U-3523 was discovered at a depth of 123 metres, with its bow embedded in the sea floor. Image provided by Sea War Museum Jutland.
U-3523, sunk the day following Nazi Germany’s surrender has been discovered during a seafloor survey of the Skagerrak, the strait that runs between Denmark and Norway.
Missing since the end of WWII, the discovery of U-3523 has shed light on one of the mysteries surrounding the collapse of Nazi Germany in May 1945. In the chaos following Adolf Hitler’s suicide on April 30, 1945, the remaining Nazi forces were in disarray and formally surrendered on May 5.
U-3523 was sunk by depth charges dropped by a British B-24 Liberator on May 6,with a crew of 58, speculated to have been top Nazi officials trying to flee. The discovery of their resting place does not confer any insight as to the ship’s mission or cargo, although it was discovered around nine nautical miles west of the position reported by the bomber that dropped the fateful charges.
U-3523 is a Type XXI U-boat, a vessel so technically advanced for its time that it informed the design of generations of submarines to follow. The Russian Whiskey-class, British Porpoise-class, American Tang-class and Swedish Hajen-class submarines all heavily utilise key design principles from the Type XXI, as do all currently operating submarines that utilise diesel-electric propulsion.
It was the first vessel capable of, and designed to primarily operate while submerged, boasting the first hydrodynamically-designed hull and conning tower, far greater battery capacity than previous U-boat generations, far greater diving and submerged speed, and unsurpassed range — able to travel and maneuver submerged for several days, only needing to surface to periscope depth before diving again.
The last known Type XXI U-boat to remain intact, U-2540 ‘Willhelm Bauer’ is preserved and on display in Bremerhaven, Germany. Image via Wikimedia Commons.
The unsurpassed capabilities of these submarines in part fuelled speculation about the ship’s mission, along with U-977’s journey to Argentina following the German surrender. Danish researchers from the Sea War Museum Jutland who discovered the wreck said that they knew nothing of the ship’s potential cargo or passengers beyond the reported 58 crew on board at its time of sinking.
Unusually, the entire fore of the vessel appears buried in the sea floor, with its stern jutting upwards at an estimated height of 20 metres. The Sea War Museum Jutland regularly carries out bathymetric surveys for historic wrecks, and has discovered around 450 wrecks in the North Sea and Skagerrak. U-3523 is the 12th submarine they have located.
A rendering released by Seawar Museaum Jutland showing the estimated aspect of U-3523 on the sea floor.
