SM UC-5 explained

SM UC-5 was a German Type UC I minelayer submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy (German: Kaiserliche Marine) during World War I. The U-boat had been ordered by November 1914 and was launched on 13 June 1915. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 19 June 1915 as SM UC-5.[1] She served in World War I under the command of Herbert Pustkuchen (June - December 1915) and Ulrich Mohrbutter (December 1915 - April 1916).

She ran aground and was abandoned but recovered by the Allies and displayed for propaganda purposes.

Design

A Type UC I submarine, UC-5 had a displacement of 168t when at the surface and 183t while submerged. She had a length overall of 33.99m (111.52feet), a beam of 3.15m (10.33feet), and a draught of 3.040NaN0. The submarine was powered by one Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft six-cylinder, four-stroke diesel engine producing 90PS, a Siemens-Schuckert electric motor producing 175PS, and one propeller shaft. She was capable of operating at a depth of .

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a maximum submerged speed of . When submerged, she could operate for at ; when surfaced, she could travel at . UC-5 was fitted with six mine tubes, twelve UC 120 mines, and one 8mm machine gun. She was built by AG Vulcan Stettin and her complement was fourteen crew members.

Service

UC-5 had an impressive career, with 30 ships sunk for a total of 36,126 GRT and 1,105 tons on 29 patrols. On August 21, 1915 UC-5 became the first submarine minelayer to penetrate into the English Channel, laying 12 mines off Boulogne, one of which sank the steamship William Dawson the same day. UC-5 went on to lay 6 more mines off Boulogne and Folkestone on 7 September, one of which sank the cable layer Monarch.[2]

Fate

UC-5 ran aground while on patrol 27 April 1916 at 51.9833°N 39°W and was scuttled. Her crew were captured by .The U-boat was salvaged and put into a floating dock by teams from Harwich and Chatham, led by Captain Young and Lt Paterson--a dangerous procedure because of the two mines still on board. Her captain had also rigged up explosive charges to wreck his ship in the event of abandoning, which the British press described as an attempt to kill the RN personnel who rescued his crew. Paterson was able to find and disable them after being warned by one of the prisoners. The U-Boat was towed first to Harwich, then on to Sheerness, where an approved party of journalists and even two war artists were taken to inspect it. (Refs: Nore Command Records ADM 151/83 at UK National Archives, E F Knight "The Harwich Force", contemporary editions of Daily Telegraph & Daily Mail).

Later it was towed up and displayed to the London public at Temple Pier on the Thames river and, the following year, in New York for propaganda purposes.[3]

Summary of raiding history

DateNameNationalityTonnage[4] Fate[5]
6 August 1915HMT Leandros276Sunk
13 August 1915Amethyst United Kingdom57Sunk
13 August 1915Summerfield United Kingdom687Sunk
13 August 1915Sverige Sweden1,602Sunk
21 August 1915William Dawson United Kingdom284Sunk
30 August 1915Bretwalda United Kingdom4,037Damaged
30 August 1915Honiton United Kingdom4,914Sunk
30 August 1915Saint Chamond France2,866Damaged
8 September 1915Monarch United Kingdom1,122Sunk
19 September 1915Tord Sweden1,313Damaged
4 October 1915Enfield United Kingdom2,124Damaged
6 October 1915HMS Brighton Queen553Sunk
10 October 1915Newcastle United Kingdom3,403Sunk
12 October 1915HMD Frons Olivae98Sunk
19 October 1915HMT Erin II181Sunk
20 October 1915HMD Star of Buchan81Sunk
22 October 1915Grappler United Kingdom690Damaged
23 October 1915Ilaro United Kingdom2,799Sunk
25 October 1915HMS Velox380Sunk
17 November 19151,862Sunk
17 November 1915Lusitania United Kingdom1,834Sunk
19 November 1915HMT Falmouth III198Sunk
29 November 1915Dotterel United Kingdom1,596Sunk
26 December 1915725Sunk
26 December 1915HMT Resono230Sunk
12 January 1916Algerian United Kingdom3,837Sunk
13 January 1916HMT Albion II240Sunk
1 February 1916Prinses Juliana Netherlands2,885Sunk
15 February 1916Bandoeng Netherlands5,851Damaged
20 February 1916Dingle United Kingdom593Sunk
21 February 1916La Flandre Netherlands2,018Sunk
24 February 1916Tummel United Kingdom531Sunk
26 March 1916Hebe France1,494Sunk
26 March 1916Khartoum United Kingdom303Sunk
27 March 1916Harriet Denmark1,372Sunk
31 March 1916Clinton United Kingdom3,381Damaged
31 March 1916Memento Norway1,076Sunk

References

  1. "SM" stands for "Seiner Majestät" (English "His Majesty's") and combined with the U for Unterseeboot would be translated as "His Majesty's Submarine".
  2. Book: Gibson, R.H. . Maurice Prendergast . The German Submarine War 1914-1918 . Periscope Publishing Ltd. . 2002 . 51 . 1-904381-08-1.
  3. Web site: The Flandern U-boat bases and U-Bootflottille Flandern by Johan Ryheul at U-boat.net. 25 August 2008 .
  4. Merchant ship tonnages are in gross register tons. Military vessels are listed by tons displacement.
  5. Web site: Ships hit by UC-5 . German and Austrian U-Boats of World War I - Kaiserliche Marine - Uboat.net . 24 December 2014.

Bibliography

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