SM UB-34

For other ships of the same name, see German submarine U-34.
SM UB-45 a u-boat similar to UB-34
Career (German Empire)
Name: UB-34
Ordered: 22 July 1915[1]
Builder: Blohm & Voss, Hamburg[1]
Cost: 1,152,000 German Papiermark[2]
Yard number: 258[1]
Launched: 28 December 1915[1]
Completed: 17 May 1916[1]
Commissioned: 10 June 1916[3]
Fate: surrendered 26 November 1918[3]
General characteristics
Class and type:German Type UB II submarine
Displacement:274 t (270 long tons) surfaced[2]
303 t (298 long tons) submerged[2]
Length:36.9 m (121 ft 1 in)[2]
Beam:437 m (1,433 ft 9 in)[2]
Draft:3.69 m (12 ft 1 in)[2]
Propulsion:2 × propeller shafts
2 × Benz diesel engines, 270 shp (200 kW)[2]
2 × Siemens-Schuckert electric motor, 280 shp (210 kW)[2]
Speed:9.06 knots (16.78 km/h; 10.43 mph) surfaced[2]
5.71 knots (10.57 km/h; 6.57 mph) submerged[2]
Range:7,030 nautical miles (13,020 km; 8,090 mi) at 5 knots (9.3 km/h; 5.8 mph) surfaced[2]
45 nmi (83 km; 52 mi) at 4 knots submerged[2]
Test depth:50 m (160 ft)[2]
Complement:2 officers, 21 men[2]
Armament:2 × 50 cm (19.7 in) torpedo tubes[2]
4 × torpedoes (later 6)
1 × 5 cm SK L/40 gun[2]
Notes:42-second diving time[2]
Service record[4]
Part of: I Flotilla
27 Jul 1916 - 1 Feb 1917
II Flotilla
1 Feb 1917 – 10 Sep 1917
V Flotilla
10 Sep 1917 – 3 May 1918
I Flotilla
3 May 1918 – 9 Sep 1918
Flandern Flotilla
9 Sep 1918 – 6 Oct 1918
Training Flotilla
6 Oct 1918 – 11 Nov 1918
Commanders: Oblt Theodor Schultz
10 Jun 1916 - 16 Mar 1917
Oblt Ludwig Schaafhausen
17 Mar 1917 - 31 Aug 1917
Oblt Helmuth von Ruckteschell
1 Sep 1917 - 30 Mar 1918
Oblt Erich Förste
31 Mar 1918 - 8 Sep 1918
Ltnt z. See Hans Illing
9 Sep 1918 - 6 Oct 1918
Operations: 21 patrol
Victories: 31 merchant ships sunk (39,496 GRT)
2 merchant ships damaged (12,406 GRT)
2 ships taken as prize (2,210 GRT)

SM UB-34 was a German Type UB II submarine or U-boat in the German Imperial Navy (German: Kaiserliche Marine) during World War I. The U-boat was ordered on 22 July 1915 and launched on 5 December 1915. She was commissioned into the German Imperial Navy on 10 June 1916 as SM UB-34.[Note 1]

UB-34 sank 31 ships in 21 patrols. They included the William Cory and Son collier SS Hurstwood, which UB-34 torpedoed and sank in the North Sea off Whitby on 5 February 1917.[5]

The submarine served in the Training Flotilla at the end of the war and was surrendered on 26 November 1918 in accordance with the requirements of the Armistice with Germany. UB-34 was broken up in Canning Town in 1922.[6]

Summary of Raiding Career

Date Name Nationality Tonnage
(GRT)
Fate[7]
21 October 1916 Ull  Norway 1,139 Sunk
22 October 1916 Effort  United Kingdom 159 Sunk
23 October 1916 Regina  Norway 823 Sunk
26 October 1916 Titan  United Kingdom 171 Sunk
18 December 1916 Arran  United Kingdom 176 Sunk
19 December 1916 Ansgar  Norway 926 Sunk
19 December 1916 Kornmo  Norway 591 Sunk
19 December 1916 Bretland  Denmark 2,025 Captured as a prize
20 December 1916 Eva  Denmark 109 Sunk
20 December 1916 Mereddio  Sweden 1,372 Sunk
5 February 1917 Hurstwood  United Kingdom 1,229 Sunk
6 February 1917 Ferruccio  Kingdom of Italy 2,192 Sunk
7 February 1917 Corsican Prince  United Kingdom 2,776 Sunk
7 February 1917 Saint Ninian  United Kingdom 3,026 Sunk
25 April 1917 Este  Denmark 1,420 Sunk
7 September 1917 Grelfryda  United Kingdom 5,136 Damaged
8 September 1917 Aladdin  Norway 753 Sunk
27 September 1917 Greltoria  United Kingdom 5,143 Sunk
29 September 1917 Bertha  Netherlands 185 Captured as a prize
27 October 1917 Lady Helen  United Kingdom 811 Sunk
13 December 1917 Bangarth  United Kingdom 1,872 Sunk
15 December 1917 Dafni  Greece 1,190 Sunk
24 January 1918 Desire  United Kingdom 135 Sunk
24 January 1918 X6  United Kingdom 160 Sunk
24 January 1918 X110  United Kingdom 160 Sunk
25 January 1918 Folmina  Netherlands 1,158 Sunk
25 January 1918 Humber  United Kingdom 280 Sunk
26 January 1918 Hartley  United Kingdom 1,150 Sunk
26 January 1918 Athos  Norway 1,708 Sunk
9 March 1918 Randelsborg  Denmark 1,551 Sunk
13 March 1918 Adine  Norway 2,235 Sunk
16 March 1918 Quintero  Denmark 1,611 Sunk
21 April 1918 Lompoc  United Kingdom 7,270 Damaged
10 June 1918 Lowtyne  United Kingdom 3,231 Sunk
22 September 1918 Elise  United Kingdom 239 Sunk

Notes

  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.

References

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Rössler 1979, p. 64.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 Gröner 1985, p. 50.
  3. 3.0 3.1 Gröner 1985, p. 51.
  4. "The Type UB II boat SM UB-34 - German U-boats of WWI - uboat.net". www.uboat.net. Retrieved 10 December 2014.
  5. Bendert 2000, p. 96.
  6. Gröner 1985, pp. 50-51.
  7. "SM UB-34 successes". UBoat.net. Retrieved 10 December 2014.

Bibliography

  • Gröner, Erich (1985). U-Boote, Hilfskreuzer, Minenschiffe, Netzleger, Sperrbrecher. Die deutschen Kriegsschiffe, 1815-1945 (in German) III (Koblenz: Bernard & Graefe). ISBN 3-7637-4802-4.
  • Bendert, Harald (2000). Die UB-Boote der Kaiserlichen Marine, 1914-1918. Einsätze, Erfolge, Schicksal (in German). Hamburg: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn GmbH. ISBN 3-8132-0713-7.
  • Rössler, Eberhard (1979). U-Bootbau bis Ende des 1. Weltkrieges, Konstruktionen für das Ausland und die Jahre 1935 - 1945. Die deutschen U-Boote und ihre Werften (in German) I (Munich: Bernard & Graefe). ISBN 3-7637-5213-7.