This information about this Russian submarine Skipper who sank the transport WILHELM GUSTLOFF in January, 1945.

C-13

While this boat was called S-13 in some records, she is called C-13 in the Russian Archives. This was a STALINETZ Class submarine, designed by I.K.S. in Holland (a company owned by Krupp’s GERMANIA WERFT, DEUTSCHE SCHIFF und MACHINENBAU and the German Navy) in 1934 and built by SORMOVO at Gorky;

She was laid down November, 1938; Launched in 1941; Commissioned 7 June, 1942 and scrapped in 1958 or 1959.

Alexander Ivanovitch Marinesko

Born in Odessa 1913; went to sea as cabin boy in 1928; transferred to the Navy & went on Navigator’s course. Went to submarines in 1936 after nine months training; joined submarine PIKSHA SHCH 306 as Navigator. After six months, went to Commander’s course.

Appointed to command of Submarine M96 in Summer of 1937 and for two years, M96 was the best trained and most efficient sub in the Baltic Fleet. In 1940, Marinesko was given a gold watch for his marksmanship.

In 1943, Marinesko took over command of C-13 (S-13). In October, 1944 he sank the SIEGFRIED.

At the end of 1944, the boat was at Turku in Finland, in the Smolny Naval Base, fueled and provisioned for sea and due to sail 2nd January 1945 but Marinesko was out on a drinking spree, lasting about three days, and did not return to his boat. Naval patrols searched for him, finding him and bringing him back to his boat on 3rd January. He was now in serious trouble, having been A.W.O.L. in a foreign country. He was to suffer for this in his later career. S-13 was ordered to Hangö to wait there to see if Marinesko was to be court-martialled or not. The need for submarines was such that Marinesko was allowed to take S-13 to sea, but Marinesko was now a marked man, and the NKVD opened a file on him.

30th January, 1945 he sank the WILHELM GUSTLOFF (25,484 tons). There was an unknown number of people on board and some estimates say maybe 8,000 people were lost. There were over 900 U-Boat personnel, including crew and men from the base at Pillau.

9th Feb., 1945 he sank the GENERAL STEUBEN (14,660 tons). There were about 3,000 people lost in this sinking.

20th April, 1945 Russia’s Baltic Fleet Headquarters issued a list of orders and medals awarded for actions during the first three months of 1945. No mention was made of the sinking of the GUSTLOFF & STEUBEN. Marinesko had been given no recognition as having sunk these two ships.

Captain Vladimir Konovalof of the submarine L-3 was made HERO OF THE SOVIET UNION for sinking the liner GOYA (5,600 tons) on the 16th of April, 1945 with a loss of 7,000 lives.

Returning to Smolny Base, S-13 spent the next six weeks refitting, and Marinesko with little to do, started writing reports criticizing the deficiencies of the Russian Submarine Service, the Russian Air Force and upsetting people in high places.

Marinesko made his last patrol, putting to sea in early May and coming into Kronstadt on 24th May. In September, he was relieved of command of S-13 and demoted two ranks. In October, he was dismissed from the Navy for having an indifferent & casual attitude to the service.

He applied to join the Merchant Service but was turned down with defective eyesight - and possibly his NKVD file...

In 1946 he found a job as a storeman, dealing with building materials. Marinesko was accused of stealing building materials and sentenced to three years in a labor camp. He started his sentence in 1947 and it was 1953 before he got out.

In 1960, there was a T.V. documentary on the WILHELM GUSTLOFF and Marinesko was given credit for the sinking and shortly after, he was reinstated to the retired rank of Captain Third Class (HARRY’S NOTE - approximately the same as Lt.CDR) and awarded a pension.

October 1963 he attended a reunion of Baltic submariners and just a few weeks later, he died of cancer. His medals were:

ORDER OF LENIN
ORDER OF THE RED BANNER (he received this twice)
PATRIOTIC WAR MEDAL (1st Class)
PATRIOTIC WAR MEDAL (2nd Class)
LENINGRAD VICTORY MEDAL