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The Schnellbootwaffe formed a specialized branch of the Kriegsmarine during the Second World War, comprising fast attack craft known as Schnellboote or S-Boote that the Allies termed E-boats. Originating from secret development under the Reichsmarine in the early 1930s to circumvent Treaty of Versailles restrictions, the force expanded after 1935 with the first operational units organized into Schnellbootflotillen such as the 1. Schnellbootflottille. These wooden-hulled boats, typically 32 to 35 metres long and powered by three Daimler-Benz diesel engines, achieved speeds exceeding 40 knots and carried two 533 mm torpedo tubes along with increasing anti-aircraft armament including 20 mm and 37 mm guns. Organized primarily into flotillas of six to ten boats supported by Begleitschiffe, they operated under the Führer der Schnellboote, a post held from 1942 by Kapitän zur See Rudolf Petersen. Their main theatres included the English Channel, North Sea, Baltic, Mediterranean and Black Sea, where they excelled in nocturnal hit-and-run attacks on coastal convoys, minelaying and occasional troop insertions. Early successes came during the Norwegian campaign and the evacuation from Dunkirk, followed by sustained operations against British coastal shipping that earned the waters the nickname E-boat Alley. Tactics evolved to include the Stichansatz group approach, allowing coordinated torpedo runs that sank or damaged numerous merchant vessels and warships. Over the course of the war approximately 230 Schnellboote entered service and claimed the sinking of around 101 merchant ships totalling over 214,000 GRT together with a dozen destroyers, multiple minesweepers, landing craft and other vessels. From 1943 onward intensified Allied air superiority and radar reduced their effectiveness, yet they continued aggressive sorties including attacks during Exercise Tiger and the Normandy landings. Later classes such as the S-100 featured armoured bridges and heavier armament while remaining highly manoeuvrable. By May 1945 surviving units of various Schnellbootflotillen gathered in the Geltinger Bucht for final mustering under Petersen before surrender.
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EICHENLAUBTRÄGER
Korvettenkapitän
Werner Töniges (1910-1995) was born on 7 January 1910 in Oberhausen as
the son of a mining director and transferred from the Handelsmarine to
the Kriegsmarine in 1935, receiving promotion to Leutnant zur See in
1937. He served aboard the Panzerschiff Admiral Graf Spee during the
Spanish Civil War before transferring to the Schnellbootwaffe, where he
commanded the boats S 24, S 26 and later S 102 of the 1.
Schnellbootflottille. In the early months of the Second World War he
conducted numerous Feindfahrten in the English Channel, achieving
several sinkings that earned him the Eisernes Kreuz second and first
class in 1940. On 25 February 1941, after completing eighty-eight combat
patrols as Oberleutnant zur See und Kommandant of S 102, he was awarded
the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes for his successes against Allied
shipping, which by that time included several freighters and steamers.
Continuing operations with the same boat, Töniges later transferred with
elements of the flotilla to the Black Sea, where he sank additional
Soviet vessels, among them the passenger ship Belostok and other
transports evacuating troops from Sevastopol and the Taman Peninsula. By
the autumn of 1942 his cumulative record stood at eighteen war and
merchant ships plus two U-Boot-Jäger sunk for a total of approximately
86,200 BRT after 281 Feindfahrten. For these achievements he received
the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on
13 November 1942 as
Kapitänleutnant, becoming the first Schnellboot-Kommandant to earn this
distinction. Shortly beforehand he had been posted as Kompaniechef to
the 1. Abteilung of the Marineschule Mürwik in Flensburg-Mürwik, where
he also received the Schnellboot-Kriegsabzeichen mit Brillanten. From
September 1943 he served as Ausbildungsoffizier and Referent in the
Oberkommando der Kriegsmarine and was promoted to Korvettenkapitän on 1
January 1945. After the war he worked as an independent merchant in
Witten and died in Essen on 25 January 1995.
Kapitänleutnant Siegfried Wuppermann (1916-2005) was born on 15 December 1916 in Berlin as the son of a bank director and joined the Kriegsmarine on 3 April 1936, serving as Seekadett aboard the Emden from September that year before becoming Adjutant to the 1. Schnellboot-Flottille in April 1938 and later to the U-Boots-Schulflottille. From March 1939 he commanded Schnellboot S 20 and then S 25 in the 1. Schnellboot-Flottille, taking part in patrols during the Invasion of Poland in the North Sea, Baltic Sea and English Channel as well as in the Norwegian Campaign, for which he received the Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse on 20 April 1940 and the 1. Klasse on 28 May 1940 after sinking the French destroyer Sirocco and a tanker. Promoted to Oberleutnant zur See on 1 October 1940, he transferred to the 3. Schnellboot-Flottille, assumed command of S 60 on 21 December 1940 and briefly acted as Chef of the flottille in February-March 1941. On 7 March 1941 near Great Yarmouth he led attacks that sank two destroyers, two freighters and a tanker; during Operation Barbarossa with S 60 he sank the cargo ship Gaisma on 21-22 June 1941, the Soviet submarine S 3 two days later and, with other boats, two destroyers and a torpedo boat on 27 June, actions for which he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 3 August 1941 as Kommandant of S 60. From October 1941 he commanded S 56 in the Mediterranean, where on 14 June 1942 he torpedoed and severely damaged the British cruiser Newcastle, sank several patrol vessels and, during the fall of Tobruk on 21 June 1942, destroyed numerous ships including freighters and landing craft; these further successes earned him the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on
14 April 1943 as the 226th recipient while still Oberleutnant zur See and Kommandant of S 56, along with the Schnellboot-Kriegsabzeichen mit Brillanten. Promoted to Kapitänleutnant on 1 April 1943, he later served as Ausbildungsleiter, Chef of the 21. and 22. Schnellboot-Flottille, in the Stab of the Führer der Schnellboote and finally as Chef of the 1. Schnellboot-Division in the Adriatic until the end of the war, after which he was released from captivity in June 1946 and later reached Fregattenkapitän der Reserve in the Bundesmarine; he died on 15 April 2005 in Osnabrück.
Korvettenkapitän Friedrich Kemnade (1911-2008) was born on 12 December 1911 in Schwarmstedt near Hanover and joined the Reichsmarine on 1 April 1931 as a naval officer candidate. After training he served on cruisers including Karlsruhe, Königsberg, Nürnberg and Emden, where he was I. Torpedooffizier and Adjutant at the outbreak of war and was promoted to Kapitänleutnant. From mid-May 1940 he commanded the 3. Schnellbootflottille, operating in the North Sea, Baltic, English Channel and from 1942 in the Mediterranean. On 11 September 1940 he was seriously wounded aboard S 13 during a British air raid on Vlissingen. Under his leadership the flotilla conducted 171 sorties, sinking, damaging or capturing some 70 warships including two cruisers, 14 destroyers and several submarines as well as twelve merchant vessels of about 100000 GRT. The Ritterkreuz was awarded on 23 July 1942 for Mediterranean successes, including the attack on a British convoy in which two cruisers were torpedoed, one probably sunk, plus earlier sinkings of a destroyer, escort, submarine chaser and 15000 GRT of shipping off the Libyan coast. Promoted to Korvettenkapitän, he received the Eichenlaub on
27 May 1943 as the 249th recipient for continued outstanding leadership, especially in supporting the Tunisian bridgehead after the Allied landings in North Africa, where his flotilla was the first German-Italian naval unit to raise the flag in Tunis and Bizerta and secure supply lines while inflicting heavy losses. From July 1943 he served as Referent in the Seekriegsleitung. After the war he worked in insurance until joining the Bundesmarine on 1 April 1956 as Fregattenkapitän, later rising to Konteradmiral and holding posts including commander of the Schnellbootflottille, Befehlshaber der Seestreitkräfte Ostseezugänge and Befehlshaber im Wehrbereich I before retiring on 30 September 1970. He died in Hamburg on 29 January 2008.
Korvettenkapitän Georg Christiansen (1914-1997) was born on 21 October 1914 in Flensburg and joined the Reichsmarine in 1934 as an Offiziersanwärter. After training as a Flak and Torpedo officer he was promoted to Leutnant zur See on 1 April 1937 and assigned to the newly formed Schnellbootwaffe. He commanded S-18 in 1938, then S-23, and finally S-101 of the 1. Schnellboot-Flottille. The Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes was awarded to him on 8 May 1941 as Oberleutnant zur See and Kommandant of S-101 for outstanding successes during the Norwegian campaign and subsequent operations off the English coast: he personally sank seven merchant ships totaling 30 000 GRT from strongly escorted convoys, destroyed one enemy torpedo boat, and, acting in concert with another boat, accounted for two destroyers, all while demonstrating exceptional seamanship, tactical skill and courageous leadership under fire. After the loss of S-101 he took command of the 8. S-Flottille in Arctic waters before assuming leadership of the 1. Schnellbootsflottille in the Black Sea in August 1942. Promoted to Korvettenkapitän on 1 March 1943, he received the 326th Eichenlaub on
13 November 1943 as Chef of the 1. Schnellbootsflottille for the flotilla’s decisive campaign against Soviet supply lines: under his command the unit sank 49 vessels exceeding 60 000 GRT together with one torpedo boat, while Christiansen himself took part in more than fifty sorties and consistently led from the front as an example of fighting spirit. Later transferred to the staff of the Führer der Schnellboote, he ended the war as 2. Admiralstabsoffizier of the Schnellbootwaffe. His further decorations included the Eisernes Kreuz II. Klasse (20 April 1940), Eisernes Kreuz I. Klasse (29 May 1940), Schnellboot-Kriegsabzeichen (16 December 1940) and Kubanschild (8 December 1944). He died on 14 June 1997 in Krusau, Denmark.
Korvettenkapitän Bernd Klug (1914-1975) was born on 12 December 1914 in Barmen and entered the Reichsmarine in 1933, receiving training as an artillery officer and later serving on Schnellboote. By the outbreak of the Second World War he commanded S 18 and subsequently S 28 in the 1. Schnellbootsflottille. As Kapitänleutnant and Kommandant of S 28 he conducted numerous operations against strongly defended enemy convoys near the English coast and off Norway, sinking a destroyer as well as seven armed merchant vessels totalling 46 500 GRT and damaging several more; for these successes, achieved with consistent courage and combat readiness, he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 12 March 1941. Promoted to Korvettenkapitän on 1 March 1943, he had already taken command of the 5. Schnellbootsflottille in the summer of 1941. While personally leading 56 sorties as flotilla chief, his boats sank sixteen freighters of 36 400 GRT, three destroyers, four patrol vessels and two other warships, with his own command boat contributing a large share of the results. For this outstanding leadership he received the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on
1 January 1944 as the 361st recipient, becoming the first Schnellboot officer so honoured. His other awards included the Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse and 1. Klasse, the Schnellboot-Kriegsabzeichen later with Diamonds, the Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz, and the Finnish Vapaudenristin 4. luokka. After serving as 1. Admiralstabsoffizier on the staff of the Führer der Schnellboote from mid-1944, he ended the war in captivity and was released in 1946. He later joined the Bundesmarine, rising to the rank of Flottillenadmiral before retiring, and died in Kiel on 15 June 1975.
Korvettenkapitän Klaus Feldt (1912-2010) was born on 14 April 1912 in Kiel and entered the Reichsmarine in 1934 after service in the merchant navy, being promoted to Leutnant zur See in 1937 and Oberleutnant zur See in 1939. He initially served as adjutant in the 6. Torpedoboots-Flottille and later commanded a torpedo boat before transferring to the Schnellbootwaffe in the summer of 1940. As Oberleutnant zur See and Kommandant of S 30 in the 2. Schnellbootsflottille he distinguished himself in operations off Norway, the Dutch coast and the English Channel, sinking an enemy destroyer (HMS Exmoor) and four armed merchant vessels totalling 6100 GRT while demonstrating outstanding seamanship and cold-bloodedness in difficult situations; as acting flotilla commander he also led a successful sortie against the southern English coast that sank 13000 GRT of shipping. For these achievements he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 25 April 1941 and simultaneously promoted to Kapitänleutnant. After recovering from severe wounds sustained when S 43 struck mines and sank on 27 June 1941, he became Chef of the 2. Schnellbootsflottille in October 1941. Promoted to Korvettenkapitän on 1 March 1943, he continued to lead the flotilla with great success despite his earlier injuries, personally participating in numerous sorties that resulted in the sinking of 35 ships totalling 92260 GRT as well as two destroyers and two patrol vessels, often operating close to the English coast and in every naval theatre. For this sustained leadership he received the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on
1 January 1944 as the 362nd recipient. His other decorations included the Eisernes Kreuz 2. and 1. Klasse, the Schnellboot-Kriegsabzeichen with Diamonds, the Verwundetenabzeichen in Schwarz, and the Finnish Freedom Cross 4th Class. From February 1944 he commanded the Schnellboots-Lehrdivision until the end of the war, after which he was held in British captivity until August 1945. He died in Wiesbaden on 7 September 2010, having reached the rank of Korvettenkapitän.
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