Rolf Mützelburg Kapitänleutnant (Crew 32)

Successes

19 ships sunk, total tonnage 81,961 GRT

3 ships damaged, total tonnage 17,052 GRT

Born 23 Jun 1913 Kiel Died 11 Sep 1942 (29) Northern Atlantic

U-boat Commands

U-boat From To U-10 10 Jun 1940 29 Nov 1940 No war patrols U-203 18 Feb 1941 11 Sep 1942 (+) 8 patrols (242 days)

Oblt. Rolf Mützelburg joined the U-boat arm in October 1939, following two years service on minesweepers. After five months on a school boat, he received his first experience of active service on Schepke's U-100. He commissioned U-203 in February 1941. On patrols in the Atlantic, off the US east coast, and the Caribbean, he sank 19 ships and damaged three others (Rohwer, 1998).

Kptlt. Rolf Mützelburg died on 11 September 1942 in a freak accident. Taking the opportunity to go swimming in the Atlantic southwest of the Azores, he dived from the conning tower and struck the deck with his head and shoulder when the boat lurched suddenly in the swell *. The doctor of the milch cow U-462 arrived the next day, but too late, and Rolf Mützelburg was buried at sea on 12 September 1942 in position 36.14N, 31.21W.

On 15 September 1942 the daily Wehrmachtsbericht (Armed Forces Bulletin) announced :

Kapitänleutnant Rolf Mützelburg, Kommandant eines Unterseebootes, Träger des Eichenlaubes zum Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes, ließ auf der Fahrt gegen den Feind sein Leben. In ihm verliert die Unterseebootwaffe einen hervorragender Kommandanten und erfolgreichen Kämpfer. Das Boot setzt unter dem Kommando des ältesten Wachoffiziers die Unternehmung fort. (Kapitänleutnant Rolf Mützelburg, U-boat commander, recipient of the Knights Cross with Oak Leaves, lost his life on war patrol. The U-boat arm has lost an outstanding commander and a successful fighter. The boat continues her patrol under the command of the senior watch officer.)

* Teddy Suhren in his biography states that Mützelburg struck the saddle tanks, not the deck.

Sources

Busch, R. and Röll, H-J. (1999). German U-boat commanders of World War II.

Busch, R. and Röll, H-J. (1997). Der U-Bootkrieg 1939-1945 (Band 2).

Rohwer, J. (1998). Axis Submarine Successes of World War Two.

Suhren, T. (2006). Teddy Suhren, ace of aces.

Patrol info for Rolf Mützelburg

U-boat Departure Arrival 1. U-203 5 Jun 1941 Kiel 29 Jun 1941 St. Nazaire Patrol 1, 25 days 2. U-203 10 Jul 1941 St. Nazaire 31 Jul 1941 St. Nazaire Patrol 2, 22 days 3. U-203 20 Sep 1941 St. Nazaire 30 Sep 1941 Brest Patrol 3, 11 days 4. U-203 18 Oct 1941 Brest 12 Nov 1941 Brest Patrol 4, 26 days 5. U-203 25 Dec 1941 Brest 29 Jan 1942 Brest Patrol 5, 36 days 6. U-203 12 Mar 1942 Brest 30 Apr 1942 Brest Patrol 6, 50 days 7. U-203 3 Jun 1942 Brest 4 Jun 1942 Lorient 2 days 8. U-203 4 Jun 1942 Lorient 29 Jul 1942 Brest Patrol 7, 56 days 9. U-203 27 Aug 1942 Brest 11 Sep 1942 *died at sea* Patrol 8, 16 days 8 patrols, 242 days at sea

Ships hit by Rolf Mützelburg



About ranks and decorations

Ranks shown in italics are our database inserts based on the rank dates of his crew comrades. The officers of each crew would normally have progressed through the lower ranks at the same rate.