How many escort attack ships disguised as merchant ships during World War II and World War I?

After the Battle of Norway, the German navy suffered heavy losses. Except for the three cruisers and ten destroyers that were sunk on the spot, the rest of the warships were damaged to varying degrees. Only one heavy cruiser prinz eugen, one light cruiser Emden, one Coln, one Leipzig, one Nuremberg and ten destroyers (Z-4, Z-5, Z-6, Z-7 and Z-) can really continue to be put into operational use.

Such a limited maritime power must also be protected in order to obey Hitler's "sea lion" plan of invading Britain, so it is impossible to go to sea on a large scale. In order to solve this problem, Lei Deer Admiral of the fleet thought of his own "secret weapon"-the auxiliary cruiser.

The German auxiliary cruiser (Hilfskreuzer) is very different from the traditional warships, and it is also very different from the auxiliary cruiser of the Royal Navy. These auxiliary cruisers are all transformed from various merchant ships and can be called armed to the teeth. In addition to various caliber guns and torpedo tubes, it is also equipped with 1-2 seaplanes for reconnaissance. However, all kinds of weapons and equipment on deck have been completely disguised, which makes them look more like "ordinary" merchant ships. If the allied auxiliary cruisers are uniformed policemen, then the German auxiliary cruisers are more like robbers in disguise. Therefore, the allies generally tend to define these warships as "raiders."

However, German naval officers were not satisfied with this. They also prepared enough materials and paint on their warships to disguise at any time. Their usual tricks include adding a chimney to their warships or changing the shape of the superstructure. They often try their best to make their warships look like allied merchant ships to blind the allied sight.

The reason why these auxiliary cruisers still have such great charm for military enthusiasts today is that they have not only achieved extraordinary results, but also had magical combat experiences in all combat operations. The German Navy has achieved the brilliant record of sinking 140 allied merchant ships with a gross tonnage of over 800,000 tons only by relying on these limited 9 auxiliary cruisers! Their actions spread all over the world's oceans, and some even temporarily docked at Japanese ports. Among all the covert operations, the record of the longest operation cycle was created by Atlantis, which drifted in the vast ocean for 622 days and nights, with a total mileage of 102000 nautical miles. With the power of 150 mm artillery, they even dared to try their luck with real warships.

1) Orion

At the beginning of World War II, Germany refitted a total of nine merchant ships and redefined them as auxiliary cruisers (Hilfskreuzer in German, with tactical numbers from HSK 1 to HSK 9).

The first modified auxiliary cruiser was the Kurmark, which was launched at blom Forsyth Shipyard in Hamburg on May 27th, 0930. It is a large merchant ship with a tonnage of15,700 tons (it was increased to17,600 tons after modification, and the displacement of each auxiliary cruiser was increased after the weapon system was installed), originally belonging to Hamburg-America. But after its completion, it was called the auxiliary cruiser on February 9, 65438 at 1939, renamed Orion, and was awarded the tactical number of HSK 1. 1on March 30th, 940, Orion set sail quickly, keeping the coastal waterway unblocked, making way for the auxiliary cruiser Atlantis, which was the first to enter the ocean. 1April 6, 940, on the eve of the German army's "Weser River Exercise" combat mission, Orion ignited another fire, and this time it was made by Sude Papp (S? Derpie), in order to avoid the eyes and ears of the Allies, Orion added a wooden fake chimney, disguised itself as an auxiliary ship with two chimneys, and a sailor hid in this fake chimney, creating the effect of smoke from the chimney. When Orion entered the Atlantic Ocean under the leadership of its captain Kurt Weah, it disguised itself as the Dutch merchant ship Beemsterdijk. Weah painted the top of the chimney with green and white stripes, painted the black hull with yellow stripes and dyed the freeboard with white. During the voyage, because of a minefield, Orion had to make a temporary stop at Auckland Port in New Zealand. During the subsequent voyage, Captain Weah kept using Lloyd's Register's ship list to find the names of allied or neutral merchant ships that could be borrowed to disguise himself. According to relevant data, Orion changed his identity at least 20 times during this voyage. Captain Weah skillfully used various props, including paint, tarpaulins and flags, to properly hide the distinctive features of the ship. In his whole action, he never let his opponent see through his true identity. 194 1 On August 23rd, Orion returned to Europe after a long journey of 5 1 1 and anchored in Bordeaux, which was occupied by the Nazis, and completed his first expedition. In these more than 500 days, * * * has 10 allied merchant ships (63,250 tons in total) as victims of Orion, and Orion sank 7 merchant ships (of which Orion reached 23,243 tons) together with Comet (Komet HSK 7), an auxiliary cruiser. Captain Weah was awarded the Knights Cross for his meritorious service.

1944, Orion was adapted as a maintenance and artillery training ship, and its name was changed to Hecktor. 1945 65438+ 10, the ship was requisitioned again, and the name of the ship was changed back to Orion, which was used in the Baltic Sea evacuation operation. The last action of the ship was on May 4th, 1945. On the eve of Germany's defeat and surrender, Orion, full of German exiles, was bombed by allied forces in Swinmond. Of the 4000 refugees on board, only 150 were rescued, and Orion was seriously damaged, and was finally abandoned at 1952.

2) Atlantis

Atlantis sailed only once in the whole war, but this time it lasted 60 1 day, with a voyage of 16 1000 km, completely circling the earth. A * * * sank 22 ships, * *145,960 tons (144,384 tons), which was the longest sailing time among the nine maritime attack ships and ranked second. (The first is the more magical penguin, which sank 32 ships with a tonnage of *** 154725 tons. Atlantis sank on 194 1 year 1 1 month 2 1 day.

"Atlantis" was commanded by Lieutenant Colonel Bernhard Rogge, and Rogge later won the Oak Leaf Knight Cross (four of the eight attack ship commanders won this honor) and the only diamond attack ship medal.

Atlantis was launched in 1937, with a length of 155 meters and a displacement of 7862 tons. There is only one chimney in the middle of the ship. * * * 349 passengers (including 2/kloc-0 officers and 328 soldiers). Its mascot is a Scottish beaver. This ship usually has a replica chimney and an adjustable mast. There are also a lot of paints, canvas and various materials including sailors' clothes and flags. Atlantis has the ability to transform into 16 different navigation states.

The ship is equipped with 1 or two HE- 1 14B seaplanes (later changed to Ar- 196). Four torpedo tubes and a mine compartment that can hold 92 mines. Its main gun is six old 150 mm guns. A 75 mm gun is at the bow, and there are two 37 mm guns and four 20 mm guns. These are hidden, most of them are under the fake deck, and the 4-door 150 mm guns are hidden in a built-in crane and stern compartment. Its propulsion power is two six-cylinder engines and a single-shaft propeller. Maximum speed 17.5 knots (32km/h).

3) Raytheon (Raytheon HSK 4) and cormorant HSK 8.

Thor 1938 was launched at Hamburg Shipyard, Germany. It was originally a cargo ship named Santa Cruz. 1March 940 15 was transformed into an auxiliary cruiser and joined the German Navy.

Cormorant was launched at Yalman Shipyard in Kiel on 1938. Originally, it was Steiermark, a cargo ship of Hamburg-American company in Germany. 1October 9,1940,65438 officially joined the German Navy, and with the displacement of 19900 tons, it became the largest auxiliary cruiser of the German Navy.

4) Penguins

Of all the German auxiliary cruisers, Penguin is the most brilliant. In its 320-day battle, this warship has always sunk or captured 32 allied ships, totaling 154725 tons, and an average of 48347 tons of merchant ships died at its muzzle every day! I'm afraid even the most terrible super battleship in the world is far behind.

Pinguin HSK 5, formerly known as kA G ndel Fils with a displacement of 7,766 tons, was launched by Lufthansa Shipping Company in Bremen on 1938. When 1940 was converted into an auxiliary cruiser on February 6, 2000, even German naval officials probably didn't think of it. It is this humble ordinary cargo ship that can create a miracle in the history of human naval warfare. And the general director of this miracle is the captain of Penguin, Ernst Kr? Der), known as one of the five ace captains, Clyde finally won the Oak Leaf Knight Cross for his outstanding military exploits.

5) Others

The third auxiliary cruiser of the German Navy is Widder HSK 3. This ship is relatively old. It was launched at the Horvats Shipyard in Kiel Port in 1929. Interestingly, after being transformed into an auxiliary cruiser, the first commander of the ship was also an "old man"-Navy Colonel Helmut von Luc Techel. The captain was born in 1890. He served as a submarine captain during World War I and had the experience of commanding submarines to sink large warships of the Allies. He can be called an experienced professional pirate.

In May 1940, 1, the widow left Germany for sea. In Norwegian waters, it met the British submarine Clyde, and the widow escaped the tracking of the British submarine and entered the Atlantic Ocean. In the following 180 days, Widow achieved the record of sinking 9 ships and capturing 1 allied ships (58,645 tons in total).

1940, 10, 3 1 On this day, the Widow returned to Brest and ended its voyage. Subsequently, the widow was converted into a maintenance ship and renamed the Newmark to continue serving in the German army. After the war, Newmark was first requisitioned by Britain, renamed Ulysses and used as a transport ship for several years. 1950, Ulysses was sold back to Germany and renamed Fehenheim again. 19551October 3, the ill-fated Fitzheim ran aground in Bergen, Norway.

The sixth auxiliary cruiser Taurus (Stiehl HSK 6) was refitted from the cargo ship Cairo193911of Atlas-Levant Shipping Company, and its captain was Horst Gerlach. 194 1 year 1 1 month 9 officially put into service. The completed Taurus left Rotterdam, the Netherlands on May 12, and was escorted by the 5th torpedo boat detachment (4 torpedo boats) and 16 motorcycle minesweeper. 13 In the early morning of May, the British shore gun company in the Dover Strait shelled German ships. Subsequently, Britain sent motorcycle torpedo boats to attack. Two German torpedo boats were sunk, resulting in serious personnel losses. Britain lost 1 motorcycle torpedo boat (MTB220). The Taurus auxiliary cruiser continued to sail and was never intercepted by the British again. On May 19, I sailed into the Gironde River in France. On the night of May 20th, Taurus entered the Atlantic Ocean without being discovered by the British.

1942 During June 4th to 6th, Taurus sank the British cargo ship Gems and Panamanian oil tanker Stanvac Calcutta in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. On September 27th, when the Taurus was sailing in the South Atlantic, it met the American armed freighter Stephen Hopkins at close range due to poor visibility. In the battle, the auxiliary cruiser Taurus sank the armed cargo ship Stephen Hopkins, but Taurus also suffered heavy losses, so that the crew had to give it up.

The seventh auxiliary cruiser, Comet 7, had a special experience. The cargo ship Ems, formerly known as Lloyd's Shipping Company of North Germany, was launched at Deuschimag Shipyard in bremerhaven in 1937, and entered the service on June 2, 940. Then he entered the Arctic Ocean under the leadership of the first captain, Robert Eisen, and under the guidance of several Soviet icebreakers, he successfully crossed the vast Siberian ice sea in August and September of that year and entered the Pacific Ocean through Bering Gorge. Comet sank three allied ships, totaling 2 1378 tons, when it returned to Germany on1941year1October 30th. In this combat operation, the comet also destroyed seven other allied ships together with the Orion auxiliary cruiser that went out to sea in advance, and the results of 3.5 of them were recorded on the comet. Captain Essen also won the Knights Cross for this action.

Michel HSK 9 was originally a Polish refrigerated cargo ship Bielsko, and was launched at Danzig Shipyard in Danzig Port on 1939. After Poland was invaded by Germany, the unfinished cargo ship was towed from Danzig to Germany as a trophy and finally built at the German shipyard in Hamburg. When the auxiliary cruiser Widow returned to Germany, its captain Helmut von Luck Techel was appointed as the captain of Michelle, and the widow's weapons and equipment were relocated on the Archangel. Interestingly, Luke Techel named the patron saint of Jews "Archangel Saint Michel" as the name of his new ship. Archangels set sail from1March 942 13.

Archangel, escorted by the 5th torpedo boat detachment (5 torpedo boats) and 9 minesweepers, sailed across the English Channel on March 1942. The British navy sent motorcycle torpedo boats, motorcycle gunboats and destroyers to intercept them. The two sides fought fiercely, and two British destroyers were sunk, while none of the German ships were damaged. The auxiliary cruiser Michelle arrived in le havre on March/KOOC-0/4, St. Marlowe on March/KOOC-0/5 and brest on March/KOOC-0/7. On March 20th, the auxiliary cruiser Michelle set sail from Brest for the Atlantic Ocean. Thus successfully broke through the British blockade and completed the arduous task of crossing the English Channel.

After nearly a year's journey, the archangel took refuge in Kobe, Japan on March 2, 1943, and was repaired here. In its first combat experience, a total of 15 allied ships were sunk by it, totaling 99,420 tons.

On May 1943 and 1 day, the refurbished Archangel sailed for the second time under the command of its new captain, Gunter GunPricci, while the former captain of Raytheon was not so lucky on this voyage. After sinking three Norwegian ships in the past six months, in June 1943,10,65438. Archangel became the first Nazi "attack ship" destroyed by an American submarine.

Archangel's total victory is 18 allied ships, totaling 127050 tons. It is worth noting that about 90% of these achievements were obtained by his first captain, Luke Techel. If you add up his achievements of 58,645 tons when commanding the Widow, his personal total record will reach a horrible158,065 tons, which has surpassed the record of Captain Krugman of Penguin154,725 tons, thus winning the number one trump card of the German auxiliary cruiser! Luke Techel was awarded the Oak Leaf Knight Cross.

6) Not yet officially used.

In addition to these famous sea wolves, Nazi Germany recruited two other merchant ships during World War II, and planned to use them in the sea attack war. But at present, there is no information to show that these two last-generation sea wolves have any combat records.

Coronel (10) was originally the cargo ship Togo of Warman Shipping Company, and was built at Vulkan Shipyard in Bremen in 1938. Length134m, width17.9m, draft of 7.9m, displacement12,700t, and load of 5,042 tons. Equipped with four 9-cylinder diesel engines, 5 100 horsepower, 17 knots, 2,600 tons of fuel and 36,000 nautical miles/10 knots. 1942 was refitted at Blom-FOSS Shipyard in Hamburg, and six150mm naval guns, six 37 guns, eight 20 guns and two 533 torpedo tubes were installed. There are 350 crew members. The ship was the last auxiliary cruiser that tried to leave Germany for naval battle. Captain Ernst Thienemann. 1943 When the ship entered the service at the beginning, it was impossible for the Axis ships to cross the English Channel. Coronel tried to cross the Strait twice on the night of February 9, 1943, but was hit back by artillery fire from the other side's coastal battery, and then was bombed by a mosquito fighter. Heineman had to order the colonel to return to Port Buren. On February 13, the Coronel was bombed by British and American planes again and could not go to sea. Finally, it had to return to the port of Cox in Germany on February 28th. The German Navy changed it into a radio-guided ship, and used radio equipment to guide German fighters to intercept allied bombers. At the end of World War II, Coronel restored Togo's original name as a troop carrier to transport Polish and East Prussian refugees. After the war, the ship was sold to other countries as a cargo ship and was used until the 1970s.

The last sea wolf is the cargo ship Glengarry built by Lufthansa (Hansa HSK 1 1, originally from Wain, Burmeister) for Alfred Holt Shipping Company, with a length of 153m, a width of 20. 1m, a draft of 8.7m and a displacement of1922. Equipped with two 6-cylinder diesel engines, 9000 HP 16 knots, 4500 tons of fuel, 65000 nautical miles/10 knots. 1940 was captured by Germany in Copenhagen. Originally renamed the Melsburg, it was used as a torpedo boat training target ship. 1943 the german navy decided to convert it into an auxiliary cruiser. It was first sent to Rotterdam and then modified at Blom-Voss Shipyard in Hamburg. Eight 150 mm guns, 1 05 mm guns, eight 37 guns, 36 20 guns, four 533 torpedo tubes and1aircraft catapults were installed. There are 350 crew members. If the ship is rebuilt, it will be the most powerful auxiliary cruiser of the German Navy. However, due to the shortage of manpower and material resources in wartime, the transformation of the ship was delayed for a long time, and finally it had to be used as a target ship again. After the war, the British declared the ship a warship and prepared to confiscate it as munitions. Alfred Holt Shipping Company of Denmark successfully won the lawsuit and took back the ship from the British Navy.