Warships of Germany: Kriegsmarine E-boats of the Second World War

E-boats

(Library and Archives Canada Photo, MIKAN No. 3524822)

Surrendered German E-boats, photo taken from bridge of MTB-745 England, May 1945.

(IWM Photo, A 28558)

The German Schnellboot ("E-boat") S 204 flying a white flag of surrender at the coastal forces base HMS Beehive, Felixstowe, Suffolk (UK), on 13 May 1945. The two German E-Boats S 204 and S 205 from the 4th Schnellboot-Flotilla were escorted in by ten British MTBs. On board of S 205 was Rear Admiral Erich Breuning, who had been in charge of E-Boat operations and who signed the instrument of surrender. Note the black panther painted on the side of S 204 which had on board KKpt Kurt Fimmen (CO 4th Schnellboot-Flotilla) and KptLt Bernd Rebensburg (Ia Op/Operations-Officer of the Staff of Führer der Schnellboote/FdS).

E-boats, a British designation using the letter E for Enemy, were primarily used to patrol the Baltic Sea and the English Channel in order to intercept shipping heading for the English ports in the south and east. As such, they were up against Royal Navy and Commonwealth, e.g., Royal Canadian Navy contingents leading up to D-Day, motor gunboats (MGBs), motor torpedo boats (MTBs), motor launches, frigates and destroyers. They were also transferred in small numbers to the Mediterranean, and the Black Sea by river and land transport. Some small E-boats were built as boats for carrying by auxiliary cruisers.Crew members could earn an award particular to their work—Das Schnellbootkriegsabzeichen—denoted by a badge depicting an E-boat passing through a wreath. The criteria were good conduct, distinction in action, and participating in at least twelve enemy actions. It was also awarded for particularly successful missions, displays of leadership or being killed in action. It could be awarded under special circumstances, such as when another decoration was not suitable.

E-boats of the 6th & 9th flotillas from Cherbourg attacked Exercise Tiger on 28 April 1944, causing about 749 American Army and Navy casualties.E-boats of the 9th flotilla were the first naval units to respond to the invasion fleet of Operation Overlord.[10] They left Cherbourg harbour at 5 a.m. on 6 June 1944.[10] On finding themselves confronted by the entire invasion fleet, they fired their torpedoes at maximum range and returned to Cherbourg.  During the Second World War, E-boats claimed 101 merchant ships totaling 214,728 tons. Additional claims include 12 destroyers, 11 minesweepers, eight landing ships, six MTBs, one torpedo boat, one minelayer, one submarine, and a number of smaller craft such as fishing boats. They also damaged two cruisers, five destroyers, three landing ships, one repair ship, one naval tug, and numerous other merchant vessels. Sea mines laid by the E-boats sank 37 merchant ships totaling 148,535 tons, a destroyer, two minesweepers, and four landing ships. E-boat crews were awarded 23 Knight's Cross of the Iron Crosses and 112 German Crosses in Gold.

At the end of the war about 34 E-boats were surrendered to the British. Three boats, S-130 (renamed P5230), S-208 (P5208) and S-212 (P5212) were retained for trials. There is just one surviving E-boat, identified as S-130. It was built as hull No. 1030, and is being restored in the UK. In 1945, S-130 was taken as a British war prize (FPB 5030) and put to use in covert operations. Under the guise of the "British Baltic Fishery Protection Service", the British Secret Intelligence Service MI-6 ferried spies and agents into Eastern Europe. Beginning in May 1949, MI-6 used S-208, (Kommandant Hans-Helmut Klose) to insert agents into Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, and Poland. The operations were very successful and continued under a more permanent organisation based in Hamburg. In 1952, S-130 joined the operation and the mission was enlarged to include signal intelligence (SIGINT) equipment. In 1954/55, S-130 and S-208 were replaced by a new generation of German S-boote. (Wikipedia)

(USN Photo, located at the US National Archives, No. 80-G-705651)

Former German E-boat 216 in USN service, cruising down the Weser River, 21 June 1948.

(USN Photo, US National Archives, No. 80-G-371344)

Former German E-boat 706 in USN service, at the Washington Navy Yard, 26 February 1947.

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