Robert Karl Friedrich Gysae (14 January 1911 – 26 April 1989) was a German U-boat commander in the ''

Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...

'' during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He was a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. The Knight' ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

. Gysae commanded and , being credited with sinking twenty-five ships on eight patrols, for a total of of Allied shipping.

Career

Gysae joined the ''Reichsmarine'' in 1931 and served on

torpedo boats A torpedo boat is a relatively small and fast naval ship designed to carry torpedoes into battle. The first designs were steam-powered craft dedicated to ramming enemy ships with explosive spar torpedoes. Later evolutions launched variants of s ...

before transferring to the ''U-Bootwaffe'' ("U-boat force") in April 1940. In October 1940 he was appointed commander of the Type VIIC U-boat ''U-98'', unusually without serving any time as either 1.WO (''1. Wachoffizier'', "1st Watch Officer") or ''Kommandantenschüler'' ("Commander-in-Training") on any other U-boats. After six patrols in the north Atlantic in command of ''U-98'', in March 1942 he transferred to the Type IXD2 U-boat ''U-177'' for another two patrols, this time operating off

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

and

Portuguese East Africa Portuguese Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique) or Portuguese East Africa (''África Oriental Portuguesa'') were the common terms by which Mozambique was designated during the period in which it was a Portuguese colony. Portuguese Mozambique originally ...

. He sank a total of 25 ships, including the armed merchant cruiser . On 28 November 1942 off the coast of Natal Province, Gysae sank the 6,796 ton British troop ship with three

torpedo A modern torpedo is an underwater ranged weapon launched above or below the water surface, self-propelled towards a target, and with an explosive warhead designed to detonate either on contact with or in proximity to the target. Historically, su ...

es. She was carrying 780 Italians; a mixture of prisoners of war and civilian internees. Gysae rescued two survivors to identify the ship, who turned out to be Italian merchant sailors. Mindful of the Laconia Order issued two months previously, Gysae radioed the

BdU The ''Befehlshaber der Unterseeboote'' or BdU (Eng: "Commander of the U-boats") was the supreme commander of the German Navy's U-boat Arm (''Ubootwaffe'') during the First World War, First and Second World Wars. The term also referred to the Comma ...

, who ordered him to continue his patrol. The BdU notified the Portuguese authorities, who sent the frigate NRP ''Afonso de Albuquerque'' from

Lourenço Marques Maputo (), formerly named Lourenço Marques until 1976, is the capital, and largest city of Mozambique. Located near the southern end of the country, it is within of the borders with Eswatini and South Africa. The city has a population of 1,088 ...

to help. Of 1,052 people from the ''Nova Scotia'' only 194 survived: 192 rescued by the frigate and two others in subsequent days. 858 were killed, including 650 Italians. In January 1944 he became commander of ''

25th U-boat Flotilla 25th U-boat Flotilla (german: 25. Unterseebootsflottille) was formed in Danzig in April 1940 as a training flotilla responsible for Firing Training. It moved bases several times throughout the war. Between June 1941 and September 1941 it moved to ...

'', a training flotilla based at

Gotenhafen Gdynia ( ; ; german: Gdingen (currently), (1939–1945); csb, Gdiniô, , , ) is a city in northern Poland and a seaport on the Baltic Sea coast. With a population of 243,918, it is the 12th-largest city in Poland and the second-largest in th ...

. In April 1945, during the last month of the war, Gysae commanded the ''Marinepanzerjagd-Regiment 1'', a naval anti-tank regiment. After the war he served in the

German Mine Sweeping Administration The German Mine Sweeping Administration (GMSA) was an organisation formed by the Allies from former crews and vessels of the Nazi Germany's ''Kriegsmarine'' for the purpose of mine sweeping after the Second World War, predominantly in the North Sea ...

(''Deutscher Minenräumdienst'') for more than two years. In 1956 he joined the ''

Bundesmarine The German Navy (, ) is the navy of Germany and part of the unified ''Bundeswehr'' (Federal Defense), the German Armed Forces. The German Navy was originally known as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy) from 1956 to 1995, when ''Deutsche Mari ...

'', serving for four years as

naval attaché A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It includ ...

in the United States, and then three years as commander of ''Marinedivision Nordsee'' with the rank of ''

Flottillenadmiral Flotilla admiral is the lowest flag rank, a rank above captain, in the modern navies of Belgium, Bulgaria, Denmark, Finland, Germany and Sweden. It corresponds to the ranks of commodore or rear admiral (lower half) in the navies of the United ...

'' before retiring in 1970. He died in 1989 aged 78.

Awards

Wehrmacht Long Service Award The Wehrmacht Long Service Award () was a military service decoration of Nazi Germany issued for satisfactory completion of a number of years in military service. History On 16 March, 1936, Adolf Hitler ordered the institution of a service awar ...

4th Class (2 October 1936)Busch & Röll 2003, p. 182. * The Return of Sudetenland Commemorative Medal of 1 October 1938 (20 December 1939)Busch & Röll 2003, p. 183. *

Spanish Cross The Spanish Cross (german: Spanien-Kreuz) was an award of Nazi Germany given to German troops who participated in the Spanish Civil War, fighting for nationalist general, later Spanish caudillo, Francisco Franco. History With the outbreak o ...

in Bronze with SwordsBusch & Röll 2003, p. 184. *

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia est ...

(1939) 2nd Class (31 May 1940) & 1st Class (15 April 1941) * Knight's Cross of the Order of the Crown of Italy (11 March 1941) *

U-boat War Badge The U-boat War Badge (german: U-Boot-Kriegsabzeichen) was a German war badge that was awarded to U-boat crew members during World War I and World War II. History The ''U-boat War Badge'' was originally instituted during the First World War on Feb ...

(1939) (31 May 1941); with Diamonds * ''

Croce di Guerra The War Cross for Military Valor ( it, Croce di Guerra al Valor Militare) is an Italian order for military valor. Established in 1922, the cross may be awarded only in time of war. Appearance The medal is a Greek cross made of copper. Inscri ...

'' with Swords (Italy, 25 May 1943) *

Wound Badge The Wound Badge (german: Verwundetenabzeichen) was a German military decoration first promulgated by Wilhelm II, German Emperor on 3 March 1918, which was first awarded to soldiers of the German Army who were wounded during World War I. Between ...

(1939) in Black (25 June 1943) *

War Merit Cross The War Merit Cross (german: Kriegsverdienstkreuz) was a state decoration of Nazi Germany during World War II. By the end of the conflict it was issued in four degrees and had an equivalent civil award. A " de-Nazified" version of the War Meri ...

, 2nd Class with Swords (1 September 1944) * U-boat Front Clasp in Bronze (1 October 1944) *

** Knight's Cross (31 December 1941) as commander of ''U-98''Scherzer 2007, p. 356. ** 250th Oak Leaves (31 May 1943) as commander of ''U-177'' *

Legion of Merit The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight ...

(

United States of America The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

) * Officer's Cross,

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

References

Citations

Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gysae, Robert 1911 births 1989 deaths People from Charlottenburg Reichsmarine personnel Bundesmarine admirals U-boat commanders (Kriegsmarine) Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves German military personnel of the Spanish Civil War Foreign recipients of the Legion of Merit Officers Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Recipients of the War Cross for Military Valor Flotilla admirals of the German Navy Military personnel from Berlin