Victories and losses

The German U-boats sank 3 major Allied warships in the Mediterranean, 2 aircraft carriers and the only battleship sunk on the high seas.

U-81 (Kptlt. Guggenberger) sank the British aircraft carrier Ark Royal on November 13, 1941 and damaged the battleship HMS Malaya. All but one on the Ark Royal survived.

U-73 (Kptlt. Rosenbaum) also sank an aircraft carrier when he hit the HMS Eagle with 4 torpedoes on August 11, 1942. 230 men went down with their ship on that day.

Oblt. Freiherr von Tiesenhausen on board the U-331 torpedoed on 25 November, 1941 the British battleship HMS Barham which exploded and sank taking 862 of its crew with her.


All in all the German U-boats sank 95 allied merchants totalling 449,206 tons, 24 major Royal Navy warships (see above) including 4 cruisers and 12 destroyers. This was done at a cost of 62 U-boats.


U-boats in the Mediterranean