German Light Cruisers 1939–45

This extract is taken from the chapter entitled ‘Kreuzer Karlsruhe.’

Some two hours after the first shots were fired, fog shrouded the port, forcing a halt to the action. An hour later this cleared and the order was given that two of the fast-moving torpedo boats land the troops they were carrying on Odderöy itself with orders to take out the Norwegian gun positions whilst Karlsruhe provided fire support. However, the defenders had decided to end their resistance and the Germans were able to enter the port unopposed. At just after noon, the Odderöy fortress also surrendered and Karlsruhe was able to disembark her passengers. Her task completed, she then headed for home, with three of the torpedo boats as escort.Unfortunately for the Germans, lying in wait was the British submarine HMS Truant, which spotted the enemy group and fired off a spread of torpedoes. Despite zigzagging at speed, Karlsruhe was unable to avoid the torpedoes and was hit by two, one in the bows and another at the base of her mainmast. She immediately adopted a list and began to settle by the stern, shipping thousands of tons of water. Turbine and boiler rooms were flooded and electrical power was lost, resulting in the failure of the pumps in the torpedo-hit area to keep pace with the volume of water entering the damaged cruiser. Within minutes, the first officer had presented the captain with a very gloomy report on the ship’s condition. Based on the report, it was decided that there was no hope of saving the ship and the order to abandon was given as she slowly settled in the water. The crew was taken on board one of the torpedo boats, which was then instructed to deliver the coup de grâce to her stricken companion.

A post-incident enquiry severely criticised the captain and first officer for not doing enough to try to save the ship. She was still afloat, albeit disabled, more than two hours after the torpedoes struck, and the pumps in the forward part of the ship were undamaged. Although these pumps were not capable of preventing the ship from flooding, they could have slowed down the volume of water entering her for some considerable time, suggesting that it may have been possible to tow her into port or to a spot where she may have been beached in shallow water. Indeed, it needed two torpedoes from the torpedo boat that administered the coup de grâce before the cruiser finally sank. Severe recriminations followed, many of which appear to have been fully justified. It certainly seems that nowhere near enough effort was made to save the damaged warship.