur Baudzus | work = | publisher = Riverdale Electronic Books | date = | url = http://web.archive.org/web/20050214013707/http://riverdaleebooks.com/baudzus_interview.html | format = | doi = | accessdate = (via Internet Archive)]

alvage

In 1972 a total of 12 tons of mercury were recovered from the "U-859" and brought into Singapore. The West German Embassy claimed ownership of the mercury. The Receiver of Wreck took possession of the mercury, and the High Court of Singapore ruled that "the German state has never ceased to exist despite Germany's unconditional surrender in 1945 and whatever was the property of the German State, unless it was captured and taken away by one of the Allied Powers, still remains the property of the German State..." [cite book | last = Greenwood | first = C.J. | authorlink = | coauthors = | title = International Law Reports: v.56 | publisher = Cambridge University Press | date = 1980 | location = | pages = pp. 40-47 | url = | doi = | id = | isbn = 0521464013]

Raiding career

Notes

References

* Sharpe, Peter, "U-Boat Fact File", Midland Publishing, Great Britain: 1998. ISBN 1-85780-072-9.
* [http://www.uboat.net/boats/u859.htm U-boat.net webpage for "U-859"]