Günther Prien | Timeline

Günther Prien (16 January 1908 – 7 March 1941) was a German U-boat commander during World War II. He was the first U-boat commander to receive the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and the first member of the Kriegsmarine to receive the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves of Nazi Germany. It was Germany's highest military decoration at the time of its presentation to Prien. (Intro by Wikipedia)

January 16, 1908 - Osterfeld - Günther Prien is born
June 1(?), 1923 - Finkenwerder, Hamburg - Günther joins the Handelsmarine (German Merchant Navy)
September 1(?), 1923 - Finkenwerder - Cabin Boy aboard the "Hamburg", a three-masted sailing ship - Visits to the Azores, Pensacola, Hobart, Falmouth
October 1, 1925 - Near Dublin, Ireland - The "Hamburg" is stranded during a storm. Unrecoverable
January 1(?), 1932 - Leipzig - Prien finishes his captain's exam but does not find work with the Depression
March 1(?), 1932 - Leipzig - Prien joins the NSDAP
August 1(?), 1932 - Olsnitz - Prien joins the Vogtsberg volunteer corps digging trenches for months
January 16, 1933 - ? - Prien is accepted in the Reichsmarine as seaman
May 6, 1937 - Kiel - Departs on his first patrol in the U-26 under Werner Hartmann's orders
June 15, 1937 - Kiel - Arrival of the first patrol in the U-26
July 15, 1937 - Kiel - Departs on his second patrol on the U-26
August 30, 1937 - Kiel - Arrival of the second patrol on the U-26
December 17, 1938 - Kiel - Commissioning of the U-47, a Type VIIB U-boat =(START)
February 1, 1939 - Kiel - Prien is promoted to Kapitänleutnant

Prien departing for patrol with the U-47

August 19, 1939 - Kiel - Departs on his first U-47 patrol
August 21, 1939 - Between Denmark, Scotland and Norway - daily position
August 22, 1939 - N of Shetland Islands - daily position
August 24, 1939 - W-SW Outer Hebrides - daily position
August 26, 1939 - SW Ireland - daily position
September 1, 1939 - Gulf of Biscay, N of A Coruña - daily position
September 5, 1939 - NW Coruña | W bay of Biscay - Sunken ship - "Bosnia" - NW Coruña
September 6, 1939 - NW Coruña | W bay of Biscay - Sunken ship - "Rio Claro" - NW Coruña
September 7, 1939 - NW Coruña | W bay of Biscay - Sunken ship - "Gartavon" - NW Coruña
September 9, 1939 - W Ireland - daily position
September 10, 1939 - NW Outer Hebrides - daily position
September 11, 1939 - NW Shetland Islands - daily position
September 12, 1939 - Between Shetlands and Norway - daily position
September 15, 1939 - Kiel - Return from the first U-47 Patrol
October 8, 1939 - Kiel - Departs on his second U-47 patrol
October 12, 1939 - SE Kirkwall - daily position
October 14, 1939 - Scapa Flow - Sunken Ship - Battleship "Royal Oak"
October 15, 1939 - E of Edinburgh - daily position
October 17, 1939 - Wilhelmshaven - Return from the second U-47 Patrol. Erich Raeder and Karl Dönitz await on the dock

Prien is decorated by Adolf Hitler

October 18, 1939 - Berlin - Raeder, Dönitz and Prien fly to Berlin on Hitler's personal airplane and are decorated by the Führer
October 20, 1939 - Wilhelmshaven - Departs to Kiel
October 21, 1939 - Kiel - Arrives in Kiel
November 16, 1939 - Kiel - Departs on his third U-47 patrol (through the Kiel Canal)
November 17, 1939 - W Helgoland - daily position
November 18, 1939 - W of Denmark - daily position
November 20, 1939 - E Shetland Islands - daily position
November 24, 1939 - Between Scotland and Norway - daily position
November 26, 1939 - Northern tip of Scotland - daily position
November 28, 1939 - SW Ireland - "HMS Norfolk" attacked
December 5, 1939 - SSE Cornwall - Sunken ship - "Novasota" - SSE Cornwall
December 6, 1939 - SSE Cornwall - Sunken ship - "Britta" - SSE Cornwall
December 7, 1939 - SSE Cornwall - Sunken ship - "Tajandoen" - SSE Cornwall
December 9, 1939 - NW of Brest / SW of Cornwall - British destroyer attacked unsuccessfully
December 12, 1939 - S of Ireland - daily position
December 15, 1939 - NW Orkney Islands - daily position
December 17, 1939 - Heligoland - daily position
December 18, 1939 - Kiel - Return from the third U-47 Patrol (through kiel canal)
February 29, 1940 - Kiel - Departs on his fourth U-47 patrol
March 5, 1940 - Wilhelmshaven - Return from the fourth U-47 Patrol
March 11, 1940 - Wilhelmshaven - Departs on his fifth U-47 patrol
March 12, 1940 - W of Denmark - daily position
March 14, 1940 - SW Stavanger - daily position
March 17, 1940 - W-SW Aalesund - daily position
March 25, 1940 - NNE Shetland Islands - Sunken ship - "Britta" - NNE Shetland Islands
March 27, 1940 - E of Shetland Islands - daily position
March 29, 1940 - Wilhelmshaven - Return from the Fifth U-47 Patrol
April 3, 1940 - Wilhelmshaven - Departs on his sixth U-47 patrol
April 4, 1940 - Between Scotland and Denmark - daily position
April 7, 1940 - N of Shetland Islands - daily position
April 11, 1940 - NW Trondheim - daily position
April 12, 1940 - SW Lofoten - daily position
April 18, 1940 - NW Lofoten - daily position
April 20, 1940 - W-NW Trondheim (open ocean) - daily position
April 24, 1940 - Between Norway and Shetland islands - daily position
April 26, 1940 - Kiel - Return from the sixth U-47 Patrol
June 3, 1940 - Kiel - Departs on his seventh U-47 patrol
June 5, 1940 - SW Kristiansand - daily position
June 7, 1940 - W Shetland Islands - daily position
June 9, 1940 - SW Outer Hebrides - daily position
June 14, 1940 - SW Ireland - Sunken ship - "Balmoralwood" - SW Ireland
June 21, 1940 - SW Ireland - Sunken ship - "San Fernando" - SW Ireland
June 24, 1940 - SW Ireland - Sunken ship - "Cathrine" - SW Ireland
June 27, 1940 - SW Ireland - Sunken Ships - "Lenda" + "Leticia" - SW Ireland
June 29, 1940 - SW Ireland - Sunken Ship - "Empire Toucan" - SW Ireland
June 30, 1940 - SW Ireland - Sunken Ship - "Georgios Kyriakides" - SW Ireland
July 2, 1940 - NW Ireland - Sunken Ship - "Georgios Arandora Star" - NW Ireland
July 4, 1940 - SE Shetland Islands - daily position
July 6, 1940 - Kiel - Return from the seventh U-47 Patrol
August 27, 1940 - Kiel - Departs on his eighth U-47 patrol
August 28, 1940 - Northern Tip of Denmark - daily position
August 30, 1940 - E Shetland Islands - daily position
September 2, 1940 - NW Ireland - Sunken Ship - "Ville de Mons" - NW Ireland
September 4, 1940 - Between Iceland and Ireland - Sunken Ship - "Titan" - Between Iceland and  Ireland
September 7, 1940 - Between Iceland and Ireland - 3 sunken ships - "Neptunian", "José de Larrinaga", "Gro"
September 9, 1940 - NW Ireland - Sunken Ship - "Possidon" - NW Ireland
September 21, 1940 - SSW Iceland - Sunken Ship - "Elmbank" - SSW Iceland
September 23, 1940 - Closer to Ireland than Greenland - daily position (reached Lorient at full speed in 2 days)
September 25, 1940 - Lorient - Return from the eighth U-47 Patrol
October 14, 1940 - Lorient - Departs on his ninth U-47 patrol
October 16, 1940 - equidistant from Brest, Cornwall and Ireland - daily position
October 19, 1940 - SSE Iceland - 3 ships sunk - "Uganda", "Shirak", "Wandby"
October 20, 1940 - WNW Ireland - 3 ships sunk - "La Estancia", "Whitford Point", "Athelmonarch"
October 23, 1940 - Lorient - Return from the ninth U-47 Patrol
November 3, 1940 - Lorient - Departs on his tenth U-47 patrol
November 8, 1940 - W of Ireland - Damages the "Gonçalo Velho"
December 2, 1940 - W of Ireland - 3 ships sunk - "Ville d'Arlon", "Conch", "Dunsley"
December 6, 1940 - Lorient - Return from the tenth U-47 Patrol
February 20, 1941 - Lorient - Departs on his eleventh U-47 patrol
February 26, 1941 - WNW Ireland - 3 ships sunk - "Diala", "Rydboholm", "Borgland"
February 28, 1941 - W Ireland - Sunken Ship - "Holmlea" - W Ireland
March 7, 1941 - Between Iceland, Ireland and Scotland - Attack on the Convoy OB 293 - "Terje Viken" damaged. U-47 is sunk by "HMS Wolverine" =(END)