To the Last Salute: Memories of an Austrian U-Boat Commander

Four. Letters

by little those off duty show up on deck. They stand around the tower in groups and whisper. One comes forward: “Sir, will we receive medals for bravery?” Right, that will probably happen. So there is another side to this situation. What will the people back home say? This is the first sunk warship for us! Our boat will be greeted with cheers and on land we will have a look at the medals for bravery. All at once the trip passes too slowly. By noon the mountains of home are already in sight. But the coast does not get nearer. The trip stretches terribly. One man shaves; then the other ones dress up, too. Torpedo master Vala ek takes photographs. He fired the torpedoes . In time the coast comes into view; then our boat goes around the mines in front of the harbor entrance, and with the last light of the setting sun, we take our mooring in Rose. From the residence ship, the old Crown Prince Rudolf, we are questioned. “Hello, what’s new?” “Sank a French cruiser.” “Bravo! So it was you. The news was telegraphed here. Do you know her name?” “No!” “It was the Léon Gambetta!”4 Four.Letters “So Seyffertitz, the seriousness of life begins. Now the hardest part for me comes—the endless paperwork! Tomorrow you square away the boat until it shines.” On the Crown Prince Rudolf, the men line the rails and wait for the arrival of U-5. The news of the sinking has already come via Italy. Italian torpedo boats had saved the shipwrecked survivors 26 LETTERS š and had brought them to land. Nearly the entire staff of officers had gone down with the ship so that the crew could be saved in the lifeboats. Everyone here congratulates me. “Let me go! I still have to report this; the Admiral will want to know something, too!” I connect with the flagship by telephone. “This is the commander of U-5. Can I speak with the chief of staff?” “He is eating at the Admiral’s and cannot come to the telephone .” “Well, they are not exactly curious,” I comment to those standing near me; I leave a short message. Then I enter the of- ficers’ mess and we from U-5 must recount the whole event with great precision. After all, these are specialists who want to know the smallest detail. Our friends’ pure delight about the success of our boat is heartwarming. We celebrate the event and, overtired, we get to sleep only late at night. The next morning, per the Admiral’s orders, U-5 goes around the whole fleet division lying in the Gulf and is greeted joyfully by all ships and boats with cries of “Hurrah!” On the flagship the band is playing the Radetzky March and the Prince Eugene March, and our boat’s crew becomes conscious that they, for the first time, are “somebody.” At least for today. Our boat comes alongside the flagship to recharge her batteries . On board we are congratulated and must retell the story again. Also telegrams have come in from all possible quarters. Now begins the hard work of writing. Letters and parcels arrive and we men of U-5 swim in champagne and Dalmatian wine. Here are two of the letters: “To His Imperial Royal Highness, the Captain of the U-5” The great heroic deed that our sailors performed cannot be described. With iron diligence, bravery, and valor they fight for an upright, peaceful Austria. Under your imperial and royal command, the biggest French cruiser was sunk. We congratuLETTERS 27 late the great heroic exploit of the submarine U-5 with the wish that the victory banners of the submarines will flutter in the city of Vienna. With God for Emperor and fatherland, every hand is raised in Austria. Yours respectfully, Your once again well-wishing Viennese friend An eighth grade schoolgirl1 Vienna XI Enkplatz 4. So the womenfolk are beginning, too. I am touched and order a Prügelkrapfen from the confectioner Lehmann of Singerstrasse to be delivered to the girl.2 The outcome of all this is unexpected. Suddenly it seems all the Viennese schoolgirls have gotten a writing bug because it rains little letters from schoolgirls who are sooo happy and so on. But such a Prügelkrapfen is expensive and, at the moment, I don’t have...