About Albrecht Brandi: German Naval Officer and WWII U-boat Commander (1914-1966)
Albrecht Brandi (20 June 1914 – 6 January 1966) was a German U-boat commander in Nazi Germany German Navy During World War II.With Wolfgang Lüth, he is the only German Navy Sailor awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaf, Sword and Diamond. Knight’s Cross (German: Ritter Cruz), its variant was the highest award for Nazi Germany’s military and paramilitary forces during World War II. Brandywine sank eight merchant ships of gross registered tons (GRT), one auxiliary warship of 810 gross registered tons (GRT), and three warships of 5,000 long tons (5,100 tons).
Brandi, the son of industrial manager Ernst Brandi, was born in Dortmund, Germany and grew up in the Weimar Republic. After the rise of the Third Reich in 1933, he joined the Navy in 1935. After serving as a minesweeper, Brandy began his U-boat career in April 1941. He first served as the U-552’s in-training commander, which was under the command of Erich Topp, and in April 1942 he commanded the U-617 on seven war patrols, except one in the Mediterranean theater. September 12, 1943 U-617 Airstrikes off the coast of Morocco. U-617 Severely damaged, forcing Brandy to run the ship aground. The crew abandoned the ship and were detained by Spanish troops. Brandi escaped custody and returned to Germany, where he took command of U-380, where he conducted a patrol before the submarine was destroyed in an airstrike in the port of Toulon. He then took command of U-967. After a patrol, Brandi was appointed head of U-boat operations in the Eastern Baltic. In January 1945, Brandi was named in charge of Marinekleinkampfverbände (Small Naval Combat Unit) In Holland, he surrendered to the Canadian Army at the end of the war.
[AfterbeingreleasedfromcaptivityinSeptember1945Brandibecameabricklayerandthenstudiedarchitecture.HewasPresidentoftheGermanArchitectsAssociationforthreeyears.BrandifellillanddiedsuddenlyinahospitalinCologneonJanuary61966andwasburiedinDortmundwithmilitaryhonours.
Early life and career
Brandi was born in Dortmund on June 20, 1914, in the province of Westphalia in the Kingdom of Prussia. He is the sixth and youngest child of Ernst Brandi, a mining director and board member. Vereinigte Stahlwerke (United Steel Works) and his wife Clara, née Jucho.with him after graduation High school diploma (University Preparatory High School Diploma) from Gymhe joined Imperial Navy April 1, 1935, as part of “Crew 35” (Class of 1935).
He received basic military training in Stralsund, 2nd Link, 2nd Division of the Baltic Standing Division.He was then transferred to the school ship Gorch Fock for the rank of Cicadet (Trainee), 25 September 1935. After his promotion, he was posted to the light cruiser Karlsruhe (26 September 1935 – 19 June 1936).Brandi continues sailing Karlsruhe‘s fifth training cruise, which began in Kiel on 21 October 1935 and ended on 13 June 1936. The journey took him and her crew to Tenerife, Sao Tome, Lobito, Durban, Victoria Harbour in the Seychelles, Batavia (now Jakarta), Iloilo City, Philippines, Hong Kong , various ports in Japan, Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Islands, Santiago, via the Panama Canal, via St. Thomas and Pontevedra back to Kiel.
follow his journey Karlsruhe, Brandi attended the main cadet course at the Naval Academy Mürwik (20 June 1936 – 31 March 1937).During this time at the Naval Academy, he was promoted to Fähnrich zur See (Officer Cadet) on July 1, 1936. Beginning on April 1st, he underwent a series of specialized weapons training courses for cadets in Mürwik.Brandy was then transferred to a minesweeper M-125, as the third officer on duty. On October 2, 1937, he was transferred to the minesweeper M-1, by captain (Lieutenant) Hans Bartels, at 1. Minensuchflottille (1st Minesweeper Fleet), once again serving as officer on duty.In this assignment, he was promoted to Oberfähnrich zur See (Senior Second Lieutenant) from 1 January 1938 to Lieutenant zur See (Lieutenant) on April 1, 1938.
Second World War
When World War II broke out, Brandi continued to serve on minesweepers M-1. M-1 shipped marine corpsHe was a reinforced naval infantry platoon heading to the battleship Schleswig-Holstein in the early hours of September 1, 1939, before the attack on the Polish base at Westerplatte in Danzig. On October 1, 1939, he was promoted to Oberleutnant zur see (Lieutenant). After the invasion of Poland, M-1 Various minefield clearances have been carried out in the North Sea and the Baltic Sea. On February 24, 1940, without warning, M-1 rammed and sank four Danish trawlers based in Esbjerg, Ejam (E 92), glis (E 456), Mercator (E 348) and north star (E 504) near Doug Bank. Bartels reported to superiors that no one was rescued for “military reasons”; 16 fishermen from then-neutral Denmark were killed. April 1940 M-1Brandi took part in Operation Weserlubon, the German offensive against Denmark and Norway, and was awarded two levels of the Iron Cross (Athenes Cruz).
On May 25, 1940, Brandy was appointed commander of the Army. M-1From this command position, Brandy began engaging with the U-boat force, providing escort missions for the U-boats leaving and returning to port. He applied for U-boat arm service, but was initially denied. In April 1941, Brandi applied again and was accepted, and on 24 December 1941 completed his U-boat training at the Mürwik Naval Academy in Neustadt, Holstein. On December 25, 1941, Brandi became commander (Commander in training) in U-552, by captain Erich Top, A War Patrol (December 25, 1941 – January 27, 1942). During this patrol off the coast of Newfoundland, U-552 Sinking three ships, UK Dairos January 15th, USA Frances Salman and the Greeks Marlow January 18. On January 28, 1942, Brandy was stationed at the Blohm & Voss shipyard in Hamburg to familiarize himself with the U-617, a VIC-type U-boat. Commissioned by Brandy on April 9, 1942 U-617 Completed various training for this boat in Kiel and in the 5th U-boat fleet.
First patrol, Wolfpack Pfeil
Brandy’s first patrol (29 August – 7 October 1942) left Kiel in August 1942, operating on the western approach, before arriving in Saint-Nazaire, France, in October.There U-617 Part of the 7th U-boat fleet. During this patrol, Brandy claimed that four merchant ships sank. On September 7, Brandi sank his first vessel, the Faroese trawler Thor II. U-617 It was part of the Wolfpack Pfeil at the time, which also included U-216, U-221, U-258, U-356, U-595, U-607 and U-615, and fought against Convoy SC 100.On the night of 22/23 September, the Brandywine sank an oil tanker Arthur Sultan, and the two laggards with 14,787 gross registered tonnes (GRT) on the second day. One of the laggards sunk by Brandy on 23 September was the former Danish steamship Tennessee. Another laggard, the Belgian steamship rumagne, sank at 13:58 on 24 September, killing the captain, 35 crew and 6 gunners; only the chief engineer survived.Brandi defies Laconia order to rescue chief engineer Admiral (German Admiral) Karl Dönitz. On September 26, Brandy saw Convoy ON 131, and his attack failed due to a torpedo malfunction.During this patrol, Brandi was promoted to captain October 1, 1942. Following this patrol, on October 8, 1942, he received the U-boat War Badge (U-Boot-Kriegsabzeichen).
Second Patrol, Mediterranean War
On his second patrol (2-28 November 1942), Brandi was ordered to the Mediterranean, where he was placed under the command of the 29th Submarine Fleet.His mission in the Mediterranean theater was to help secure supply routes for U.S. troops African Corps in North Africa. To reach his destination, Brandi had to cross the heavily fortified Strait of Gibraltar. Brandi flooded the channel on November 8, 1942. despite this, U-617 Spotted by the British Short Sunderland bomber, which dropped two depth charges but missed. That day, Anglo-American forces invaded French North Africa in Operation Torch (November 8-16, 1942). At 11:27 on 21 November, Brandywine attacked a powerful British naval task force, firing four torpedoes at a distance. After the attack, U-617 being attacked.Over four hours, 80 depth charges were dropped U-617. At 16:00 on 23 November, the Brandi unsuccessfully attacked a cruiser before arriving in La Spezia on 28 November 1942. head of the overseer Italy (FdU – the leader of the U-boat operation) later believed that Brandy had sunk a cruiser and a destroyer of French or American origin. In addition, the FdU admitted that Brandi had torpedoed two freighters, assuming they were sinking. The FdU denied that he had seriously damaged a battleship.
Third Patrol, Knights Cross
In December 1942, Brandy’s third patrol before the coast of Cyrenaica (21 December 1942 to 17 January 1943) sank the ocean-going tug HMS St. Issey (W25) and two merchant ships , Anica and Harbaugh Jensen January 15, 1943. After this patrol ended in Salamis, the FdU believed that Brandi destroyed a destroyer, a 1,000 GRT tugboat and a lighter of unknown tonnage, all three of which were sunk on 28 December 1942. The FdU further acknowledged the sinking of three ships of 22,000 GRT on 30 December, two ships of 5,000 GRT on 13 January 1943, and two more ships of 13,000 GRT on 15 January.this Befehlshaber der U-Boote (BdU-U-boats Commander-in-Chief) confirmed this assessment and concluded that Brandi sank eight 41,000 GRT ships and one destroyer. For this, Brandy was awarded the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) on January 21, 1943. Speech by the Aegean Admiral, Admiral (Lieutenant-Admiral) Erich Foster, in La Spezia.
fourth patrol
On 1 February 1943, on his fourth patrol (27 January to 13 February 1943), Brandi started at Salamis Naval Base and ended at Pula, just off the coast of Malta. The British minelayer HMS Welshman was sunk a few miles away. Abdiel and the mine-laying submarine HMS Rorqual have been fighting against the Axis supply line between the Gulf of Tunis and Sicily. In addition, Brandi claims to have sunk four ships of two fleets with a gross tonnage of 10,800 GRT. Verifiable is the destruction of the Norwegian freighters Corona and Henrik, both sunk from Convoy AW 22 on 5 February 1943.
Fifth Patrol, Oak Leaf
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