Recommended reading on the U-Boats

[alvis48]

I have an interesting propaganda magazine called "Wölfe der Meere" from 1942. It contains interesting photographs and articles about successes up to that date.

[De Havilland]

Definitely 'Iron Coffins' by Herbert Werner.

'Hirschfeld' by Wolfgang Hirschfeld is also good.

As a general reference book I recommend 'Wolfpack' by Phillip Caplan and Jack Currie. Very good detail and excellent photographs.

An alternative is 'Unbroken' by Alastair Mars which is a great little memoir of a Royal Navy submarine captain operating in the Mediterranean.

My copy is an original from the 1950's!

[Stug50]

I have plenty of U-Boat Books, but the one that I enjoyed the most was 'U-Boat 977' The U-Boat That escaped to Argentina. Written by its Captain 'Heinz Schaeffer'. Brilliant book and if nothing else, it will let you know what life on a U-Boat was really like. Its also a great book if you are a bit of a conspiracy theorist.

[Stug50]

I would highly recommend:


Kriegsmarine U-Boats..1939-1945.. Submarine Identification Guide. Chris Bishop
Wolf Pack..The U Boats at War...B. Carruthers
U-Boat Aces....G Jones
U-Boats Destroyed...Paul kemp
Wolf Pack...Gordon Williamson, Printed by Osprey
WOLFPACK..U-Boats at War 1939-1945...P.Kaplan & J Currie.

There are more as suggested by others but these are a few of my favourites.

If you are new to the U-Boat subject, I would take a look at this: http://uboat.net/

[kenpat]

German U-boat Commanders of WW11
A biographical Dictionary
By
Rainer Busch-Joachim Roll
(Anapolis Md. Naval Institute Press, London. Greenhill Books.)
To quote the translators note:"This is a biographical dictionary of the 1,411 officers of the German Kriegsmarine known to have commanded a U-boat between 28 June 1935, when U1 was commissioned with due ceremony at Kiel by Klaus Ewerth and August 1945 when Heinz Schaffer finally decided to surrender U 977 to Argentina."

[jopower]

Anyone out there recommend books and info on the advanced U-Boats, like the Type XXI, that were just entering service at the end of WW2?

[lionfish]

Hello,

" Vom Original zum Modell: Uboottyp XXI " Marine-Rundschau Fritz Köhl Bernard&Graefe Verlag ISBN 3-7637-6000-8

" U 2540 Das U-Boot beim Deutschen Schiffahrtsmuseum in Bremerhaven " Eckard Wetzel Der legendäre deutsche U-Boottyp XXI ISBN-Nr. 3-9802065-0-5

I hope i'd give you a good help.
Best regards,
Lionfish.

[JustinG]

After looking at the many recommendations by many others and now probably having a reading list for the next year chosen, I would like to include a book that wasn't listed.

"Ultra Versus Uboats: Enigma Decrypts in the National Archives" By Roy Conyers Nesbit ISBN 978 1 84415 786 0

It is interesting to see the original decription messages as received my naval command. It is a good resource and a good read as well.


Best Regards,
JustinG

[RandJS]

Hi,
"The U-Boat, The evolution and technical history of German submarines" Eberhard Rossler, Naval Institute Press ISBN 0-87021-966-9.

"The Type XXI U-Boat" Fritz Kohl and Eberhard Rossler, Naval Institute Press ISBN 1-55750-829-1.

Enjoy!
Rand

[jopower]

Thank you! Going further, what post-WW2 navies got the XXI's or their plans? What classes are direct-indirect descendants of the XXI's? I'm sure USA and UK got this but don't know much beyond that as to the possibly wide linage they spawned.

[snozzer]

Definitely 'Iron Coffins' by Herbert Werner.
I totally agree! In my county (Slovakia) is hard to get that book

[colt45]

My Friend Willie Brech said he would work 15 hrs. and have to sing for 1 hr, the bunk was full , he would lay on the steel floor to sleep even if it was bouncing, fumes were bad and food rotted after 2nd day out, they kept us busy, never saw sun light... dept charge made us cry,,, I joined because of the black uniforms in the parade, but sorry after that

[AllenM]

"For both East and West, the modern submarine originated in German U-boat designs obtained at the end of World War II."


Cold War Submarines: The Design and Construction of U.S. and Soviet Submarines, 1945-2001 by Norman Polmar and K.J. Moore

[piet71]

Any U boot book by Luc Brauer .

[Sterny23]

I have recently finished reading Steel Boat,Iron Hearts by Hans Goebeler and thoroughly enjoyed it. It’s a fascinating insight into life aboard U-505 which was subsequently captured and is now on display at a museum in Chicago. It also goes into detail the suicide of his Captain Peter Zschech and the events leading up to his demise who I believe is still the only commander in history to kill himself in active duty whilst in charge of a naval vessel. Well worth a read!