''Marder'' (Pine Marten) was a German
midget submarine
A midget submarine (also called a mini submarine) is any submarine under 150 tons, typically operated by a crew of one or two but sometimes up to six or nine, with little or no on-board living accommodation. They normally work with mother ships, ...
developed from the ''
Neger
The ''Neger'' (German for '' Negro'') was a torpedo-carrying craft generally described as a human torpedo which could not submerge, but was difficult to see during night operations. The vessel was used by Nazi Germany's '' Kriegsmarine'' bet ...
''.
The craft was long and unlike the ''Neger'' included a flooding tank in the nose allowing it to dive.
Another improvement was the dome through which the pilot viewed the outside world that also served as the craft's entrance and exit was made openable from the inside.
Maximum diving depth was about .
The submarine's first operations took place on the night of 2 August 1944, when
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
's ''
Kriegsmarine
The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...
s ''
Small Battle Units'' made their largest effort of the war. 58
human torpedo
Human torpedoes or manned torpedoes are a type of diver propulsion vehicle on which the diver rides, generally in a seated position behind a fairing. They were used as secret naval weapons in World War II. The basic concept is still in use.
...
es
[Brown p. 116] of the ''Neger''-type and 22 ''Linse'' vessels were launched against
Allied shipping off
Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
as part of a combined operation with ''Neger''s and explosive ''Linse'' boats.
One
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against Fr ...
destroyer escort
Destroyer escort (DE) was the United States Navy mid-20th-century classification for a warship designed with the endurance necessary to escort mid-ocean convoys of merchant marine ships.
Development of the destroyer escort was promoted by th ...
, was sunk by a human torpedo along with one
minesweeper
A minesweeper is a small warship designed to remove or detonate naval mines. Using various mechanisms intended to counter the threat posed by naval mines, minesweepers keep waterways clear for safe shipping.
History
The earliest known usage of ...
, , and one
landing craft
Landing craft are small and medium seagoing watercraft, such as boats and barges, used to convey a landing force (infantry and vehicles) from the sea to the shore during an amphibious assault. The term excludes landing ships, which are larger. ...
by the German motor boats; at a cost of 41 ''Neger'' and 22 ''Linsen'' craft.
References
Bibliography
* Brown, David. ''Warship Losses of World War Two.'' Arms and Armour, London, Great Britain, 1990. .
*
Midget submarines
World War II submarines of Germany
{{Germany-submarine-stub