Gerhard Bigalk (26 November 1908 – 17 July 1942) was a captain with the ''

Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Nazi 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 It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic.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 military branch, branche ...

'' during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

and commander of . He was a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (), 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. While it was order of precedence, lower in preceden ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

Career

Bigalk spent some years in the merchant marine before joining the ''Kriegsmarine'' in April 1934. He initially trained as an

observer An observer is one who engages in observation or in watching an experiment. Observer may also refer to: Fiction * ''Observer'' (novel), a 2023 science fiction novel by Robert Lanza and Nancy Kress * ''Observer'' (video game), a cyberpunk horr ...

in the

naval air force Naval aviation / Aeronaval is the application of military air power by navies, whether from warships that embark aircraft, or land bases. It often involves '' navalised aircraft'', specifically designed for naval use. Seaborne aviation encompass ...

, and saw service during the

Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

, making 21 combat flights in 1937. He joined the U-boat force in November 1939. He trained into 1940, taking command of the school boat between June and August 1940. He then took command of the newly built submarine when it commissioned in January 1941. Between June 1941 and July 1942 Bigalk commanded ''U-751'' on seven combat patrols, sinking six ships totalling 32,412 tons, and damaged one ship of 8,096 tons. This included the 11,000 ton British

escort carrier The escort carrier or escort aircraft carrier (U.S. hull classification symbol CVE), also called a "jeep carrier" or "baby flattop" in the United States Navy (USN) or "Woolworth Carrier" by the Royal Navy, was a small and slower type of aircraf ...

from convoy HG 76, sunk on 21 December 1941 during his fourth patrol, for which Bigalk was awarded the Knight's Cross. Bigalk died on 17 July 1942 when ''U-751'' was sunk with all hands by

depth charge A depth charge is an anti-submarine warfare (ASW) weapon designed to destroy submarine A submarine (often shortened to sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. (It differs from a submersible, which has more limited ...

s dropped by a Whitley bomber from No. 502 Squadron RAF and a

Lancaster Lancaster may refer to: Lands and titles *The County Palatine of Lancaster, a synonym for Lancashire *Duchy of Lancaster, one of only two British royal duchies *Duke of Lancaster *Earl of Lancaster *House of Lancaster, a British royal dynasty ...

bomber from

No. 61 Squadron RAF No. 61 Squadron was a squadron (aviation), squadron of the Royal Air Force. It was first formed as a fighter squadron of the British Royal Flying Corps during the First World War. It was reformed in 1937 as a bomber squadron of the Royal Air F ...

in the North Atlantic north-west of

Cape Ortegal Ortegal is a ''comarca'' in the north of the Galician Province of A Coruña, Spain. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Cantabrian Sea to the north, the Province of Lugo Lugo is a province (Spain), province of northwestern Spain, in the nor ...

, Spain. Bigalk received a

posthumous Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...

promotion to ''Korvettenkapitän'' on 5 April 1945.

Awards

* Luftwaffe Observation Badge (2 November 1936) *

Wehrmacht Long Service Award The Wehrmacht Long Service Award () was a List of military decorations of the Third Reich, military service decoration of Nazi Germany issued for satisfactory completion of a number of years in military service. History On 16 March 1936, Adolf ...

4th Class (8 April 1938) * ''Cruz roja Medalla de la Campaña'' (1 June 1939) *

Spanish Cross The Spanish Cross () was an award of Nazi Germany given to German troops who participated in the Spanish Civil War, fighting for nationalist general, later Spanish dictator, Francisco Franco. History With the outbreak of the Spanish Civil W ...

in Silver with Swords (1 June 1939) * The Return of Sudetenland Commemorative Medal of 1 October 1938 (1 December 1939) *

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...

(1939) ** 2nd Class (30 November 1940) ** 1st Class (26 December 1941) *

U-boat War Badge The U-boat War Badge () 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 February 1, 1918. It was awarded ...

(1939) (7 July 1941) *

on 26 December 1941 as ''

Kapitänleutnant , short: KptLt/in lists: KL, ( or ''lieutenant captain'') is an officer grade of the captains' military hierarchy group () of the modern German . The rank is rated Ranks and insignia of NATO navies' officers, OF-2 in NATO, and equivalent to i ...

'' and commander of ''U-751''

References

Notes

Bibliography

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Biglak, Gerhard 1908 births 1942 deaths Kriegsmarine personnel killed in World War II U-boat commanders (Kriegsmarine) Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross People lost at sea Reichsmarine personnel Condor Legion personnel Deaths by British airstrikes during World War II Military personnel from Berlin People from Pankow