SM U-17 was a German submarine during World War I. U-17 sank the first British merchant vessel in the First World War, and also sank another ten ships, damaged one ship and captured two ships, surviving the war without casualty.
On, Oberleutnant zur See Johannes Feldkirchener was given command of U-17.[1] On 20 October, U-17 stopped the 866 ton off the Norwegian coast, and having searched her cargo, ordered the crew to the lifeboats before scuttling the vessel. On 26 October, U-17 torpedoed the French ferry † in the Strait of Dover. The vessel made port before sinking, with the loss of 40 lives out of over 2,500 on board.[2]
† - www.uboat.net credits the damage to the French steamer Amiral Ganteaume to .
On 2 March 1915 the command of U-17 passed to Kapitänleutnant Hans Walther. On 12 June 1915, U-17 chased and torpedoed the off the coast of Scotland. The crew escaped on lifeboats while the vessel was scuttled and sunk. Walther's command ended on 9 January 1916 and the next day U-17 joined the Training Flotilla.[1]
U-17 was decommissioned on 27 January 1919 and sold for scrapping.
| Date | Ship Name | Nationality | Tonnage[3] | Fate[4] | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 20 October 1914 | Glitra |  United Kingdom | 866 | Sunk | |
| 26 October 1914 | Amiral Ganteaume |  France | 4,590 | Damaged | |
| 12 June 1915 | Cocos |  Denmark | 85 | Sunk | |
| 12 June 1915 | Desabla | United Kingdom | 6,047 | Sunk | |
| 18 June 1915 | Ailsa | United Kingdom | 876 | Sunk | |
| 8 August 1915 | Glenravel | United Kingdom | 1,092 | Sunk | |
| 8 August 1915 | Malmland |  Sweden | 3,676 | Sunk | |
| 10 August 1915 | Utopia | United Kingdom | 155 | Sunk | |
| 14 August 1915 | Gloria | United Kingdom | 130 | Sunk | |
| 15 August 1915 | Götaland | Sweden | 3,538 | Captured as prize | |
| 15 August 1915 | Marie | Denmark | 158 | Sunk | |
| 16 August 1915 | Romulus |  Norway | 819 | Sunk | |
| 16 August 1915 | Tello | Norway | 1,218 | Sunk | |
| 24 October 1915 | Rumina | Sweden | 1,418 | Captured as prize |