Solo Wargaming – A Practitioner`s Guide (book review)

Solo Wargaming – A Practitioner`s Guide

By David Heading

Pen and Sword Books

Hardback, 186 pages

ISBN 9781399055536

In this book the author tries to explain and to encourage the reader to look at; and explore wargaming as a solo hobby; whether as an extension to their current hobby or as something new to try. Now first off, I`ve been experimenting with rules and playing solo games since I was a teenager (over 40 years), so I`m not really the audience this book is aimed at. What I`ll try and do here is give my general impressions of the book without comparing it to my own experiences.

The book is divided into six chapters:

First gives a general overview of the author`s views on solo wargaming, what he gets out of it and what he believes are the pros and cons – all well thought out in a clear easy style, the author gives plenty of references for further reading.

In the second chapter, the author gives his views on types of wargame and battles which can be fought solo and how these can be set-up. This includes ideas on random deployment and terrain generation, plus remote generalship and command. Again, simply laid out in a clear concise style with references for books mentioned in the text.

The third chapter concentrates on campaigns a part of wargaming the author has already mentioned several times in passing in the earlier chapters and seem to be a major focus of his hobby. He goes on to spend nearly 40 pages explaining the various types of campaign from role-playing type skirmishes to large map-based nation building type games. This chapter has loads of ideas which I for one had not considered with my hobby, once again further reading references are provided.

The fourth chapter covers character creation (as used in role-playing games) and creating unit histories for imaginations. There are also sections on logistics, recruiting and finance, diplomacy and randomised weather. The section on chance cards is quite nice.

In chapter five the author discusses sieges, naval and air wargames. The author tries with sieges to come up with ideas which some may find interesting, how to recreate one onto a solo tabletop, there are so many variables in sieges and forces involved can be quite large, he ends up discussing map based campaign games. Both naval and air wargames are treated mostly in isolation from land-based warfare, again the author goes off at a tangent and starts talking campaigns, be they small scale – single plane or ship to large armada`s and air-groups! The author doesn`t seem like modern (C20th upwards) periods and he doesn`t seem to consider battlefield close air-support, except in terms of larger campaign style games.

In the final chapter the author discusses sources of ideas for games – films, books, etc. Realism in wargames, including civilians, diseases and desertion and their effects on wargames. The author finishes with ideas about fantasy and science fiction gaming, plus using computers and the internet.

The book is loaded with tables for random generation of various facets of wargaming, at the end you`ll find a couple of pages listing all the books already mentioned in the text.   

Like I said at the start, I`m not the audience this book is aimed at – I have a time-served system, designed and created over a number of years for the style and level of game I enjoy. Weather, forces and deployment are all written into the scenarios I design. I am also a committed twentieth century, historical gamer, so sections on C17th imaginations leaves me stone cold, but I`m sure there is something here for any gamer thinking of trying solo gaming or expanding on what they already do.

I was a little surprised that Stuart Asquith`s “Solo Wargaming” doesn`t get a mention and I do note also the info on the SOTCW (Society of Twentieth Century Wargamers) website – www.sotcw.co.uk is well out of date and this site is sadly long gone.

 

Koufra, Libya, 1st March 1941

                          The Koufra Raid

                                 1st March 1941

In early 1941, the motley collection of French colonial forces in Chad declared for de Gaulle and the Free French. Lt Col d’Ornano (commander of French Forces in Chad) and Col. LeClerc received orders off de Gaulle in London, were tasked with attacking Italian positions in Libya with the forces at their disposal. 

Koufra was the obvious first target. Taken by Graziani in 1931, Koufra (also spelt Cufra, Kufra & Khofra) is an oasis in Southeast Libya. The Buma airfield at Koufra has now fallen into disrepair and is little-used since World War II, but in 1941 was an important link to Italian East Africa and a base for reconnaissance aircraft supporting local Italian units (Sahariana and Meharista). The town surrounding the Oasis is dominated by the old fort of El Tag, built by the Italians in the mid-1930s – a square structure 150 meters each side with 4 meter high walls; built on a rocky outcrop at Djebel el Bub. Standing alone, it was surrounded by an extensive external defence system (trenches and barbed wire). The fort was also used as a radio post to guide in Italian aircraft as well as to maintain communication with Italian East Africa.

Koufra was important because:
- it is an oasis
- it controls a road to the Fezzan area
- there is a radio-gonio post to guide the Italian aircrafts to the Buma airfield

The task of striking at the heavily defended oasis at Koufra was made all the more difficult by inadequate transport to cross sand dunes and the rocky ground, considered to be impassable to vehicles.

Fortunately for the French, assistance was received from Major Pat Clayton of the Long Range Desert Group (LRDG), who was keen to join with the Free French to test the Italians. Clayton had under his command G (Guards) and T (New Zealand) patrols, a total of seventy-six men in twenty-six vehicles.

In order to assist in the attack against Kufra, a raid was mounted against the airfield at the oasis of Mourzouck, capital of the Fezzan region of Libya. Ten Free French (three officers, two sergeants and five native soldiers) under D’Ornano met with Clayton’s LRDG patrols on 6 January 1941 at Kayouge. The combined force reached Mourzouck on 11 January. In a daring daylight raid, they surprised the sentries and swept through the oasis, devastating the base. The majority of the force attacked the main fort, while a troop from T patrol under Lieutenant Ballantyne engaged the airfield defences, destroying 3 Caproni aircraft and capturing a number of prisoners.

The success of the raid was tempered by the loss of a T patrol member and the intrepid d’Ornano. Another wounded French officer cauterized his leg wound with his own cigarette, much to the admiration of the LRDG. A diversionary raid by mounted Meharistes Colonial Cavalry failed after it was betrayed by local guides, prompting LeClerc to relegate these troops to recon duties only.

After the success of the Mourzouck raid Leclerc, who had assumed overall command, marshalled his forces to take on Koufra itself. Intelligence indicated that the Oasis was defended by two defensive lines based around the El Tag fort which included barbed wire, trenches. In the El Tag fort defending the oasis the Italian Colonel Leo had 580 Askaris and various Italian detachments (engineers, signals etc.) but he had also the Compania Saharina di Cufra under the command of Captains Mattioli and Moreschini: a specialist mobile force and the forerunner of the famous “Sahariana” companies of the mid war period. The company was comprised of desert veterans crewing various Fiat and Lancia trucks equipped with HMGs and 20 mm AA weapons, together with some armoured cars. The company also had the support of its own air arm to assist in long range reconnaissance and ground attack. The fort itself is defended by Schwarzlose and Fiat 1914/35 MGs as well as 20 mm Breda guns.

LeClerc could not pinpoint the Saharianas, so he tasked the LRDG with the job of hunting them down and robbing the defenders of their mobile reserve. Unfortunately for the LRDG, a radio intercept unit at Koufra picked up their radio traffic and they were spotted from the air. The defenders had been on their guard since Mourzouck. Conscious of the weakness of his forces, LeClerc also scheduled three air raids on Koufra (I assume these would be by Blenheim bombers from Chad), whose mission was to destroy the aerodrome; however only one aircraft on the ground was hit.

G patrol had been kept in reserve and Major Clayton was leading T patrol, 30 men in 11 trucks, including a French detachment from GN (Groupe Nomad) Tibesti under Lt. Dubut.

The patrol was at Bishara on the morning of 31 January when an Italian aircraft appeared overhead. The trucks scattered and made for some hills, and the plane flew away without attacking them. The patrol took cover among some rocks in a small wadi at Gebel Sherif and camouflaged the trucks, before preparing to have lunch. The plane returned and circled over the wadi, where it directed a patrol of the Auto-Saharan Company to intercept the LRDG.

During fierce fighting, the LRDG patrol came off second best to superior Italian firepower and constant air attack. After severe losses, the surviving seven trucks of the patrol were forced to withdraw, leaving behind their commanding officer, who was captured along with several others. Other survivors embarked on epic journeys to seek safety. After this reverse, the LRDG force was forced to withdraw and refit, leaving Leclerc the services of only one LRDG vehicle from T patrol crucially equipped for desert navigation.

LeClerc pressed on with his attack, in spite of losing a copy of his plan to the enemy with the capture of Major Clayton. After conducting further reconnaissance, Leclerc reorganized his forces on 16 February. He abandoned his two armoured cars (two AMC Laffly S15 TOE) and took with him the remaining serviceable artillery piece, a crucial decision.

Initially the LeClerc column is made up of 101 “white” French troops and 295 Senegalese and Chadian colonial soldiers: 396 men (armed with Lebel 1886/93 rifles, a Brandt 81mm mortar, four x 8 mm Hotchkiss Mle1914 MMGs and 26 x FM 24/29 LMGs), but several vehicles and their men were not available for the attack because of mechanical breakdowns.

They had to travel 1650 km before reaching the objective.

HQ: 1 Matford, 2 Chevrolet 1t, 2 Bedford 1.5t and one ER26bis radio (Captain Geoffroy)

1 reduced infantry company (Captain Rennepont) with 23 Bedford 1.5t

2 platoons of the GN (Groupe Nomad) Ennedi - 120 men (Captain Barboten) with 1 dodge and 16 Matford V8 3t

1 platoon of the 7th Company of the RTST (60 men) (Captains Florentin & Fabre) with 1 dodge and 2 Matford V8 3t

1 artillery platoon (Lieutenant Ceccaldi) with a 75 mm Mle1928 Schneider mountain gun, 1 dodge, 1 Laffly S15 tow, 1 Laffly S15 for the ammunition and 2 Matford V8 3t

On the 17th, LeClerc’s forces brushed with the Saharianas whom had no problems wiping out French trucks with their machine guns and 20mm cannon but despite a disparity in firepower the French were able to drive them off and this prevented the Saharinas from entering in El Tag. The Saharina escaped towards Tazerbo. The Italians never sent reinforcements to the fort, only a few planes attacked the French troops who now encircled the fort!

The lone 75 mm gun was placed 3000 m from the fort, beyond range of the defenses and opens fire (40 shells the first day and then about 20 shells per day after that). This single gun is constantly moved to give the impression that there are several guns. The 81mm mortar was positioned 1,500m to the Northwest. Using mobile patrols and general harassing tactics LeClerc managed to give the impression he had a much larger force. The Italian airforce initially tried to intervene, but eventually just gave up!

After ten days of fighting, despite having superior numbers, Italian resolve faltered. Negotiations to surrender began on 28 February and finally on 1 March 1941 the Free French captured El Tag and with it, the oasis at Koufra. The French took more than three hundred prisoners: eleven Italian officers and eighteen Italian soldiers and two hundred and seventy three Libyan soldiers. Italian losses amounted to three dead and four wounded. For the Free French Forces, the operation accounted for four dead and twenty one wounded. Seized from the enemy were four 20 mm canons, fifty three machine guns, fourteen vehicles, not to mention a large stock of munitions and supplies.

Captured arms

Col. Leclerc (on the right) with the captured banner of the Saharina de Cufra

The French flag flys proudly over El Tag

Leclerc addresses his troops following the Italian surrender, with a declaration which went down in history as the oath of Koufra:

 "We are on the march. We will not stop until the French flag flies over the Cathedral of Strasbourg." 

German Infra-red Nightfighting Equipment During WW2

German Infra-red Nightfighting Equipment in WW2

This is an updated version of an article I wrote for the SOTCW Journal

Now the last desparate months of the Reich in WW2 isn’t an interest of mine per se but I do enjoy gaming the battles for the German border and winter 1944/45. 

Recently I found myself reading Tomb of the Panzerwaffe by Aleksei Isaev and Maksim Kolomiets for review. The book covers the last major offensive by the Germans in Hungary and, whilst covering the make-up of the German forces, the authors discuss the use of infrared equipment by the Germans. This got me thinking and I did a bit of digging.  

Germany began to develop such devices in the 1930s. AEG actually created a prototype in 1939 which was fitted to a 37mm Pak 35/36 anti-tank gun but the results were disappointing to the military who needed sights with capabilities equivalent to firing at daytime. In the autumn of 1942 tests of a night optical sight (ZG1221) for the 75mm Pak40 gun were started concluding in the middle of 1943. Whilst the results were okay (firing was possible on targets to a range of about 400 metres) the Wehrmacht didn’t give approval. AEG, on its own initiative, produced 1,000 optical sights for the Pak40 in early 1944. The effects of Allied airpower over Normandy in June 1944 finally served as a stimulus with the need for Wehrmacht units to move at night and to avoid the attentions of Allied planes.  

Arguably the most interesting and successful adaptation of night-fighting equipment was on the Panther tank. General Guderian suggested the IR sight should be developed for use with the Panther and a variant (ZG1221K) was fitted to the commenders cupola, the headlamp allowed the commander to see ahead of the vehicle about 100 meters, this was considered inadequate and the development of an IR observation vehicle the Uhu (owl) was ordered.

In November 1944, the Panzer Lehr Division was relocated to the Fallingbostel military training area in Bergen in order to test the still top secret infrared image converter night vision devices and Uhu-Spw, which were currently being developed, in troop trials.

At the end of November the equipment was complete and a dress rehearsal took place in front of the Inspector General, Colonel General Guderian . After this Guderian exercise, which did not go well in the snow because the snowflakes were reflected by the infrared light from the image converter devices, 

The sight consisted of an infrared searchlight and an image converter. The searchlight came in various diameters (up to 60cm) but all received the designation Uhu (Owl). In accordance with their intended use there were different versions of night vision devices – Zielgerät (aiming device), Fahrgerät (night driving) and Beobachtungsgerät (observation device). 

In practice one 60cm Uhu would be assigned to a group of five IR equipped Panther - the range of the IR viewer on the Panther was increased to 700 meters through the capability of the larger searchlight.  

Two different arrangements/configurations were created and used on Panther tanks:  

Version A – Sperber (Sparrow Hawk) was made up of one 30cm infrared searchlight (with a range of 600m) and an image converter operated by the commander – FG 1250. From late 1944 to March of 1945 some Panzerkampfwagen V Panther Ausf G (and other variants), mounted with FG 1250, were successfully tested. From March to April of 1945 approximately 50 Panthers Ausf G (and other variants), mounted with FG 1250, saw combat service on both the Eastern and Western Fronts. Panthers with IR operated with SdKfz 251/20 Uhu (Owl) half-tracks with a 60cm infra-red searchlight and SdKfz 251/21 Falke (Falcon). This version could be easily mounted on any type of armoured fighting vehicle. 

Version B – the second, more complicated arrangement was "Biwa" (Bildwandler) which, in addition to the provision under the Sperber configuration, also provided the driver and gunner with one 30cm infrared searchlight (with range of 600m) and image converter (installed respectively on the front hull and on the mantle in front of the gun sight). Various variants of Panthers were converted and mounted with "Biwa". It was reported that tests were successful but there are very few combat reports from the Eastern or Western Fronts. Due to the lack of evidence the existence of Version B is still questioned and even considered a hoax. 

Various units are reported by various internet sourses as having received IR Panthers including 116^th Panzer Division - 3rd company of 24th Panzer Regiment, Western Front, Autumn of 1944 (see below), Sixth SS Panzer Army (Hungary, Spring 1945) and both Panzer Divisions Müncheberg and Clausewitz towards the very end. 

Here things become a little mirky!! 

One combat report is by a veteran of 1st SS Panzer Regiment of 1st SS Panzer Division "LSSAH", who states that a few Panthers equipped with infrared night-vision devices (possibly from 116th Panzer Division) were used in 1944/45 during the Ardennes Offensive. 

Various internet forums have had flame-ups over the use of IR equipment being used at all in the West and basically dismiss such claims as being rubbish and unproven.  

In April of 1945, Panthers equipped with Biwa IR equipment joined Panzer Division Clausewitz and, in mid April near Ülzen, destroyed an entire platoon of British Comet cruiser tanks. Also on 21st April 1945, The same Panthers overran an American anti-tank position on the Weser-Elbe Canal. Most of those reports can’t be confirmed and are questionable. 

Again both these reports are generally discredited and dismissed by the a majority of online forums, etc 

In addition, it is reported but not supported that a single unit equipped with Jagdpanthers received and used infrared night-vision devices.

Another uncredited report I found on the internet states:

“Uhu and Puma (the author claims Panthers with IR gear were called Pumas, but I have not read this elsewhere??)  in combination were said to have been used by two units on the Eastern Front with immense success; it was claimed that 67 Russian tanks had been knocked out in one night. These two units and the unit captured were said to be the only three German units equipped with I.R. gear. Gear for other units was, however, said to be in existence hidden in various places, which are known to Major von Werthern.

It is not recorded how many Panther tanks with I.R. gear were in each unit, however the training unit that was captured by the Allies was made up of 4 Sd.Kfz.251/20 Uhus, 16 Sd.Kfz.251/20 Falkes, and 3 staff cars. Even if the unit in question had 16 Panthers, which seems unlikely, that is still more than 4 kills claimed on average per tank! 

Also In the spring of 1945, a Sparrowhawk group was sent from the Panzertruppenschule in Bad Fallingbostel to StuhlweiBenburg in Hungary as part of the 6th SS Panzer Army. They were responsible for a large number of tank kills during the surprise offensive from February 17th to 24th, 1945 that destroyed the Russian bridgehead.

The remaining Panther tanks in the association also moved east. However, they were wiped out in Hungary because their infrared devices were allegedly ineffective due to heavy snowfall. There was a thaw back then! In reality, the remaining 63 Panthers actually arrived in Hungary on time, but without their infrared equipment which remained in Bad Fallingbostel for no apparent reason.

BMW 321 Staff Car with night driving gear

Nachtjäger

Infra-red equipped tank units were accompanied by panzergrenadiers, some of whom were armed with their own night fighting equipment – the vampire. The ZG 1229 Vampir weighed in at 2.25 kilograms (about 5lbs) and was fitted by means of lugs onto the StG44 assault rifle at C.G. Hänel at Suhl, the weapons production facility.

The grenadier carrying this was known as a Nachtjäger (night-hunter). As well as the sight and infrared spotlight, there was a 13.5 kilogram (about 30lbs.) wooden cased battery for the light and a second battery fitted inside a gas mask container to power the image converter. This was all strapped to a Tragegestell 39 (pack frame 1939). The searchlight consisted of a conventional tungsten light source shining through a filter permitting only infrared light. It operated in the upper infrared (light) spectrum rather than in the lower infrared (heat) spectrum and was, therefore, not sensitive to body heat.

Vampire gear was first used in combat in February 1945. However small arms infrared device introduction took place in early 1944 and I have read one report of Americans finding odd STG44s with large strange optic sights during the Ardennes battles (field tests maybe?)

 310 units were delivered to the Wehrmacht at the final stages of the war. Russian reports consist of snipers shooting at night with the aid of 'peculiar non-shining torches coupled with enormous optical sights' mounted on their rifles. Similar infrared gear was reportedly fitted both to MG34 and MG42 machine guns.

Other branches of the German military also developed IR equipment:

Kriegsmarine

The "Seehund" an infrared device developed for the Kriegsmarine and used from 1941 for signaling and infrared detection mounted on a 35cm searchlight. It seems to have had a maximum range of 4.5km under perfect conditions.

There was also a passive shore based aiming device "Warmepeilgerate" designed by Zeiss resp. Elac, which appears to have had good results up to 40km (large targets) under perfect conditions.

                                                                             Luftwaffe

The first on-board aid in German night fighters was the IR-based optical search device Spanner built by AEG .

"Spanner I" worked actively, with headlights, lenses and image converters

"Spanner II - IV" worked passively, with a lens and image converter (without headlights). However, they were only produced in small

The Do 17 Z-10 Kauz II was an improved version of the Do 17 Z-7 Kauz I, with a larger, more effective armament and early infrared technology (although I doubt this feature would be implemented). It was a night fighter variant of the infamous flying pencil, and unlike the earlier Kauz I, it did not possess any suspended armament. The Do 17 Z-10's offensive armament consisted of four 7.92 mm MG 17s grouped above the IR searchlight in the center of the nose and two 20 mm MG FFs in the lower nose, compared to the three MG 17s and one MG 151 of the Z-7. While each MG FF had a drum of only 90 rounds, the drums could be reloaded mid-flight by a dedicated crew member.

DO-17 Z10 "Kauz II" night-fighter with "Spanner" infrared detection system of I/NJR 2 at Gilze Rijen, Holland 1941

Infra-red sights and wargaming

Now how we incorporate this technology onto a wargames table is an interesting question, obviously IR equipped tanks, etc can move and see better at night. But unless you are running a specific scenario I don`t see IR having much of an effect on  a tabletop. During my time as editor of the SOTCW Journal, I published a scenario by Stuart Pearson about a Nachtjager raid on Russian lines. I can easily see a skirmish type scenario with these IR equipped weapons being used making an interesting change of pace. Bolt Action actually covered Nachtjager in their late war supplement and Warlord Games actually produced a few figures so equipped.

S&S Models do an add on kit for your plastic or resin Panthers in 20mm

https://sandsmodels.com/product/infrared-panther-fittings-pair/

The Professionals (film Review)

The Professionals 

Released in 1967, directed by Richard Brooks and filmed in California and Nevada.

Another classic movie set during my goto fun wargaming period - the Mexican Revolution with an all-star cast - Burt Lancaster, Lee Marvin, Claudia Cardinale, Robert Ryan, Woody Strode and Jack Palance.

Publicity still of Claudia as Mrs Maria Grant

The film doesn`t actually give a date, but we have to assume it is set before the US entered WW1 around the period of Pancho Villa`s raid on Columbus, New Mexico with the revolution winding down to Carranza`s victory.

At the start of the film, American rancher JW Grant hires four men to rescue his wife who has been kidnapped by notorious bandit/revolutionary - Jesus Raza.

These men - Dolworth (played by Lancaster at his wise cracking, grinning best), Henry "Rico" Farden (Marvin on top form as the hard bitten veteran), scout/tracker - Jake Sharp (Woody Strode) and mule/horse master - Hans Ehrengard (Robert Ryan) are all specialists and experts with a variety of skills.

What we get is a great movie with some wonderful interaction and character building, some great action scenes combined with super photography and excellent dialogue.

The group head into Mexico, struggle with the terrain and the climate; they encounter bandits and learn to trust one another and work as a team.

There are some superb set-pieces - an attack on a train by Raza and his men - machine guns & mounted attackers, one using a lasso to drag away a machinegun! And then the group`s attack on Raza`s stronghold to rescue Mrs Grant, using stealth, distraction and dynamite! 

It is during the rescue attempt Dolworth and Rico discover that Mrs Maria Grant (played by one of my all-time crushes Claudia Cardinale) is not a prisoner at all, but the lover of Raza (Jack Palance in one of his greatest performances IMHO) a great plot twist!

What follows is a desperate chase back to the border with Raza and his men in hot pursuit. Dolworth elects to hold a rearguard and delay Raza allowing the rest to escape and get Maria back to her husband. This part of the movie is extremely well handled, with Dolworth selecting his ambush site and picking off Raza`s men one by one. We then get a brief but deep discussion between the former comrades about the philosophy of the revolution, one of my all-time favourite speeches:

Jesus Raza (Jack Palance)

“La Revolucion is like a love affair. In the beginning she is goddess, a holy cause. But every love affair has a terrible enemy – time! We see her as she is, La Revolucion is not a goddess but a whore!

She was never pure, never saintly, never perfect. And we run away, find another lover, another cause; quick sordid affairs, lust but no love; passion but no compassion. Without love, without a cause, we are nothing!

We stay because we believe, we leave because we are disillusioned, we come back because we are lost, we die because we are committed!”

Powerful stuff which no matter how many times I hear it, makes the hairs on the back of my neck stiffen……

This film is just excellent; nominated for three Academy awards, the uniforms and equipment are good, both the Lewis LMG and 1917 Browning MMG are correct for the period and for once the bandits/revolutionaries are mostly armed with bolt action Mausers to go with their Bandoliers. There is quite a bit of period and regional colour which just makes it an interesting watch for the wargamer and modeller. 

The wonderful Maria Gomez (Lieutenant si si Chiquita)

It does persist the Hollywood myth that the Mexican Revolution was a small scale affair, when infact battles and campaigns included thousands of soldiers on both sides, but this doesn`t detract from the film or story.  

A smashing photo taken during filming with Lee Marvin, posing with the train crew of Great Western 2-8-0 No. 75 used on the movie (Martin E. Hansen photograph)

If my love for weird and wonderful cinema is getting boring and readers would like me to return to purely wargaming topics please tell me in the comments - Be warned I may well just ignore you anyway as I`ve always walked my own path and don`t always take advice 😁😁😁  

U-573 The Spanish U-boat (photos from Cartagena added 09/07/2024)

The Spanish U-boat

Submarine G-7 (formally U-573) docked at Barcelona

The U-573 was a Type VIIC U-boat. Her keel was laid down 8 June 1940 at the Blohm & Voss yard in Hamburg. She was launched on 17 April 1941 and commissioned 5 June with Captain Heinrich Heinsohn (12 February 1910 – 6 May 1943) in command. Heinsohn commanded her for her entire career in the Kriegsmarine. In May 1941 he had arranged that the city of  Landeck in Tyrol adopted the submarine within the then popular sponsorship programme (Patenschaftsprogramm), organising gifts and holidays for the crew, earning her the honorary name "U-573 Landeck".

Badge of the U-573 Landeck

U-573 had a displacement of 769 tonnes. She had a total length of 67.10 m, a beam of 6.20 m, a height of 9.60 m and a draught of 4.74 m. The submarine was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of 2,800 to 3,200 metric horsepower for use while surfaced, two Brown, Boveri & Cie GG UB 720/8 electric motors producing a total of 750 metric horsepower for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 metres.

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.7 knots and a maximum submerged speed of 7.6 knots. When submerged, the boat could operate for 80 nautical miles at 4 knots; when surfaced, she could travel 8,500 nautical miles at 10 knots. U-573 was fitted with five 53.3 cm (21 in) torpedo tubes (four in the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one 8.8cm SK C/35 naval gun, 220 rounds, and a 2cm C/30 anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a crew complement of between forty-four and sixty.

The boat began her service career as part of the 3rd U-boat Flotilla when she conducted training; on 1 September 1941 she commenced operations with that flotilla. She was transferred to the 29th Flotilla, also for operations, on 1 January 1942. She was sold to the Spanish Navy that same year and became the Spanish submarine G-7.

U-573 (renamed G-7) in Spanish service

Combat History during WW2

Her operational career began with her departure from Kiel on 15 September 1941. She entered the Atlantic via the North Sea and the gap between Iceland and the Faroe Islands. She almost reached the Labrador coast before heading for St. Nazaire in occupied France, docking on 15 November.

U-573's second patrol involved the boat slipping past the heavily defended Strait of Gibralter into the Mediterranean, where she sank the Norwegian Hellen (5,289 GRT) with two torpedoes on 21 December 1941 (the boats only kill during her service). She arrived at Pola in Croatia on 30 December.

Her third sortie was relatively uneventful, starting and finishing in Pola between 2 February and 6 March 1942.

During her fourth and final patrol, on 1 May 1942 at approximately 15.56 hrs, 40 miles north-west of Ténès, Algeria, a British Hudson bomber AM735 (RAF Sqdn 233/M, pilot: Sgt Brent) on patrol from Gibraltar dropped three 250lb depth charges on the boat. Two were seen to explode very close on the starboard side aft, lifting the stern out of the water as the boat dived. U-573 was then seen to resurface close to a large patch of oil with about ten men standing on the bridge and raising their hands in surrender. The pilot felt it was not justified to strafe the U-boat as the crew did not man the AA guns, but the assessment of Coastal Command was that he should have machine-gunned the crew because there were no surface vessels nearby to accept the surrender. The aircraft circled the area until it was low on fuel, returning to base at 16.20 hrs.

U-573 was left severely damaged, with one electric motor and both diesel engines out of order, both batteries damaged, leaks in the diving and ballast tanks on the starboard side and a large dent in the pressure hull at the stern. On receiving a distress call from U-573, the FdU ordered the nearby U-74 and U-375 to assist, and Italian submarines Emo and Mocenigo also joined the rescue operation. The Allies sent aircraft from Gibraltar and detached HMS Wishart and HMS Wrestler from a group of five destroyers on A/S patrol east of Gibraltar to intercept the crippled U-boat. The commander of U-573 at first thought he would have to scuttle the boat, but the engineers managed to restart one of the electric motors to move slowly northwards. The radio was also initially out of action, and U-573 was unable to report her position to rendezvous with her rescuers. On the morning of the 2nd May, SKL ordered her to proceed to Cartagena in neutral Spain, where U-573 arrived at 11.36 hrs. Allied forces searching for U-573 located and sank U-74 shortly afterwards.

International agreements allowed ships in neutral ports 24 hours to make emergency repairs before they were to be interned. The Spanish authorities granted U-573 a three-month period for repairs, which prompted several strong protests from the British Embassy in Madrid. On 19 May Heinsohn flew from Madrid to Stuttgart, then travelled on to Berlin, in order to discuss the situation with the Kriegsmarine. He returned by train via Hendaye (in southwest France) on 28 May. Realizing that even three months would not be enough to repair the boat, the Kriegsmarine sold the vessel to Spain for 1.5 million Reich Marks. On 2 August 1942, at 10 am, (one day before the three-month period was due to expire), the Spanish navy commissioned the boat as the G-7.

U-573's crew were interned in Cartagena and were gradually released in groups of two or three. The last five members of the crew left with Captain Heinsohn on 13 February 1943. He returned to Gotenhafen (now Gdynia, Poland). In March he was ordered to Brest, to take command of U-438, and died with all his crew on 6 May 1943.

Spanish Service

G-7 being repaired at Cartagena

Work started on the U-573, now the G-7, began in August 1943 following the sale to Spain but took four years to complete. The damage caused by the British attack was found to be more extensive than was first thought; also German technical assistance and parts were difficult to obtain in the last years of World War II and indeed after the war in Europe had ended! In addition, Spain's economy was weak following the Civil War. Finally repairs were completed in early 1947 and on 5 November 1947 G-7 was re-commissioned. The bow's net cutter and the 20mm anti-aircraft cannon were removed.

Despite the Type VII being out-dated by the end of World War II, G-7 was the most modern of Spain's submarine fleet; her other vessels (two ex-Italian, and four home-built boats) dating from the early 1930s. G-7 lacked radar and did not possess a snorkel.

G-7 here photographed after she was renamed S-01 in 1961

In 1958 Arca-Filmproduktion GmbH rented G-7 to take part in the semi-fictitious movie U-47 Kapitanleutnant Prien partially based on his patrol to Scapa Flow, where he sank HMS Royal Oak.

In 1961 the Spanish Navy's submarine force was re-numbered, and G-7 became S-01.

On 2 May 1970 she was de-commissioned after 23 years service. She was auctioned for 3,334,751 Pts (about 26,500 US Dollars), after which, despite efforts to save and preserve her as a museum, the submarine was broken up for scrap.

Submarine exhibition, Cartagena Naval Museum

Back in May we visited the excellent Spanish Naval Museum at Cartagena

One Spanish Submarine was covered in some detail, the famous Spanish U-boat - U573  

1/56 scale model showing internal detail

The Submarine`s badge note the two Spanish designations G-7 and S-01

The sub`s deck gun which used to be displayed out on the harbour front

Additional information

One other U-Boat was interned by the Spanish during WW2 - U-760.

On 8 September 1943, about 150 nautical miles off Cape Finisterre, U-760 was sailing on the surface alongside U-262 when they were attacked by Allied aircraft. U-760 fled into Vigo harbour and surrendered to the Spanish cruiser Navarra. Under International neutrality agreements allowed ships to spend up to 24 hours in neutral harbours to make emergency repairs, but U-760 was unable to get underway in time. She was interned at Ferrol for the remainder of World War II. The submarine engine was dismantled and used to generate electric energy for the city of Vigo's tram network. On 23 July 1945, the boat was taken to the United Kingdom for Operation Deadlight and was scuttled on 13 December 1945.