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The radio message sent on the 600-meter band from Laconia at 10:22pm |
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The radio message sent on the 600-meter band from Laconia at 10:22pm |
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As the ship began to sink, Hartenstein surfaced, hoping to capture the ship's senior officers, and was appalled to see over two thousand people struggling in the water. The 19,695-ton liner Laconia was carrying not only her regular crew of 136 but also some 80 civilians, military material and 268 British soldiers, and about 1800 Italian prisoners of war with 160 Polish soldiers on guard. |
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As the ship began to sink, Hartenstein surfaced, hoping to capture the ship's senior officers, and was appalled to see over two thousand people struggling in the water. The 20,000-ton liner Laconia was carrying not only her regular crew of 136 but also some 80 civilians, military material and 268 British soldiers, and about 1800 Italian prisoners of war with 160 Polish soldiers on guard. |
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Hartenstein immediately began rescue operations. Laconia sank at 11:23pm. At 1:25am September 13 Hartenstein sent a coded radio message to Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote (Commander-in-Chief for Submarines) alerting them to the situation. It read: |
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Hartenstein immediately began rescue operations. Laconia sank at 11:23pm. At 1:25am September 13 Hartenstein sent a coded radio message to Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote (Commander-in-Chief for Submarines) alerting them to the situation. It read: |
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Harden flew back to the scene of the rescue effort and at 12:32 attacked with bombs and depth charges. One landed among the lifeboats in tow behind U-156? while others straddled the submarine itself. Hartenstein had no option but to cast adrift those lifeboats still afloat and order the survivors on his deck into the water. The submarines dived and escaped. Many hundreds of the Laconia survivors perished, but the Vichy? vessels managed to re-rescue about a thousand later that day. In all, some 1500 passengers of Laconia survived. English seaman, Tony Large, endured forty days adrift in an open life boat before he was finally picked up. |
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Harden flew back to the scene of the rescue effort and at 12:32pm attacked with bombs and depth charges. One landed among the lifeboats in tow behind U-156? while others straddled the submarine itself. Hartenstein had no option but to cast adrift those lifeboats still afloat and order the survivors on his deck into the water. The submarines dived and escaped. Many hundreds of the Laconia survivors perished, but the Vichy? vessels managed to re-rescue about a thousand later that day. In all, some 1500 passengers survived. English seaman, Tony Large, endured forty days adrift in an open life boat before he was finally picked up. |
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The Laconia incident was to have far-reaching consequences. Until then it was common for German U-boats to assist torpedoed survivors with food, water and directions to the nearest land. Now that U-boats had been attacked during a rescue mission while displaying the Red Cross flag, Dönitz? ordered that rescue operations were prohibited; survivors were to be left in the sea. |
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The Laconia incident had far-reaching consequences. Until then it was common for U-boats to assist torpedoed survivors with food, water and directions to the nearest land. Now that it was apparent that the British would attack rescue missions under the Red Cross flag, Dönitz? ordered that rescues were prohibited; survivors were to be left in the sea. |
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# Die Befehle über das Mitbringen von Kapitänen und Chefingenieuren bleiben bestehen. |
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# Die Befehle über das Mitbringen von Kapitänen und Chefingenieuren bleiben bestehen. |
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# The orders concerning the bringing in of skippers and chief engineers stay in effect. |
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# The orders concerning the bringing-in of skippers and chief engineers stay in effect. |
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