The U-Boat Commander that was Murdered

[@HiddenHistoryYT]

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[@markpaul-ym5wg]

The HEDGE HOG was the nail in the iorn coffin of german and japanese submarines.The man that developed the naval mortar never got enough credit.Thanks HIDDEN HISTORY.😊

[@sirbasilflapjack671]

'The U-Boat commander that was murdered.' 'The events of that fatal afternoon remain a mystery.'

[@JohnDavies-cn3ro]

If this is the same Enigma machine which is preserved at Bletchley Park, I believe that two British seamen, a young officer and a rating, gave their lives to ensure it passed into British keeping - sent aboard the sinking vessel, they stayed aboard to pass the books, machine etc to others outside the hull, and then went down with U110. Bravery and gallant sacrifice take no notice of national boundaries or uniforms.

[@Kevin-mx1vi]

No British sailors lost their lives during this event. There was no-one aboard the U110 when it sank the following day while under tow by one of the British ships.

[@RobinFennell-w2t]

I remember hearing a news story that these 3 men who retrieved the enigma encoding/decoding machine & it's accompanying material were posthumously awarded each the Victoria Cross several years ago.

[@Kevin-mx1vi]

@@RobinFennell-w2t I can assure you that what you heard was untrue - the subaltern who went aboard the U110 along with two other ranks was named David Balme, and there exists at least one television interview with him from long after the war. Not only that, but my wife's father - David Bradwell - was aboard HMS Bulldog at the time, so I heard the story of the incident from someone who was there !

[@majorbruster5916]

​@@Kevin-mx1viThe boarding party consisted of eight men, not three, according to an interview given by Balme. They remained on board for several hours because Bulldog was called away to another action, returning later to pick them up.

[@Fidd88-mc4sz]

@@Kevin-mx1vi I think Robin is confusing two events, the recovery of Enigma materials by HMS Petard (iirc) in which Fasson and Grazier recovered materials but lost their lives when the uboat sank. (Not U110). If I remember correctly, they won the George Cross and George Medal, not the VC.

[@majorbruster5916]

HMS Aubrietia initiated the attack on the sub's assumed position, joined by HMS Bulldog and HMS Broadway. When U-110 surfaced, HMS Bulldog attempted to ram her, but stopped short. Lemp was first up on the bridge and saw this and shouted down to his men to leave everything and abandon ship. He ordered scuttling charges to be set although this is not clear. Seeing men on the deck, the British ships thought they were going to come under fire from the sub's deck gun and opened fire on the sub, causing casualties on the sub's deck. Once the British ships noticed there was no gunfire from the sub's gun, they ceased fire and rescued those German sailors who managed to swim to them. One German eyewitness testified that Lemp was shot in the water, but this was unconfirmed. The U110's radio officer, Georg Hogel, one of the last eight men to leave the sub, said in an interview that after he went into the water he last saw Lemp on the bridge still urging those men to quickly leave the sub. The gunfire had stopped by then. Lemp was not on the sub when the boarding party arrived, and the entry hatch was closed, according to David Balme who was the officer in charge. S/Lt Balme searched the sub but did not find anyone on board. According to Hogel, Lemp was still alive by the time he let go of his grip on the sub. Therefore, it can be assumed he entered the water. Had he been wounded during the gunfire, then he would have probably not lived long in the water. If he was uninjured and swimming towards Bulldog but turned back, then he would have drowned. Bulldog and Broadway were called away to another action, leaving Balme and his party aboard the stricken sub for a few hours. Lemp did not return to his sub during that time. Assuming Lemp realised the scuttling charges had not gone off, he had good reason to turn back and scuttle the U110. Kriegsmarine orders stated that if the vessel was in imminent danger of capture, vital documents and equipment such as the sub's logs, code books, messages and cryptography were to be jettisoned overboard. By not doing so, he was in serious breach of regulations and even as a PoW would face the wrath of other captured Kriegsmarine officers. Therefore, the assumption by some of his crew that he did turn back might be near the truth. His sense of duty would have been strong enough. Out of the 47 crew on board the U110, there were 32 survivors. 15 died either from gunshot wounds or drowning. In May the water temperature in the Atlantic off Cape Farewell, Greenland, is 1 or 2°C, the swells are always high and the chances of surviving very long in those conditions are slim to none. When the survivors reached HMS Bulldog they were in serious hypothermia. There is a good chance Lemp most probably drowned rather than he was murdered - there is no evidence of the latter.

[@ultimobici.]

So he wasn’t murdered.

[@tatata1543]

Nope.

[@isilder]

Correct. If he was returning he was escaping and/or intending to make the submarine lethal..

[@j.griffin]

The scuttling charges didn’t detonate and he went back to try to sink the sub. Try swimming in the North Atlantic (South of Iceland) in a uniform with boots on and see how long you last. It’s pretty suicidal just to attempt to board a sub from the water when explosives are armed, you’re surrounded by your enemy and you’re trying to make sure the sub sinks while they’re trying to save it… all for the Enigma Machine&codes. High stakes under extreme conditions… Single-handedly? I think that his regrets over the Athenia probably drove him to one last act to redeem himself in the eyes of his peers while if he had done nothing but watch his ship and the Enigma Materials get taken he would have been considered a failure for the rest of his life. He basically went down with his ship. That may be stupid or ridiculous to many people but anyone that crewed or captained any sub during that era had to be a lot braver than most people on KZbin can imagine or appreciate. Just remember- how would you have fared during this period? Regardless of what country you are from, we have no choice where or when we are born. Literally millions of young men had no choice but to fight.

[@CandyGirl44]

In a way Lemp not being punished for sinking a civilian ship helped the Allies - he blundered greatly by not ensuring the Enigma machine and code books were destroyed.

[@OriginalCoalRollers]

I’m confused, how tf was he “murdered”

[@thatguy990]

Indeed👍👍

[@anikdasdigital]

Your videos are amazing. I really like it. I am a new subscriber to your channel. Can I talk with you Hidden History?

[@frankwurth5375]

Bottom line, the blame for all the sinkings, civilian and war ships, all fall on the high command for sending these U boats out to do just that!

[@murrayscott9546]

Forever Young .

[@FreddyFromage-lk4mp]

truth is a wonderful thing but in war she dies like the men who fight it.

[@somethingelse4878]

If I remember right lemp was murdered

[@juhopuhakka2351]

Can person even do that? I mean just go to bottom on purpose? I just think survival instinct prevents that.

[@Kevin-mx1vi]

Not true. There was no firing on the U-boat's crew while they were in the water, and in fact every effort was made to rescue them.

[@j.griffin]

The scuttling charges didn’t detonate and he went back to try to sink the sub. Try swimming in the North Atlantic (South of Iceland) in a uniform with boots on and see how long you last. It’s pretty suicidal just to attempt to board a sub from the water when explosives are armed, you’re surrounded by your enemy and you’re trying to make sure the sub sinks while they’re trying to save it… all for the Enigma Machine&codes. High stakes under extreme conditions… Single-handedly?

[@majorbruster5916]

​@Kevin-mx1vi This itself is not true. Bulldog and Broadway initially fired on the sub, thinking the crew were about to man the deck gun and engage them. When it was noticed that they were jumping into the sea and there was no firing in their direction, they ceased firing and rescued the sailors swimming towards them. Some of the U-boat's crew were killed by the gunfire, but this would have happened whilst they were on deck. A few drowned before reaching Bulldog.

[@juhopuhakka2351]

@@majorbruster5916 to think f it it is unlikely that they would shoot this one swimmer and save others, but who knows.

[@oldandintheway9805]

CLICKBAIT!!!! Narrator says it is not known for sure how he died. Whether he was shot by the British or committed suicide. That's a long way from murder!

[@GermanShepherd1983]

The ship was fair game. Traveling in the war zone, so I see no problem.

[@juhopuhakka2351]

Offical history is bs. Beacuse of the good guys half of europe fell to stalin and everybody were hapy there after, Specially victorious Polland got their reward. So they declear war beacuse of Polland and then gave it stalin.

[@majorbruster5916]

The Athenia was unarmed and carrying passengers. According to the regulations of the Hague Convention 1900, passenger ships in observance of the regulations were immune to attack. Doenitz had issued orders in 1939 that "enemy convoys to be attacked without warning ONLY on condition that all passenger liners carrying passengers are allowed to proceed in safety - even in convoy". Therefore, Lemp was in contravention of his orders. 100 people died as a result of his zeal. And you don't see a problem with that? There is a school of thought in the Kremlin that thinks targeting schools, hospitals, tower blocks, shopping malls and power stations is fair game in retaliation for their warships, airfields and military infrastructure being attacked and destroyed by the forces of the neighbouring country they invaded. Think about that.

[@GermanShepherd1983]

@@majorbruster5916 What about the German U boat displaying a RED CROSS and was carrying passengers on it's deck from a sunken Italian ship and yet the US commanders ordered it sunk. That was a war crime and no one was held accountable. The U boat was forced to dive to avoid being sunk and everyone on the deck drowned.

[@adriantaylor9535]

So it’s ok to commit war crimes. Never get over how patriots can justify anything for their country!

[@sirbasilflapjack671]

@@GermanShepherd1983 Which U-boat was this?

[@blackhawkorg]

Excellent presentation. They likely shot him. Rest in Peace Sir

[@majorbruster5916]

There's no evidence of that. Even the survivors have said as much.

[@VoicesofWW2YT]

Hmmmmm war crime?