Laconia incident

12–16 September 1942, South Atlantic, north-east of Ascension Island

German success, then disaster for the survivors; led to the Laconia Order

On the night of 12 September 1942 Werner Hartenstein in U-156 torpedoed the troopship Laconia off West Africa. Then he heard Italian voices in the water: she was carrying some 1,800 Italian prisoners of war as well as British soldiers, women and children. Hartenstein began picking up survivors and broadcast in plain English that he would not attack any ship coming to help if he was not attacked himself. U-506, U-507 and the Italian submarine Cappellini joined him, and Vichy French warships sailed from Dakar to take the survivors off. On 16 September, with four lifeboats in tow and a Red Cross flag on his gun, Hartenstein was attacked by an American B-24 from Ascension. He had to cast off the boats and dive. About 1,600 people died in all. Dönitz then issued the Laconia Order, forbidding U-boats to rescue survivors, which was put to him at Nuremberg.