The Loneliest Soldier of WW2 - Inside the Claustrophobic & Sad Reality of a Submarine Warfare

Did you know that during World War 2, submarines were a key tool in the fight for victory? Submariners experienced the war in unique ways, testing their nerve and courage in the fierce depths of the ocean. From close quarters living to depth charge attacks; from moral dilemmas to feelings of isolation from the world. Would you have been able to endure life in a tube full of seamen?
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🎬Video Credits:
Narrator - Cam
Editors - Kshitiz, Shantanu koli
Researcher - Daniel
Intro music - / 16bitrecordsofficial
#TheFront #History
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Chapters:
0:00 Introduction
2:23 Living, Fighting, and Dying in Extreme Conditions
6:06 The Depth Charge Menace
10:54 Moral Dilemmas
15:04 Isolation from the World
16:38 Returning from the War

[@TotallyNotElPresidente]

The Laconia incident is even more messed up. The German U-Boat was carrying the survivors on top of the hull (going towards Spain I think), the American plane actually radioed HQ to tell them what was happening, and they told him basically "fuck em, bomb it".

[@kiralight2929]

There were no "good guys" in that war. We were no better than the enemy.

[@parrot849]

@@kiralight2929- Being a combat veteran myself I feel sorry for you if that’s how you truly feel my friend….

[@peterenevoldsen7199]

What an absolutely stupid thing to say. WWII is the closest thing to a black and white war in recorded history.

[@gloverfox9135]

@@kiralight2929we weren’t exterminating millions of Jews bro. We weren’t performing experiments on Chinese civilians. We were definitely much better than them. One allied war crime doesn’t absolve the axis of all that they did.

[@josephraffurty9293]

OMG! Robert Hunt is my great uncle! So cool to see him featured in this video! When I would visit him in Iowa as a boy, he shared with me a copy of his diary from the war. I still have a copy, which he typed up on his typewriter. He eventually had a couple of authors take his diary and notes to write a book “We Were Pirates.” He was such a great guy. Again, so cool to see him featured. Thank you!

[@TheFront]

That's so cool!

[@NoahSpurrier]

Joining the Kriegsmarine U-boat service was like playing Russian Roulette, except instead of playing with one round in the cylinder you played with only one empty chamber.

[@asgaiyawaya3973]

I always thought the movie Das Boot gave the best idea of what life in a German U-boat was like. It had it's pluses but when you weren't bored out of your mind, eating food you wouldn't even give to your dog, and sharing a bed with your crewman who haven't bathed since you left port then you were scared out of your mind praying to God or whoever that you don't get depth charged.

[@user-qt7nq5xl1m]

Excellent movie

[@peterj5106]

That's how it was described in WW2. Week's of mind numbing boredom with a-few minutes of sheer terror.

[@asgaiyawaya3973]

@@user-qt7nq5xl1m One of the best ww2 movies if you ask me.

[@trickydicky2908]

The movie made me feel damp and claustrophobic, just watching it. I could just imagine the overwhelming variety of foul odors.

[@asgaiyawaya3973]

@@trickydicky2908 I know and just imagine being with those guys 6 months out at sea and underwater with them and those same foul odors. It does however put in perspective that you had to be a rare breed of people to even be a Submariner in that time and place. I think Submariners today have it much easier compared to what the Kriegsmarine had to deal with.

[@MrShenyang1234]

Excellent Presentation. My Father was an MM1 stationed at Midway Island Submarine Base. He refitted submarines & took them out for test runs. He did have one opportunity to go on a war patrol with the USS Shark. However, at the last minute, he was bumped by an Officer. The USS Shark never returned. Everything does happen for a reason. The Brave Men of the Silent Service deserve our heartfelt gratitude. Given the relatively small size of the U.S. Submarine Fleet, they sank more Japanese Shipping than all other U.S. Naval Vessels combined. That is certainly something to be proud of.

[@brokenbridge6316]

Fun Fact: Admiral Donitz often made sure to take very good care of the Submarine Crews he commanded. He made sure they had the best food and stayed at the best places possible. Very often they were French Chateau's. All because they led such dangerous lives when they were out on patrol.

[@JB-yb4wn]

75% of these guys were killed during the war.

[@brokenbridge6316]

@@JB-yb4wn---Can't argue with that. Most that didn't die were either captured by the Allies or got extremely lucky.

[@JB-yb4wn]

​@@brokenbridge6316 Wouldn't want to roll the dice in that organization. Apparently the USAF 8th airforce was next with 50%

[@brokenbridge6316]

@@JB-yb4wn---I wouldn't want to roll the dice with them either. If I had a job in the military in WWII. I'd want some rear area post. Where I'd be safe. Or maybe even a fighter pilot. Loved hearing stories of their flying.

[@JB-yb4wn]

@@brokenbridge6316 I would work in photo recon.

[@pippa212]

It takes a certain kind of person to do this. Das Boot was an excellent movie depicting how life was on a submarine. I think only 2 out of ten active Uboats survived the war. It was almost certain death

[@johnmills1816]

Highest casualty rate of the war i believe [kriegsmarine].

[@jerrylagesse9046]

We were certified sane to sink on purpose

[@kayakdan48]

I served aboard a Balao Class boat back in the late 60's-early 70's that had been in the last year of WWII (Threadfin SS-410) Although it had been modified to a Guppy II Class w/a fairwater sail and snorkle ability since the end of the war, it was still a life of hardship and deprivation at sea, even without combat. Those fleet boats were all gone by 1973...mine was sold to Turkey in 72'. Our Chief of the Boat was the only sailor that I met who went to war and saw combat on one...he never spoke about it in any detail. Around 20-23%+ of every US sailor who served on one in WWII...died at sea.

[@soknightsam]

Still blows my mind that the Turkish navy kept her in service until 98 or so

[@howardlloyd9183]

That shit is wild!! God bless those young men. I met one submariner once when I was kayaking. Super cool dude.

[@brokenbridge6316]

What an Uncharmed n Dangerous life all Submarine Crews led.

[@crazymixture57]

RIF German submariners who died. A deadly job they served valiantly. In fact RIP all submariners who died. Hell under the water and may we all never forget all the lives lost and never repeat it again. Such senseless lives lost.

[@HiddenHistoryYT]

Very nice video & Happy New Year!

[@RayHikes]

4:38 It's crazy anyone could work in those conditions on 1 liter of water a day without dying of dehydration.

[@CAM8689]

Crazy life can only imagine and to die under the the sea like that.....

[@mohammedsaysrashid3587]

It was an informative and truthful historical coverage video about daily life of submarines crews beneath oceans waves and wars cruelty... during WW2... thank you for your respectful ( the front channel) channel for sharing this wonderful video

[@johnhenderson131]

0:43 I’ve read several diary accounts of the very lucky and very few survivors of the Kriegsmarine. After reading those accounts I would never want to have experience it and I can easily imagine the hours of endless tedium and boredom interspersed with engagements of sheer helplessness and terror while being depth charged! I can’ understand firsthand the fear, stress and anxiety that would cause but I certainly can imagine the terror! Especially in the latter part of the war. 0:43

[@johnryder1713]

Happy new year the Front and all at the channel

[@huwguyver4208]

Even outside of warfare, I think living in those kind of circumstances for months at a time would break my brain. My utmost respect to those that serve on submarines.

[@jimjamauto]

My good friend's grandfather served on the USS Whitefish and was very open about his service. My friend decided it sounded neat and is now a submariner himself.

[@docshelley1969]

I was on a sub and we spent 90 days submerged. Take it from me, thats A VERY LONG TIME to not see the Sun

[@kai_plays_khomus]

When I was a boy of 7 years I visited the naval memorial in Laboe, Germany where a WW2 submarine type VII-C (just like in "Das Boot"/"The Boat") is set up at the beach - and although I was so much smaller I still was astonished about how crammed everything is in there, almost claustrophobic. You could walk through all of the submarine and the bench beds atop the stocked torpedoes left a lasting impression. 😅

[@Squirrelmind66]

The isolation of German U-boat crews also meant that some of them differed from Nazi ideals. One submarine captain, for instance, piped jazz music on board his vessel, an unthinkable act in any other branch of service.

[@grahambaker6664]

I have read a few memoirs of U-boat commanders and at least one of them used the jazz records as a ruse. Surface warships had different propeller sounds from transport vessels so the submarine knew whether there was danger of detection. Surface sonar could not identify friends from foe and the US Navy did not coordinate well with the British and Canadians regarding submarine operations. If the submarine was in a location where a US submarine was likely to be encountered, such as near the mouth of the Saint Lawrence River or in the Carribbean, the submarine commander would play American music hoping the British or Canadians would think the sonar had detected an American submarine. From what I recall the ruse was successful whenever he tried it.

[@coreytrevor1920]

Was halfway through this video before I realized that voice sounded familiar. Great video, I use to watch Geetsly videos all the time

[@johnryder1713]

Submariners said their craft was a coffin, but a coffin that could only destroy enemies in what too many feel was an underhand way of fighting a war. so its true to say, they were the one group of fighting men who put themselves in the maximum amount of danger to themselves as they did their opponents.

[@andrewwilkinson8250]

What we owe to these brave souls is immeasurable

[@mattfantastic9969]

They mostly just shot down merchant shipping, killing civilians. Probs could've done with out that tbh

[@jasperfromming6633]

I think the one of the worst point of sub warfare is actually that you are never alone

[@spankybee]

If you ever happen to be in Albany, NY you can visit the USS Slater. The last destroyer escort (sub hunter) afloat in the United States. 😊

[@captainzeppos]

I am here because I have watched Das Boot a few dozen times (the 5+ hour version), have read a few dozen Uboat history books and have played Silent Hunter 3 a few hundred hours.

[@theawesomeman9821]

I have a friend who joined the navy a few years ago. I asked her what the reason was. Her response is that she wanted to operate on a submarine.

[@jessebell1930]

It wasn't fun for sure. I remember at Recruiting both times I enlisted they wanted me to be a Submariner. I flat out refused😂😂😂

[@Notrdeth]

More Kriegsmarine videos, please!

[@AdamSharif.]

The only places where I think might be as bad is Stalingrad for the nazis and Leningrad for the Soviet’s

[@Dionaea_floridensis]

All I can think of are those Black Lagoon episodes lol

[@misterbig9025]

Imagine the body odor inside!

[@ranjapi693]

They began to get moldy.. the food, the clothes, the men..

[@Rufus7092]

Another aspect of the war that made life hard for submariners was the early use of radar. If so much is a Periscope or snorkel was on the surface, you could be detected. Counter detection measures were developed, however at some point radar detection frequencies changed rendering counter detection usable. If you want to watch a great movie about iife on a submarine during this time, look no further than "Das Boot." It's a German film but you can easily find subtitles for it. Funny enough, I am playing SH3 while this video dropped. If you know, you know.

[@TotallyNotElPresidente]

I dunno where you'd get it (yo ho yo ho), but the miniseries of Das Boot is much better in my opinion. They crammed in a bunch of deleted scenes from the movie to make a 6 hour (ish) epic.

[@scottessery100]

Was the attrition rate of u boat crews 8/10 didn’t survive? 10:57

[@frankmccracken1160]

This is why I didn’t join the navy, 4 years in the army and 22 in the Air Force was fine for me! Can’t try to survive sinking then survive the ocean critters after sinking, if you live!!

[@ThePadi94]

That the americans complained in their luxury subs is so funny, they wouldn't endured one week in german combat subs...

[@Subdood04]

You have no idea what you’re talking about.

[@ThePadi94]

@@Subdood04 I definately have…

[@johnryder1713]

Captured Allied Weapons in Axis hands and vice versa for a future video please

[@LegionOfEclaires]

1 out of 3 submariners of the Kriegsmarine survived the war. 1 out of 3...

[@robertlutz5757]

1 Out of 4.

[@napoleonibonaparte7198]

Imagine the flatulence...

[@princeofpokemon2934]

Throughout the entire war, these people are rarely mentioned at all and only make any appearance when it comes to critical engagements. There is no way I would ever serve on a submarine even if I was ordered to. There are no windows so you can see what is out there and the claustrophobia can get to people. And you never know what could be out there. Sea mines, depth charges, coral reefs, or unknown creatures that can possibly rip the submarine to shreds.

[@tundranomad]

And no women

[@SKF358]

There's no mud, no trench foot. You have a toilet. A kitchen. Sounds good.

[@thomasheer825]

Rode boats for decades as a "_ucking Rider". Even on nuclear boats, shit happens.

[@isaiahthomas118]

>roar of the engine beneath the surface

[@kayakdan48]

Some German boats had snorkle systems that allowed Diesels to be run submerged...I don't believe any US boats had that ability during the war since most of them were only modified (to Guppy II w/snorkles) a few years after the war. I served aboard one of the latest US boats built in 1944-45 and it did NOT have a snorkle system nor the ability to run diesels while submerged.

[@Packless1]

4:24 ...in the german navy to this day there's a saying among submariners: "Frischluft stinkt" (fresh air stinks) 🤭🤢

[@alm5992]

Hearing what the people on ships that were hit by U-Boat/ submarine torpedoes had to go through while the sub just dived and disappears doesn't make me feel for the submariners as much. Not to mention, everyone on submarines were with the navy, where there were a lot of civilian and merchant ships with innocent people on board.

[@kiqueenbees]

A quart was about 1200 millilitres. 1.2 litres.

[@beepboop204]

[@miapdx503]

I know this might sound crazy, but with everything I've learned about submarines, I'm curious about something...personal. Those men must have produced a lot of...bathroom stuff. 😒 Did they have a way to "get rid of it?" Or was it somehow stored? 🤔

[@theujexperience3564]

Watch more videos. So many go into, maybe, a little too much detail, about exactly this. I know there's a recent video about a captain who sunk and killed everybody on his u-boat because he flushed the toilet wrong. You're going to laugh when you see how many people have your exact same question. Have Fun!

[@miapdx503]

@@theujexperience3564 omg! I thought I'd already seen a lot but apparently I've just scratched the surface. I think I've mostly seen military, and kind of technical aspects of war. I recently saw one about a shipwreck where some survivors couldn't go to the bathroom outside of the life raft because the sharks were so thick, and aggressive.

[@Subdood04]

Sanitary tanks collected the waste and were blown overboard with air. Later Submarines also had Trash disposal units. Garbage was compacted into steel cans , weighted and dropped out of the boat when in deep water.

[@ericsmith718]

How did they do anything without light bulbs? Why did they take the light bulbs?

[@CW0123]

They’re basically the anti air force

[@jeff-hh9mc]

There’s been a grand total of ONE submarine battle in all of recorded history. Christ sakes these movies have been over made.

[@geoffballe8766]

They’re better men than I

[@jbuckley2546]

Ex-RN Submariner took over my local for a very brief period. Very Quiet and very pale. That's all I can tell you.

[@dovidell]

I have watched videos that suggest that the Wilhelm Gustloff was painted in dazzle camouflage , and that she was armed ( albeit for self defence) , if these suggestions warrant merit , then the ship was indeed a legitimate military target

[@daskraut]

god asked the rocks: "do you want to be submariners?" and the rocks said "no, lord, we are not hard enough!"

[@scottessery100]

Did a sub kill another sub… while submerged… in ww2?

[@TheSticlizard]

To answer your question, Yes I was able to survive in a tube full of seamen. I was able to get out of the tube and fight my way to the egg get inside where I gathered my strength and grew and nine months later I was finally able to escape into the world. Boy oh boy was it a fight for my life. The thing is I've been fighting to get back inside my whole adult life.

[@parrot849]

Although the Imperial Japanese Navy had a good number of submarines they basically squandered this military resource. The Japanese never employed their submarines in any strategically war winning plan. Unlike the United States Navy who specifically targeted the Japanese merchant navy, the Japanese never focused their submarine force at any specific target. They’re sub commanders were ordered to seek out targets of opportunity, with emphasis always on warships, not supply vessels, and attack when the situation was presented.

[@Subdood04]

Google Ramage’s Rampage.

[@michaelmorrigan614]

I’ve always loved the story of the USS Archerfish. A below average captain with a sub standard crew defies all odds and sinks a super aircraft carrier that was an evil empire’s last great hope for victory. It’s like a plot to a movie, only IRL

[@michaelandreipalon359]

And yet, we haven't reached mass space travel yet. Believe me, the equivalent of submersible warfare there will be quite... daunting. Edit: Oh, and word of advice, people should watch Das Boot subbed. Dubs only work if we're watching animation.

[@BenState]

Not deep sea

[@EdgarStyles1234]

Now imagine ww1 subs

[@-JA-]

🫢👍

[@lukycharms9970]

No American aircraft witnessed the rescue made by u516. Where the hell did you read that…? Did you actually read that or did you just make that up? That entire situation is far more complicated than you made it sound

[@peterinbrat]

Hitler didn't value the subs and could have made them invincible with snorkles to keep the diesel engines going.

[@pippa212]

Thank goodness! If they had built the number planned, the Allies would have been in trouble

[@More_Row]

They would still have to surface constantly.

[@pippa212]

@@More_Row not with the snorkel device they started using. The world is very lucky Hitler was so inept the last few years.

[@peterj5106]

Radar could pick up the pericope & schnorkel's from around 42/43 & the British had decoded the Enigma + used direction finding to get positions of U-Boat's on the surface using their radio's. The U-Boat's were essentially useless from 42 onwards.

[@kayakdan48]

Some Germen U-Boats did have snorkles in the later part of WWII. Our US boats got them after the war with the Guppy II conversion program...(USS Threadfin SS-410 1969-71).

[@priatalat]

To vilify the Soviets for blowing up the German ship is ridiculous. Did the Germans show any mercy to Soviet civilians and refugees?

[@nick22091]

Looool pretty sure the Nazis are always vilified (as rightly so) but an evil act is still an evil act, and so should be pointed as such, regardless of who commits the act.

[@yeahman.9262]

A horrendous act is a horrendous act no matter who it is committed by.

[@mikebellis5713]

Whether or not Germans targeted Soviet civilians is besides the point. They, anyway, were charged with war crimes. Soviet and allied war criminals were not

[@user-ct8tk9nh8z]

Nuremberg made it a crime to lose a war.

[@danielnguyen3787]

You keep leaving no citations for history sources. I unsubbed you a year ago because of this.

[@AltCtrlSpud]

what animal do you guys think would pee?