Karl Dönitz: Difference between revisions

On 30 January 1943, Dönitz replaced Erich Raeder as Commander-in-Chief of the Navy (''Oberbefehlshaber der Kriegsmarine'') and [[Grand Admiral]] (''Großadmiral'') of the [[Oberkommando der Marine|Naval High Command]] (''[[Oberkommando der Marine]]''). His deputy, [[Eberhard Godt]], took over the operational command of the U-boat force<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uboat.net/men/godt.htm|title=Eberhard Godt|publisher=uboat.net|accessdate=16 August 2009}}</ref> It was Dönitz who was able to convince Hitler not to scrap the remaining ships of the surface fleet. Despite hoping to continue to use them as a [[fleet in being]], the ''Kriegsmarine'' continued to lose what few capital ships it had. In September, the [[battleship]] [[German battleship Tirpitz|''Tirpitz'']] was [[Operation Source|put out of action for months]] by a British [[midget submarine]], and was sunk two months later by RAF bombers. In December, he ordered the [[battleship]] [[German battleship Scharnhorst|''Scharnhorst'']] (under [[Rear Admiral|''Konteradmiral'']] [[Erich Bey]]) to attack [[Arctic convoys of World War II|Soviet-bound convoys]], after reconsidering her success in the early years of the war with sister ship ''Gneisenau'', but she was sunk in the [[Battle of North Cape|resulting encounter]] with superior British forces led by the battleship {{HMS|Duke of York|17|6}}.