View source for German destroyer Z16 Friedrich Eckoldt

{{Short description|Z5-class destroyer of the Kriegsmarine}}
{{Good article}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2022}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin
| display title = German destroyer Z16 ''Friedrich Eckoldt''
}}
{{Infobox ship image
| Ship image = The Battle of the Barents Sea.jpg
| Ship caption = ''Friedrich Eckoldt''{{'}}s final moments
}}
{{Infobox ship career
| Hide header = 
| Ship country = [[Nazi Germany]]
| Ship flag = {{shipboxflag|Nazi Germany|naval}}
| Ship name = ''Friedrich Eckoldt''
| Ship namesake = Friedrich Eckoldt
| Ship ordered = 19 January 1935
| Ship builder = [[Blohm & Voss]], [[Hamburg]]
| Ship original cost = 
| Ship yard number = B505
| Ship way number = 
| Ship laid down = 4 November 1935
| Ship launched = 21 March 1937
| Ship sponsor = 
| Ship christened = 
| Ship completed = 28 July 1938
| Ship commissioned = 
| Ship fate = Sunk, 31 December 1942
| Ship notes = 
| Ship badge = 
}}
{{Infobox ship characteristics
| Hide header = 
| Header caption = (as built)
| Ship class = {{sclass2|Type 1934A|destroyer}}
| Ship displacement = *{{convert|2239|LT|t}} ([[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard]])
*{{convert|3165|LT|t}} ([[deep load]])
| Ship length = *{{convert|119|m|ftin|abbr=on}} ([[o/a]])
*{{convert|114|m|ftin|abbr=on}} ([[Length at the waterline|w/l]])
| Ship beam = {{convert|11.30|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
| Ship draft = {{convert|4.23|m|ftin|abbr=on}}
| Ship propulsion = 2 shafts, 2 × geared [[steam turbine]]s
| Ship speed = {{convert|36|kn|lk=in}}
| Ship range = {{convert|1530|nmi|abbr=on|lk=in}} at {{convert|19|kn}}
| Ship power = *{{convert|70000|PS|kW shp|lk=on|abbr=on}}
*6 × [[water-tube boiler]]s
| Ship complement = 325
| Ship armament = *5 × single [[12.7 cm SK C/34 naval gun|{{convert|12.7|cm|in|0|abbr=on}}]] guns
*2 × twin [[3.7 cm SK C/30|{{convert|3.7|cm|in|abbr=on|1}}]] [[AA gun]]s
*6 × single [[3.7 cm SK C/30|{{convert|2|cm|in|abbr=on|1}} AA guns]]
*2 × quadruple {{convert|53.3|cm|in|0|abbr=on}} [[torpedo tube]]s
*60 [[naval mine|mines]]
*32–64 [[depth charge]]s, 4 throwers and 6 individual racks
}}
|}
'''Z16 ''Friedrich Eckoldt''''' was a {{sclass2|Type 1934A|destroyer}} built for [[Nazi Germany]]'s ''[[Kriegsmarine]]'' in the late 1930s. It was named after ''[[Kapitänleutnant]]'' Friedrich Eckoldt (1887–1916), the commander of torpedo boat ''V 48'', who was killed when his boat was sunk during the [[Battle of Jutland]] on 31 May 1916.

At the beginning of [[World War II]], the ship was initially deployed to [[blockade]] the Polish coast, but she was quickly transferred to the [[German Bight]] to lay minefields in German waters. In late 1939 and 1940 the ship made multiple successful [[minelaying]] [[sortie]]s off the English coast that claimed 21 merchant ships. ''Eckoldt'' participated in the early stages of the [[Norwegian Campaign]] by transporting troops to the [[Trondheim]] area in early April 1940. The ship was transferred to France later in the year. ''Eckoldt'' returned to Germany in late 1940 for a refit and was transferred to Norway in June 1941 as part of the preparations for [[Operation Barbarossa]], the German invasion of the Soviet Union. The ship spent some time at the beginning of the campaign conducting anti-shipping patrols in Soviet waters, but these were generally fruitless. She escorted a number of German convoys in the [[Arctic]] later in the year. ''Eckoldt'' escorted several German [[heavy cruiser]]s at the beginning and end of their anti-shipping raids in 1942. She was part of a German surface fleet which [[Battle of the Barents Sea|attacked]] [[Convoy JW 51B]] on 31 December near the [[North Cape, Norway]]. After sinking the [[minesweeper (ship)|minesweeper]] {{HMS|Bramble|J11|6}}, ''Eckoldt'' mistook the British light cruiser {{HMS|Sheffield|C24|6}} for the German heavy cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Admiral Hipper||2}} and was taken completely by surprise when the cruiser opened fire. The ship sank with all hands without returning fire.

==Design and description==
''Friedrich Eckoldt'' had an [[length overall|overall length]] of {{convert|119|m|ftin|sp=us}} and was {{convert|114|m|ftin|sp=us}} [[Length at the waterline|long at the waterline]]. The ship had a [[beam (nautical)|beam]] of {{convert|11.30|m|ftin|sp=us}}, and a maximum [[draft (hull)|draft]] of {{convert|4.23|m|ftin|sp=us}}. She displaced {{convert|2171|t|LT|lk=out|sp=us}} at [[Displacement (ship)#Standard displacement|standard]] and {{convert|3190|t|LT|sp=us}} at [[deep load]]. The Wagner geared [[steam turbine]]s were designed to produce {{convert|70000|PS|kW shp|lk=on}} which would propel the ship at {{convert|36|kn|lk=on}}. Steam was provided to the turbines by six high-pressure Benson [[boiler (steam generator)|boiler]]s<ref name=g9>Gröner, p. 199</ref> with [[superheater]]s. ''Friedrich Eckoldt'' carried a maximum of {{convert|752|t|LT|0|sp=us}} of [[fuel oil]] which was intended to give a range of {{convert|4400|nmi|lk=in}} at {{convert|19|kn}}, but the ship proved top-heavy in service and 30% of the fuel had to be retained as [[Sailing ballast|ballast]] low in the ship.<ref>Whitley, p. 18</ref> The effective range proved to be only {{convert|1530|nmi|abbr=on|lk=in}} at {{convert|19|kn}}.<ref>Koop and Schmolke, p. 26</ref> The ship's crew consisted of 10 officers and 315 sailors.<ref name=g9/>

''Friedrich Eckoldt'' carried five [[12.7 cm SK C/34 naval gun|12.7 cm SK C/34 guns]] in single mounts with [[gun shield]]s, two each [[superfire|superimposed]], fore and aft. The fifth gun was carried on top of the rear deckhouse. Her [[Anti-aircraft warfare|anti-aircraft]] armament consisted of four [[3.7 cm SK C/30]] guns in two twin mounts abreast the rear [[funnel (ship)|funnel]] and six [[2 cm FlaK 30/38/Flakvierling|2 cm C/30]] guns in single mounts. The ship carried eight above-water {{convert|53.3|cm|in|adj=on|sp=us}} [[torpedo tube]]s in two power-operated mounts. A pair of reload torpedoes were provided for each mount.<ref name=g9/><ref>Whitley, p. 68</ref> Four [[depth charge]] throwers were mounted on the sides of the rear deckhouse and they were supplemented by six racks for individual depth charges on the sides of the stern. Sufficient depth charges were carried for either two or four patterns of sixteen charges each.<ref>Whitley, p. 215</ref> Mine rails could be fitted on the rear deck that had a maximum capacity of sixty [[Naval mine|mines]].<ref name=g9/> 'GHG' ([[Gruppenhorchgerät]]) passive [[hydrophone]]s were fitted to detect [[submarine]]s and an active [[sonar]] system was installed by the end of 1939.<ref>Whitley, pp. 71–72</ref>

==Construction and career==
The ship was ordered on 19 January 1935 and [[Keel laying|laid down]] at [[Blohm & Voss]], [[Hamburg]] on 4 November 1935 as yard number B505. She was [[Ship naming and launching|launched]] on 21 March 1937 and completed on 28 July 1938.<ref>Whitley, p. 205</ref> The ship participated in the August 1938 [[Fleet Review]] as part of the 3rd Destroyer Division. On 23–24 March 1939, ''Z16 Friedrich Eckoldt'' was one of the destroyers escorting [[Adolf Hitler]] aboard the [[heavy cruiser]] {{ship|German cruiser|Deutschland||2}} to [[1939 German ultimatum to Lithuania|occupy Memel]].<ref name=ks7>Koop and Schmolke, p. 97</ref> She participated in the Spring fleet exercise in the western Mediterranean and made several visits to Spanish and Moroccan ports in April and May.<ref>Whitley, p. 81</ref>

When World War II began, ''Z16 Friedrich Eckoldt'' was initially deployed in the Baltic to operate against the [[Polish Navy]] and to enforce a [[blockade]] of Poland,<ref name=ks7/> but she was soon transferred to the [[German Bight]] where she joined her [[sister ship|sisters]] in laying defensive minefields.<ref>Rohwer, p. 2</ref> She also patrolled the [[Skagerrak]] to inspect neutral shipping for contraband goods in October.<ref name=ks7/> On the night of 17/18 October, [[Rear Admiral]] (''Konteradmiral'') [[Günther Lütjens]], aboard his [[flagship]] [[German destroyer Z21 Wilhelm Heidkamp|''Z21 Wilhelm Heidkamp'']], led ''Eckoldt'', [[German destroyer Z19 Hermann Künne|''Z19 Hermann Künne'']], [[German destroyer Z17 Diether von Roeder|''Z17 Diether von Roeder'']], [[German destroyer Z18 Hans Lüdemann|''Z18 Hans Lüdemann'']], and [[German destroyer Z20 Karl Galster|''Z20 Karl Galster'']] as they laid a [[minefield]] off the mouth of the [[River Humber]]. The British were unaware of the minefield's existence and lost seven ships totaling {{GRT|25,825|disp=long}}.<ref name=w6>Whitley, p. 86</ref> On the night of 18/19 November, ''Eckoldt'' and [[German destroyer Z10 Hans Lody|''Hans Lody'']], led by [[Commander]] (''Fregattenkapitän'') [[Erich Bey]] in his flagship [[German destroyer Z15 Erich Steinbrinck|''Erich Steinbrinck'']], laid another minefield off the [[Humber Estuary]] that claimed another seven ships of 38,710 GRT, including the Polish [[ocean liner]] {{M/S|Piłsudski||6}}<ref>Hervieux, p. 112</ref> of 14,294 GRT.<ref name=w6/>

Another minefield of 170 [[magnetic mine]]s was laid by ''Eckoldt'', ''Ihn'' and ''Steinbrinck'' on the night of 6/7 January 1940 off the [[Thames Estuary]]. The destroyer {{HMS|Grenville|H03|6}} and six merchant ships totalling 21,617 GRT were lost to this minefield as well and another ship was damaged as well.<ref>Rohwer, p. 13</ref> [[Commodore (rank)|Commodore]] [[Friedrich Bonte]] led a minelaying sortie to the [[Newcastle upon Tyne|Newcastle]] area with ''Heidkamp'', ''Eckoldt'', [[German destroyer Z22 Anton Schmitt|''Anton Schmitt'']], [[German destroyer Z4 Richard Beitzen|''Richard Beitzen'']], ''Galster'', and ''Ihn''. The latter ship suffered tube failures in her boilers that reduced her maximum speed to {{convert|27|kn}} and she had to be escorted back to Germany by ''Beitzen''. This minefield only claimed one [[fishing trawler]] of 251 tons. ''Eckoldt'', ''Beitzen'' and [[German destroyer Z3 Max Schultz|''Max Schultz'']] laid 110 magnetic mines in the Shipwash area, off Harwich, on 9/10 February that sank six ships of 28,496 GRT and damaged another.<ref>Whitley, p. 92</ref> ''Eckoldt'' was the flagship during [[Operation Wikinger]], an attempt to capture British fishing trawlers operating off the Dogger Bank on 22 February, when two destroyers sank with heavy loss of life – one hit newly-laid British mines in a supposedly mine-free channel and the other was bombed in error by the [[Luftwaffe]].<ref>Rohwer, p. 15</ref>

''Friedrich Eckoldt'' was allocated to Group 2 for the Norwegian portion of [[Operation Weserübung]]. The group's task was to transport the 138th Mountain Infantry Regiment (''138. Gebirgsjäger Regiment'') to seize [[Trondheim]] together with ''Admiral Hipper''. The ships began loading troops on 6 April and set sail the next day. ''Eckoldt''{{'}}s port propeller shaft began to overheat shortly after passing the mouth of the [[Elbe River]] and she had to slow down. The ship managed to repair the problem and joined the main body later in the day.<ref>Haarr, pp. 70–71, 75</ref> The ship escorted ''Admiral Hipper'' as they entered [[Trondheim Fjord]] and both ships disembarked their troops once they reached Trondheim harbor. All of the German ships proved to be very low on fuel after their journey and fuel oil was transferred to ''Eckoldt'' from [[German destroyer Z6 Theodor Riedel|''Theodor Riedel'']] and ''Heinemann''. ''Admiral Hipper'' and ''Eckoldt'' attempted to leave on the night of 10 April, but the smaller ship proved to be unable to match ''Admiral Hipper''{{'}}s speed in the heavy seas encountered and was forced to turn back. After some fuel was discovered in Trondheim on 12 April, the ship and ''Heinemann'' sailed for Germany two days later.<ref>Haarr, pp. 293, 295, 300–03</ref>

After completing her refit in early September (the ship may have been fitted with a FuMO 21 or FuMO 24 [[radar]] set above the [[bridge (nautical)|bridge]] at this time),<ref name=g0>Gröner, p. 200</ref> ''Eckoldt'' was transferred to France with four of the surviving destroyers on 9 September.<ref>Whitley, p. 106</ref> The ship covered five other destroyers laying mines in [[Falmouth Bay]] during the night of 28/29 September. Five ships totalling only 2026 GRT were sunk by this minefield.<ref>Hervieux, p. 115</ref> ''Eckoldt'' was attacked by [[Fairey Swordfish]] of [[812 Naval Air Squadron|No. 812 Squadron]] of the [[Fleet Air Arm]] during the night of 9/10 October and lightly damaged by bomb splinters. One man was killed and three were wounded.<ref>Whitley, p. 107</ref> The ship was transferred back to Hamburg on 5 November where she was refitted until the end of December. ''Eckoldt'' was training in the Baltic until she escorted the battleship {{ship|German battleship|Bismarck||2}} and the heavy cruiser {{ship|German cruiser|Prinz Eugen||2}} from [[Cape Arkona]] to Trondheim on 19–22 May as they sortied into the North Atlantic.<ref name=ks7/> The following month, she escorted the pocket battleship {{ship|German cruiser|Lützow|1940|2}} from [[Kiel]] to Norway as the latter ship attempted to break through the British blockade. Several [[Bristol Beaufort]] aircraft spotted ''Lützow'' and her escorts and one managed to surprise the ships and torpedo the pocket battleship early on the morning of 13 June. ''Eckoldt'' took ''Lützow'' under tow until the latter managed to restart her starboard engine and proceed under her own power.<ref>Whitley, p. 123</ref>

On 20 June, ''Eckoldt'' sailed for [[Bergen]], Norway, with ''Galster'' and ''Schonemann'' where they waited until 4 July for the latter's main feed pump to be repaired and for ''Beitzen'' and ''Lody'' to arrive. All five destroyers arrived at [[Kirkenes]] on 10 July. They mounted their first anti-shipping patrol on 12 July, but did not spot anything until the following night. A small Soviet convoy was spotted and two of its ships were sunk after expending four-fifths of their ammunition. As the German ships were returning to port, they were attacked by several aircraft, of which ''Eckoldt'' claimed to have shot down one. A second patrol was made on 22 July, but only a single Soviet ship was sunk while the German ships were not damaged by several aerial attacks. When the British [[aircraft carrier]]s {{HMS|Victorious|R38|2}} and {{HMS|Furious|47|2}} attacked [[Pechenga (urban-type settlement), Murmansk Oblast|Petsamo]] and Kirkenes on 29 July, the destroyers were far to the east and could not catch the British ships before they left the area. The German destroyers made one final sortie into the Kola Inlet where they sank one small Soviet patrol vessel. ''Eckoldt'' was damaged by a single aircraft's bombs that [[straddle]]d the ship and damaged her steering and starboard engine. This damage was temporarily repaired, but ''Eckoldt'' was ordered to [[Narvik]] for more thorough repairs. After they were completed, the ship remained in the Arctic for convoy escort duties. She was accidentally rammed by a Norwegian freighter in [[Tromsø]] on 12 October and was given temporary repairs in the floating dock at Trondheim on 22 October before she was sent to Kiel for more permanent repairs where she arrived on 9 November.<ref>Whitley, pp. 124–29</ref>

''Eckoldt'' finished her repairs and overhaul on 15 April 1942 and was training until she attempted to sail for Norway on 11 June. She developed more engine problems en route and had to turn back for repairs. The ship reached Trondheim on 9 July, escorting the [[light cruiser]] {{ship|German cruiser|Köln||2}}; both ships laid mines at the entrance to the Skagerrak en route. ''Eckoldt'' continued onwards and reached Narvik on 18 July.<ref name=ks7/> During [[Operation Wunderland]] in August, ''Eckoldt'', ''Beitzen'' and ''Steinbrinck'' escorted the pocket battleship {{ship|German cruiser|Admiral Scheer||2}} at the beginning and end of its mission to attack Soviet shipping in the [[Kara Sea]]. They also escorted the [[minelayer]] {{ship|German minelayer|Ulm||2}} as it departed to lay a minefield off [[Cape Zhelaniya]] in mid-August.<ref name="Whitley, p. 142">Whitley, p. 142</ref> On 13–15 October, ''Eckoldt'', ''Beitzen'', and the destroyers {{ship|German destroyer|Z27||2}} and {{ship|German destroyer|Z30||2}} laid a minefield off the [[Kanin Peninsula]] at the mouth of the [[White Sea]] that sank the {{ship|Soviet icebreaker|Mikoyan}}. Three weeks later, the same four destroyers escorted ''Admiral Hipper'' as she attempted to intercept Allied merchant ships proceeding independently to Soviet ports in early November.<ref>Rohwer, pp. 202, 207</ref>

===Battle of the Barents Sea===
{{main|Battle of the Barents Sea}}
During [[Operation Regenbogen (Arctic)|Operation Regenbogen]], the attempt to intercept [[Convoy JW 51B]] sailing from the UK to the Soviet Union in late December, ''Eckoldt'', ''Beitzen'', and {{ship|German destroyer|Z29||2}} escorted ''Admiral Hipper'' as she attempted to occupy the attention of the convoy's escort while ''Lutzow'' and three other destroyers attacked the convoy.<ref name="Whitley, p. 142"/> The three destroyers separated from ''Hipper'' to search for the convoy and were successful on the morning of 31 December. The destroyer {{HMS|Obdurate|G39|6}} spotted them in turn and closed to investigate when the German ships opened fire at a range of {{convert|8000|m|yd|sp=us}}.<ref>Naval Staff History, p. 93</ref> ''Obdurate'' turned away to rejoin the convoy without sustaining any damage and the German ships did not pursue as they had been ordered to rejoin ''Hipper''. The Germans found the minesweeper {{HMS|Bramble|J11|6}}, which had been detached earlier from the convoy to search for stragglers, as they maneuvered to close with the convoy and the destroyers were ordered to sink her while ''Hipper'' engaged the convoy's escorting destroyers. This took some time in the poor visibility and ''Hipper'' was surprised in the meantime by the British covering force of the light cruisers {{HMS|Sheffield|C24|2}} and {{HMS|Jamaica|44|2}}. After sinking ''Bramble'', the German destroyers ''Beitzen'' and ''Eckoldt'' attempted to rejoin ''Hipper'', unaware that British cruisers were in the area. They confused ''Sheffield'' with ''Hipper'' when they spotted each other at {{convert|4000|m|yd|sp=us}} range and were taken by surprise when ''Sheffield'' opened fire on the nearest, ''Eckoldt'', with every gun she had. ''Eckholdt'' broke in two and sank with all hands in less than two minutes; ''Beitzen'' escaped unscathed.<ref>{{cite web |last=Kappes |first=Irwin J. |date=23 February 2010|title=Battle of the Barents Sea |publisher=German-Navy.De |url=http://www.german-navy.de/kriegsmarine/articles/feature5.html |access-date=29 May 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110607120149/http://www.german-navy.de/kriegsmarine/articles/feature5.html |url-status=live |archive-date=7 June 2011}}</ref>

==Notes==
{{Reflist|2}}

==References==
*{{Cite book |last=Gröner|first=Erich|title=German Warships 1815&ndash;1945|year=1990 |location=Annapolis, Maryland|volume=1: Major Surface Warships|publisher=Naval Institute Press |isbn=0-87021-790-9|author-link=Erich Gröner}}
* {{cite book|last=Haarr|first=Geirr H.|title=The German Invasion of Norway, April 1940|year=2009 |publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|isbn=978-1-59114-310-9|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/germaninvasionof00geir}}
*{{cite book|last=Hervieux|first=Pierre|title=Warship|editor=Roberts, John|publisher=Conway Maritime Press|location=Greenwich, England|year=1980|volume=IV|pages=110–16|chapter=German Destroyer Minelaying Operations Off the English Coast (1940–1941)|isbn=0-87021-979-0}}
* {{Cite book |last1=Hildebrand|first1=Hans H.|last2=Röhr|first2=Albert|last3=Steinmetz |first3=Hans-Otto |title=Die Deutschen Kriegsschiffe|volume=3|year=1993|location=Ratingen |publisher=Mundus Verlag|asin=B003VHSRKE |asin-tld=de}}
* {{cite book |last1=Koop |first1=Gerhard|last2=Schmolke |first2=Klaus-Peter|title=German Destroyers of World War II |year=2003 |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis, Maryland |isbn=1-59114-307-1}}
* {{cite book|last=Rohwer|first=Jürgen|title=Chronology of the War at Sea 1939–1945: The Naval History of World War Two |publisher=Naval Institute Press|location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=2005 |edition=Third Revised |isbn=1-59114-119-2|author-link=Jürgen Rohwer}}
* {{cite book|title=The Royal Navy and the Arctic Convoys: A Naval Staff History |publisher= Whitehall History Publishing in association with Routledge |location=London |date=2007 |isbn=978-0-7146-5284-9}}
*{{cite book |last=Whitley|first=M. J. |title=German Destroyers of World War Two |publisher=Naval Institute Press |location=Annapolis, Maryland|year=1991 |isbn=978-1-55750-302-2|author-link=Michael J. Whitley}}

==External links==
* [http://www.german-navy.de/kriegsmarine/ships/destroyer/index.html Kriegsmarine destroyers]

{{Type 1934 destroyers}}
{{December 1942 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Z16 Friedrich Eckoldt}}
[[Category:1937 ships]]
[[Category:Ships built in Hamburg]]
[[Category:Type 1934 destroyers]]
[[Category:Warships lost in combat with all hands]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in December 1942]]
[[Category:World War II shipwrecks in the Arctic Ocean]]