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 City of Benares
Posted by:
John Griffiths
()
Date: March 09, 2001 11:37PM
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Kelland Hutchence wrote:
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>>This sinking was mentioned in Hirschfeld\'s excellent book \'Secret Diary of a U-Boat. In it Hirschfeld says that the commander of the U-boat was \'Ajax\' Bleichrodt, later to be commander of U109, and that he was greatly troubled at the loss of the children\'s lives. Propaganda from the British government was issued stating that as many of the children who died were jewish it was an intentional act by Nazis.
It is my belief he was innocent of the charges. I speak as an RN officer (retired)<<
Kelland,
I have read your post and feel that some mention must be made of your stance - which I agree with. Propoganda during war time certainly branded every German as a \'Nazi\' and, in this case, Bleichrodt most certainly.
The City of Benares\'s passenger list would not have been known to the U-boat Commander and - unfortunate as it sounds - there always would have been casualties. That these were children is, of course, horrific - but Bleichrodt would not have known this.
Like you, I believe he was carrying out his patrol orders, innocent of the \'murder on the high seas\' charges - and unfortunate to be on the \'losing\' side. To illustrate this better, if the Soviet\'s had lost to Germany, there is no doubt that the CO of the Russian sub that sank the \'Wilhelm Gustloff - with massive loss of life - would have been branded a war criminal. That he wasn\'t states, quite clearly, on whose side the priorities lie. I believe he was made a Hero of The Soviet Union.
For those not in the know regarding the \'Wilhelm Gustloff\', she was sunk on January 30th 1945 whilst acting as a rescue ship for troops and refugees in the Baltic during the Soviet advance. She was torpedoed at approx noon whilst outward bound from Gdynia when carrying approx. 6000 refugees ( men, women and children) including wounded servicemen. She was struck by three torpedoes fired by a Russian submarine and sank immediately. There were some 500 survivors and, whilst the exact death toll is unknown, she has the dubious honour of having the worst loss of life in maritime history.
Aye,
John</HTML>
Kelland Hutchence wrote:
-------------------------------
>>This sinking was mentioned in Hirschfeld\'s excellent book \'Secret Diary of a U-Boat. In it Hirschfeld says that the commander of the U-boat was \'Ajax\' Bleichrodt, later to be commander of U109, and that he was greatly troubled at the loss of the children\'s lives. Propaganda from the British government was issued stating that as many of the children who died were jewish it was an intentional act by Nazis.
It is my belief he was innocent of the charges. I speak as an RN officer (retired)<<
Kelland,
I have read your post and feel that some mention must be made of your stance - which I agree with. Propoganda during war time certainly branded every German as a \'Nazi\' and, in this case, Bleichrodt most certainly.
The City of Benares\'s passenger list would not have been known to the U-boat Commander and - unfortunate as it sounds - there always would have been casualties. That these were children is, of course, horrific - but Bleichrodt would not have known this.
Like you, I believe he was carrying out his patrol orders, innocent of the \'murder on the high seas\' charges - and unfortunate to be on the \'losing\' side. To illustrate this better, if the Soviet\'s had lost to Germany, there is no doubt that the CO of the Russian sub that sank the \'Wilhelm Gustloff - with massive loss of life - would have been branded a war criminal. That he wasn\'t states, quite clearly, on whose side the priorities lie. I believe he was made a Hero of The Soviet Union.
For those not in the know regarding the \'Wilhelm Gustloff\', she was sunk on January 30th 1945 whilst acting as a rescue ship for troops and refugees in the Baltic during the Soviet advance. She was torpedoed at approx noon whilst outward bound from Gdynia when carrying approx. 6000 refugees ( men, women and children) including wounded servicemen. She was struck by three torpedoes fired by a Russian submarine and sank immediately. There were some 500 survivors and, whilst the exact death toll is unknown, she has the dubious honour of having the worst loss of life in maritime history.
Aye,
John</HTML>
| Subject | Written By | Posted |
|---|---|---|
SS City of Benares
|
Mark Brennan | 03/09/2001 01:32PM |
|
RE: SS City of Benares
|
Jon Balson | 03/09/2001 02:38PM |
|
RE: SS City of Benares
|
John Griffiths | 03/09/2001 08:34PM |
|
RE: SS City of Benares
|
2000 | 03/09/2001 09:20PM |
|
RE: SS City of Benares
|
Kelland Hutchence | 03/09/2001 11:14PM |
|
RE: SS City of Benares
|
John Griffiths | 03/09/2001 11:37PM |
|
RE: SS City of Benares
|
Barry Williams | 03/12/2001 11:15AM |