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Aaron S Hamilton
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Knight of the North Atlantic: Baron Siegfried von Forstner and the War Patrols of U-402, 1941–1943 Kindle Edition

by Aaron S. Hamilton (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
5.0 5.0 out of 5 stars 3 ratings
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As World War II recedes further into the past, still each year hundreds of new books are published about some aspect of this global conflict. Many offer new insights from recently declassified documents. Other’s look to reinterpret what was thought to be well understood events. This book is no exception. The history of U-402, a Type VIIC German U-boat, is another tile in the mosaic of the war, and more specifically the Battle of the Atlantic. U-402’s conning tower was emblazoned with the shield of its sponsoring German city of Karlsruhe. Upon that shield was the Latin word ‘Fidelitas’ – Fidelity – and Baron Siegfried Freiherr von Forstner, the U-boat’s captain, embodied that word through his deep sense of loyalty to his profession, country, and crew. Born of an aristocratic military family, with a tradition of U-boat service, von Forstner served without the pretentiousness of title, even after winning the Ritterkreuz (Knight’s Cross). He fought the war like a knight of old, with a defined code of chivalry, as he dueled with escorts, went to the aid of fellow U-boats, and rescued his enemy from the sea. As the North Atlantic battlefield grew deadlier with each successive patrol, von Forstner remained focused on his duty to sink Allied tonnage while keeping his crew alive. His daring and conduct at sea captured the respect of Captain, US Coast Guard (Ret) John M Waters, who was a Watch Officer onboard the escort USCGC Ingham that fought U-402 in several convoy battles. After the war, he became the unexpected chronicler of his former enemy, and established an enduring friendship with von Forstner’s family. The story of von Forstner and U-402 parallels the rise and fall of the Wolfpack, and reflects the ebb and flow of the Battle of the Atlantic from the early operations in European waters, to Operation Paukenschlag (Drumbeat) off the US East Coast, to the climatic convoy battles of the North Atlantic in 1943. This is a truly gripping account of the Atlantic conflict, and the large selection of photographs adds a realism and authenticity found in very few accounts of the U-boat war.
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  1. Print length
    222 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Sticky notes
    On Kindle Scribe
  4. Publisher
    Seaforth Publishing
  5. Publication date
    May 30, 2022
  6. File size
    88417 KB
  7. Page Flip
    Enabled
  8. Word Wise
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Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Aaron Stephan Hamilton is an academically trained historian. He holds both a Bachelor's and Master's degree in History, as well as the Field Historian designator awarded by the U.S. Army's Combat Studies Institute. He is an amateur maritime archeologist with a focus on submarine history. For more than twenty-five years he has researched and published ground-breaking studies about the final year of World War II in Europe. His recent book, Total Undersea War, has been critically acclaimed for its depth of research and original subject matter. --This text refers to the hardcover edition.

Review

Hamilton's book is copiously illustrated with photographs which show life aboard U-402 and some of the vessels she sank or damaged: many of them were made by his grandfather's shipmate, Walter Friebolin, and others are drawn from private and official collections. The accompanying sidebars clearly explain the photographs and, like the charts at the end of the book, elucidate the narrative. Hamilton succeeds in making von Forstner and the crew of U-402 real people with whom we can empathise, and the final section of the book - a dive onto the now peaceful and overgrown remains of one of U-402's victims - is a fitting conclusion to the story and reminder, if one were needed, of the price of war. --- Australian Naval Institute

"An important feature of the book is the excellent photographs, of life on board and also of the vessels encountered by the boat, including Allied warships as well as merchantmen. The appendices include details of the boat's patrols and the crew. Source notes will also be a useful source for future historians.
By seeing the campaign through the career of one U-boat, its commander and its crew, the author has provided an important insight into the Battle of the Atlantic. It is a story of strategy and tactics and of changing fortunes. Most of all, it is about enduring themes such as the leadership and teamwork essential for success in battle, and of the price paid by the participants. This book is highly recommended."
-The Naval Review

"This then is a quite excellent book, with good maps, an extensive bibliography and unusual images and it is very well produced. But above all it explores the day-to-day experience of life for the U-boat crewmen and as a result is much more than a dry account of patrols, attacks and sinkings."
--Mariners Mirror --This text refers to the hardcover edition.

Product details

  • ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09SKSJQ9S
  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Seaforth Publishing (May 30, 2022)
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ May 30, 2022
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • File size ‏ : ‎ 88417 KB
  • Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
  • Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Not Enabled
  • Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
  • Sticky notes ‏ : ‎ On Kindle Scribe
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 222 pages
  • Customer Reviews:
    5.0 5.0 out of 5 stars 3 ratings

About the author

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Aaron S Hamilton

Aaron S Hamilton

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Aaron Stephan Hamilton is an academically trained historian, avocational maritime archaeologist, technologist, researcher and published author. He has more than a quarter-century of experience in studying adversarial military operations and technological innovations across a wide-spectrum of fields gained through his military and national security service. His historical interests remain focused on the final year of combat operations during World War II, the postwar exploitation of German and Japanese wartime innovations by the Allies, and tracing their technical impacts in the fields of submarine and rocket development.

Customer reviews

5 out of 5 stars
5 out of 5
3 global ratings

Top review from the United States

SprLdr35
5.0 out of 5 stars Another Great Book from this author
Reviewed in the United States on June 26, 2022
Verified Purchase
Another great book from this author. He moves us seamlessly from the operational and strategic picture to the tactical level. He includes small details but does it in a way that I don't feel like I am ready a manual which keeps me interested along with educated and wanting to continue reading. Though I am only 1/2 way done with this book, I am NOT disappointed at all.
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