SM U-38

<th colspan="2" >Service record

SM U-38 with crew
Part of:
Commanders:
Operations:
Victories:

B&W picture of a ship

The Italian Liner SS Ancona which was sunk by the German submarines, sailing from New York for Italy

File:Aden postcard.jpg

Postcard of SS Persia at Aden, c.1900

File:Max Valentiner.jpg

Max Valentiner

File:Wilhelm Canaris.jpg

Canaris, while a Korvettenkapitän

SM U-38 was a German Type U 31 U-boat which operated in the Mediterranean Sea during World War I. It ended up being the third most successful U-boat participating in the war, sinking 134 merchant ships sunk for a total of 287,811 GRT.

Its longest serving captain was Kptlt. Max Valentiner, who was awarded the Pour le Mérite while in command of U-38. Valentiner was in command of U-38 in November and December 1915 when she sank the passenger liners and ; both were controversial since the ships were sunk by torpedoes without warning, in defiance of the then-current Prize rules, which stated that merchant vessels carrying passengers be given an opportunity to evacuate their passengers before being sunk.

In 1917 Valentiner was succeeded as commander of U-38 by Kptlt. Wilhelm Canaris, who decades later became an Admiral and head of the Abwehr (German Military Intelligence), in 1935–1944.

Design

Type U 31 submarines were double-hulled ocean-going submarines similar to Type 23 and Type 27 subs in dimensions and differed only slightly in propulsion and speed. They were considered very good high sea boats with average manoeuvrability and good surface steering.Template:Sfn

U-38 had an overall length of , her pressure hull was long. The boat's beam was (o/a), while the pressure hull measured . Type 31s had a draught of with a total height of . The boats displaced a total of ; when surfaced and when submerged.Template:Sfn

U-38 was fitted with two Germania 6-cylinder two-stroke diesel engines with a total of for use on the surface and two Siemens-Schuckert double-acting electric motors with a total of for underwater use. These engines powered two shafts each with a propeller, which gave the boat a top surface speed of , and when submerged. Cruising range was at on the surface, and at under water. Diving depth was .Template:Sfn

The U-boat was armed with four torpedo tubes, two fitted in the bow and two in the stern, and carried 6 torpedoes. Additionally U-38 was equipped in 1915 with one Uk L/30 deck gun, which was replaced with a gun in 1916/17. The boat's complement was 4 officers and 31 enlisted.Template:Sfn

Fate

After World War I ended, U-38 was surrendered to France and docked in Brest in 1919, and then broken up.

Summary of raiding history

Date	Name	Nationality	Tonnage	Fate
18 April 1915	Brilliant	Template:Flagcountry	1,441	Captured as prize
22 April 1915	Eva	Template:Flagcountry	312	Sunk
22 April 1915	Oscar	Template:Flagcountry	766	Sunk
24 April 1915	Nidaros	Template:Flagcountry	1,024	Captured as prize
27 April 1915	Torwald	Template:Flagcountry	1,085	Captured as prize
30 April 1915	Elida	Template:Flagcountry	1,693	Sunk
20 June 1915		Template:Navy/core	10,850	Damaged
21 June 1915	Carisbrook	Template:Flagcountry	2,352	Sunk
22 June 1915	Leo	Template:Flagcountry	269	Sunk
23 June 1915	Truma	Template:Flagcountry	1,557	Sunk
23 June 1915	Elizabeth	Template:Flagcountry	94	Sunk
23 June 1915	Four	Template:Flagcountry	84	Sunk
23 June 1915	Josephine	Template:Flagcountry	85	Sunk
23 June 1915	Piscatorial	Template:Flagcountry	84	Sunk
23 June 1915	Research	Template:Flagcountry	89	Sunk
23 June 1915	Uffa	Template:Flagcountry	79	Sunk
23 June 1915	Ugiebrae	Template:Flagcountry	79	Sunk
24 June 1915	Commander	Template:Flagcountry	149	Sunk
24 June 1915	J. M. S.	Template:Flagcountry	78	Sunk
24 June 1915	Lebanon	Template:Flagcountry	111	Sunk
24 June 1915	Monarda	Template:Flagcountry	87	Sunk
24 June 1915	Primrose	Template:Flagcountry	91	Sunk
24 June 1915	Quiet Waters	Template:Flagcountry	63	Sunk
24 June 1915	Star of Bethlehem	Template:Flagcountry	77	Sunk
24 June 1915	Viceroy	Template:Flagcountry	150	Sunk
24 June 1915	Vine	Template:Flagcountry	110	Sunk
5 August 1915	Hans Emil	Template:Flagcountry	106	Sunk
5 August 1915	Vanadis	Template:Flagcountry	484	Sunk
6 August 1915	Ocean Queen	Template:Flagcountry	185	Sunk
6 August 1915	Westminster	Template:Flagcountry	252	Sunk
9 August 1915	Thrush	Template:Flagcountry	264	Sunk
10 August 1915	Oakwood	Template:Flagcountry	4,279	Sunk
17 August 1915	Bonny	Template:Flagcountry	2,702	Sunk
17 August 1915	George Baker	Template:Flagcountry	91	Sunk
17 August 1915	Glenby	Template:Flagcountry	2,196	Sunk
17 August 1915	Isidoro	Template:Flagcountry	2,044	Sunk
17 August 1915	Kirkby	Template:Flagcountry	3,034	Sunk
17 August 1915	Maggie	Template:Flagcountry	269	Sunk
17 August 1915	Paros	Template:Flagcountry	3,596	Sunk
17 August 1915	Repeat	Template:Flagcountry	107	Sunk
17 August 1915	The Queen	United Kingdom	557	Sunk
17 August 1915	Thornfield	Template:Flagcountry	488	Sunk
19 August 1915	Baron Erskine	Template:Flagcountry	5,585	Sunk
19 August 1915	Restormel	Template:Flagcountry	2,118	Sunk
19 August 1915	Samara	Template:Flagcountry	3,172	Sunk
20 August 1915	Bittern	Template:Flagcountry	1,797	Sunk
20 August 1915	Carterswell	Template:Flagcountry	4,308	Sunk
20 August 1915	Daghestan	Template:Flagcountry	2,817	Sunk
20 August 1915	Martha Edmonds	Template:Flagcountry	182	Sunk
21 August 1915	Cober	Template:Flagcountry	3,060	Sunk
21 August 1915	Ruel	Template:Flagcountry	4,029	Sunk
21 August 1915	San Melito	Template:Flagcountry	10,160	Damaged
21 August 1915	Windsor	Template:Flagcountry	6,055	Sunk
22 August 1915	Diomed	Template:Flagcountry	4,672	Sunk
22 August 1915	Palmgrove	Template:Flagcountry	3,100	Sunk
23 August 1915	Silvia	Template:Flagcountry	5,268	Sunk
23 August 1915	Trafalgar	Template:Flagcountry	4,572	Sunk
3 November 1915	Woodfield	Template:Flagcountry	3,584	Sunk
3 November 1915	Yasukuni Maru	Template:Flagcountry	5,118	Sunk
4 November 1915	Dahra	Template:Flagcountry	2,127	Sunk
4 November 1915	Ionia	Template:Flagcountry	1,816	Sunk
4 November 1915	Le Calvados	Template:Flagcountry	1,658	Sunk, 740 people killed
4 November 1915	Mercian	Template:Flagcountry	6,305	Damaged
5 November 1915	Buresk	Template:Flagcountry	3,673	Sunk
5 November 1915	Sidi Ferruch	Template:Flagcountry	2,797	Sunk
6 November 1915	Elisa Francesca	Template:Flagcountry	208	Sunk
6 November 1915	Glenmoor	Template:Flagcountry	3,075	Sunk
6 November 1915	Ticino	Template:Flagcountry	1,470	Sunk
6 November 1915	Yser	Template:Flagcountry	3,545	Sunk
7 November 1915	France IV	Template:Flagcountry	4,025	Sunk
8 November 1915		Template:Flagcountry	8,210	Sunk, 206 people killed
9 November 1915	Firenze	Template:Flagcountry	3,960	Sunk
21 December 1915	Yasaka Maru	Template:Flagcountry	10,932	Sunk
30 December 1915	Clan Macfarlane	Template:Flagcountry	4,823	Sunk
30 December 1915		Template:Flagcountry	7,951	Sunk, 343 people killed
9 February 1916	Springwell	Template:Flagcountry	5,593	Sunk
9 February 1916	HMS Thornhill	Template:Navy/core	3,848	Damaged
23 February 1916	Diadem	Template:Flagcountry	3,752	Sunk
23 February 1916	Roubine	Template:Flagcountry	327	Sunk
24 February 1916	Denaby	Template:Flagcountry	2,987	Sunk
24 February 1916	Fastnet	Template:Flagcountry	2,227	Sunk
24 February 1916	Torborg	Template:Flagcountry	1,266	Sunk
29 February 1916	Alexander Wentzel	Template:Flagcountry	2,832	Sunk
29 February 1916	Elisa S	Template:Flagcountry	209	Sunk
1 March 1916	Kilbride	Template:Flagcountry	3,712	Sunk
16 May 1916	HMS Clifford	Template:Navy/core	487	Sunk
8 June 1916	Malorossija	Template:Flagcountry	893	Damaged
8 June 1916	Cementcrug	Template:Flagcountry	1,086	Sunk
8 June 1916	Ekaterina	Template:Flagcountry	70	Sunk
8 June 1916	Vera	Template:Flagcountry	1,231	Damaged
10 June 1916	Orion	Template:Flagcountry	429	Sunk
2 July 1916	Rockcliffe	Template:Flagcountry	3,073	Sunk
9 July 1916	Vperied	Template:Flagcountry	859	Sunk
10 July 1916	Florida	Template:Flagcountry	3,238	Sunk
14 August 1916	HMS Remembrance	Template:Navy/core	3,660	Sunk
19 August 1916	Dea	Template:Flagcountry	166	Sunk
23 August 1916	Elios	Template:Flagcountry	190	Sunk
23 August 1916	Maria Brizzolari	Template:Flagcountry	152	Sunk
23 August 1916	Tanina	Template:Flagcountry	138	Sunk
24 August 1916	Isdalen	Template:Flagcountry	2,275	Sunk
24 August 1916	Liegeoise	Template:Flagcountry	3,895	Sunk
25 August 1916	Leandros	Template:Flagcountry	1,658	Sunk
25 August 1916	Nostra Signora Del Carmine	Template:Flagcountry	1,575	Sunk
26 August 1916	Atlantico	Template:Flagcountry	3,069	Sunk
29 August 1916	Antigoon	Template:Flagcountry	1,884	Sunk
29 August 1916	Francois Joseph	Template:Flagcountry	114	Sunk
29 August 1916	Stella Del Mare	Template:Flagcountry	1,166	Sunk
30 August 1916	Nostra Signora Della Guardia	Template:Flagcountry	1,588	Sunk
31 August 1916	Bacchus	Template:Flagcountry	3,583	Sunk
31 August 1916	Duart	Template:Flagcountry	3,108	Sunk
31 August 1916	Piero Maroncelli	Template:Country data Kingdom of Italy	3,225	Sunk
1 September 1916	S. Francesco Di Paola	Template:Flagcountry	68	Sunk
1 September 1916	Swift Wings	Template:Flagcountry	4,465	Sunk
1 September 1916	Antinous	Template:Flagcountry	3,682	Damaged
2 September 1916	Strathallan	Template:Flagcountry	4,404	Sunk
2 September 1916	Uranie	Template:Flagcountry	117	Sunk
3 September 1916	Villadoro	Template:Flagcountry	134	Sunk
4 September 1916	Laristan	Template:Flagcountry	3,675	Sunk
5 September 1916	Saint Marc	Template:Flagcountry	5,818	Sunk
25 November 1916	Michael	Template:Flagcountry	2,410	Sunk
26 November 1916	Chemung	Template:Flagcountry	3,062	Sunk
3 December 1916	Dacia	Template:Flagcountry	1,856	Sunk
3 December 1916	Kanguroo	Template:Flagcountry	2,493	Sunk
3 December 1916	Surprise	Template:Navy/core	680	Sunk
8 December 1916	Brask	Template:Flagcountry	1,464	Sunk
8 December 1916	Britannia	Template:Flagcountry	1,814	Sunk
9 December 1916	Brizella	Template:Flagcountry	282	Sunk
10 December 1916	Esemplare	Template:Flagcountry	2,595	Sunk
13 December 1916	Angelo Parodi	Template:Flagcountry	3,825	Sunk
13 December 1916	Kaupanger	Template:Flagcountry	3,354	Sunk
15 December 1916	Emmanuele Accame	Template:Flagcountry	3,242	Sunk
17 December 1916	Tripoli	Template:Flagcountry	56	Sunk
20 December 1916	Itonus	Template:Flagcountry	5,340	Sunk
25 January 1917	Sylvie	Template:Flagcountry	2,591	Sunk
7 February 1917	Aphrodite	Template:Flagcountry	130	Sunk
14 February 1917	Trowbridge	Template:Flagcountry	3,712	Damaged
14 February 1917	Michele	Template:Flagcountry	41	Sunk
12 May 1917	Egyptian Prince	Template:Flagcountry	3,117	Sunk
13 May 1917	Rio Amazonas	Template:Flagcountry	2,970	Sunk
25 May 1917	Kohinur	Template:Flagcountry	2,265	Sunk
26 May 1917	Holmesbank	Template:Flagcountry	3,051	Sunk
1 July 1917	Corrado	Template:Flagcountry	121	Sunk
1 July 1917	Volto Santo G.	Template:Flagcountry	225	Sunk
7 July 1917	La Resolu	Template:Flagcountry	186	Sunk
12 July 1917	Claire	Template:Flagcountry	1,157	Sunk
15 July 1917	Atalante	Template:Flagcountry	124	Sunk
19 July 1917	Eloby	Template:Flagcountry	6,545	Sunk
20 August 1917	Incemore	Template:Flagcountry	3,060	Sunk
19 April 1918	Salambo	Template:Navy/core	248	Sunk
5 May 1918	Alberto Treves	Template:Flagcountry	3,838	Damaged
8 May 1918	Ingleside	Template:Flagcountry	3,736	Sunk

See also

• Room 40

Bibliography

• Eberhard Rössler: Geschichte des deutschen U-Bootbaus – Band 1. Bernard & Graefe Verlag 1996, Template:ISBN
• Bodo Herzog: Deutsche U-Boote 1906-1966. Manfred Pawlak Verlags GmbH, Herrschingen 1990, Template:ISBN

External links

• Homepage for Christian August Max Ahlmann Valentiner: Template:Webarchive
• Photos of cruises of German submarine U-54 in 1916-1918. Great photo quality, comments in German.
• A 44 min. film from 1917 about a cruise of the German submarine U-35. A German propaganda film without dead or wounded; many details about submarine warfare in World War I.
• Template:Cite Uboat.net
• Room 40: Template:Webarchive original documents, photos and maps about World War I German submarine warfare and British Room 40 Intelligence from The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, UK.