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Brass wheel from Conning tower of UC39

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This Hutch Wheel comes from UC39 who was sunk in February 1917 outside the British coast at Flambourgh Head .
UC39 was a mine-leyer submarine built at Blohm & Voss in Hamburg 1916. It was 1 of 6 of type II of UC model. This type of boat could carry 18 mines of UC class.
Technical info for UC type:
Displacement around 500 ton
Length 49 m
Speed (Surface 11,6 knots Submerged 7,0 )
Torpedoes 7
Mines 18
Deckgun 88 mm (133 rounds)
Crew 26 men
Max depth About 50 m (165 feet)

In February 1917, UC39 meet Hans Kinck (2667ton) a Norwegian Steamer and sank her and on the 8th of Febraury Hanna Larsen(1311 ton) a British ship goes down when meeting UC39.
Later that day another Norwegian ship meet her faith, Ida (1172 ton)
This was also the last day for UC39 when HMS Thrasher throw depth charge on her and forced UC39 to come up to surface. After using gunfire UC 39 went to the bottom with 7 dead crew members including the Captain Otto Ehrentrout.
Ehrentrout have his submarine education in 1908 together with Reinhold Salzwedel who became a famous Captain and the founder of Unterseebootsflottila Salzwedel later in second World War.
There was an article in New York Times about this incident in May 1917 and we were informed that a British Destroyer has pick up seventeen crewmembers from UC39. We also get info that Kpt Otto Ehrentrout was a near friend of the German Prince Henry of Prussia and often visit his castle in Kiel.
When UC 39 goes down she has several torpedoes onboard but no mines because it was her first trip and this some type of tryout for crew and equipment .
The Hutch Wheel, in solid brass, comes from UC39 and have the text Öffnen (open) and the Kaiserlische stamp with a Royal Crown an and a large M indicating Marine (se later M for Kriegsmarine)
More from UC39 can be seen on Bridlington Herritage Musem where they have some other nice items. A nice and very rare piece from a submarine from First World War.