Heinrich Liebe
Encyclopedia
Commander
Heinrich Liebe (29 January 1908 – 27 July 1997) was a highly decorated German
naval officer who served as a U-boat
commander during World War II
until transferred to Oberkommando der Kriegsmarine (German Navy High Command). He sank 34 ships for a total of , placing him fourth on the Aces of the Deep
list. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. It was Germany's highest military decoration at the time of its presentation to Heinrich Liebe.
, Liebe began his Reichsmarine
career in 1927. Promoted to Oberfähnrich zur See on 1 June 1931, Liebe served on the World War I
battleship for four years. In September 1935, Liebe transferred to the U-boat arm.
On 1 October 1936, Liebe was promoted to Kapitänleutnant and assigned commander of , a Type II U-boat attached to the U-Bootschulflottille. On 24 October 1938, Liebe commissioned , a Type IX U-boat assigned to 6th U-boat Flotilla.
. Operating off Lisbon
, Portugal
on the outbreak of war, Liebe managed to sink two British
freighters before returning to port on 18 September. On 2 November, Liebe set sail for Norwegian
water on his second patrol.
Liebes fourth patrol, on 8 April 1940 was also set in Norwegian waters, to support Operation Weserübung
, the invasion of Norway. During this patrol, Liebe shared the same negative experience of failed torpedo
es as many other u-boat captains operating in the area. In mid April 1940, Liebe fired on the British heavy cruiser , but all the torpedoes fired failed to detonate.
U-38 left on her fifth patrol on 6 June 1940, tasked with patrolling the Western Approaches
off southern Ireland
. Liebe managed to sink six ships during this patrol, and also succeeded in landing a German agent in Ireland on 12 June. During his sixth patrol, Liebe sank three ships, and were ordered to the new 6th U-boat Flotilla base in Lorient
, France
. During this patrol, on 14 August, Liebe received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
.
On 9 April 1941, Liebe set sail for operations off Freetown
, Africa
. This was Liebe's ninth and last patrol with U-38, during which he sank 8 ships for a total of . For these successes, Liebe received the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross on 10 June 1941. On 29 June, U-38 returned to Lorient. On 22 July, Liebe transferred off the U-38, which was put under the command of Heinrich Schuch.
Following his departure from U-38, Liebe was assigned to the staff of Oberkommando der Marine
. In August 1944, he was transferred to the staff of the Commander-in-Chief of Submarines (Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote or BdU), Hans-Georg von Friedeburg
, during which tenure he was promoted to Fregattenkapitän on 1 October 1944.
Commander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
Heinrich Liebe (29 January 1908 – 27 July 1997) was a highly decorated German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
naval officer who served as a U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
commander during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
until transferred to Oberkommando der Kriegsmarine (German Navy High Command). He sank 34 ships for a total of , placing him fourth on the Aces of the Deep
Aces Of The Deep
Aces of the Deep is a World War II Submarine simulator game developed and published by Dynamix for MS-DOS in 1994."Aces of the Deep" was the last installment of Dynamix's "Aces" series, which included the flight simulators Red Baron, Aces of the Pacific, and Aces over Europe...
list. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. It was Germany's highest military decoration at the time of its presentation to Heinrich Liebe.
Biography
Born in GothaGotha (town)
Gotha is a town in Thuringia, within the central core of Germany. It is the capital of the district of Gotha.- History :The town has existed at least since the 8th century, when it was mentioned in a document signed by Charlemagne as Villa Gotaha . Its importance derives from having been chosen in...
, Liebe began his Reichsmarine
Reichsmarine
The Reichsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Weimar Republic and first two years of Nazi Germany. It was the naval branch of the Reichswehr, existing from 1918 to 1935...
career in 1927. Promoted to Oberfähnrich zur See on 1 June 1931, Liebe served on the World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
battleship for four years. In September 1935, Liebe transferred to the U-boat arm.
On 1 October 1936, Liebe was promoted to Kapitänleutnant and assigned commander of , a Type II U-boat attached to the U-Bootschulflottille. On 24 October 1938, Liebe commissioned , a Type IX U-boat assigned to 6th U-boat Flotilla.
World War II
U-38 embarked on her first war time patrol on 19 August 1939 from WilhelmshavenWilhelmshaven
Wilhelmshaven is a coastal town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated on the western side of the Jade Bight, a bay of the North Sea.-History:...
. Operating off Lisbon
Lisbon
Lisbon is the capital city and largest city of Portugal with a population of 545,245 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Lisbon extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 3 million on an area of , making it the 9th most populous urban...
, Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
on the outbreak of war, Liebe managed to sink two British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
freighters before returning to port on 18 September. On 2 November, Liebe set sail for Norwegian
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
water on his second patrol.
Liebes fourth patrol, on 8 April 1940 was also set in Norwegian waters, to support Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung
Operation Weserübung was the code name for Germany's assault on Denmark and Norway during the Second World War and the opening operation of the Norwegian Campaign...
, the invasion of Norway. During this patrol, Liebe shared the same negative experience of failed torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
es as many other u-boat captains operating in the area. In mid April 1940, Liebe fired on the British heavy cruiser , but all the torpedoes fired failed to detonate.
U-38 left on her fifth patrol on 6 June 1940, tasked with patrolling the Western Approaches
Western Approaches
The Western Approaches is a rectangular area of the Atlantic ocean lying on the western coast of Great Britain. The rectangle is higher than it is wide, the north and south boundaries defined by the north and south ends of the British Isles, the eastern boundary lying on the western coast, and the...
off southern Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
. Liebe managed to sink six ships during this patrol, and also succeeded in landing a German agent in Ireland on 12 June. During his sixth patrol, Liebe sank three ships, and were ordered to the new 6th U-boat Flotilla base in Lorient
Lorient
Lorient, or L'Orient, is a commune and a seaport in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France.-History:At the beginning of the 17th century, merchants who were trading with India had established warehouses in Port-Louis...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. During this patrol, on 14 August, Liebe received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was a grade of the 1939 version of the 1813 created Iron Cross . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was the highest award of Germany to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership during World War II...
.
On 9 April 1941, Liebe set sail for operations off Freetown
Freetown
Freetown is the capital and largest city of Sierra Leone, a country in West Africa. It is a major port city on the Atlantic Ocean located in the Western Area of the country, and had a city proper population of 772,873 at the 2004 census. The city is the economic, financial, and cultural center of...
, Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. This was Liebe's ninth and last patrol with U-38, during which he sank 8 ships for a total of . For these successes, Liebe received the Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross on 10 June 1941. On 29 June, U-38 returned to Lorient. On 22 July, Liebe transferred off the U-38, which was put under the command of Heinrich Schuch.
Following his departure from U-38, Liebe was assigned to the staff of Oberkommando der Marine
Oberkommando der Marine
The Oberkommando der Marine was Nazi Germany's Naval High Command and the highest administrative and command authority of the Kriegsmarine. It was officially formed from the Marineleitung of the Reichswehr on 11 January 1936. In 1937 it was combined with the newly formed Seekriegsleitung...
. In August 1944, he was transferred to the staff of the Commander-in-Chief of Submarines (Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote or BdU), Hans-Georg von Friedeburg
Hans-Georg von Friedeburg
Hans-Georg von Friedeburg was the deputy commander of the U-Boat Forces of Nazi Germany and the last Commanding Admiral of the Kriegsmarine....
, during which tenure he was promoted to Fregattenkapitän on 1 October 1944.
After the war
After the war Liebe returned to his hometown in the Soviet sector to live with his parents. Since he refused to train Soviet submariners, he felt that was to blame for his being held to menial occupations. He died in July 1997 and is buried in Eisenach, Germany.Achievements
- 34 ships sunk for a total of 187.
- 1 ship damaged for a total of 3.
Awards
- Wehrmacht Long Service AwardWehrmacht Long Service AwardThe Wehrmacht Long Service Award was a military service decoration of Nazi Germany issued for satisfactory completion of a given years of military service...
4th Class (2 October 1936) - Olympiamedaille (20 April 1937)
- Iron CrossIron CrossThe Iron Cross is a cross symbol typically in black with a white or silver outline that originated after 1219 when the Kingdom of Jerusalem granted the Teutonic Order the right to combine the Teutonic Black Cross placed above a silver Cross of Jerusalem....
(1939)- 2nd Class (8 October 1939)
- 1st Class (6 April 1940)
- U-boat War BadgeU-boat War BadgeThe U-Boat War Badge was a German war badge that was awarded to U-boat crew members during World War I and World War II.-History:The U-boat War Badge was originally instituted during the First World War on February 1, 1918. It was awarded to recognize U-boat crews who had completed three war patrols...
(1939) (16 December 1939) - Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak LeavesKnight's Cross of the Iron CrossThe Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was a grade of the 1939 version of the 1813 created Iron Cross . The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was the highest award of Germany to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership during World War II...
- Knight's Cross on 14 August 1940 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-38
- 13th Oak Leaves on 10 June 1941 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-38
- Italian War CrossCroce di GuerraThe Croce di Guerra al Valor Militare is an Italian decoration for military valour.- Past recipients :* Edouard Izac, Lieutenant, United States Navy* Douglas MacArthur, General, United States Army...
with Swords (2 December 1941) - War Merit CrossWar Merit CrossThe War Merit Cross was a decoration of Nazi Germany during the Second World War, which could be awarded to civilians as well as military personnel...
2nd Class with Swords (3 September 1944) - Mentioned three times in the WehrmachtberichtWehrmachtberichtThe Wehrmachtbericht was a daily radio report on the Großdeutscher Rundfunk of Nazi Germany, published by the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht regarding the military situation on all fronts of World War II....
(5 July 1940, 31 May 1941 and 9 June 1941)