List of all U-boats

U-59

Type

IIC

 
Ordered17 Jun 1937
Laid down5 Oct 1937 Deutsche Werke AG, Kiel (werk 258)
Launched12 Oct 1938
Commissioned4 Mar 1939Oblt. Harald Jürst
Commanders
4 Mar 1939 - 17 Jul 1940  Kptlt. Harald Jürst
18 Jul 1940 - 10 Nov 1940   Joachim Matz
11 Nov 1940 - 16 Apr 1941  Kptlt. Freiherr Siegfried von Forstner (Knights Cross)
17 Apr 1941 - Dec, 1941  Oblt. Günter Gretschel
Dec, 1941 - 15 Jul 1942   Günter Poser
16 Jul 1942 - 10 Jun 1943  Oblt. Karl-Heinz Sammler
11 Jun 1943 - 30 Jun 1944  Oblt. Hans-Jürgen Schley
Jul, 1944 - Apr, 1945  Ltn. Herbert Walther
Career
13 patrols
4 Mar 1939-31 Dec 1939  5. Flottille (training)
1 Jan 1940-31 Dec 1940  1. Flottille (front boat)
1 Jan 1941-30 Jun 1944  22. Flottille (school boat)
1 Jul 1944-1 Apr 1945  19. Flottille (school boat)
Successes17 ships sunk, total tonnage 34,130 GRT
2 auxiliary warships sunk, total tonnage 864 GRT
1 ship damaged, total tonnage 8,009 GRT
1 ship a total loss, total tonnage 4,943 GRT
Fate

Stricken in April 1945 at Kiel. Scuttled in the Kiel Arsenal. Wreck broken up in 1945.

See the 21 ships hit by U-59 - View the 13 war patrols

Attacks on this boat

5 May 1940
The boat was attacked by a submarine in the North Sea and observed a torpedo track that passed about 100 metres behind the stern.

1 recorded attack on this boat.

Men lost from U-boats

Unlike many other U-boats, which during their service lost men due to accidents and various other causes, U-59 did not suffer any casualties (we know of) until the time of her loss.

U-boat Emblems

We have 4 emblem entry for this boat! See the emblem page for this boat or view each one below.



Hitler's U-boat War
Blair, Clay


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Books dealing with this subject include

German U-Boat Losses During World War II. Niestle, Axel, 1998.
Hitler's U-boat War. Blair, Clay, 1996.
Hitler's U-boat War, Vol II. Blair, Clay, 1998.
U-Boat Operations of the Second World War - Vol 1. Wynn, Kenneth, 1998.
U-Boat Operations of the Second World War - Vol 2. Wynn, Kenneth, 1998.


There was another U-59 in World War One
That boat was launched from its shipyard on 20 Jun 1916 and commissioned into the Imperial Navy on 7 Sep 1916. The Naval war in WWI was brought to an end with the Armistice signed on 11 Nov, 1918. Read about the U 59 during WWI.