Ulrich Folkers

Ulrich Folkers (6 March 1915 in Kiel – killed in action 6 May 1943 in the North Atlantic) was a German U-boat commander in World War II and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (German: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes). The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. U-125 was fatally damaged at 52°30′N 45°20′W by the British destroyer Oribi and gunfire from the British corvette Snowflake.

Ships attacked

As commander of U-125, Folkers is credited with the sinking of 17 merchant ships totalling 82,873 gross register tons (GRT).

Date	Name	Nationality	Tonnage (GRT)	Fate
26 January 1942	West Ivis	United States	5,666	Sunk
23 April 1942	Lammot Du Pont	United States	5,102	Sunk
3 May 1942	San Rafael	Dominican Republic	1,973	Sunk
4 May 1942	Tuscaloosa City	United States	5,687	Sunk
6 May 1942	Empire Buffalo	United Kingdom	6,404	Sunk
6 May 1942	Green Island	United States	1,946	Sunk
9 May 1942	Calgarolite	Canada	11,941	Sunk
14 May 1942	Comayagua	Honduras	2,493	Sunk
18 May 1942	Mercury Sun	United States	8,893	Sunk
18 May 1942	William J. Salman	United States	2,616	Sunk
1 September 1942	Ilorin	United Kingdom	815	Sunk
23 September 1942	Bruyère	United Kingdom	5,335	Sunk
29 September 1942	Baron Ogilvy	United Kingdom	3,391	Sunk
30 September 1942	Empire Avocet	United Kingdom	6,015	Sunk
30 September 1942	Kumsang	United Kingdom	5,447	Sunk
8 October 1942	Glendene	United Kingdom	4,412	Sunk
4 May 1943	Lorient	United Kingdom	4,737	Sunk

Awards

• Bulgarian Order of Military Merit 4th Class with Crown (1 November 1936)
• Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th Class (8 April 1938)
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (15 January 1940)
• U-boat War Badge (1939) (26 March 1941)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 27 March 1943 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-125
• Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht on 22 May 1942

• Helgason, Guðmundur. "Ships hit by U-125 - U-boat Successes". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 30 November 2009. 
• ^ Busch & Röll 2003, p. 338.
• ^ Busch & Röll 2003, p. 339.
• Scherzer 2007, p. 314.