Günther Heydemann

German naval officer and u-boat commander

Günther Heydemann (11 January 1914 – 2 January 1986) was a German U-boat commander in the Kriegsmarine of Nazi Germany in World War II. He was a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Prior to taking command of U-575, Heydemann made two war patrols as watch officer on board U-69 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Jost Metzler.

World War II

From 15 September to 2 October 1941, Heydemann, as commander of U-575, was part of Wolfpack Brandenburg operating southeast of Greenland in the North Atlantic. On 2 October, Heydemann sank Tuva of 4,652 gross register tons (GRT).^[1] On U-575's third war patrol which was part of the second wave of Operation Drumbeat, also referred to as the Second Happy Time, Heydemann was given a special task and did not sink any ships.^[2] On U-575's fourth war patrol which was part of the fifth wave of Operation Drumbeat, Heydemann sank Robin Hood of 6,887 GRT on 16 April 1942.^[3][4]

Summary of career

As commander of U-575 Günther Heydmann is credited with the sinking of eight ships for a total of 48,920 gross register tons (GRT).

Awards

• Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th Class (1 April 1937)^[5]
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (17 September 1939)^[5]
  • 1st Class (12 April 1941)^[5]
• U-boat War Badge (1939) (12 April 1941)^[5]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 3 July 1943 Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-575^[6][7]

References

Citations

1. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1968, pp. 166–167.
2. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1968, p. 214.
3. Rohwer & Hümmelchen 1968, p. 235.
4. Cressman 2000, p. 88.
5. Busch & Röll 2003, p. 364.
6. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 226.
7. Scherzer 2007, p. 389.

Bibliography

• Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (2003). Der U-Boot-Krieg 1939–1945 — Die Ritterkreuzträger der U-Boot-Waffe von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [The U-Boat War 1939–1945 — The Knight's Cross Bearers of the U-Boat Force from September 1939 to May 1945] (in German). Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn Germany: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 978-3-8132-0515-2.
• Cressman, R. J. (2000). The Official Chronology of the U.S. Navy in World War II. Annapolis: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-55750-149-3.
• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer [in German] (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
• Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-575". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 7 April 2015.
• Rohwer, Jürgen; Hümmelchen, Gerhard [in German] (1968). Chronik des Seekrieges 1939–45 [Chronicle of Naval Warfare 1939–45] (in German). Herrsching, Germany: Pawlak. ISBN 978-3-88199-009-7.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.