Claus Korth

Claus Korth
Born	7 November 1911 Berlin
Died	24 January 1988 (aged 76) Kiel
Allegiance	Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany (to 1945)  West Germany
Service/branch	Reichsmarine  Kriegsmarine  German Navy
Years of service	1932–45 1955–70
Rank	Korvettenkapitän (Wehrmacht) Kapitän zur See (Bundeswehr)
Unit	SSS Niobe cruiser Köln Panzerschiff Deutschland
Commands held	U-57 U-93 Marine-Torpedo-Versuchsstation
Battles/wars	World War II Battle of the Atlantic
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Claus Korth (7 November 1911 – 24 January 1988) was a Korvettenkapitän with the Kriegsmarine during World War II and commander of U-57 and U-93. He is also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (German: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes). The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Claus Korth is credited with the sinking of thirteen ships for a total of 54,584 tons of Allied merchant shipping, including the RMS Durham Castle by mine. He was one of 40 survivors of the Niobe sinking on 26 July 1932.

Summary of career

Ships attacked

Date	U-boat	Name	Nationality	Tonnage (GRT)	Fate[1][2]
17 November 1939	U-57	Kaunas	Lithuania	1,566	Sunk
19 November 1939	U-57	Stanbrook	United Kingdom	1,383	Sunk
13 December 1939	U-57	Mina	Estonia	1,173	Sunk
20 January 1940	U-57	Miranda	Norway	1,328	Sunk
26 January 1940	U-57	HMS Durham Castle	United Kingdom	8,240	Sunk (mine)
14 February 1940	U-57	Gretafield	United Kingdom	10,191	Total loss
21 February 1940	U-57	Loch Maddy	United Kingdom	4,996	Damaged
25 March 1940	U-57	Daghestan	United Kingdom	5,742	Sunk
15 October 1940	U-93	Hurunui	United Kingdom	9,331	Sunk
17 October 1940	U-93	Dokka	Norway	1,168	Sunk
17 October 1940	U-93	Uskbridge	United Kingdom	2,715	Sunk
29 January 1941	U-93	Aikatern	Greece	4,929	Sunk
29 January 1941	U-93	King Robert	United Kingdom	5,886	Sunk
29 January 1941	U-93	W.B. Walker	United Kingdom	10,468	Sunk
4 February 1941	U-93	Dione II	United Kingdom	2,660	Sunk
21 May 1941	U-93	Elusa	Netherlands	6,235	Sunk

Awards

• Wehrmacht Long Service Award, 4th Class (2 October 1936)^[3]
• Spanish Cross in Bronze (6 June 1939)^[3]
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (22 November 1939)^[3]
  • 1st Class (26 January 1940)^[3]
• U-boat War Badge (5 November 1939)^[3]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 29 May 1941 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-93^[4][5]
• War Merit Cross 2nd Class with Swords (20 April 1944)^[3]

References

Citations

1. Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-57". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
2. Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-93". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 27 January 2014.
3. Busch & Röll 2003, p. 137.
4. Scherzer 2007, p. 467.
5. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 270.

Bibliography

• Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (2003). Der U-Boot-Krieg 1939–1945 — Die Ritterkreuzträger der U-Boot-Waffe von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [The U-Boat War 1939–1945 — The Knight's Cross Bearers of the U-Boat Force from September 1939 to May 1945] (in German). Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn Germany: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 978-3-8132-0515-2.
• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.