Karl-Heinz Moehle (31 July 1910 – 17 November 1996) was a German

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...

commander of the Second World War. From September 1939 until retiring from front line service in June 1941, he sank 21 ships for a total of . For this he received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), among other commendations.

Early life

Moehle was born on 31 July 1910 in

Norden Norden is a Scandinavian and German word, directly translated as "the North". It may refer to: Places England * Norden, Basingstoke, a ward of Basingstoke and Deane * Norden, Dorset, a hamlet near Corfe Castle * Norden, Greater Manchester, a vi ...

, East Frisia. He entered the navy in April 1930 at the age of 19 and spent his initial training aboard the

school ship A training ship is a ship used to train students as sailors. The term is mostly used to describe ships employed by navies to train future officers. Essentially there are two types: those used for training at sea and old hulks used to house class ...

. He transferred to the U-boat force in March 1936 and by 1 June was promoted to ''Oberleutnant zur See''. He took command of his first boat, on 1 October 1937 and commissioned her for sea. On 1 April 1939 he was promoted to ''

Kapitänleutnant ''Kapitänleutnant'', short: KptLt/in lists: KL, ( en, captain lieutenant) is an officer grade of the captains' military hierarchy group () of the German Bundeswehr. The rank is rated OF-2 in NATO, and equivalent to Hauptmann in the Heer an ...

'' and on the outbreak of the Second World War, took ''U-20'' on his first war cruise.

Wartime career

Moehle made six patrols in ''U-20'', operating in the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the ...

. He sank eight allied ships. He left ''U-20'' on 17 January 1940 and took command of , which was to become one of the most famous U-boats of the war. He took command on 30 May 1940 and took her on her first patrol on 21 September. His first patrol sank six merchants, including four on 19 October from the ill-fated

convoy SC 7 SC 7 was the code name for a large Allied World War II convoy of 35 merchant ships and six escorts, which sailed eastbound from Sydney, Nova Scotia, for Liverpool and other United Kingdom ports on 5 October 1940. While crossing the Atlantic, ...

. His second patrol was also highly successful, when on the morning of 23 November he attacked convoy OB-244 in the North Atlantic. He sank five ships over a period of five hours, for a combined total of . During these operations, ''U-123'' collided with a sunken ship, sustaining damage that forced her to return to base after just 15 days at sea. Moehle carried out another four patrols, sinking another five ships. On 24 October 1940 he received the Iron Cross 1st Class and on 26 February 1941 he was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. He stepped down as commander of ''U-123'' on 19 May 1941, handing over command to Kptlt.

Reinhard Hardegen ''Korvettenkapitän'' Reinhard Hardegen (18 March 1913 – 9 June 2018) was a German U-boat commander during World War II. He was credited with the sinking of 25 ships (2 were later refloated), at a total of 136,661 tons. After the war, he spent ...

, who would also go on to have success aboard her. Moehle became the commander of

5th U-boat Flotilla The 5th U-boat Flotilla (German ''5. Unterseebootsflottille''), also known as Emsmann Flotilla, was a U-boat flotilla of Nazi Germany's '' Kriegsmarine'' during World War II. The flotilla was formed in December 1938 in Kiel under the command of ' ...

and was also appointed to command the U-boat base at

Kiel Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the Jutland ...

from June 1941, a post he held until the end of the war. On 1 March 1943 he was promoted to ''

Korvettenkapitän () is the lowest ranking senior officer in a number of Germanic-speaking navies. Austro-Hungary Belgium Germany Korvettenkapitän, short: KKpt/in lists: KK, () is the lowest senior officer rank () in the German Navy. Address The off ...

''.

Post war

After the surrender of Germany, Moehle was arrested. He was tried in late 1946 for passing on the Laconia Order to the U-boat commanders under his command. He was found guilty and sentenced to five years imprisonment, but was released in November 1949. Not much else is known about Moehle's life afterwards. Moehle died on 17 November 1996 at the age of 86.

Awards

Wehrmacht Long Service Award The Wehrmacht Long Service Award () was a military service decoration of Nazi Germany issued for satisfactory completion of a number of years in military service. History On 16 March, 1936, Adolf Hitler ordered the institution of a service awar ...

4th Class (2 October 1936)Busch & Röll 2003, p. 107. *

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia es ...

(1939) ** 2nd Class (23 September 1939) ** 1st Class (24 October 1940) *

U-boat War Badge The U-boat War Badge (german: U-Boot-Kriegsabzeichen) was a German war badge that was awarded to U-boat crew members during World War I and World War II. History The ''U-boat War Badge'' was originally instituted during the First World War on Feb ...

(1939) (17 October 1939) * Knight's Cross of the Hungarian Order of Merit (19 December 1939) *

Sudetenland Medal The 1 October 1938 Commemorative Medal (german: Die Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 1. Oktober 1938), commonly known as the Sudetenland Medal was a decoration of Nazi Germany awarded during the interwar period, and the second in a series of Occupa ...

(20 December 1939) * Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 26 February 1941 as ''

'' and commander of U-123Scherzer 2007, p. 547. * Italian

War Cross for Military Valor The War Cross for Military Valor ( it, Croce di Guerra al Valor Militare) is an Italian order for military valor. Established in 1922, the cross may be awarded only in time of war. Appearance The medal is a Greek cross made of copper. Inscr ...

with Swords (1 November 1941) *

German Cross The War Order of the German Cross (german: Der Kriegsorden Deutsches Kreuz), normally abbreviated to the German Cross or ''Deutsches Kreuz'', was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 28 September 1941. It was awarded in two divisions: in gold for repe ...

in Silver (1 May 1945) *

War Merit Cross The War Merit Cross (german: Kriegsverdienstkreuz) was a state decoration of Nazi Germany during World War II. By the end of the conflict it was issued in four degrees and had an equivalent civil award. A " de-Nazified" version of the War Meri ...

with Swords ** 2nd Class (1 September 1944) ** 1st Class (30 January 1945)

References

Citations

Bibliography

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External links

*
Moehle testifies at Nuremberg about the Laconia order
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moehle, Karl-Heinz 1910 births 1996 deaths People from Norden, Lower Saxony People from the Province of Hanover U-boat commanders (Kriegsmarine) Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross People convicted in the Curiohaus trials Recipients of the War Cross for Military Valor Reichsmarine personnel German prisoners of war in World War II held by the United Kingdom Military personnel from Lower Saxony