February 18, 1942: The French submarine Surcouf was sunk.... but how? There are two stories.

The Surcouf was a hybrid, the only one of her kind. The largest submarine built to date her dimensions were 361' long with a beam of 29.5. She displaced 4,218 tons submerged. In comparison the type IX and type XXI U-boats of World War 2 built fifteen years later, were only 249' long displacing 2,100 tons submerged. Only the Japanese Sen Toku Type submarines of World War 2 were larger. (400' long and 5,223 tons.)

The Surcouf was armed with 2, 8"/203mm main guns in a turret forward of the conning tower. She also carried 2, 1.4"/37mm anti-aircraft cannons, 4, 13.2mm AA machine guns and 10 torpedo tubes. Six forward 21" and four stern 16". In addition the Surcouf had a hanger with a MB 411 seaplane, a 16' motor launch (for boarding parties) and had room to lock up 40 POW's. She could make over 18 knots on the surface using her two screws. All in all the Surcouf was one unique boat.

When Germany invaded France in 1940 the Surcouf was at Brest undergoing a refit. However before she could be captured she was sailed across the channel to Plymouth. At the time nobody was sure what to do with the sub. The final decision was to assign her to the Free French Navy. However the decision cost the lives of at least three men, 2 British and 1 French. It seems there was a disagreement which turned into gunfire when the British attempted to seize the boat.

Never the less the Surcouf served in the Free French Navy and made several Atlantic patrols. The trouble however came from the Americans and the British not the Germans. The British distrust of the French caused several accusations against the captain of the Surcouf, Louis Blaison. He was the only remaining officer of the original crew that arrived in Plymouth and was placed in command of the boat. The British and the French both made accusations of spying and the British even claimed the Surcouf was sinking British ships instead of protecting them while in convoy. Finally two British liaison officers were put aboard.

The Surcouf along with three Free French corvettes captured and liberated the islands of Saint-Pierre and Miquelon on December 24, 1941. This move angered the Americans who were negotiating with the Vichy French to keep them neutral. The US surely did not want the German's to have access to ports controlled by the French in the East Indies. It is even reported that a US destroyer was dispatched to retake the islands and return them to Vichy control. Weather this happened or not is still in dispute.

The Surcouf was sent to Bermuda to refuel and it was decided to send her to the Pacific. On February 18, 1942 while en route to the Panama Canal, the Surcouf was sunk. At least two stories about the sinking are published. One says she was run down by the SS Thompson Lykes near the canal while the other claims that US aircraft sank her because the US was afraid she was on the way to liberate Martinique.

The truth of how she sunk is not known to me but, what is known is that the Surcouf took 159 people with her. the largest single loss of life on a submarine.

© 2006 Michael W. Pocock
MaritimeQuest.com

Surcouf