6/2/42 6/2/42.

490.

5/12/42 5/12/42.

491.

4/13/42 4/13/42.

492.

4/5/42 4/5/42.

493.

5/28/42 5/28/42.

494.

5/23/42 5/23/42.

495.

4/23/42 4/23/42.

560.

6/17/42 6/17/42.

563.

6/17/42 6/17/42.

565.

5/25/42 5/25/42.

566.

6/15/42 6/15/42.

567.

6/27/42 6/27/42.

569.

5/9/42 5/9/42.

570.

4/18/42 4/18/42.

571.

6/19/42 6/19/42.

572.

5/26/42 5/26/42.

573.

6/13/42 6/13/42.

588.

6/22/42 6/22/42.

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS AND SOURCESThis history is based on nine years of continuous research in archives and published works. For the German side, it relies heavily on the daily war diaries of German naval headquarters in Berlin and U-boat headquarters at various locations, and on the war diaries (or patrol reports) of individual U-boats. For the Allied side, it relies heavily on after-action reports from convoys and from warships and aircraft that tangled with U-boats, and on interrogation reports of captured German and Italian submariners.The war diaries of the various U-boat commands, amounting to thousands of pages (most translated into English), are immensely detailed. They include sailing and return dates and daily positions (known and assumed) of all U-boats on patrol; names, composition, and action of groups ("wolf packs"); sightings, chases, and sinking of Allied ships; battle damage or mechanical breakdowns incurred; information regarding offensive and defensive weapons; and assessments of strategy and tactics by Karl Donitz or others. Using these diaries and confirmed Allied ship losses to U-boats as compiled by others, intelligence derived from the German naval Enigma, and data from other sources, including individual U-boat war diaries, it has been possible to recreate almost all significant features of the patrols of virtually all the U-boats.The published sources vary widely in authenticity, reliability, and literary quality. Those of greatest merit include the official and semiofficial Allied war histories, and all the writings of the esteemed German professor Jorgen Rowher, as well as Gunther Hessler and Karl Donitz. Also of special note are the works of British authors Geoffrey Patrick Jones and Norman L. R. Franks, who have diligently probed official British archives to record specific U-boat kills by British air and naval forces. For equally competent and reliable research of this type, the American authors Philip Lundeberg, William T. Y'Blood, and Max Schoenfeld and the Canadians W.A.B. Douglas, Michael L. Hadley, and Marc Milner should not go unmentioned.Herr Horst Bredow, director of the impressive Stiftung Traditionsarchive Stiftung Traditionsarchive Un-terseeboote Un-terseeboote in Cuxhaven, Germany, provided much general help and background and specific documents of great value. One is an updated list (in booklet form) of all German U-boats built in World War II. The data for each boat include type, place of construction, dates of launching, commissioning, and assignment to battlefront flotilla (or schools, etc.), skippers and dates they commanded, and final fate of boat and crew. The other document is a compilation of Allied warships and merchant ships that were sunk by each U-boat, broken down by skippers of those individual U-boats. in Cuxhaven, Germany, provided much general help and background and specific documents of great value. One is an updated list (in booklet form) of all German U-boats built in World War II. The data for each boat include type, place of construction, dates of launching, commissioning, and assignment to battlefront flotilla (or schools, etc.), skippers and dates they commanded, and final fate of boat and crew. The other document is a compilation of Allied warships and merchant ships that were sunk by each U-boat, broken down by skippers of those individual U-boats.Many other persons assisted us in our research, and we are deeply grateful. We would especially like to thank Marcia Carr, Joan's brother, Charles H. ("Ham") Rutledge, and Frederic Sherman. Marcia, the chief librarian of the Washington Island Library, obtained for us literally hundreds of books and periodicals (some of them quite obscure) through the Wisconsin Interlibrary Loan system. Ham Rutledge, a professional computer expert, created a special program to compile the index and nursed Joan through countless PC complications and challenges. Purely as a favor, our dear friend Fred, a retired newspaper editor, copyedited the entire manuscript.The massive research collected in the preparation of this work, including thousands of pages of documents and microfilm and microfiche, has been deposited with our other papers at the American Heritage Center, University of Wyoming, in Laramie. We invite serious researchers to make use of this collection.

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

The bibliography for Hitler's U-boat War Hitler's U-boat War, containing over one thousand entries, will be published in Volume II in the fall of 1997. In the meantime, it may be viewed on or downloaded from the following Random House website: http://www.randomhouse.com/uboat/biblio.html

ABOUT THE AUTHOR.

CLAY B BLAIR served in combat on a submarine in the Pacific, attended Tulane and Columbia universities, and became the national security correspondent for served in combat on a submarine in the Pacific, attended Tulane and Columbia universities, and became the national security correspondent for Time, Life Time, Life, and The Saturday Evening Post The Saturday Evening Post magazines in Washington, then editor in chief of magazines in Washington, then editor in chief of The Saturday Evening Post. The Saturday Evening Post. He published hundreds of magazine articles and twenty-four books. These include biographies of Admiral H. G. Rickover; Generals Douglas MacArthur, Omar N. Bradley, and Matthew B. Ridgway; and John F. Kennedy; and, most recently, a definitive account of the conflict in Korea, He published hundreds of magazine articles and twenty-four books. These include biographies of Admiral H. G. Rickover; Generals Douglas MacArthur, Omar N. Bradley, and Matthew B. Ridgway; and John F. Kennedy; and, most recently, a definitive account of the conflict in Korea, The Forgotten War. The Forgotten War. Clay Blair died in December 1998, shortly after the publication of the second volume of Clay Blair died in December 1998, shortly after the publication of the second volume of Hitler's U-boat War. Hitler's U-boat War.