Nazi Kriegsmarine Dagger of U-Boat Commander Hans-Joachim Schwarz

Description

Oberleutnant zur See Hans-Joachim Schwarz, (1919-2013) began his naval career in 1939 in administration, but became a line officer in January, 1943. His first and only command came in June, 1944 when he was given command of the newly built U-1105, a Type VIIC U-boat commissioned on 3 June, 1944. However, the submarine did not go on patrol until it left Kiel on 2 April, 1945, only a few weeks before Germany’s surrender. U-1105 was one of only four U-boats that went on patrol with the experimental Alberich tiles, which inspired her nickname “Black Panther”. These were synthetic rubber tiles with a pattern of holes applied to the hull which would absorb and disperse sound waves, making sonar detection up to 60% less likely. They would appear to have been successful, because the U-1105 evaded detection by an Allied destroyer patrol while patrolling the convoy routes off the Irish coast in April, 1945. Three days later the U-boat detected three British destroyers and sank the Frigate HMS Redmill with two torpedoes. For the next 31 hours British patrols searched unsuccessfully for the submarine, which evaded detection until the end of the war. By the end of the war the survival rate of U-boats and their crews was very low, with a total of 765 boats lost during the war out of 1154 boats commissioned- a staggering rate of over 66% lost. Crews fared even worse, with about 28,000 killed of the 40,900 recruited, a loss rate of over 68%.

After the U-1105’s surrender to the British on May 10, 1945 she was designated as the N-16 by the Royal Navy before being turned over to the United States for testing. She was sunk and re-floated several times during the testing before being sunk for the last time by a depth charge off Piney Point, Maryland in about 90 feet of water. She was re-discovered in 1985 by a team of sport divers and eventually designated as Maryland’s first historic shipwreck preserve.

The dagger offered here features a near mint 10” double-edged blade with twin fullers etched with foliage, anchors, and Poseidon’s trident, and bears the Eickhorn squirrel maker’s mark on the ricasso. Hilt of standard form with gilt cast brass guard depicting anchors on the quillon block; pommel with eagle on a wreath bearing the swastika; white celluloid grip with twisted brass wire wrap. Gilt brass scabbard with twin carry rings, hand engraved “H.-J. Schwarz” at the throat. Very good plus condition, with traces of gilding in protected areas and several shallow dents on the lower part of the scabbard. Blade etching is like new. Most of the U-boat officer’s daggers are resting on the bottom of the ocean, so surviving ID’d examples are scarce.