WWI U-boat commanders

Gustav Sieß

Kapitänleutnant (Crew 4/02)

Successes
53 ships sunk with a total of 159,545 GRT
3 warships sunk with a total of 28,750 tons
10 ships damaged with a total of 36,363 GRT

Born:11 Dec 1883 Hamburg 
Died:14 Oct 1970 Hamburg 

Gustav Sieß

Ranks

1 Apr 1902 Seekadett
11 Apr 1903 Fähnrich zur See
29 Sep 1905 Leutnant zur See
30 Mar 1908 Oberleutnant zur See
12 Apr 1913 Kapitänleutnant
11 Nov 1919 Out of naval service
22 Feb 1920 Korvettenkapitän (Charakter)
1 Dec 1935 Major
1 Jan 1938 Oberstleutnant

Decorations

prewar  Lifesaving Medal
prewar  Order of the Crown
 Iron Cross 2nd class
 Iron Cross 1st class
 Hanseatic Cross
27 Feb 1917  Royal House Order of Hohenzollern
24 Apr 1918  Pour le Mérite

U-boat Commands

U 739 Oct 1915 - 21 May 1917
U 331 Apr 1917 - 18 Aug 1918
U 3319 Oct 1918 - 11 Nov 1918
U 6519 Aug 1918 - 29 Sep 1918

Notes

He joined the Navy in April 1902, after attending the Academy and went on a on board the training ship SMS Moltke and armored cruise SMS Hansa , he was assigned in 1906 to I Division Torpedo. In October 1908 he was transferred to Mne Battalion and at the same time he obtained the command of the minesweepers S 27, S 25 and S 38.

From 1910 to 1912 he served as an assistant at the Inspectorate of the Coast Artillery and Mine. In November 1912 he obtained the command of the SMTb V3 and later that of SMTb V1.

In August 1915, after attending submarines training, he was given command of SM U-73 as part of the Baltic Flotilla based in Kiel, and subsequently sent to the Mediterranean Flotilla at Pola. He then commanded the U-33 and U-65, always working in the Mediterranean. Among his greatest successes were the sinking of the battleship HMS Russell, the Russian battleship Peresvyet and the passenger ship Britannia the sister of Titanic.

He was awarded the Pour le Mérite on 24th April 1918 in recognition of having sunk a total of 261.399 BRT of enemy shipping. Outside of the Mediterranean Siess sank 154.061 BRT of enemy shipping during three patrols with U73. In five long patrols in the same area he sank 107.338 BRT of enemy shipping.

On 24 April 1918 in recognition of his actions, he was decorated with the Order Pour le Merite. After the war, during the Weimar Republic, Gustav Siess formed a commercial company the "Siess, von Loe & Co".

In 1935, after training to become a pilot, he returned to the armed forces with the rank of Luftwafe Major and became head of logistics at the Air Ministry (Luftwaffe) in Berlin. In 1944, after a serious illness, he left active service with the rank of Generalleutnant. Arrested by the Soviets in 1945, was sentenced to 25 years in prison but was released in 1955 and returned to Hamburg, where he died at the age of 87 years October 14, 1970.

Ships hit by Gustav Sieß

DateU-boat Name of shipType of shipTonsNat.
 
11 Apr 1916 U 73 InverlyonSailing vessel1,827br
17 Apr 1916 U 73 Terje VikenSteamer3,579nw
27 Apr 1916 U 73  NasturtiumSloop1,250br
27 Apr 1916 U 73  RussellBattleship14,000br
28 Apr 1916 U 73  AegusaNavy yacht1,242br
4 May 1916 U 73 CrownsinNavy trawler137br
3 Aug 1916 U 73 ClactonAuxiliary minesweeper820br
9 Aug 1916 U 73 Lorenzo DonatoSailing vessel140it
24 Oct 1916 U 73 PropontisSailing vessel700gr
28 Oct 1916 73 Angeliki (d.)Paddle steamer706gr
31 Oct 1916 U 73 Kiki IssaiasSteamer2,993gr
14 Nov 1916 U 73  BurdigalaArmed merchant cruiser12,009fr
20 Nov 1916 U 73 Spetzai (d.)Steamer788gr
20 Nov 1916 U 73 Sparti (d.)Steamer961gr
21 Nov 1916 U 73  BritannicHospital ship48,158br
23 Nov 1916 U 73 Braemar Castle (d.)Hospital ship6,318br
21 Dec 1916 U 73 MurexTanker3,564br
23 Dec 1916 U 73 ThistlebanSteamer4,117br
 
2 Jan 1917 U 73  PeresvyetBattleship13,500ru
12 Mar 1917 U 73 BilswoodSteamer3,097br
15 Apr 1917 U 33  CameroniaTroopship10,963br
16 Apr 1917 U 33  SontayPassenger steamer7,247fr
22 Apr 1917 U 33 BlaatindSteamer1,641nw
22 Apr 1917 U 33 Maria S.Sailing vessel133it
22 Apr 1917 U 33 UnioneSailing vessel207it
26 Apr 1917 U 33 MonitorSailing vessel138br
27 Apr 1917 U 33 MafaldaSailing vessel162it
27 Apr 1917 U 33 Margaret B. RoussSailing vessel701am
28 Apr 1917 U 33 LisettaFishing vessel40it
30 Apr 1917 U 33 Chrisomalli Th. SifneoSteamer2,415gr
27 May 1917 U 33 BeatriceSailing vessel106it
27 May 1917 U 33 Michele CostantinoSailing vessel51it
3 Jun 1917 U 33 GreenbankSteamer3,881br
3 Jun 1917 U 33 IslandmoreSteamer3,046br
7 Jun 1917 U 33 Il DionisioSailing vessel97it
7 Jun 1917 U 33 San AntonioSailing vessel13it
26 Jul 1917 U 33 BlanchetteSailing vessel280it
26 Jul 1917 U 33 Gesu E MariaSailing vessel196it
27 Jul 1917 U 33 FrigidoSailing vessel59it
27 Jul 1917 U 33 GenovaSteamer3,486it
28 Jul 1917 U 33 Splendor (d.)Tanker6,507it
1 Aug 1917 U 33 LlandudnoSteamer4,187br
4 Aug 1917 U 33 Angelina T.Sailing vessel146it
8 Aug 1917 U 33  LlanishenSteamer3,837br
9 Aug 1917 U 33 FloraSailing vessel125it
9 Aug 1917 U 33 IndustriaSailing vessel51sp
15 Aug 1917 U 33 Bandai MaruSteamer3,227jp
 
23 Jan 1918 U 33 Capri (d.)Steamer3,899it
24 Jan 1918 U 33 Antonios J. DracoulisSteamer3,301gr
25 Jan 1918 U 33 Apostoles AndreasSailing vessel50br
29 Jan 1918 U 33 TaxiarchisSailing vessel160br
31 Jan 1918 U 33 Eggesford (d.)Steamer4,414br
1 Feb 1918 U 33 Glenamoy (d.)Steamer7,269br
4 Feb 1918 U 33 Ravenshoe (d.)Steamer3,592br
4 Feb 1918 U 33 Standish HallSteamer3,996br
20 Mar 1918 U 33 Saint DimitriosSteamer3,359br
20 Mar 1918 U 33 SamosetTanker5,251br
20 Mar 1918 U 33 YochowSteamer2,127br
20 Mar 1918 U 33 Antonios M. TheophilatosSteamer2,282gr
31 Mar 1918 U 33 La LoireSteamer5,343fr
5 May 1918 U 33 Aghios JohannisSailing vessel20gr
2 Sep 1918 U 65 San AndresSteamer3,314br
12 Sep 1918 U 65 Chao Chow Fu (d.)Steamer1,909br
12 Sep 1918 U 65 SarniaArmed boarding steamer1,498br
14 Sep 1918 U 65 Ioanna No. 45Sailing vessel9br
15 Sep 1918 U 65 Ioanna No. 37Sailing vessel17br
 224,658
56 ships sunk (188,295 tons) and 10 ships damaged (36,363 tons).


Legend
(d.) means the ship was damaged.
We have a picture of this vessel.

Media links


Kaiserliche Marine U-Boote 1914-1918

Dufeil, Yves

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