General Discussions
This is the place to discuss general issues related to the U-boat war or the war at sea in WWII.
RE: SS (or MV) King Malcolm
Posted by:
Ken dunn
()
Date: April 10, 2001 10:53PM
<HTML>Hi Edward,
The books disagree about this one. According to “Axis Submarine Successes of World War Twoâ€: German, Italian, and Japanese Submarine Successes, 1939-1945 by Jurgen Rohwer (ISBN: 1-55750-029-0) she was sunk by U-106 on 10/28/1941 at 47° 40’N / 51° 50’W, however “U-boat Operations of the Second World War†(Volume 1: Career Histories U1-U510) by Kenneth Wynn (ISBN 1-86176-024-8) says she was sunk on 10/31/1941 by U-374.
“The World’s Merchant Fleets 1939†by Roger Jordan (ISBN: 1-55750-959-X) agrees with Wynn on the date and that she was sunk by U-374, and says she was sunk at 47° 40’N / 51° 15’W with no survivors (38 killed). It also says she was completed (built) in 1925 by D & W Henderson & Co Ltd, Partick, Glasgow. She was laid down as RIVER ST. LAWRENCE.
Here is Wynn’s account:
29.9.41 Left Kiel for the North Atlantic. 374 and other boats assembled SE of Cape Farewell and then a patrol line from 7.10.4 1. Convoys ONS 23, ON 24, SC 48 TC 14 were re-routed further south to avoid this line. When boats arrived and the line was extended the convoys were even further south. During the night of the 14 /15th U 553 sighted SC 48 and most of the group boats were deployed against it.
However, U 374, U 109, U 208 and U 573 took no part in the action. They were designated Mordbrenner group from the 16th and sent to reconnoiter off Belle Isle. The boats arrived in the area on the 20th, found no shipping and soon realized that convoys were avoiding them by passing to the south. On the 28th the four Mordbrenner boats went to the area SE of Newfoundland, around Cape Race. In the morning of the 31st U-374 torpedoed and sank the MV King Malcolm (br. 5120t) E of Cape St Francis.
Högel’s book says U-374 had no known conning tower emblem and I have no photos of her.
U-374 made other war patrols after 01/31/1941 so her KTB (war diary/logbook) is probably available on microfilm at the National Archives and can be purchased for $34.00 in the U.S., $39.00 outside the U.S. (there is probably an additional postage charge outside the U.S.). To order the KTB, send an e-mail to inquire@arch2.nara.gov. They reply by snail mail so be sure and include your postal address. They usually reply within 10 working days. Their reply will be the form to fill out to order the microfilm and it will have the roll number, etc. already filled in for you if they have the KTB. Of course if U-106 (NA should also have her KT
was the one who actually sank MV King Malcolm, that is the KTB you would want.
Sorry I don’t have a better answer than this. My guess is that Wynn is correct in this case, but I really have no way to know for sure. Perhaps someone else can provide something more conclusive. Also, even if you purchase the KTB, when you get to the entry for the day she was sunk (in German of course), you might not find the name of the MV King Malcolm. The U-boat may have sunk her without knowing her name.
Regards,
Ken Dunn
</HTML>
The books disagree about this one. According to “Axis Submarine Successes of World War Twoâ€: German, Italian, and Japanese Submarine Successes, 1939-1945 by Jurgen Rohwer (ISBN: 1-55750-029-0) she was sunk by U-106 on 10/28/1941 at 47° 40’N / 51° 50’W, however “U-boat Operations of the Second World War†(Volume 1: Career Histories U1-U510) by Kenneth Wynn (ISBN 1-86176-024-8) says she was sunk on 10/31/1941 by U-374.
“The World’s Merchant Fleets 1939†by Roger Jordan (ISBN: 1-55750-959-X) agrees with Wynn on the date and that she was sunk by U-374, and says she was sunk at 47° 40’N / 51° 15’W with no survivors (38 killed). It also says she was completed (built) in 1925 by D & W Henderson & Co Ltd, Partick, Glasgow. She was laid down as RIVER ST. LAWRENCE.
Here is Wynn’s account:
29.9.41 Left Kiel for the North Atlantic. 374 and other boats assembled SE of Cape Farewell and then a patrol line from 7.10.4 1. Convoys ONS 23, ON 24, SC 48 TC 14 were re-routed further south to avoid this line. When boats arrived and the line was extended the convoys were even further south. During the night of the 14 /15th U 553 sighted SC 48 and most of the group boats were deployed against it.
However, U 374, U 109, U 208 and U 573 took no part in the action. They were designated Mordbrenner group from the 16th and sent to reconnoiter off Belle Isle. The boats arrived in the area on the 20th, found no shipping and soon realized that convoys were avoiding them by passing to the south. On the 28th the four Mordbrenner boats went to the area SE of Newfoundland, around Cape Race. In the morning of the 31st U-374 torpedoed and sank the MV King Malcolm (br. 5120t) E of Cape St Francis.
Högel’s book says U-374 had no known conning tower emblem and I have no photos of her.
U-374 made other war patrols after 01/31/1941 so her KTB (war diary/logbook) is probably available on microfilm at the National Archives and can be purchased for $34.00 in the U.S., $39.00 outside the U.S. (there is probably an additional postage charge outside the U.S.). To order the KTB, send an e-mail to inquire@arch2.nara.gov. They reply by snail mail so be sure and include your postal address. They usually reply within 10 working days. Their reply will be the form to fill out to order the microfilm and it will have the roll number, etc. already filled in for you if they have the KTB. Of course if U-106 (NA should also have her KT
was the one who actually sank MV King Malcolm, that is the KTB you would want.
Sorry I don’t have a better answer than this. My guess is that Wynn is correct in this case, but I really have no way to know for sure. Perhaps someone else can provide something more conclusive. Also, even if you purchase the KTB, when you get to the entry for the day she was sunk (in German of course), you might not find the name of the MV King Malcolm. The U-boat may have sunk her without knowing her name.
Regards,
Ken Dunn
</HTML>
| Subject | Written By | Posted |
|---|---|---|
SS (or MV) King Malcolm
|
Edward Rudkowski | 04/10/2001 08:33PM |
|
RE: SS (or MV) King Malcolm
|
Ken dunn | 04/10/2001 10:53PM |
|
RE: SS (or MV) King Malcolm
|
Edward Rudkowski | 04/11/2001 03:27AM |
|
RE: MV King Malcolm
|
Rainer Kolbicz | 04/11/2001 07:01PM |
|
RE: SS (or MV) King Malcolm
|
Binnacle | 04/11/2001 07:37AM |
|
RE: SS (or MV) King Malcolm
|
Edward Rudkowski | 04/11/2001 08:44PM |
|
RE: SS (or MV) King Malcolm
|
Fin Bonset | 04/12/2001 12:33PM |
|
RE: SS (or MV) King Malcolm
|
kpp | 04/12/2001 02:12PM |
|
RE: SS (or MV) King Malcolm
|
Edward Rudkowski | 04/16/2001 08:39PM |
|
RE: SS (or MV) King Malcolm
|
Edward Rudkowski | 04/16/2001 08:39PM |