Quick Facts
Biography
Alfred Radermacher (13 Sep 1913 - 1994) was a career officer of both the Reichsmarine and Kriegsmarine who served as a navigator, and later commander, of German U-boats during the Second World War. He is best known for serving as navigator of U-96 during its 7th war patrol which was documented by naval war correspondent Lothar-Günther Buchheim. Radermacher was subsequently portrayed in both the novel and film versions of the war patrol, known as Das Boot.
Early life and Career
Radermacher was born in September 1913 in the community of Hilgert in Westerwald. At the age of twenty, he enlisted into the Reichsmarine as an ordinary deck seaman. He received his initial basic training in the summer of 1933, the year in which the Nazi Party came to power in Germany. In 1935 Radermacher applied to join the expanding German submarine force, and was assigned as a deck seaman on submarine U-5 that August. Radermacher served on U-5 for three and half years, and was appointed an apprentice navigator in October 1937.
In April 1939 Radermacher attended a U-boat navigator's course and was promoted to the rank of Chief Petty Officer that November. During his schooling Nazi Germany invaded Poland, and the Second World War began. Radermacher's first war assignment was in the personnel office of the 1st U-boat Flotilla while he awaited posting to an active duty submarine. In February 1940 he was promoted to Senior Navigator and issued orders to return to U-5 as the submarine's navigator. The boat was at that time under the command of Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock and Radermacher served on U-5 for a single war patrol, lasting from April 4 to 19, 1940.
Service onboard U-96
In September 1940, Heinrich Lehmann-Willenbrock was placed in command of the newly commissioned submarine U-96. Radermacher and Willenbrock had known each other for several years, mostly through service onboard U-5, and Radermacher was offered the navigator's billet on U-96, which he promptly accepted. From later reports, Willenbrock considered Radermacher a trusted advisor and the two were on friendly terms, insomuch as the barrier of military courtesy between naval officers and enlisted would permit.
Radermacher served on U-96 for nine war patrols, and was both the Navigator and 3rd Watch Officer and was awarded several medals for valor. In April 1942, upon U-96s return to St. Nazaire, Radermacher was accepted into the Navy's "war service" officer course, designed to allow senior enlisted personnel to become commissioned Navy officers. Radermacher reported for officer training in May 1942 and was commissioned a Leutnant zur See in August of that year.
Officer service
Radermacher's first assignment as an officer was as a staff officer of the 24th U-boat Flotilla. In September 1942 he was given command of U-120, a Type IIB submarine assigned as a training boat to the 21st U-boat Flotilla. Radermacher served as commander for six months, after which he was transferred to command his original boat, U-5, which had by this time also been relegated to service as a training boat, with a crew of thirty seven.
He was transferred to command a new boat, the type VIIC submarine U-393, in July 1943. Radermacher commanded the boat for a little over a year, serving as a training vessel attached to the 5th U-boat Flotilla.
Later war and later life
In October 1944, with Germany's military situation worsening and U-boat losses rising, Radermacher was transferred to the 24th U-boat Flotilla to await a submarine commander assignment, but a commander's billet never became avaialble. In February 1945 he was transferred to his last post in the Kriegsmarine as a staff officer of the 25th U-boat Flotilla headquartered at Travemünde. Upon the surrender of Germany in May 1945, Radermacher was discharged from the German armed forces.
His later life is not well documented, except for receipt of a pension from the West German government in the 1960s. He died in 1994.
Summary of service
Dates of ranks
- Matrose (Seaman): July 1933
- Matrosengefreiter (Able seaman): August 1935
- Steuermannmaat (Petty officer): October 1937
- Steuermann (Chief petty officer): November 1939
- Obersteuermann (Senior chief petty officer): February 1940
- Leutnant zur See (Lieutenant): August 1942
- Oberleutnant zur See (Senior Lieutenant): July 1943
Awards and decorations
- German Cross (in Gold)
- Iron Cross (First and Second Class)
- U-boat War Badge
- Wehrmacht Long Service Award - 4th class
Dramatic portrayal
As navigator of the submarine U-96, Radermacher was the basis for a major character in both the novel and film Das Boot. In the film version, his character is named "Kriechbaum" and is portrayed by German actor Bernd Tauber. As in real life, the character of Kriechbaum is depicted as a trusted advisor and friend to the submarine captain, played by Jürgen Prochnow. In addition, the navigator's character is stated to be married, with four children, and also "working on his fifth".