German submarine U-2323
History | |
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Nazi Germany | |
Name: | U-2323 |
Ordered: | 20 September 1943 |
Builder: | Deutsche Werft, Hamburg |
Yard number: | 477 |
Laid down: | 11 April 1944 |
Launched: | 31 May 1944 |
Commissioned: | 18 July 1944 |
Fate: | Sunk, 26 July 1944 |
Class and type: | Type XXIII submarine |
Service record | |
Part of: | |
Commanders: |
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Operations: | None |
Victories: | None |
German submarine U-2323 was a German Type XXIII submarine of the Kriegsmarine during World War II. She was constructed at Hamburg during the spring of 1944, completed on the 18 July and given to Kptlt. Walter Angermann to command. A fast high-technology coastal boat, U-2323 was expected to be the new war-winning weapon in the Kriegsmarine's arsenal.
The seas around the German coastline were subject to very heavy allied attack during the final two years of the war, as the Royal Air Force sought to restrict German movement around their coasts by sowing thousands of air-dropped naval mines, thus delaying the production and training of new boats, disrupting coastal shipping and destroying several boats before they could become involved in the Battle of the Atlantic.
The U-2323 was a victim of this campaign, when on the 26 July 1944, just eight days old, she was sunk off Möltenort at the entrance to Kiel harbour on her maiden voyage. Two of her crew were killed in the blast, although the survivors managed to safely reach the shore. They were then transferred to other units. The holed boat was raised in early 1945, but was still undergoing repairs in Kiel at the time of the German surrender. It was broken up in situ post-war.
References
Bibliography
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). German U-boat commanders of World War II : a biographical dictionary. Translated by Brooks, Geoffrey. London, Annapolis, Md: Greenhill Books, Naval Institute Press. ISBN 1-55750-186-6.
- Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (1999). Deutsche U-Boot-Verluste von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [German U-boat losses from September 1939 to May 1945]. Der U-Boot-Krieg (in German). IV. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn: Mittler. ISBN 3-8132-0514-2.
Gröner, Erich; Jung, Dieter; Maass, Martin (1991). U-boats and Mine Warfare Vessels. German Warships 1815–1945. 2. Translated by Thomas, Keith; Magowan, Rachel. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-85177-593-4.
- Sharpe, Peter (1998). U-Boat Fact File. Great Britain: Midland Publishing. ISBN 1-85780-072-9.
External links
- Helgason, Guðmundur. "The Type XXIII boat U-2323". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
Coordinates: 54°23′N 10°11′E / 54.383°N 10.183°E