U534, Birkenhead Warships Trust - fate of collection.

[Mark Hone]

I did go inside the U534 a few years ago on an organised tour. It was very interesting but the interior (and exterior) was almost visibly deteriorating. Although I took my pupils to the very good museum alongside the boat, and to the other vesssels at Birkenhead, people under 16 weren't allowed inside the U-boat for insurance and 'Elf and Safety' reasons.

[cash_13]

Well the bar****** finally done it they cut her up......



check out the full report of the last visit to U534 and some really good hi res pictures......

Yo can imagine the crew in there all cramped up and the deck shots of the gun is amazing

[cash_13]

Kriegsmarine U-534, Birkenhead - REPORT - UK Urban Exploration Forums

[Mark Hone]

Does anyone have any further information on the relocation of U-534 from the former Historic Warships Museum at Birkenhead to a new permanent display site at the Woodside Mersey Ferry terminal? The last I heard was that the boat had been cut up into sections and transported to Woodside. Is there a date for completion of the new display?

[Mark Hone]

Just to bump this up again. What has happened about the Whimbrel? Also, are the Battle of the Atlantic memorials at the Pierhead (including the statue of 'Johnny' Walker) accessible again? And has U-534 opened at Woodside Ferry Terminal?

[Mark Hone]

Anyone know anything about this? It was due to open in September but didn't. No further info on the Mersey Ferries website and they haven't replied to an e-mail.

[Verrieres]

Hi,
Just checked on Merseytravel nothing current but just to quote from the Press release...Mr Scales added: “We are still in negotiations with specialists about moving U534 but work can start as soon as we receive planning permission which we anticipate, will be in September.....if planning permission came through on time (which through experience it seldom does!) then considering its only the begining of December its still early days!!
Heres some photographs of U534 before after and what may be.
Regards
Verrieres

[Verrieres]

Hi
I`m sure this has been mentioned before so just a brief history of U534 just to tie everything together.
Commissioned in Hamburg in late 1942, the U 534 is a Type IX C 40 long-range ocean going submarine. She was mainly used as a weapons testing platform, and until the late summer of 1944 was also used as a weather ship in the North Atlantic. During the autumn of that year she left the massive U. boat pens at Bordeaux and sailed back to Germany where she was laid up in Kiel. So far nothing out of the ordinary, just another U. boat. But during May 1945 things changed.
Germany unconditionally surrendered, and the War was over. However just before the surrender, on May 2nd, U. 534 became the last submarine to leave Germany. Apparently she had been specially provisioned and armed in the bombproof pens at Kiel weeks before, and at the appointed hour she slid silently out of the submarine pens and made her way towards Kristiansand in Norway. Two days later on May 4th, Admiral Doenitz had ordered all submarines still at sea to surrender, but by then U 534 was lying submerged off Elsinore in Denmark. Weather her Commander, Captain Nollau failed to receive the order or chose to ignore it is uncertain, but either way the outcome was to be catastrophic
On May 5th, the day after all German forces in Northern Europe surrendered, a R.A.F. Liberator from Coastal Command sank U 534 off the Danish Island of Anholt. Most of the crew managed to abandon the boat and were soon rescued, but five were trapped inside the U-boat and were dragged down by it. Miraculously they managed to escape their iron tomb, but one died in the ascent, and two others drowned on the surface before the rescue ships could get to them.


U 534 had a range of over eleven hundred miles, so could have easily reached South America. Was she going to carry a leading Nazi to South America via Norway? Or was she carrying treasure looted from the occupied countries to help those Nazi who had already escaped to South America by other routes? One of the crew that died shortly after the U534 sank was an Argentine wireless operator, which suggests that she was indeed en route to South America. The only person who definitely knew was Captain Nollau and he never told, taking the secret to his grave.



As the years rolled on, the rumours became more persistent and the accounts of the treasures supposed to be on board ever more extravagant. More than forty years after she sank a Danish diver, called Age Jensen found U 534 and once again the rumours started to fly. In 1992 a Danish publisher, Karsten Ree became interested in the submarine and decided to mount a salvage operation to find out once and for all what the Mystery of the U 534 was all about. The expensive lifting operation lasted over four weeks with the close co-operation of the Dutch Navy. After five tons of explosives were removed the submarine was moved to Grenaa where she was loaded onto a huge barge and towed to Birkenhead. Besides the explosives there was about two tons of documents. No gold. No paintings and no jewels...so why?
Regards
Verrieres

information from U534 · Scuba Diving And Shipwrecks: Submerged

[Gerard]

Verrieres, at the fall of the Third Reich lots of legends and myths sprang up about various escapades involving treasure, important figures not accounted for at the end etc. I am not sure why this boat decided not to surrender but we may well find a more pragmatic reason than treasure. Wonder what the documents were about?

[Verrieres]

Hi.
Just thinking the same...two tons of documents thats quite a lot of reading...if they were able to salvage them - after so long underwater I doubt much will have survived intact.
Cheers
Regards
Verrieres