The Men - The Commander listing

Karl-Heinz Marbach

Kapitänleutnant (Crew 37a)

Successes
1 ship sunk for a total of 1.927 GRT

Born	5 Jul, 1917	Kolberg
Died	27 Sep, 1995

Kapitänleutnant Karl-Heinz Marbach

Ranks

21 Sep, 1937	Seekadett
1 May, 1938	Fähnrich zur See
1 Jul, 1939	Oberfähnrich zur See
1 Aug, 1939	Leutnant zur See
1 Sep, 1941	Oberleutnant zur See
1 Sep, 1944	Kapitänleutnant

Decorations

14 Apr, 1940	Iron Cross 2nd Class
9 Sep, 1941	U-boat War Badge 1939
21 Nov, 1943	Iron Cross 1st Class
22 Jul, 1944	Knights Cross
26 Nov, 1944	U-boat Front Clasp

U-boat Commands

U-101	1 Jan, 1942	-	3 Feb, 1942	No war patrols
U-29	6 May, 1942	-	30 Jun, 1942	No war patrols
U-28	1 Jul, 1942	-	30 Nov, 1942	No war patrols
U-953	17 Dec, 1942	-	Aug, 1944	7 patrols (227 days)
U-3014	17 Dec, 1944	-	3 May, 1945	No war patrols

Personal information

Kapitänleutnant Karl-Heinz Marbach
after his decoration

Karl-Heinz Marbach began his naval career in April 1937. He served for some months in 1939 on the light cruisers Leipzig and Nürnberg. Before he transferred to the U-boat force in autumn 1940, he spent a year in a staff position.

After his U-boat training he was assigned to U-101, commanded by Kptlt. Ernst Mengersen. From March to November 1941 Marbach made three patrols on U-101, during which Mengersen sank three ships. He left U-101 in February 1942.

After a short commander training course, Marbach was promoted to commanding the school boats U-28 and U-29 for over six months. In December 1942 he commissioned the type VIIC U-boat U-953. After seven patrols he received the Knights Cross for acts of bravery.

He was in Berlin to receive his decoration from the BdU, when US troops encircled the U-boat base at Brest in France. Oblt. Herbert A. Werner then took over U-953 and Marbach went to the AG Weser shipyard in Bremen to commission a new type XXI U-boat.

In December 1944 he took command of U-3014, but he never saw combat with this boat. After the surrender he became a POW and remained imprisoned until February 1948, being among the last U-boat men to be set free.

Karl-Heinz Marbach wrote about his time in the U-boat force in the book Von Kolberg über La Rochelle nach Berlin (From Kolberg via La Rochelle to Berlin).

Patrol info

	U-boat	Departure		Arrival
1.	U-953	13 May, 1943	Kiel	22 Jul, 1943	La Pallice	Patrol,	71 days
2.	U-953	2 Oct, 1943	La Pallice	17 Nov, 1943	La Pallice	Patrol,	47 days
3.	U-953	26 Dec, 1943	La Pallice	20 Feb, 1944	La Pallice	Patrol,	57 days
4.	U-953	30 Mar, 1944	La Pallice	1 Apr, 1944	La Pallice	Patrol,	3 days
5.	U-953	23 Apr, 1944	La Pallice	26 Apr, 1944	Brest		4 days
6.	U-953	22 May, 1944	Brest	28 May, 1944	Brest	Patrol,	7 days
7.	U-953	6 Jun, 1944	Brest	18 Jun, 1944	Brest	Patrol,	13 days
8.	U-953	24 Jun, 1944	Brest	22 Jul, 1944	Brest	Patrol,	29 days
					7 patrols, 227 days at sea

Ships hit by Karl-Heinz Marbach

Date	Boat	Name of ship	Tons	Nat.		Convoy	Fate *
5 Jul, 1944	U-953	Glendinning	1.927		br	ETC-27
			1.927
* Unless otherwise noted the ships listed here were sunk.