The Story of the Nazi Submarine Found Off Sakarya

We tell the story of Nazi submarines that served in the Black Sea during the Second World War, were trapped and sunk by their own crews.

In 1994, in the Black Sea, off Sakarya. a sunken submarine found. With the studies carried out, it was determined that this submarine was the U-20 submarine, one of the submarines sent by Hitler to the Black Sea during the Barbarossa Operation during the Second World War. Apart from this submarine, it was known that there were two more submerged submarines in the surrounding areas of the Black Sea.

This submarine, just lying in our waters, was selected within the scope of a project supported by the Ministry of Environment and Urbanization in 2016 and was subjected to investigations. fishermen left in the waters submarine covered in ghost netswas cleaned and brought into diving tourism.

So, how did this submarine, which had been lying in the Black Sea for years, came to the Black Sea while a war was going on that did not involve Turkey, why was it sunk by its own crew in our waters, then what happened to that crew?

Hitler tried every way to enter the Black Sea through the Straits…

Operation Barbarossa, known as the largest military operation of the Second World War and world history, was Hitler’s The centerpiece of Nazi Germany’s plan to invade the Soviets was started as The main purpose of this operation, which was of vital importance for Hitler, was the occupation of Crimea and the capture of the Soviet air bases there. This would end the Soviet air superiority.

The most practical way to enter the Black Sea was through the Straits. However, Turkey did not participate in the war by remaining neutral during the Second World War and under the Montreux Straits Convention. did not allow warships to pass through the Straits. This prompted Hitler to look for other ways to get his submarines into the Black Sea.

First, two of the submarines known as the ‘Ay Class’ that Germany sold to Turkey, ‘Atılay’ and ‘Aldıray’ offered to buy. However, this demand was not accepted by Turkey. As such, Hitler’s Germany had ‘Batiray’ and ‘Yıldıray’, which had not yet been delivered to Turkey and which are still under construction in Germany. They took the decision not to hand it over to our country.

After the rejection of the purchase offer, Germany made another offer to Turkey on Hitler’s orders. In exchange for allowing submarines and torpedo boats to pass through the Straits Military equipment worth 150,000,000 RM (Reichsmark/Imperial Mark) would be given to Turkey free of charge.. However, Turkey rejected this offer as well.

Land driven submarines…

Realizing that it is not possible to enter the Black Sea through the Turkish-controlled straits, Hitler began to develop different strategies. Within the scope of these strategies, six U-class submarines, being carried over land in pieces It was transported to the Danube and then lowered to the Black Sea.

Thus, Hitler took one of the biggest steps in the Soviet plan to end the air superiority and invade the Soviet Union. However Things didn’t go as planned at all.

The fate of the submarines, which carried out many operations in the Black Sea for about two years and sank dozens of ships, was the fate of Romania’s defecting to the Allied Powers and declaring war on Germany. changed when three of them (U-9, U-18, U-24) were sunk by the Soviet Navy.

Their crews sank the remaining three submarines off the Turkish coast.

The three remaining submarines, who realized that there was no exit from the Black Sea, that the war had changed direction and that they could not escape from the Straits, reported the situation. The German government, on the other hand, first made an offer to Ankara, demanding that the remaining submarines be given to the Republic of Turkey, and in return, the crew be allowed to join the German troops in the Aegean Islands. However, the Ankara government did not accept this. Realizing that they had no exits after this development, Hitler’s Germany decided that the submarines were on the shores of Turkey. He ordered her to be sunk by her own crews and the crew to land on the Turkish shores.

Thus, the soldiers moved ashore, sinking two submarines in one area and one submarine in another area. Their aim was to first reach the shores of the Marmara Sea, find an abandoned boat, and then descend into the Mediterranean. However, it was detected by the people of the surrounding area while moving on the land. handed over to Turkish authorities. Then, their ‘compulsory guests’ continued until the end of 1946.

The ‘forced stay’ of German soldiers was a painful process

Major Naci Erda, the Beyşehir camp commander, with the plain-clothed German soldiers

Turkey hosted a large number of refugees during the war. The concept of refugee was discussed a lot, especially after the First World War, and who should be called a refugee was also the subject of discussion.

Turkey, on the other hand, made its own definition on this issue and produced a solution on 14 June 1934 with the 3rd article of the Settlement Law No.Those who take shelter temporarily within the borders of the Turkish state, not for the purpose of resettlement, but out of necessity, are called refugees.” he stated. In other words, German soldiers were also refugees in Turkey. However, they were also ‘internees’, that is, in custody.

The submarine crew, consisting of 4 officers and 32 soldiers, was sent to the refugee camp in Beyşehir. At the same time the camp As for the different German soldiers who fled the war and took refuge in Turkey, It was a very crowded camp environment. However, the Turkish authorities made quick decisions to settle the soldiers in the camp and to meet their needs, and adapted the ‘forced guests’ to the environment in a short time. Expressing that they could work in the kitchen in order to meet the food need quickly, the German soldiers joined the camp’s kitchen team.

German soldiers in plain clothes in Beyşehir

German soldiers were walking around the camp in civilian clothes and were not allowed to wear their uniforms. Moreover Symbolic things, such as the Führer salute, were also prohibited.

A few days after their arrival at the camp German officers, their comments and demands on the general condition of the camp and its shortcomings. They made a report and presented it to the camp commander, Major Naci Erda. They demanded that the deficiencies be corrected.

Despite this ‘extraordinary’ demand, Erda received orders from Ankara to deal with the deficiencies of German soldiers and stated that necessary improvements would be made. However, in the articles describing the situation of the period, from time to time in the camp ‘psychological superiority’ to ensure that the tensions and Erda is said to have prevented them with some wise steps.

But no matter how much tension there may have been, in this process both The approaches of Naci Erda and Turkish camp personnel and some steps taken by German soldiers both for the camp and for Beyşehir, It made the process go smoothly.

For example, German military personnel before the Second World War Built by German engineers however, he repaired the hydroelectric power plant, which was inoperative due to a malfunction, and provided the city’s energy needs to be met. Thanks to such steps, both the approach of Turkish military personnel and the environment The approach of the people became more acceptable to the German soldiers. After a while, the German submarine crew 33 soldiers came together and established a classroom and they taught Turkish here.

After a while, things changed a lot.

Beyşehir was a small and poor settlement established around Lake Beyşehir at that time. Due to wetlands near campsites malaria epidemics was happening. In addition, as time passed and the difficulties experienced in the camp, which was covered with malaria in summer and snow in winter, caused tensions to be experienced again after a while. At the same time financial problems turned into food problems and these issues could not be fixed for a while.

As the end of the war approached, after Turkey’s involvement in the war on the side of the Allied Powers, symbolically, if not actually, Many of the rights of the German soldiers were also taken. Steps were taken, such as cutting down on salaries and preventing listening to the radio. Then the soldiers were made prisoners of war as Turkey was now a part of the war, even if only for show.

German soldiers, just like in Beyşehir, are here too. while strengthening their communication with the public and the environment some restrictions and prohibitions continued. In the following period, the war was over, Hitler was no longer the commander-in-chief, Nazi Germany had surrendered.

As such, German soldiers Between March 1946 – July 1946 With the completion of the ongoing processes, they had to end their ‘compulsory stay’. But the soldiers, because they are prisoners of war, They were not sent to their own countries and were handed over to the American troops on the victorious side.

Before leaving, a few more images of the found submarine;

Sources: Turkish Culture Portal, Prof. Dr. Ahmet Erkan Kıdeyş & Tahsin Ceylan, Dr. Umut Karadogan, Prof. Huseyin Musmal & Hasret Gumus

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