History's Deadliest Shipwreck: SS Wilhelm Gustloff

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Dear Rhoda, now we can thank God
I am safe. 

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I wrote to you on January 20th 
from Gotenhofen that we intended

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to ship ourselves on the Wilhelm
Gustloff. 

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We did this, but on the same 
night the ship was torpedoed by 

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an enemy submarine. 
What happened then was hell in 

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itself. 
I can hardly remember how I got 

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into a lifeboat and then onto a 
fast PT boat. 

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There were 40 on this boat taken
to the nearest harbor and from 

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there we went to a hospital in 
Kushlin. 

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I remember the Wilhelm Gustloff 
was overcrowded, the whole deck 

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was occupied with people. 
When the ship went down, most of

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them must have drowned in the 
icy water. 

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How many is anyone's guess. 
There are 70 survivors here at 

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Kushlein, most with frostbite. 
What will happen now? 

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And want to get out of here as 
fast as possible and go to 

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Shteteen. 
Right now that is impossible as 

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there is a travel restriction on
all passengers. 

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Why? 
I think the world should know 

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what a cowardly deed it was. 
This sort of thing should be 

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made known and not kept secret. 
I just don't know whether I will

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ever find my way around in this 
world. 

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I will try and forget when I get
to Shatin. 

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I will try to write again. 
Meanwhile, I'm here and I don't 

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even own the gown I wear. 
But I thank God I'm alive. 

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I hope for the best, Uncle Egon.
This was a letter written by 

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German national Igon Yeltsin, a 
survivor from the sinking of the

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Wilhelm Gustloff, to his niece 
Rhoda. 

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Written five days after the 
sinking, Germany was still 

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coming to grips with the loss of
one of its most beloved ships, 

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along with almost 10,000 lives. 
History's deadliest shipwreck, 

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the Wilhelm Gustloff. 
Today on shipwrecks and sea 

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dogs. 
Hello and welcome to Shipwrecks 

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and Sea Dogs, tales of mishaps, 
misfortune and misadventure. 

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I'm your host, Rich Napolitano. 
A quick note before getting 

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started, this episode contains 
many names of people and places 

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that are German or Polish. 
I did my best to determine 

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proper pronunciations, but 
please forgive my native English

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accent and any improper 
pronunciations. 

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Also, I will reference places 
that were under German control 

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at the time but are now part of 
Poland. 

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I use the German names as they 
were called at the time, but 

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when possible provide a 
reference for the Polish names 

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that are used today. 
Discussions of the deadliest 

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shipwrecks in history will 
almost certainly include the 

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Titanic, Lusitania, or Empress 
of Ireland. 

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Others have come to be 
remembered as well due to 

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specific circumstances, such as 
the Edmund Fitzgerald USS 

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Indianapolis or Ernest 
Shackleton ship the Endurance. 

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All of these are tragedies and 
hold their places in history to 

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be remembered, respected, and 
honored. 

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But none of these can compare to
the loss of life of the Wilhelm 

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Gustloff. 
It is the single greatest loss 

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of life as the result of a 
shipwreck in our history. 

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In 1936, Germany, the Nazi 
Party, was firmly in control. 

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Adolf Hitler had been elected 
chancellor in 1933, and his 

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position of power was absolute, 
unyielding and unlimited. 

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The country was in the midst of 
an economic recovery after 

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suffering A catastrophic 
collapse following World War 

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One. 
The Treaty of Versailles to find

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the terms which ended that 
conflict and its terms forced 

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Germany to pay reparations and 
drastically limited Germany's 

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military. 
Its army was limited to 100,000 

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soldiers and 4000 officers. 
Its Navy was allowed only 15,000

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sailors and 1500 officers. 
Germany was prohibited 

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altogether from having an Air 
Force, tanks, poison gas, heavy 

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artillery, submarines or 
battleships. 

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Despite these restrictions, 
Hitler secretly organized a 

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massive rearmament campaign and 
by 1936 Germany was openly 

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declaring its newly created Air 
Force conscription of soldiers 

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in the building of naval ships. 
In turn, this revitalized the 

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country's infrastructure, 
creating jobs, building tanks, 

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planes, ships, weapons and 
ammunition, which all kick 

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started its economy. 
Many social programs were 

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instituted to promote German 
culture and industry, and as we 

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now know, a good number of these
were problematic. 

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One such program was the KDF, an
acronym for Words Translating to

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Strength Through Joy. 
The KDF was a division of the 

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German Labor Front, a Nazi run 
organization that subsidized 

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leisure activities for workers 
such as inexpensive family 

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holidays, theater trips, and 
sporting events. 

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While promoting Nazi ideology 
and putting more citizens under 

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its influence. 
The German Labor Front ordered 

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its first purpose built cruise 
ship in 1936 to be operated by 

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the KDF. 
Older passenger liners of the 

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Hamburg America Line, Nodoscher 
Lloyd, and other German lines 

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had been used for this purpose 
up to this point. 

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This new ship would be built 
specifically for the KDF and was

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to be named the Adolf Hitler. 
A promotional spread featuring a

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conceptual model of the new ship
appeared in the January 1936 

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edition of Arbeiturtem, the 
official publication of the 

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German Labor Front, with the 
caption Model of the new 

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Strength through Joy ocean 
liner. 

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On February 4th, 1936, prominent
Nazi leader Wilhelm Gustloff was

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assassinated in his own home in 
Davos, Switzerland, by a young 

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medical student named David 
Frankfurter. 

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Frankfurter, a Jewish man, had 
been furious with the rise of 

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the Nazis and fearful of their 
oppressive policies against the 

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Jewish people. 
At the funeral, Adolf Hitler sat

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next to Gustloff's widow, 
Hedwig, who had been Hitler's 

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secretary. 
The Fuhrer made the decision at 

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that time to rename this new 
ship from the Adolf Hitler to 

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the Wilhelm Gustloff. 
The keel of the Wilhelm Gustloff

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was laid down on August 4th, 
1936 at the Bloemenvoss shipyard

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in Hamburg, Germany. 
She was launched on the 5th of 

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May 1937 with Adolf Hitler and 
many other senior Nazi officials

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in attendance. 
Many thousands of Germans lined 

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the docks and roads around the 
shipyard to get a glimpse of 

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this much heralded cruise ship. 
Nazi officials and KDF 

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representatives were given the 
very best viewing position on a 

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platform at yard #511. 
Although still unfinished, the 

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massive ship loomed high over 
the shipyard. 

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Propaganda filled speeches were 
made to a crowd of over 60,000 

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Nazi flag waving, cheering 
onlookers. 

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Head of the German Labor Front 
and influential Nazi party 

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member Doctor Robert Lay said to
the crowd, The highest value 

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that we want to achieve for 
Germany is eternity. 

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Therefore, we christen the ship 
with the name of a hero of this 

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people with the name of Wilhelm 
Gustloff, who is immortal to us.

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A moment later, Hedvig Gustloff 
broke a bottle of champagne on 

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the ship's bow cables dropped, 
revealing the name Wilhelm 

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Gustloff in huge Gothic letters 
on the ship's bow quarter. 

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The enormous vessel then slid 
into Hamburg harbor, while the 

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patriotic songs Horst vessel and
Deutschland Uber Alice played 

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loudly. 
Swastika emblazoned banners and 

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flags flapped in the wind, and a
joyous audience proudly gave 

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Nazi salutes. 
It was another example of German

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superiority, or so Adolf Hitler 
thought. 

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The Wilhelm Gustloff wasn't the 
largest or most beautiful ship 

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to hit the water, but was still 
an impressive cruise ship. 

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The KDF aim to create ships with
large open spaces, allowing 

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passengers the freedom to move 
about and interact with each 

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other. 
She had expansive decks free of 

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obstacles and spacious open 
halls with comfortable seating. 

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All passenger cabins were very 
intentionally on the outside and

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had an ocean view. 
Perhaps most significantly, 

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there were no classes and all 
cabins were the same size 

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regardless of status, including 
for the crew. 

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Her hall and superstructure were
all white, with a line of 

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rectangular cabin windows facing
outward. 

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Her one funnel was painted with 
the KDF logo, a swastika 

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inscribed within a circular gear
and surrounded by a stylized 

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propeller. 
She was an impressive 684 feet 

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long and 77 feet wide, with a 
capacity of 1463 passengers and 

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417 crew. 
Her top speed was 15 1/2 knots 

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provided by 4 diesel engines 
powering its twin screw 

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propellers. 
The uppermost of its six decks 

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was the bridge deck. 
It housed the bridge reception 

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room, Telegraph office, and 
cabins for the captain and 

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officers on board. 
Below the bridge deck was the 

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sun deck featuring the forward 
lounge and dance floor. 

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The sun deck also included a 
gymnasium with instructors to 

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help passengers use the 
equipment. 

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The Tavern was located forward 
on the starboard side, and the 

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entire aft section on the deck 
was an athletics area where most

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passengers enjoyed lounging in 
the sun. 

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The sundeck also housed all of 
the ship's 18 motor powered 

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lifeboats, each with a capacity 
for 96 people. 

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Two smaller motor boats had a 
radio and spotlights and could 

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carry 39 people each. 
In total, the lifeboats could 

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carry 1936 passengers, more than
enough for everyone on board. 

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The upper promenade deck looped 
around the entire ship on its 

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exterior. 
Passenger strolling the 

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promenade deck would see the 
lifeboats hovering over their 

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heads. 
Much of this space was taken up 

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by passenger cabins, with 
staircases for and aft providing

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access to other decks. 
Cabins were simple and 

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comfortable, with a light and 
airy feel. 

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Each cabin had bunk beds for 
either 2 or 4 passengers, a 

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sofa, table and chairs, closet, 
sinks, and heater. 

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Public spaces for the passengers
were located on the lower 

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promenade deck. 
It too wrapped around the entire

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ship, but unlike the upper 
promenade, it was entirely 

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enclosed in shatterproof glass. 
A smoking room was located in 

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the forward space and was 
decorated with heavy wood, large

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bronze lanterns and portraits of
Adolf Hitler and Robert Lay 

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overlooking the guests. 
Behind the smoking room was a 

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guest library with over 1500 
books. 

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The lower promenade deck also 
featured a theater complete with

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a stage, film screen, and 
projectors. 

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The Great Hall was adjacent to 
the theater room with two dance 

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floors. 
The ship's single funnel system 

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ran up through the middle of 
this room. 

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Below the lower promenade deck 
was a deck which housed a 

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covered promenade for crew only,
a hospital, pharmacy, doctor's 

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cabins, waiting rooms, 
Infirmary, dentist, and an 

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operating room. 
Forward on a deck was the dining

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room with seating for 387 
guests. 

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After the dining room was the 
kitchen and pantry. 

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A rear dining room could 
accommodate 367 more passengers,

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with a crew day room being 
located at the atmost end of 

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this deck. 
Crew and passenger cabins were 

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located on B&C decks, including 
a special suite reserved for 

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Adolf Hitler on B deck. 
D Deck housed a crew dining 

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room, more passenger and crew 
cabins divided by 13 watertight 

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bulkheads. 
The lowest deck, E Deck, housed 

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primarily machinery with the 
exception of rooms between 

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bulkheads 4 and 5A Hitler Youth 
Recreation area and dining room 

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was located there. 
In addition to a stunningly 

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decorated swimming pool, it 
featured blue and teal tiles, 

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pillars surrounding the pool, a 
lattice glasswork ceiling and a 

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16 by 8 foot mosaic containing 
74,000 tiles depicting the Roman

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God Neptune riding a horse drawn
seashell surrounded by nude 

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maidens. 
This was without a doubt the 

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most opulent room and an 
otherwise simple and airy ship. 

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The Wilhelm Gustloff completed 
her sea trials in March of 1938.

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On March 24th she departed 
Hamburg with a compliment of 

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mostly Austrian passengers. 
The voyage was to serve 

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primarily as a propaganda tool 
to help convince Austrians to 

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vote to approve annexation by 
Germany. 

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In addition, 300 girls were 
selected from the League of 

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German Girls, along with 165 
journalists and photographers. 

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Captain Carl Leba took the ship 
into the North Sea for a three 

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day cruise while journalists 
toured the ship. 

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Two days into the voyage it was 
announced that a telegram had 

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arrived from Adolf Hitler with a
welcoming address for the 

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Austrian passengers. 
This was an unofficial maiden 

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voyage as these were not 
ticketed passengers but more of 

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a highly selective propaganda 
cruise, but it was tremendously 

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successful and everyone walked 
away from the experience 

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thoroughly impressed. 3 
subsequent pre made in voyages 

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00:14:47,200 --> 00:14:49,960
were made between March 26th and
April 18th. 

222
00:14:50,800 --> 00:14:53,720
These voyages were partly for 
making additional adjustments 

223
00:14:53,720 --> 00:14:57,000
and corrections to the ship's 
machinery, but also for VIP 

224
00:14:57,000 --> 00:15:00,680
visits. 
On March 29th, Adolf Hitler made

225
00:15:00,680 --> 00:15:02,920
his only appearance on board the
Wilhelm Gustloff. 

226
00:15:04,040 --> 00:15:07,040
A journalist on board reported 
that the Fuhrer quote 

227
00:15:07,680 --> 00:15:10,760
demonstrated that the crew 
spaces are as beautiful as the 

228
00:15:10,760 --> 00:15:13,840
cabins. 
After Hitler departed the ship, 

229
00:15:14,080 --> 00:15:17,440
the employees of Bloemenvass and
their families boarded the ship 

230
00:15:17,440 --> 00:15:21,840
for a three day cruise from 
April 1st to April 4th. 

231
00:15:21,920 --> 00:15:24,760
The Gustav was on a short pre 
made in cruise to the English 

232
00:15:24,760 --> 00:15:28,360
Channel to meet a small fleet of
KDF ships returning from Madeira

233
00:15:29,480 --> 00:15:31,920
on April 3rd. 
She ran into rough weather and 

234
00:15:31,920 --> 00:15:35,160
the radio room picked up an SOS 
distress call from the English 

235
00:15:35,160 --> 00:15:38,840
coal carrier peg away. 
Captain Leba changed course 

236
00:15:38,840 --> 00:15:42,560
immediately and headed for the 
Strait of Dover, finding the 

237
00:15:42,560 --> 00:15:44,800
damaged, rudderless and sinking 
peg away. 

238
00:15:44,800 --> 00:15:48,240
On the morning of April 4th, a 
motorized lifeboat was launched 

239
00:15:48,240 --> 00:15:51,160
and the entire crew of 19 from 
the peg away were rescued. 

240
00:16:10,290 --> 00:16:13,210
The Wilhelm Gustloff was met 
with cheers upon its return to 

241
00:16:13,210 --> 00:16:17,210
Hamburg on April 5th and the 
rescue was again a triumphant 

242
00:16:17,210 --> 00:16:21,880
piece of propaganda for Germany.
Another pre maiden voyage was 

243
00:16:21,880 --> 00:16:25,160
made just a few days later. 
On April 8th the Gustloff 

244
00:16:25,160 --> 00:16:28,320
departed Hamburg for England 
where she anchored 3 nautical 

245
00:16:28,320 --> 00:16:30,560
miles offshore in international 
waters. 

246
00:16:31,480 --> 00:16:34,520
Here she would serve as a 
polling location for Austrian 

247
00:16:34,520 --> 00:16:37,320
and German citizens living in 
England in order for them to 

248
00:16:37,320 --> 00:16:40,160
cast their votes for the German 
annexation of Austria. 

249
00:16:41,360 --> 00:16:47,120
On April 10th, 1172, Germans and
806 Austrians were ferried out 

250
00:16:47,120 --> 00:16:48,960
from Tilbury to cast their 
votes. 

251
00:16:49,920 --> 00:16:53,200
Ultimately this vote mattered 
little as German troops had 

252
00:16:53,200 --> 00:16:55,960
already invaded Austria 
unopposed a month earlier. 

253
00:16:57,520 --> 00:17:01,840
Finally, on April 21st, 1938, 
the Wilhelm Gustloff departed on

254
00:17:01,840 --> 00:17:05,880
her official maiden voyage, A2 
week cruise to Madeira and back.

255
00:17:07,079 --> 00:17:10,599
She departed alongside her KDF 
sister ships, the Sierra, 

256
00:17:10,599 --> 00:17:16,359
Cordoba, Oceana and der Deutsch.
KDF offered these cruises for as

257
00:17:16,359 --> 00:17:20,040
little as 1/4 the cost of most 
other European cruise lines to 

258
00:17:20,040 --> 00:17:22,240
offer German workers a chance to
relax. 

259
00:17:23,160 --> 00:17:25,880
The Nazi Party aimed to keep 
workers happy and their 

260
00:17:25,880 --> 00:17:29,680
production churning. 
Sailing up the Alba River and 

261
00:17:29,680 --> 00:17:33,200
into the North Sea, Captain Carl
Laba was just settling in for 

262
00:17:33,200 --> 00:17:35,200
what was expected to be a 
pleasant voyage. 

263
00:17:35,920 --> 00:17:39,120
Sadly, just one day into the 
trip, the captain suffered A 

264
00:17:39,120 --> 00:17:41,040
fatal heart attack while on the 
bridge. 

265
00:17:41,840 --> 00:17:44,560
Activities on board the ship 
were canceled for the next day, 

266
00:17:44,760 --> 00:17:47,640
and passengers and crew attended
a funeral for the captain on the

267
00:17:47,640 --> 00:17:50,520
sun deck. 
A menu from the ship's dining 

268
00:17:50,520 --> 00:17:54,840
hall on April 23rd includes A 
handwritten note Morning Captain

269
00:17:54,840 --> 00:17:57,920
Laba. 
His remains were transferred to 

270
00:17:57,920 --> 00:18:01,360
another German vessel, the 
Tenerife, and then taken to 

271
00:18:01,360 --> 00:18:05,600
Bremen. 
Friedrich Peterson was chosen as

272
00:18:05,600 --> 00:18:08,080
the replacement captain for the 
remainder of the journey. 

273
00:18:08,560 --> 00:18:12,000
Ironically, Peterson would only 
command the Wilhelm Gustloff 

274
00:18:12,000 --> 00:18:16,280
twice, on her maiden voyage and 
then on her final fateful 

275
00:18:16,280 --> 00:18:20,240
voyage. 
The Gustloff continued a regular

276
00:18:20,240 --> 00:18:24,400
cruise schedule as the flagship 
of the KDF fleet throughout 1938

277
00:18:24,400 --> 00:18:28,640
and into 1939. 
But on May 20th, 1939, the 

278
00:18:28,640 --> 00:18:31,920
Gustloff and seven other KDF 
ships were requisitioned by the 

279
00:18:31,920 --> 00:18:35,480
German Navy to transport troops 
from the German Condor Legion 

280
00:18:35,480 --> 00:18:38,480
home from Spain. 
This legion was supporting 

281
00:18:38,480 --> 00:18:41,600
Victoria's General Francisco 
Franco's Nationalists in the 

282
00:18:41,600 --> 00:18:43,640
long and bloody Spanish Civil 
War. 

283
00:18:44,880 --> 00:18:49,640
By late August 1939, the Wilhelm
Gustloff had made 60 voyages and

284
00:18:49,640 --> 00:18:52,120
taken more than 80,000 
passengers on board. 

285
00:18:52,960 --> 00:18:55,760
Plans were being made for the 
next voyage, a cruise to the 

286
00:18:55,760 --> 00:18:58,280
fjords of Norway, but it was not
to be. 

287
00:18:59,320 --> 00:19:03,280
On August 26th, Captain Heinrich
Bertram received a coded message

288
00:19:03,560 --> 00:19:08,640
called a QWA message reading. 
All ships donned camouflage 

289
00:19:08,640 --> 00:19:11,000
paint and returned to German 
ports immediately. 

290
00:19:11,320 --> 00:19:14,960
Avoid the Strait of Dover. 
He then received another QWA 

291
00:19:15,080 --> 00:19:19,200
message the following day. 
All ships within a four day sail

292
00:19:19,200 --> 00:19:22,400
from Germany to head home. 
Otherwise sailed to neutral 

293
00:19:22,400 --> 00:19:26,080
ports. 
This was all in preparation for 

294
00:19:26,080 --> 00:19:31,160
the coming invasion of Poland. 
On September 1st, 1939, German 

295
00:19:31,160 --> 00:19:34,720
troops invaded Poland and two 
days later France and the United

296
00:19:34,720 --> 00:19:39,200
Kingdom declared war on Germany.
Europe was thrust into a deadly 

297
00:19:39,200 --> 00:19:42,920
conflict once again. 
The Wilhelm Gustloff and all 

298
00:19:42,920 --> 00:19:45,640
other KDF ships had been 
requisitioned for war. 

299
00:19:46,680 --> 00:19:50,160
She was transformed into a 
hospital ship painted white with

300
00:19:50,160 --> 00:19:54,360
a Red Cross on her funnel and 
designated Lazaret Schiff D or 

301
00:19:54,520 --> 00:19:58,360
Hospital Ship D She was first 
sent through the Baltic Sea to 

302
00:19:58,360 --> 00:20:02,400
Poland, where 650 wounded Polish
soldiers were treated on board. 

303
00:20:03,440 --> 00:20:06,760
She was then sent to Lithuania 
to relocate ethnic Germans to 

304
00:20:06,760 --> 00:20:09,800
the West. 
She continued to serve in this 

305
00:20:09,800 --> 00:20:13,200
capacity as well as a 
minesweeper into 1940. 

306
00:20:14,560 --> 00:20:18,000
In November of 1940, the 
Gustloff was reassigned again to

307
00:20:18,000 --> 00:20:20,440
the Second U Boat Training 
Division and went through 

308
00:20:20,440 --> 00:20:24,240
another transformation. 
She was painted a dull Navy Gray

309
00:20:24,240 --> 00:20:26,600
color. 
Hospital equipment and surgical 

310
00:20:26,600 --> 00:20:30,040
tables were removed and the ship
was largely gutted to make room 

311
00:20:30,040 --> 00:20:33,400
for carrying troops and 
civilians docked at 

312
00:20:33,400 --> 00:20:36,440
Goutenhoffen, which is the 
modern day city of Gadenya, 

313
00:20:36,440 --> 00:20:38,800
Poland. 
U boat trainees and training 

314
00:20:38,800 --> 00:20:41,720
personnel were housed on the 
Goose Loaf for the next 4 years.

315
00:20:42,520 --> 00:20:45,440
Captain Heinrich Bertram 
remained on board but was not 

316
00:20:45,440 --> 00:20:47,040
permitted to take her out to 
sea. 

317
00:20:48,120 --> 00:20:52,080
In 1942, Lieutenant Commander 
Wilhelm Zahn took command of the

318
00:20:52,080 --> 00:20:54,640
training program and day-to-day 
activities. 

319
00:20:55,440 --> 00:20:59,680
She was given a new coat of dull
Navy Gray in March of 1943 and 

320
00:20:59,680 --> 00:21:02,640
her stern lifeboats were removed
for reasons related to the 

321
00:21:02,640 --> 00:21:06,080
training program. 
Additionally, 2 anti aircraft 

322
00:21:06,080 --> 00:21:09,400
platforms were added to the 
bridge later that year. 

323
00:21:09,400 --> 00:21:12,760
In September, Lieutenant 
Commander Norita Satatoshi of 

324
00:21:12,760 --> 00:21:16,920
the Imperial Japanese Navy and a
48 manned spare crew traveled to

325
00:21:16,920 --> 00:21:19,200
Germany. 
They were housed on board the 

326
00:21:19,200 --> 00:21:23,760
Gustloff while being trained in 
the operations of a Type 9C/40U 

327
00:21:23,760 --> 00:21:28,480
boat, EU 1224. 
Although a training ship that 

328
00:21:28,480 --> 00:21:31,720
did not see combat, the Vilhem 
Gustloff was still a target. 

329
00:21:32,560 --> 00:21:36,920
On October 9th, 1943, American 
bombers from the 8th Air Force 

330
00:21:36,920 --> 00:21:39,440
targeted the large ships in 
Gluten Hoffman Harbor. 

331
00:21:40,320 --> 00:21:43,800
A 1 1/2 meter gash was ripped 
open in the Gustloff's hull when

332
00:21:43,800 --> 00:21:45,720
a bomb exploded off her 
starboard side. 

333
00:21:46,800 --> 00:21:49,360
The damage was repaired, but it 
left the Gustloff with a 

334
00:21:49,360 --> 00:21:53,800
slightly bent propeller shaft. 
Another former passenger liner, 

335
00:21:53,840 --> 00:21:56,960
the Stuttgart, suffered several 
direct hits, resulting in a 

336
00:21:56,960 --> 00:21:59,720
blazing inferno. 
Inside. 

337
00:21:59,840 --> 00:22:01,920
The ship was packed with wounded
soldiers. 

338
00:22:02,280 --> 00:22:05,560
Almost all on board were killed 
either in the blaze or when the 

339
00:22:05,560 --> 00:22:09,400
ship was towed out to sea and 
sunk along with the dead and 

340
00:22:09,400 --> 00:22:14,920
anyone still trapped inside. 
In 1944, Friedrich Peterson 

341
00:22:14,920 --> 00:22:17,000
returned as captain of the 
Wilhelm Gustloff. 

342
00:22:17,560 --> 00:22:21,120
He had been previously captured 
by the Allies, but at 66 years 

343
00:22:21,120 --> 00:22:24,760
old was granted his release in 
exchange for a written promise 

344
00:22:24,760 --> 00:22:26,480
not to take command of any other
ship. 

345
00:22:27,760 --> 00:22:30,600
The Gustloff then underwent 
another refitting in August of 

346
00:22:30,600 --> 00:22:34,960
1944, receiving another new coat
of paint along with smaller 

347
00:22:34,960 --> 00:22:37,840
reinforced bridge windows and 
additional lifeboats and 

348
00:22:37,840 --> 00:22:42,840
inflatable life rafts. 
By the end of 1944, the German 

349
00:22:42,840 --> 00:22:46,400
war machine was coming apart. 
The Western Front and the 

350
00:22:46,400 --> 00:22:49,120
Eastern Front were closing in on
Berlin fast. 

351
00:22:49,960 --> 00:22:52,640
Young boys and old men were 
being conscripted into the 

352
00:22:52,640 --> 00:22:55,080
Volksdurm, A militia for home 
defense. 

353
00:22:55,920 --> 00:22:58,480
Older boys from the Hitler Youth
were sent to the front, 

354
00:22:58,840 --> 00:23:01,840
including the 12th s s Panzer 
Division, Hitler Ugand 

355
00:23:01,960 --> 00:23:04,520
consisting of 16 and 17 year old
boys. 

356
00:23:05,560 --> 00:23:08,880
Younger 15 year old boys were 
put on anti aircraft guns. 

357
00:23:10,280 --> 00:23:13,520
In East Prussia, the Soviet Red 
Army under the command of 

358
00:23:13,520 --> 00:23:17,040
General Kuzma Galitsky had 
stormed over the eastern borders

359
00:23:17,040 --> 00:23:20,600
of the German Reich. 
The German army was being tossed

360
00:23:20,600 --> 00:23:22,920
backwards and civilians fled in 
terror. 

361
00:23:23,840 --> 00:23:27,080
Rumors of horrible atrocities by
the Red Army spread quickly, 

362
00:23:27,560 --> 00:23:31,200
revenge for the Germans invading
the Soviet Union in 1941. 

363
00:23:31,640 --> 00:23:36,000
During the immensely bloody 
Operation Barbarossa at 

364
00:23:36,000 --> 00:23:39,400
Messersdorf, Red Army soldiers 
slaughtered over 100 German 

365
00:23:39,400 --> 00:23:42,760
civilians along with Belgian and
French prisoners of war. 

366
00:23:43,640 --> 00:23:46,680
German news outlets captured the
atrocities and published their 

367
00:23:46,680 --> 00:23:50,080
news reels widely. 
They hope to gain sympathy and 

368
00:23:50,080 --> 00:23:52,400
perhaps assistance in fighting 
the Soviets. 

369
00:23:53,160 --> 00:23:56,120
The rest of the world, however, 
found little sympathy. 

370
00:23:57,280 --> 00:23:59,720
The Soviets were closing in from
all directions. 

371
00:24:00,160 --> 00:24:02,920
German civilians and soldiers 
fled from the advancing, 

372
00:24:02,920 --> 00:24:06,040
unstoppable swarm and gathered 
in and around the port of 

373
00:24:06,040 --> 00:24:09,880
Danzig, the modern day city of 
Gdansk, Poland, in hopes of 

374
00:24:09,880 --> 00:24:12,600
finding a berth on a ship and 
escaping to the West. 

375
00:24:13,760 --> 00:24:17,240
Adolf Hitler strictly forbade 
his generals from retreating and

376
00:24:17,240 --> 00:24:20,400
frequently gave orders to move 
divisions of tanks and infantry 

377
00:24:20,520 --> 00:24:23,720
that didn't exist. 
He simply was not operating 

378
00:24:23,720 --> 00:24:26,840
within the reality of the grave 
situation his army and his 

379
00:24:26,840 --> 00:24:30,280
people were facing. 
Unbeknownst to Adolf Hitler, 

380
00:24:30,680 --> 00:24:34,480
Gross Admiral Karl Dennitz, 
Admiral Oscar Kumitz, and Rear 

381
00:24:34,480 --> 00:24:37,360
Admiral Engelhart had put 
together an evacuation plan 

382
00:24:37,360 --> 00:24:41,400
named Operation Hannibal. 
Dennitz, unlike Hitler, was 

383
00:24:41,400 --> 00:24:43,960
aware of the very real 
possibility of complete 

384
00:24:43,960 --> 00:24:47,960
annihilation of German assets. 
The plan called for all German U

385
00:24:47,960 --> 00:24:51,040
boats and naval vessels to 
evacuate to the West with as 

386
00:24:51,040 --> 00:24:54,200
much of the German army and 
civilian refugees as possible. 

387
00:24:55,560 --> 00:25:00,720
On January 21st, 1945, Darnitz 
sent the code word Hannibal to 

388
00:25:00,720 --> 00:25:05,560
Gotenhofen and the operation was
put into action U boats 

389
00:25:05,560 --> 00:25:09,080
immediately fled to the West and
all available vessels, including

390
00:25:09,080 --> 00:25:12,360
military, private, and 
commercial vessels of all sizes 

391
00:25:12,360 --> 00:25:15,800
were commandeered. 
The Wilhelm Gustloff began 

392
00:25:15,800 --> 00:25:18,760
preparations to transport the 
refugees from East Prussia. 

393
00:25:19,480 --> 00:25:22,640
Other than an occasional short 
test run, the ship had not 

394
00:25:22,640 --> 00:25:27,080
operated for over 4 years. 
Guldenhoffen bustled with 

395
00:25:27,080 --> 00:25:31,040
activity bordering on panic as a
motley fleet of vessels prepared

396
00:25:31,040 --> 00:25:34,240
to depart. 
Thousands of civilians crowded 

397
00:25:34,240 --> 00:25:37,640
into the area. 
Most were women and children, as

398
00:25:37,640 --> 00:25:40,840
men of fighting age were either 
fighting the war or already 

399
00:25:40,840 --> 00:25:44,040
dead. 
Some have traveled many long and

400
00:25:44,040 --> 00:25:47,680
dangerous miles through the ice 
and snow, the deadline, the 

401
00:25:47,680 --> 00:25:50,280
roadways, everywhere. 
The Frisches. 

402
00:25:50,280 --> 00:25:53,040
Hoff Lagoon near Danzig was a 
veritable morgue. 

403
00:25:53,720 --> 00:25:56,480
Those lucky enough to get 
anywhere near the docks faced 

404
00:25:56,480 --> 00:25:59,920
even more challenges. 
The Nazi Gestapo had a very 

405
00:25:59,920 --> 00:26:02,000
orderly and rigid procedure for 
boarding. 

406
00:26:02,560 --> 00:26:05,560
First it was required to have a 
ticket to board the Gustloff to 

407
00:26:05,560 --> 00:26:09,240
approach the pier. 
Once there an identity pass must

408
00:26:09,240 --> 00:26:12,160
be obtained and these were not 
given out on a first come first 

409
00:26:12,160 --> 00:26:15,520
served basis. 
Priority went to U boat and 

410
00:26:15,520 --> 00:26:18,920
naval personnel, then the 
Women's Naval Auxiliary and 

411
00:26:18,920 --> 00:26:22,400
wounded soldiers. 
Following this group, passes 

412
00:26:22,400 --> 00:26:25,840
were given to anyone with 
connections, family, friends, 

413
00:26:26,080 --> 00:26:28,600
political allies and other 
influential people. 

414
00:26:29,440 --> 00:26:32,520
Those without privilege, money, 
influence, or status were 

415
00:26:32,520 --> 00:26:35,400
relegated to non priority 
boarding and were forced to 

416
00:26:35,400 --> 00:26:38,040
wait. 
Armed Gestapo guards kept out 

417
00:26:38,040 --> 00:26:40,000
anyone lacking the proper 
paperwork. 

418
00:26:40,720 --> 00:26:43,920
This injustice did not go 
unnoticed by the desperate mob 

419
00:26:44,120 --> 00:26:48,280
and tensions ran high. 
As boarding continued, artillery

420
00:26:48,280 --> 00:26:50,880
shells could be heard in the 
near distance, adding to that 

421
00:26:50,880 --> 00:26:53,960
tension. 
On January 29th, Captain 

422
00:26:53,960 --> 00:26:56,880
Peterson received orders to 
depart for Keel as soon as 

423
00:26:56,880 --> 00:27:00,440
possible and the boarding 
situation became even more dire.

424
00:27:01,520 --> 00:27:03,680
The guards could no longer 
control the crowd. 

425
00:27:04,320 --> 00:27:07,720
Tickets and identity passes 
cease to have any importance and

426
00:27:07,720 --> 00:27:11,080
to avoid a Stampede, the Wilhelm
Gustloff was moved a short 

427
00:27:11,080 --> 00:27:14,760
distance offshore. 
A small boat was used to ferry 

428
00:27:14,760 --> 00:27:17,840
passengers from the pier to the 
ship, one load at a time. 

429
00:27:18,680 --> 00:27:21,760
First Officer Louis Reese kept 
track of the numbers the best he

430
00:27:21,760 --> 00:27:24,760
could. 
When it neared 5000, he stopped 

431
00:27:24,760 --> 00:27:27,640
counting. 
Still, thousands more were 

432
00:27:27,640 --> 00:27:29,640
crammed on board, desperate to 
escape. 

433
00:27:30,520 --> 00:27:33,480
We don't know exactly how many 
people were on board the Wilhelm

434
00:27:33,480 --> 00:27:37,720
Gustloff, but estimates placed 
the number at over 10,000, well 

435
00:27:37,720 --> 00:27:44,760
over its capacity of 1880. 
On January 30th at 12:30 PM, the

436
00:27:44,760 --> 00:27:47,840
Gustloff finally chugged away 
from the harbor with a mass of 

437
00:27:47,840 --> 00:27:51,440
humanity on board. 
It was the first time in four 

438
00:27:51,440 --> 00:27:53,320
years the vessel had set out to 
sea. 

439
00:27:54,200 --> 00:27:57,440
Just moments later, the ship 
revol pulled alongside with a 

440
00:27:57,440 --> 00:28:01,200
final group of 600 additional 
refugees who were transported to

441
00:28:01,200 --> 00:28:04,760
the Gustloff. 
Life jackets were distributed to

442
00:28:04,760 --> 00:28:08,080
each person on board, along with
strict orders to wear them at 

443
00:28:08,080 --> 00:28:11,320
all times. 
Alongside the Gustloff was 

444
00:28:11,320 --> 00:28:15,520
another transport vessel, Hansa,
the torpedo boat Escort Loaf, 

445
00:28:15,800 --> 00:28:18,760
and the torpedo collection boat 
designated TF1. 

446
00:28:19,400 --> 00:28:22,400
But it wasn't long before both 
the Hansa and the TF one 

447
00:28:22,400 --> 00:28:25,160
reported mechanical failures and
were forced to return to the 

448
00:28:25,160 --> 00:28:28,760
pier. 
Of the officers on board, four 

449
00:28:28,760 --> 00:28:32,200
were captains, but Captain 
Heinrich Peterson, a Merchant 

450
00:28:32,200 --> 00:28:34,200
Marine captain, was the 
commanding officer. 

451
00:28:35,320 --> 00:28:38,480
Captain Wilhelm Zahn remained on
board and was the highest ranked

452
00:28:38,480 --> 00:28:41,720
naval officer. 
Zahn was an experienced and 

453
00:28:41,720 --> 00:28:46,400
decorated U boat commander. 
In 1939, he very nearly changed 

454
00:28:46,400 --> 00:28:49,800
the course of world history. 
While commanding the submarine 

455
00:28:49,800 --> 00:28:54,680
U56HE spotted HMS Nelson just 
West of Orkney and fired 3 

456
00:28:54,680 --> 00:28:58,320
torpedoes at the vessel. 
All three found their target, 

457
00:28:58,560 --> 00:29:01,440
but only one exploded, causing 
only minor damage. 

458
00:29:46,440 --> 00:29:50,080
Zahn did not know it at the 
time, but on board HMS Nelson 

459
00:29:50,080 --> 00:29:53,280
was First Lord of the Admiralty 
and future Prime Minister 

460
00:29:53,440 --> 00:29:57,320
Winston Churchill, Admiral of 
the Fleet Sir Charles Forbes and

461
00:29:57,320 --> 00:30:00,640
Admiral Sir Dudley Pound, First 
Sea Lord of the Royal Navy. 

462
00:30:01,920 --> 00:30:05,040
Had all three torpedoes 
exploded, The fate of the Royal 

463
00:30:05,040 --> 00:30:08,880
Navy, the war and the entire 
world could have been vastly 

464
00:30:08,880 --> 00:30:12,600
different. 
Also on board were Captains Carl

465
00:30:12,600 --> 00:30:16,000
Kaler and Heinrich Feller, who 
served as senior officers of the

466
00:30:16,000 --> 00:30:19,040
watch. 
Peterson and Zahn despised each 

467
00:30:19,040 --> 00:30:21,720
other. 
Zahn found it quite ludicrous to

468
00:30:21,720 --> 00:30:24,960
be outranked by a merchant 
marine captain, and the two men 

469
00:30:24,960 --> 00:30:26,800
butted heads about virtually 
everything. 

470
00:30:27,880 --> 00:30:30,800
Zahn preferred a route through 
shallower water near the coast 

471
00:30:30,800 --> 00:30:34,160
without the use of lights. 
While they were more likely to 

472
00:30:34,160 --> 00:30:37,760
encounter mines closer to shore,
the water was too shallow for 

473
00:30:37,760 --> 00:30:41,640
submarines to operate. 
However, there was a general 

474
00:30:41,640 --> 00:30:44,200
agreement on the bridge that 
submarines would not be able to 

475
00:30:44,200 --> 00:30:47,600
operate in the rough weather, 
and so Heinrich Peterson took 

476
00:30:47,600 --> 00:30:52,240
the Goose Loaf into the deeper 
water of the shipping lane. 90 

477
00:30:52,240 --> 00:30:55,440
minutes later, the Goose Loaf 
was in shipping lane 58, which 

478
00:30:55,440 --> 00:30:57,000
had already been cleared of 
mines. 

479
00:30:58,120 --> 00:31:01,160
Peterson and Zahn continued 
their feud and argued about 

480
00:31:01,160 --> 00:31:04,760
virtually every decision. 
Zon insisted on sailing with 

481
00:31:04,760 --> 00:31:08,200
speed to get his U boat crew to 
keel so they could man the new 

482
00:31:08,200 --> 00:31:11,800
Type 21 U boats. 
Traveling on a straight course 

483
00:31:11,800 --> 00:31:15,160
made them more vulnerable to 
submarine attack and so they 

484
00:31:15,160 --> 00:31:18,000
agreed to turn off the red and 
green navigation lights which 

485
00:31:18,000 --> 00:31:21,960
could give away their location. 
A radio transmission was 

486
00:31:21,960 --> 00:31:25,280
intercepted by radioman Rudy 
Long, who most likely from a 

487
00:31:25,280 --> 00:31:28,680
British communication post. 
The transmission announced the 

488
00:31:28,680 --> 00:31:31,120
movement of the Wilhelm Guslaf 
from Guztenhofen. 

489
00:31:32,200 --> 00:31:36,000
At 6:00 PM, Long received 
another transmission, this time 

490
00:31:36,000 --> 00:31:39,240
notifying the Gustloff of a 
convoy of German minesweepers 

491
00:31:39,240 --> 00:31:42,080
approaching in the shipping lane
from the opposite direction. 

492
00:31:42,920 --> 00:31:45,760
They too were operating without 
lights for the same safety 

493
00:31:45,760 --> 00:31:48,560
reasons. 
Peterson believed the potential 

494
00:31:48,560 --> 00:31:51,440
for a head on collision in the 
inclement weather was far too 

495
00:31:51,440 --> 00:31:54,360
great, especially with over 
10,000 people on board. 

496
00:31:55,120 --> 00:31:58,880
Like with most other decisions, 
ZON disagreed and insisted on 

497
00:31:58,880 --> 00:32:01,680
leaving the lights off according
to naval protocol. 

498
00:32:02,720 --> 00:32:06,120
Peterson though, would not 
concede and flip the switch. 

499
00:32:06,640 --> 00:32:09,400
Red and green lights from the 
Vilhelm Gustloff shine brightly 

500
00:32:09,400 --> 00:32:13,560
into the dark expanse. 
Any nearby vessels, be they 

501
00:32:13,560 --> 00:32:15,720
friend or foe, would certainly 
see them. 

502
00:32:17,240 --> 00:32:20,120
Complicating their situation was
their inability to defend 

503
00:32:20,120 --> 00:32:22,840
themselves. 
The newly installed anti 

504
00:32:22,840 --> 00:32:26,200
aircraft guns had already frozen
solid in the snow and were out 

505
00:32:26,200 --> 00:32:29,320
of action. 
The torpedo boat was its only 

506
00:32:29,320 --> 00:32:32,000
escort. 
It carried a 10 1/2 centimeter 

507
00:32:32,000 --> 00:32:37,800
main gun, a 40mm intermediate 
anti aircraft gun, four 2cm anti

508
00:32:37,800 --> 00:32:41,720
aircraft guns, 2 double torpedo 
tubes and 24 mines. 

509
00:32:42,440 --> 00:32:45,560
Formidable, but it's guns and 
sonar were frozen and 

510
00:32:45,560 --> 00:32:49,120
inoperable. 
Despite the frigid temperature 

511
00:32:49,120 --> 00:32:52,280
outside, the heat and 
unavoidable stench of human 

512
00:32:52,280 --> 00:32:54,160
waste made conditions 
unbearable. 

513
00:32:55,160 --> 00:32:58,200
Children cried and groans of the
suffering echoed through its 

514
00:32:58,200 --> 00:33:01,800
many halls and chambers. 
Sandwiches and hot soup were 

515
00:33:01,800 --> 00:33:04,400
offered, but most could not 
stomach the thought of eating. 

516
00:33:05,600 --> 00:33:08,360
Although they had orders to not 
remove their life jackets under 

517
00:33:08,360 --> 00:33:12,480
any circumstances, many shed the
bulky devices to get relief from

518
00:33:12,480 --> 00:33:15,400
the heat. 
Meanwhile, the mayor of 

519
00:33:15,400 --> 00:33:18,800
Golzenhofen and his family had 
taken residence in the comfort 

520
00:33:19,000 --> 00:33:21,040
of Hitler's private and spacious
suite. 

521
00:33:22,440 --> 00:33:26,000
At 8:00 PM, the Vilhelm Gustloff
was steaming northwest through 

522
00:33:26,000 --> 00:33:28,840
the Gulf of Danzig. 
Off in the distance and 

523
00:33:28,840 --> 00:33:32,920
undercover of darkness, Soviet 
submarine S13 had surfaced to 

524
00:33:32,920 --> 00:33:36,360
charge its batteries. 
Its captain, Alexander 

525
00:33:36,360 --> 00:33:39,520
Marinesko, had broken off from 
his group and slipped into the 

526
00:33:39,520 --> 00:33:42,840
Gulf of Danzig. 
Earlier in the day, he was aware

527
00:33:42,840 --> 00:33:45,800
of the mass evacuation coming 
out of Gotenhofen, and he had 

528
00:33:45,800 --> 00:33:48,920
hoped to score a kill. 
Marinesko spotted lights in the 

529
00:33:48,920 --> 00:33:51,120
distance. 
Through his Periscope, he 

530
00:33:51,120 --> 00:33:54,800
spotted his target, recalling. 
I saw a silhouette of an ocean 

531
00:33:54,800 --> 00:33:57,560
liner. 
It was enormous, it even had 

532
00:33:57,560 --> 00:34:00,600
some light showing there. 
And then I decided it was about 

533
00:34:00,600 --> 00:34:04,800
20,000 tons, certainly not less,
and I was quite sure it was 

534
00:34:04,800 --> 00:34:07,920
packed with men who had trampled
on Mother Russia and we're now 

535
00:34:07,920 --> 00:34:11,280
fleeing for their lives. 
It had to be sunk, I decided, 

536
00:34:11,800 --> 00:34:16,960
and the S13 would do the job. 
As S13 closed in on the Goose 

537
00:34:16,960 --> 00:34:19,600
Loaf, passengers on the 
transport ship were listening to

538
00:34:19,600 --> 00:34:21,760
music when it was suddenly 
interrupted. 

539
00:34:22,719 --> 00:34:26,520
It was a live broadcast from the
Fuhrer himself in commemoration 

540
00:34:26,520 --> 00:34:28,880
of the 12th anniversary of his 
rise to power. 

541
00:34:30,040 --> 00:34:32,920
His voice boomed through the 
ship, reverberating throughout 

542
00:34:32,920 --> 00:34:35,719
its decks. 
He urged German citizens to keep

543
00:34:35,719 --> 00:34:40,120
fighting, saying I expect every 
German to do his duty to the 

544
00:34:40,120 --> 00:34:43,040
last, and that he be willing to 
take upon himself every 

545
00:34:43,040 --> 00:34:44,800
sacrifice he will be asked to 
make. 

546
00:34:45,560 --> 00:34:48,440
I expect every able bodied 
German to fight with a complete 

547
00:34:48,440 --> 00:34:50,280
disregard for his personal 
safety. 

548
00:34:50,880 --> 00:34:54,159
I expect the sick and the weak, 
or those otherwise unavailable 

549
00:34:54,159 --> 00:34:56,920
for military duty, to work with 
their last strength. 

550
00:34:57,680 --> 00:35:00,680
I expect city dwellers to forge 
the weapons for this struggle, 

551
00:35:00,840 --> 00:35:03,200
and I expect the farmer to 
supply the bread for the 

552
00:35:03,200 --> 00:35:05,720
soldiers and workers of this 
struggle by imposing 

553
00:35:05,720 --> 00:35:09,640
restrictions upon himself. 
I expect all women and girls to 

554
00:35:09,640 --> 00:35:13,000
continue supporting the struggle
with utmost fanaticism. 

555
00:35:14,640 --> 00:35:18,480
While Hitler was delivering his 
speech, S13 slipped behind the 

556
00:35:18,480 --> 00:35:21,800
goose loaf on its port side and 
positioned itself between the 

557
00:35:21,800 --> 00:35:25,400
ship and the shore. 
Captain Marinesko expected the 

558
00:35:25,400 --> 00:35:28,720
Gustloff and its escort to be 
focusing their attention seaward

559
00:35:28,840 --> 00:35:31,320
and not toward the shallower 
waters toward the coast. 

560
00:35:32,280 --> 00:35:34,680
He ordered his four torpedo 
tubes to be loaded. 

561
00:35:35,400 --> 00:35:38,640
Before being placed in the 
tubes, each was inscribed with a

562
00:35:38,640 --> 00:35:43,800
message for the motherland, for 
Stalin, for the Soviet people, 

563
00:35:44,200 --> 00:35:48,360
for Leningrad. 
Meanwhile, the four captains on 

564
00:35:48,360 --> 00:35:50,760
the bridge of the Gustloff are 
relieved to have made it out 

565
00:35:50,760 --> 00:35:54,040
into the Baltic Sea. 
Believing the most dangerous 

566
00:35:54,040 --> 00:35:56,800
waters were behind them. 
They poured themselves a glass 

567
00:35:56,800 --> 00:36:01,200
of cognac to celebrate. 
Shortly after 9 O clock PM, 

568
00:36:01,440 --> 00:36:04,160
Marinesko ordered all four 
torpedoes fired. 

569
00:36:05,080 --> 00:36:07,960
Three of them hissed through the
water toward the target, but 

570
00:36:07,960 --> 00:36:11,720
one, the one labeled for Stalin,
was stuck in its tube. 

571
00:36:13,040 --> 00:36:16,360
Armed and primed, it threatened 
to explode the submarine, but 

572
00:36:16,360 --> 00:36:18,840
the torpedo crew responded 
quickly to disarm it. 

573
00:36:20,680 --> 00:36:24,560
At 9:16 PM the first torpedo 
struck the Vilham Gustloff at 

574
00:36:24,560 --> 00:36:27,880
the bow of the ship, causing an 
impressive plume of water to 

575
00:36:27,880 --> 00:36:31,840
reach into the air. 
The detonation blasted a gaping 

576
00:36:31,840 --> 00:36:35,200
hole in the hall, destroying the
crews quarters and many who were

577
00:36:35,200 --> 00:36:38,480
sheltered inside. 
Initially it was thought they 

578
00:36:38,480 --> 00:36:41,320
had struck a mine, which would 
have been unexpected in these 

579
00:36:41,320 --> 00:36:45,280
recently cleared waters. 
The second torpedo hit a moment 

580
00:36:45,280 --> 00:36:49,280
later, slightly after the first.
It struck the swimming pool 

581
00:36:49,280 --> 00:36:53,440
room, killing 343 members of the
Women's Naval Auxiliary. 

582
00:36:54,160 --> 00:36:57,560
The ornate glass ceiling and 
tiles of the King Neptune mosaic

583
00:36:57,560 --> 00:37:01,600
became deadly projectiles. 
Some were impaled to the bottom 

584
00:37:01,600 --> 00:37:03,680
of the pool by huge shards of 
glass. 

585
00:37:04,720 --> 00:37:07,680
Vulture Gruter happened to be in
a lower cabin rather than the 

586
00:37:07,680 --> 00:37:10,840
swimming pool, and was one of 
only a few women from the unit 

587
00:37:10,840 --> 00:37:14,600
to survive. 
The final torpedo struck amid 

588
00:37:14,600 --> 00:37:17,440
ships at the engine room, 
immediately knocking out all 

589
00:37:17,440 --> 00:37:21,000
propulsion and power. 
The mass of passengers were 

590
00:37:21,000 --> 00:37:23,360
thrown into a frenzy of chaos 
and confusion. 

591
00:37:24,120 --> 00:37:27,640
Seawater gushed into the ship 
and mixed with smoke and fire. 

592
00:37:28,560 --> 00:37:32,440
Almost immediately, the Wilhelm 
Gusloff listed to port as its 

593
00:37:32,440 --> 00:37:36,160
compartments filled with water. 
When the ship's emergency lights

594
00:37:36,160 --> 00:37:38,920
switched on, they only 
illuminated the panic and 

595
00:37:38,920 --> 00:37:42,800
carnage unfolded. 
Captain Heinrich Valor, who was 

596
00:37:42,800 --> 00:37:45,640
in command at the time, 
attempted to contact the engine 

597
00:37:45,640 --> 00:37:50,400
room, but it had been destroyed.
Captain Peterson, understanding 

598
00:37:50,400 --> 00:37:53,440
the danger, ordered the 
watertight doors closed, which 

599
00:37:53,440 --> 00:37:55,640
trapped any remaining crew in 
the bow of the ship. 

600
00:37:57,120 --> 00:37:59,840
The surge of passengers trying 
to reach the upper decks was 

601
00:37:59,840 --> 00:38:04,000
nothing short of catastrophe. 
Men, women and children pushed, 

602
00:38:04,000 --> 00:38:07,680
shoved, kicked, bit and trampled
each other, with wild, 

603
00:38:07,680 --> 00:38:10,440
abandoned, crushing or 
smothering a good number to 

604
00:38:10,440 --> 00:38:14,400
death in the fray. 
Officers use the public address 

605
00:38:14,400 --> 00:38:18,600
system to broadcast a plea for 
order and calm, but these were 

606
00:38:18,600 --> 00:38:21,240
completely ignored if they were 
even heard. 

607
00:38:22,720 --> 00:38:25,840
Women's Naval Auxiliary member 
Vaultred Gruter later recalled 

608
00:38:25,840 --> 00:38:29,520
her fight for survival. 
I struggled from my cabin to the

609
00:38:29,520 --> 00:38:33,240
sun deck after the torpedo hits.
I climbed over the people who 

610
00:38:33,240 --> 00:38:36,200
were in the corridors or the 
stairs, injured or trampled by 

611
00:38:36,200 --> 00:38:38,880
others. 
Once at the top of the railing, 

612
00:38:39,120 --> 00:38:42,960
I thought in a panic what to do.
The ship got more and more 

613
00:38:42,960 --> 00:38:45,440
inclined. 
People lost their grip and slid 

614
00:38:45,440 --> 00:38:47,120
over the icy deck into the 
water. 

615
00:38:48,200 --> 00:38:51,080
A soldier asked me to slide down
the ship's hull into the water. 

616
00:38:51,760 --> 00:38:55,920
I saw fearful faces, torn eyes 
of women and children panicked 

617
00:38:55,920 --> 00:38:58,560
with their fists against the 
indestructible glass wall. 

618
00:38:59,400 --> 00:39:02,440
About 1000 people were trapped 
in the belly of the ship and 

619
00:39:02,440 --> 00:39:06,040
abandoned to death. 
I heard loud gurgling and 

620
00:39:06,040 --> 00:39:10,880
hundreds calling for help. 
With no main power, radio 

621
00:39:10,880 --> 00:39:14,640
operator Rudy Long could only 
send an SOS distress call using 

622
00:39:14,640 --> 00:39:18,800
his low power backup radio. 
It could not reach the shore, 

623
00:39:18,920 --> 00:39:23,080
but it was received by the Lova.
It's radio man repeated the 

624
00:39:23,080 --> 00:39:25,200
message using its more powerful 
transmitter. 

625
00:39:26,480 --> 00:39:29,440
Those lucky enough to reach the 
upper promenade deck attempted 

626
00:39:29,440 --> 00:39:33,080
to launch the ship's lifeboats. 
Crew and passengers struggled to

627
00:39:33,080 --> 00:39:36,520
lower them as the ropes and 
davits were frozen solid, but a 

628
00:39:36,520 --> 00:39:39,640
lack of qualified and trained 
crew Hanford the evacuation. 

629
00:39:40,760 --> 00:39:43,640
Many crew were killed in the 
first torpedo blast, while 

630
00:39:43,640 --> 00:39:46,440
others were scattered about the 
ship or in the water. 

631
00:39:47,600 --> 00:39:50,880
Using anything they could find, 
including their bare hands, 

632
00:39:51,200 --> 00:39:54,480
passengers scraped, punched and 
pounded the davits to break them

633
00:39:54,480 --> 00:39:57,880
free of the ice. 
Each lifeboat was the scene of 

634
00:39:57,880 --> 00:39:59,560
an intense battle to gain a 
spot. 

635
00:40:00,560 --> 00:40:03,640
The shoving and trampling 
persisted and some even jumped 

636
00:40:03,640 --> 00:40:05,400
into the lifeboats from the deck
above. 

637
00:40:06,360 --> 00:40:09,640
As is often the case in such 
panic, several of the lifeboats 

638
00:40:09,640 --> 00:40:13,400
became unsteady and overturned, 
dumping its occupants into the 

639
00:40:13,440 --> 00:40:17,080
ICC. 
Passengers in another lifeboat 

640
00:40:17,080 --> 00:40:20,480
were killed when the ship's anti
aircraft gun broke free and 

641
00:40:20,480 --> 00:40:24,680
smashed directly on top of them.
Shamefully, another was lowered 

642
00:40:24,680 --> 00:40:27,960
with only 12 sailors inside, 
although it had a capacity for 

643
00:40:27,960 --> 00:40:31,040
96. 
In total, only nine of the 

644
00:40:31,040 --> 00:40:34,800
lifeboats were lowered, but only
5 successfully made it away from

645
00:40:34,800 --> 00:40:38,560
the ship. 
Gerhard Grassoff, a Sergeant in 

646
00:40:38,560 --> 00:40:41,920
the German army, assisted women 
and children into the lifeboats.

647
00:40:42,640 --> 00:40:46,080
After lowering one boat into the
water, he saw an open seat in a 

648
00:40:46,080 --> 00:40:47,800
lifeboat that was already in the
water. 

649
00:40:48,400 --> 00:40:51,400
He ran down the length of the 
ship and slid down the railing 

650
00:40:51,400 --> 00:40:54,000
into the water before swimming 
over to the lifeboat. 

651
00:40:54,760 --> 00:40:58,200
Sergeant Grassoff was one of the
small percentage of passengers 

652
00:40:58,320 --> 00:41:01,920
to survive. 
More passengers slid down the 

653
00:41:01,920 --> 00:41:05,280
icy decks due to its severe list
while trying to grab hold of 

654
00:41:05,280 --> 00:41:08,480
anything possible. 
Most found themselves in the sub

655
00:41:08,480 --> 00:41:10,200
zero temperature of the Baltic 
Sea. 

656
00:41:11,040 --> 00:41:13,480
While many on the lower decks 
were killed immediately in the 

657
00:41:13,480 --> 00:41:16,760
initial torpedo blasts, 
thousands remained inside. 

658
00:41:17,360 --> 00:41:19,800
Some were wounded or 
unconscious, while others were 

659
00:41:19,800 --> 00:41:22,680
trapped. 
On the lower promenade deck. 

660
00:41:23,000 --> 00:41:25,720
Hundreds pounded against the 
glass windows, trying to break 

661
00:41:25,720 --> 00:41:28,720
free. 
These windows could slide open 

662
00:41:29,120 --> 00:41:33,960
but were frozen shut. 
By about 10:00 PM, the Vilhelm 

663
00:41:33,960 --> 00:41:35,920
Gustloff was lying on its port 
side. 

664
00:41:36,760 --> 00:41:39,200
Lifeboats began pulling 
survivors out of the water. 

665
00:41:39,880 --> 00:41:44,600
The vessels Admiral Hipper and 
T36 received the SOS message and

666
00:41:44,600 --> 00:41:48,240
also arrived on the scene. 
The Admiral Hipper was itself 

667
00:41:48,240 --> 00:41:52,800
carrying 1600 refugees. 
When the S13 submarine appeared 

668
00:41:52,800 --> 00:41:56,440
on its sonar, the captain of the
Hipper made the decision to flee

669
00:41:56,640 --> 00:42:01,480
rather than risk the lives of 
its refugees. 70 minutes after 

670
00:42:01,480 --> 00:42:05,040
being struck by three torpedoes,
the Wilhelm Gustloff was facing 

671
00:42:05,040 --> 00:42:08,320
her final moments. 
Her stern rose up high out of 

672
00:42:08,320 --> 00:42:12,400
the water, and suddenly, as if 
taking one last gasp, all of her

673
00:42:12,400 --> 00:42:15,200
lights flickered on, 
illuminating the eerie night. 

674
00:42:16,160 --> 00:42:20,120
She slid down bow first with the
screaming of thousands echoing 

675
00:42:20,120 --> 00:42:23,920
into the darkness. 
Those still remaining in the icy

676
00:42:23,920 --> 00:42:25,920
water didn't have long to 
survive. 

677
00:42:26,640 --> 00:42:29,800
Some tried to claw their way 
onto lifeboats, only to be 

678
00:42:29,800 --> 00:42:33,520
beaten away by its occupants who
were fearful of being capsized. 

679
00:42:34,680 --> 00:42:37,960
In addition to launching its 
lifeboats, Lova hung Nets over 

680
00:42:37,960 --> 00:42:40,000
its side for those in the water 
to climb. 

681
00:42:40,240 --> 00:42:42,120
That is, if they had the 
strength. 

682
00:42:43,200 --> 00:42:47,040
T36 worked for many hours to 
find survivors, all the while 

683
00:42:47,040 --> 00:42:49,640
watching the location of S13 on 
its sonar. 

684
00:42:50,400 --> 00:42:53,560
It maneuvered accordingly and on
several occasions dropped depth 

685
00:42:53,560 --> 00:42:55,920
charges, hoping to drive off the
Soviet sub. 

686
00:42:56,960 --> 00:43:00,200
While S13 did eventually move 
off into deeper water, 

687
00:43:00,680 --> 00:43:04,480
unfortunately, its depth charges
blasted scores of people in the 

688
00:43:04,480 --> 00:43:09,200
water, killing them. 
Many more vessels responded to 

689
00:43:09,200 --> 00:43:11,440
the distress call and assisted 
with the rescue. 

690
00:43:12,240 --> 00:43:14,920
The living mixed with the 
floating dead in a macabre sea 

691
00:43:14,920 --> 00:43:18,680
of misery. 
T36 was able to rescue a total 

692
00:43:18,680 --> 00:43:23,520
of 564 people, while the Lova 
picked up 472. 

693
00:43:24,040 --> 00:43:28,520
Three minesweepers rescued 178 
and four additional vessels, 

694
00:43:28,520 --> 00:43:31,560
including the steamer Gottenjen,
rescued 38 more. 

695
00:43:32,920 --> 00:43:36,000
Included among the survivors 
were all four captains from the 

696
00:43:36,000 --> 00:43:41,960
Vilhelm Gustloff. 7 hours after 
the Gustloff went down, patrol 

697
00:43:41,960 --> 00:43:46,560
boat V17-O3 discovered a lone 
life raft seemingly filled with 

698
00:43:46,560 --> 00:43:50,320
dead bodies. 
Petty Officer Werner Fick leapt 

699
00:43:50,320 --> 00:43:54,560
in to inspect and found a baby 
still alive, wrapped in blankets

700
00:43:54,560 --> 00:43:57,920
among the corpses. 
It was the last survivor to be 

701
00:43:57,920 --> 00:44:02,920
rescued. 
Mangled, oil soaked bodies 

702
00:44:02,920 --> 00:44:06,360
washed ashore the Pomeranian 
coastline for weeks along with 

703
00:44:06,360 --> 00:44:10,600
debris from the ship. 
Of the estimated 10,500 on board

704
00:44:10,600 --> 00:44:14,960
the Wilhelm Gustloff, only 1252 
were rescued. 

705
00:44:15,680 --> 00:44:20,480
Approximately 9300 to 9500 
people, the vast majority of 

706
00:44:20,480 --> 00:44:25,000
them civilian refugees, 
perished, including 4000 to 5000

707
00:44:25,000 --> 00:44:29,120
children. 
Captain of the S13 Alexander 

708
00:44:29,120 --> 00:44:33,080
Marinesko took his sub into 
deeper waters, but he remained 

709
00:44:33,200 --> 00:44:35,640
stalking in the shipping 
channels for more targets. 

710
00:44:36,880 --> 00:44:40,480
On February 9th, S13 sank the 
transport ship General von 

711
00:44:40,480 --> 00:44:44,320
Steuben, carrying approximately 
4500 civilian and military 

712
00:44:44,320 --> 00:44:47,840
refugees. 
An estimated 3000 to 4000 were 

713
00:44:47,840 --> 00:45:20,460
killed. 
And for delivery After returning

714
00:45:20,460 --> 00:45:24,460
to the Soviet Union, Merenesco 
was not received as a hero, but 

715
00:45:24,460 --> 00:45:28,720
instead got a cold welcome. 
He had a reputation to be ill 

716
00:45:28,720 --> 00:45:32,040
tempered, a drunk, and he 
frequently failed to provide 

717
00:45:32,040 --> 00:45:34,040
reliable details of enemy 
targets. 

718
00:45:34,880 --> 00:45:38,440
Instead of being a hero, he was 
demoted to Lieutenant and served

719
00:45:38,440 --> 00:45:41,840
time in a Siberian prison before
being dishonorably discharged. 

720
00:45:42,520 --> 00:45:46,680
He died in 1963, but was 
posthumously awarded the Hero of

721
00:45:46,680 --> 00:45:50,880
the Soviet Union Medal in 1990 
and recognized for his sinkings 

722
00:45:50,880 --> 00:45:55,120
during World War 2. 
The loss of the Wilhelm Gusloff 

723
00:45:55,120 --> 00:45:57,440
with so many thousands of 
Germans on board was 

724
00:45:57,440 --> 00:46:00,440
devastating. 
Nazi officials kept this news 

725
00:46:00,440 --> 00:46:03,480
from the public, not wanting to 
add to the already furious 

726
00:46:03,480 --> 00:46:07,280
panic, but the Allies promptly 
printed Flyers announcing this 

727
00:46:07,280 --> 00:46:10,200
news written in German. 
The Flyers were then dropped 

728
00:46:10,200 --> 00:46:12,640
into German held territories by 
Allied planes. 

729
00:46:13,520 --> 00:46:17,320
Eventually, the sinking was used
by the Nazi propaganda machine 

730
00:46:17,320 --> 00:46:20,040
to gain sympathy and to rally 
the German people. 

731
00:46:21,040 --> 00:46:24,120
The Soviets did not publicize 
the sinking with so many 

732
00:46:24,120 --> 00:46:27,560
civilian victims. 
However, false claims were 

733
00:46:27,560 --> 00:46:30,640
printed that the women on board 
were all personnel of the German

734
00:46:30,640 --> 00:46:34,360
s s. 
While 343 members of the Women's

735
00:46:34,360 --> 00:46:38,280
Naval Auxiliary were on board, 
many thousands of the women were

736
00:46:38,280 --> 00:46:41,960
civilians. 
The German Navy launched an 

737
00:46:41,960 --> 00:46:45,040
inquiry following the sinking, 
but only investigated Captain 

738
00:46:45,040 --> 00:46:48,240
Wilhelm Zahn. 
Heinrich Peterson, who was a 

739
00:46:48,240 --> 00:46:51,160
merchant marine captain, was not
under the purview of the Navy. 

740
00:46:52,000 --> 00:46:55,560
Zahn explained that he was not 
given any specific operational 

741
00:46:55,560 --> 00:46:59,560
orders, such as to zigzag or a 
specific course, and was not 

742
00:46:59,560 --> 00:47:01,960
given any intelligence of 
submarine activity. 

743
00:47:02,800 --> 00:47:05,840
As for the evacuation, he 
claimed communication problems 

744
00:47:05,840 --> 00:47:08,800
with the Croatian crew Hanford 
efforts, as they did not 

745
00:47:08,800 --> 00:47:10,920
understand the orders given to 
them in German. 

746
00:47:11,880 --> 00:47:15,800
According to his testimony, when
the Wilhelm Gustav reached a 30°

747
00:47:15,800 --> 00:47:19,600
list, he abandoned any attempt 
to help with the evacuation and 

748
00:47:19,600 --> 00:47:23,800
boarded A lifeboat at the stern.
With the German surrender on 

749
00:47:23,800 --> 00:47:27,560
April 8th, 1945 and the collapse
of the Nazi government, the 

750
00:47:27,560 --> 00:47:30,760
inquiry into Zahn's involvement 
in the sinking went unresolved. 

751
00:47:31,600 --> 00:47:34,400
Zahn was not charged with war 
crimes following the war. 

752
00:47:35,080 --> 00:47:38,040
He lived the rest of his life 
known as the man who almost 

753
00:47:38,040 --> 00:47:42,240
killed Churchill. 
Wilhelm Zahn died in 1976 at the

754
00:47:42,240 --> 00:47:47,480
age of 66. 
There has been much debate about

755
00:47:47,480 --> 00:47:50,480
whether the sinking of the 
Wilhelm Gustloff was a war crime

756
00:47:50,640 --> 00:47:52,720
or if it was a legitimate target
of war. 

757
00:47:53,840 --> 00:47:56,880
While she was formerly a 
hospital ship and did have 

758
00:47:56,880 --> 00:47:59,960
wounded soldiers on board, she 
was not marked with the Red 

759
00:47:59,960 --> 00:48:03,840
Cross of a hospital ship and was
painted a dull Navy Gray and 

760
00:48:03,840 --> 00:48:07,680
under military command. 
She certainly did not look like 

761
00:48:07,680 --> 00:48:10,600
a hospital ship. 
She also was armed with anti 

762
00:48:10,600 --> 00:48:12,880
aircraft guns, although they 
were inoperable. 

763
00:48:13,480 --> 00:48:16,240
While the Geneva Convention 
allows hospital ships to carry 

764
00:48:16,240 --> 00:48:19,720
defensive armaments, these were 
almost always small arms such as

765
00:48:19,720 --> 00:48:23,480
rifles and pistols. 
Others point to the high number 

766
00:48:23,480 --> 00:48:26,480
of civilian casualties to make 
an argument for this being a war

767
00:48:26,480 --> 00:48:29,320
crime. 
However, there was no way for 

768
00:48:29,320 --> 00:48:32,760
Captain Marinesko to have known 
who or what was on board the 

769
00:48:32,760 --> 00:48:34,880
Gustloff. 
Since she was not marked as a 

770
00:48:34,880 --> 00:48:37,680
hospital ship, this made her a 
valid war target. 

771
00:48:38,720 --> 00:48:41,760
It is simply unfortunate that 
most of the victims were 

772
00:48:41,760 --> 00:48:45,760
civilians. 
Survivor Gunther Grass is the 

773
00:48:45,760 --> 00:48:49,440
author of the 2002 novel Crab 
Walk about the sinking of the 

774
00:48:49,440 --> 00:48:52,600
Wilhelm Gustloff. 
He told The New York Times in 

775
00:48:52,600 --> 00:48:55,800
1993. 
They said the tragedy of Wilhelm

776
00:48:55,800 --> 00:48:58,160
Gustloff was a war crime. 
It wasn't. 

777
00:48:58,520 --> 00:49:01,080
It was terrible, but it was a 
result of war. 

778
00:49:01,360 --> 00:49:06,280
A terrible result of war 
Following the war, the wreck of 

779
00:49:06,280 --> 00:49:09,640
the Gustloff was under control 
of the Soviet Union, and diving 

780
00:49:09,640 --> 00:49:12,600
on it was strictly forbidden. 
Well into the 1950s. 

781
00:49:13,680 --> 00:49:16,760
Soviet divers cut into its hull,
although it's uncertain what 

782
00:49:16,760 --> 00:49:19,920
they were searching for. 
It also appears they may have 

783
00:49:19,920 --> 00:49:22,400
used dynamite to blast into the 
ship's midsection. 

784
00:49:23,720 --> 00:49:27,600
By 1973, anyone was free to dive
on the wreck and remove 

785
00:49:27,600 --> 00:49:30,960
artifacts. 
Polish diving legend Jersey 

786
00:49:30,960 --> 00:49:34,480
Yansukovich made many dives to 
the Gustloff and collected some 

787
00:49:34,480 --> 00:49:37,560
impressive artifacts, including 
a large chandelier from the 

788
00:49:37,560 --> 00:49:41,320
smoking room, a piece of stair 
railing and the ship's compass. 

789
00:49:42,200 --> 00:49:45,880
He reported seeing the skeleton 
of a soldier still wearing boots

790
00:49:45,880 --> 00:49:49,760
and a military belt. 
Both Poland and Germany 

791
00:49:49,760 --> 00:49:53,720
recognized the site as a war 
grave in 1994 and prohibited 

792
00:49:53,720 --> 00:49:57,640
diving within 500 meters unless 
a special permit was obtained. 

793
00:49:59,040 --> 00:50:02,800
In 2003, American diver Mike 
Boring received special 

794
00:50:02,800 --> 00:50:05,400
permission and found the middle 
section to be completely 

795
00:50:05,400 --> 00:50:08,360
destroyed. 
He observed that it seemed as if

796
00:50:08,360 --> 00:50:11,480
it was simply just the shell of 
the ship and everything else had

797
00:50:11,480 --> 00:50:14,720
been removed. 
Many other artifacts, including 

798
00:50:14,720 --> 00:50:19,640
lifeboats, the ship's bell, life
rings, China porthole frame, 

799
00:50:19,640 --> 00:50:22,880
silverware, perfume bottles, 
plus personal letters and 

800
00:50:22,880 --> 00:50:25,480
passenger tickets have been 
collected by the Vilhelm 

801
00:50:25,480 --> 00:50:27,960
Gustloff Museum. 
Today. 

802
00:50:27,960 --> 00:50:31,600
The wreck lies 19 miles from 
Liba, Poland, in the Baltic Sea,

803
00:50:31,880 --> 00:50:36,040
under 45 meters of water. 
Polish navigation charts mark 

804
00:50:36,040 --> 00:50:39,800
the location with this note. 
This area is a burial site of 

805
00:50:39,800 --> 00:50:42,680
shipwreck victims. 
Any activity that may break the 

806
00:50:42,680 --> 00:50:44,440
piece of This site is 
prohibited. 

807
00:50:48,680 --> 00:50:51,560
That's going to do it for 
history's deadliest shipwreck, 

808
00:50:51,800 --> 00:50:54,560
the Wilhelm Gustloff. 
Thank you so much for listening.

809
00:50:55,360 --> 00:50:58,120
Shipwrecks and Sea Dogs is 
written, edited and produced by 

810
00:50:58,120 --> 00:51:01,840
me, Rich Napolitano. 
Original theme music is by Sean 

811
00:51:01,840 --> 00:51:04,880
Siegfried and you can find him 
at seansiegfried.com. 

812
00:51:05,720 --> 00:51:08,720
All back episodes, show notes, 
and show merchandise can be 

813
00:51:08,720 --> 00:51:10,800
found at Shipwrecks and 
seadogs.com. 

814
00:51:11,640 --> 00:51:14,280
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join the Officers Club at 

815
00:51:14,280 --> 00:51:18,920
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816
00:51:18,920 --> 00:51:22,720
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817
00:51:22,720 --> 00:51:26,160
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818
00:51:27,120 --> 00:51:30,160
Last but not least, be sure to 
rate and review the show in your

819
00:51:30,160 --> 00:51:34,080
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would very much appreciate it. 

820
00:51:35,160 --> 00:51:40,080
Please join me again next time, 
but until then, don't forget to 

821
00:51:40,080 --> 00:51:42,840
wear your life jackets.