Karl Thurmann

Karl Thurmann
Born	(1909-09-04)4 September 1909 Mülheim, Ruhr
Died	North Atlantic
Allegiance	Weimar Republic (to 1933) Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Reichsmarine Kriegsmarine
Years of service	1928–43
Rank	Korvettenkapitän
Unit	7th U-boat Flotilla 3rd U-boat Flotilla
Commands held	U-553 (23 December 1940–20 January 1943)
Battles/wars	World War II Battle of the Atlantic
Awards	Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class U-boat War Badge Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Karl Thurmann (4 September 1909 – 20 January 1943) was a German U-boat commander in World War II and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (German: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes). The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Life and career

Thurmann was born in Mülheim, Ruhr. He joined the Reichsmarine in April 1928, serving aboard the light cruisers Emden and Köln.

After training, and sailing on a patrol as Kommandantenschüler (Commander-in-Training") aboard U-29 under Otto Schuhart, Thurmann commissioned the Type VIIC U-boat U-553 on 23 December 1940. Thurmann took U-553 out on nine patrols in 1941 and 1942, and sank 12 merchant ships totalling one warship, and damaged two more.

On 16 January 1943, Thurmann left La Pallice, France, on his tenth patrol. On 20 January, he sent the radio message: Seerohr unklar ("Periscope not clear"). U-553 was never heard from again and her fate remains a mystery.

Summary of career

Ships attacked

As a U-boat commander of U-553 Karl Thurmann is credited with the sinking of 12 ships for a total of 61,390 gross register tons (GRT), further damaging two ships of 15,273 GRT and sinking one warship, the HMS Gladiolus, of 925 metric tons (910 long tons; 1,020 short tons).

Date	Ship	Nationality	Tonnage	Fate
12 June 1941	Ranella	Norway	5,590	Sunk
12 June 1941	Susan Maersk	United Kingdom	2,355	Sunk
15 October 1941	Ila	Norway	1,583	Sunk
15 October 1941	Silvercedar	United Kingdom	4,354	Sunk
17 October 1941	HMS Gladiolus	Royal Navy	925	Sunk
15 January 1942	Diala	United Kingdom	8,106	Damaged
22 January 1942	Innerøy	Norway	8,260	Sunk
12 May 1942	Leto	Netherlands	4,712	Sunk
12 May 1942	Nicoya	United Kingdom	5,364	Sunk
2 June 1942	Matawin	United Kingdom	6,919	Sunk
3 August 1942	Belgian Soldier	Belgium	7,167	Damaged
18 August 1942	Blankaholm	Sweden	2,845	Sunk
18 August 1942	Empire Bede	United Kingdom	6,959	Sunk
18 August 1942	John Hancock	United States	7,176	Sunk
9 December 1942	Charles L D	United Kingdom	5,273	Sunk

Awards

• Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th Class (2 October 1936)
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (21 July 1941)
  • 1st Class (23 October 1941)
• U-boat War Badge (1939) (23 October 1941)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 24 August 1942 as Korvettenkapitän and commander of U-553
• Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht on 22 May 1942

Reference in the Wehrmachtbericht

Date	Original German Wehrmachtbericht wording	Direct English translation
Friday, 22 May 1942	Bei den Erfolgen in amerikanischen Gewässern haben sich Boote unter Führung der Kapitänleutnante Thurmann, Würdemann und Folkers besonders ausgezeichnet.	Boats under the commands of the Kapitänleutnants Thurmann, Würdemann und Folkers distinguished themselves in the success in the American Waters.

References

Notes

Bibliography