Austria-Hungary’s Forgotten U-Boat Captains
A multinational microcosm of the Habsburg state, the Austro-Hungarian submarine fleet of the First World War not only worked but worked well.
The 50 U-boat captains of the Imperial and Royal Navy of Austria-Hungary from the creation of its submarine corps in 1909 to the fleet’s dissolution in 1918 are long forgotten, as is the imperial navy in which they served defending the multi-ethnic Habsburg empire.
Yet, they deserve to be remembered. Their skill at sea made them among the most successful U-boat skippers of the First World War. And in view of the ethnic tensions in the Balkans, we admire them for their success as commanders of U-boats whose officers and men came from the many nationalities of the Austro-Hungarian empire, yet remained loyal to navy and state until its final collapse in October 1918.
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