U-53 visit to the USA in 1916

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At 3pm Oct 7 1916, U -53 (Hans Rose) surfaced and anchored in the harbour at Rhode Island, Newport.

He went ashore paid his respects to the US Admiral and posted letters to the German Ambassador. He bought the local newspapers for the shipping news, and returned to U-53.

Rose held a semi open ship and invited US Naval officers and their wives aboard for a short time. He left harbour at 5.30pm

U-53 sailed into international waters off the Nantucket light house and next morning, stopped searched and sank 7 ships ( 5 British, 1 Dutch, 1 Norwegian).

No lifes were lost, the US Navy was there in force, 16 US Destroyers had clustered around the Nantucket Lighthouse and witnessed the sinkings and picked up the crews of the merchantmen. Indeed Rose asked one destroyer to move so he could torpedo the abandoned Dutch steamer and the Destroyer obliged.

The US warships had no legal right to intervene in the acts on U-53 and so did not.

U-53 had a successful voyage, she covered 7,550 miles with only the one stop in Newport.

Information taken from Castles of Steel by Robert Massie (pages 690-691)