German Type UE II submarine


SM U-117 at Cape Charles
Class overview
Builders: Vulkan Hamburg
Blohm & Voss, Hamburg
Operators:  Kaiserliche Marine
Subclasses: U-122
Built: 1917–1918
In commission: 1917–1918
Completed: 9
Lost: 1 (sunk as targets)
Scrapped: 8
General characteristics
Type: Ocean-going mine-laying submarine
Displacement: 1,512 long tons (1,536 t)
Length: 267 ft 4 in (81.48 m)
Beam: 24 ft 3 in (7.39 m)
Draft: 4.2 m (13 ft 9 in)
Propulsion: 2 shafts, 2 MAN diesel engines 2,400 shp (1,800 kW)
two electric motors 1,200 shp (890 kW)
Speed: 14.7 knots (16.9 mph; 27.2 km/h) (surfaced)
7 knots (8.1 mph; 13 km/h) (submerged)
Range: 9,400 nmi (17,410 km) at 8 knots (15 km/h) (surfaced)
35 nmi (60 km) at 4.5 knots (8 km/h) (submerged)
Complement: 40
Armament: 4 x 50 cm (20 in) torpedo tubes
2 x 100 cm (39 in) minelaying tubes
1 x 15-centimeter (5.9 in) KL/45 gun

The Type UE II submarines were a class of submarines built by the German Empire during World War I as long-range mine-layers.

UE II boats carried 14 torpedoes and were armed with one 150 mm deck gun. They carried a crew of 40 and had a cruising range of about 9,400 miles. Nine were built between 1917 and 1918.[1]

The UE IIs joined the conflict in the middle of 1917, at a time when the tide of the war was turning against Germany. In the months beforehand, the United States Navy was added to the ranks of their enemies; and the convoy system was introduced, making it difficult to engage enemy merchant shipping without being spotted by destroyer escorts.[2] Because they entered service late in the war, the UE IIs only sank 24 ships and damaged 3 others before the end of hostilities. SM U-117 was by far the most successful U-boat, taking credit for 21 ships sunk out of the total of 24 for the entire type.[3] The UE II's were the last of the UE class U-boats built by the German Imperial Navy; the last of the class, U-126, was commissioned on 3 October 1918, a little over a month before the armistice at Compiègne.[4]

Contents

Post-war years

Following the end of the war, all of the Type UE II submarines were handed over to the allies as part of the Treaty of Versailles. SM U-117 was handed over to the United States where she remained in the Philadelphia Navy Yard along with other U-boats. In June 1921 she was taken out to sea and sunk as a target for aerial bombing tests conducted by the Navy and Army.[3] SM U-118 was turned over to France but got washed ashore at Hastings in Sussex where she remained until being finally broken up in December 1919.[5] SM U-119 was surrendered to France in November 1918. She was renamed the René Audry and saw service in the French Navy and was eventually broken up in October 1937.[6] SM U-120 was transferred to Italy in November 1918. She was broken up soon after in April 1919.[7] SM U-122 was surrendered to England on 26 November 1918. She later ran aground on the English east coast while on her journey to Scapa Flow.[8] Like SM U-122, SM U-123 also ran aground on the English coast where she was broken up.[9] SM U-124 was surrendered in December 1918 and was later broken up in Swansea in 1921.[10] SM U-125 Surrendered to Japan in late November 1918. She served in the Japanese Navy as the O1 in 1920-21. between January and March 1921, U-125 was dismantled at Yokosuka Navy Yard.[11] SM U-126 was handed over to the allies in November 1918 and later broken up at Upnor in 1923.[4]

Ships sunk by Type UE II submarines

Ships sunk or damaged by Type UE II submarines[12][13][14]
Date Name Tonnage Nationality U-boat credited with loss
01918-08-10 10 August 1918 Aleda May 31 American U-117
01918-08-10 10 August 1918 Cruiser 28 American U-117
01918-08-10 10 August 1918 Earl & Nettie 24 American U-117
01918-08-10 10 August 1918 Katie L. Palmer 31 American U-117
01918-08-10 10 August 1918 Mary E. Sennett 26 American U-117
01918-08-10 10 August 1918 On Time 18 American U-117
01918-08-10 10 August 1918 Progress 34 American U-117
01918-08-10 10 August 1918 Reliance 19 American U-117
01918-08-10 10 August 1918 William H. Starbuck 53 American U-117
01918-08-12 12 August 1918 Sommerstad 3,875 Norwegian U-117
01918-08-13 13 August 1918 Frederic R. Kellogg* 7,127 American U-117
01918-08-14 14 August 1918 Dorothy B. Barrett 2,088 American U-117
01918-08-15 15 August 1918 Madrugada 1,613 American U-117
01918-08-16 16 August 1918 Mirlo 6,978 British U-117
01918-08-17 17 August 1918 Nordhav 2,846 Norwegian U-117
01918-08-24 24 August 1918 Bianca* 408 British U-117
01918-08-26 26 August 1918 Rush 162 American U-117
01918-08-27 27 August 1918 Bergsdalen 2,555 Norwegian U-117
01918-08-30 30 August 1918 Elsie Porter 136 British U-117
01918-08-30 30 August 1918 Potentate 136 British U-117
01918-09-16 16 September 1918 Wellington 5,600 British U-118
01918-09-29 29 September 1918 Minnesota* 18,000 American U-117
01918-10-04 4 October 1918 San Saba 2,458 American U-117
01918-10-02 2 October 1918 Arca 4,938 British U-118
01918-10-18 18 October 1918 Njordur 278 Iceland U-122
01918-10-27 27 October 1918 Chaparra 1,510 Cuban U-117
01918-11-09 9 November 1918 Saetia 2,873 American U-117

* Ship was damaged

List of Type UE II submarines

There were 9 Type UE II submarines commissioned into the Kaiserliche Marine.

Footnotes

  1. ^ "Type UE 2". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/types/index.html?type=UE+2. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  2. ^ Goebel, Greg (Dec. 24th, 2008). "The First Battle of the Atlantic". Vectorsite.net. http://www.vectorsite.net/twsub2.html. Retrieved Jan. 25, 2010. 
  3. ^ a b "U-117". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/index.html?boat=117. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  4. ^ a b "U-126". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/index.html?boat=126. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  5. ^ "U-118". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/index.html?boat=118. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  6. ^ "U-119". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/index.html?boat=119. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  7. ^ "U-120". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/index.html?boat=120. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  8. ^ "U-122". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/index.html?boat=122. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  9. ^ "U-123". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/index.html?boat=123. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  10. ^ "U-124". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/index.html?boat=124. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  11. ^ "U-125". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/index.html?boat=125. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  12. ^ "Ships hit by U-117". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/successes/u117.html. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  13. ^ "Ships hit by U-118". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/successes/u118.html. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 
  14. ^ "Ships hit by U-122". http://www.uboat.net/wwi/boats/successes/u122.html. Retrieved 24 January 2010. 

Bibliography

External links

German Type UE II submarines

U-117  · U-118  · U-119  · U-120  · U-122  · U-123  · U-124  · U-125  · U-126
Preceded by: Type UE I – Followed by: None
List of German U-boats
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