View source for German weather ship WBS 1 Hermann

{{other ships|Saxony (disambiguation)#Ships{{!}}FV Sachsen}}
{{DISPLAYTITLE:German weather ship ''WBS 1 Hermann''}}
{|{{Infobox ship begin |infobox caption= |italic title=}} <!-- warships except submarines --><!-- caption: yes, nodab, or <caption text> -->
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{{Infobox ship career
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|Ship country=Germany
|Ship flag={{shipboxflag|Weimar Republic|civil}} {{shipboxflag|Nazi Germany|civil}} {{shipboxflag|Nazi Germany|naval}}
|Ship name=*''J. F. Schröder'' (1929–33)
*''Sachsen'' (1933–43)
|Ship owner=Deutsche Hochsee Fischerei Bremen-Cuxhaven AG (1929–
|Ship operator=
|Ship namesake=
|Ship ordered=
|Ship builder=Schiffbau-Gesellschaft Unterweser
|Ship yard number=235
|Ship laid down=
|Ship launched=June 1929
|Ship completed=July 1929
|Ship acquired=
|Ship commissioned=18 September 1940
|Ship decommissioned=
|Ship in service=
|Ship out of service=
|Ship struck=
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|Ship registry=*{{flagicon|Weimar Republic|civil}} [[Cuxhaven]], Germany (1929–35)
*{{flagicon|Nazi Germany}} Cuxhaven (1935–40)
*{{flagicon|Nazi Germany|naval}} [[Kriegsmarine]] (1940–43)
|Ship identification=*Fishing registration HC&nbsp;214 (1929–40)
*Code Letters RHJP (1929–34)
*{{ICS|Romeo}}{{ICS|Hotel}}{{ICS|Juliet}}{{ICS|Papa}}
*Code Letters DICM (1934-40)
*{{ICS|Delta}}{{ICS|India}}{{ICS|Charlie}}{{ICS|Mike}}
*WBS 1 (1940–43)
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|Ship fate=[[Scuttling|Scuttled]], 17 June 1943
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|Ship type=*Fishing trawler (1929–40)
*Weather ship (1940–43)
|Ship tonnage={{GRT|284}}, {{NRT|106}}
|Ship length={{convert|140|ft|1|in|m|2|disp=flip}}
|Ship beam={{convert|24|ft|4|in|m|2|disp=flip}}
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|Ship depth={{convert|12|ft|5|in|m|2|disp=flip}}
|Ship power=Diesel engine, 183[[nominal horsepower|nhp]]
|Ship propulsion=Single screw propeller
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|Ship complement=15, plus 5 meteorologists (Kriegsmarine)
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'''''Hermann''''' was a [[Kriegsmarine]] [[weather ship]] that was built in 1929 as the [[fishing trawler]] '''''J. F. Schröder'''''. She was renamed '''''Sachsen''''' in 1933 and requisitioned in 1940, serving as '''''WBS 1 Sachsen'''''. She was renamed ''Hermann'' in 1942, serving until scuttled off the coast of Greenland in June 1943.

==Description==
The ship was {{convert|140|ft|1|in|m|2|disp=flip}} long, with a beam of {{convert|24|ft|4|in|m|2|disp=flip}}. She had a depth of {{convert|12|ft|5|in|m|2|disp=flip}}. The ship was powered by a six-cylinder [[four-stroke engine|four stroke]] single cycle, single action [[diesel engine]] which drove a single screw propeller. Rated at 183[[nominal horsepower|nhp]], it was built by [[MAN SE|Maschinenfabrik Augsburg-Nürnburg]], [[Augsburg]]. She wasassessed as {{GRT|284}}, {{NRT|106}}.<ref name=JFS30>{{cite web |url=https://plimsoll.southampton.gov.uk/shipdata/pdfs/30/30a0317.pdf |title=Lloyd's Register, Trawlers &c. |author=Lloyd's of London |year=1930 |publisher=Plimsoll Ship Data |accessdate=22 February 2015}}</ref>

==History==
''J. F. Schröder'' was built in 1929 as [[yard number]] 235 by Schiffbau-Gesellschaft Unterweser [[Aktiengesellschaft|AG]], [[Wesermünde]] for the Deutsche Hochsee Fischerei Bremen-Cuxhaven AG. She was launched in June 1929, and completed the next month.<ref name=miramar>{{Cite ship register|register=MSI|id=26947 |shipname=J.F.Schroder |accessdate=22 February 2015}}</ref> Her port of registry was [[Cuxhaven]] and the [[Code Letters]] RHJP,<ref name=JFS30/> and fishing registration HC&nbsp;214 were allocated.<ref name=Warcovers>{{cite web |url=http://www.warcovers.dk/greenland/wbs1_1.htm |title=Wetterbeobachtungs-Schiff Sachsen WBS 1 |publisher=Warcovers |accessdate=22 February 2015}}</ref> In 1933, she was renamed ''Sachsen''.<ref name=JFS33>{{cite web |url=https://plimsoll.southampton.gov.uk/shipdata/pdfs/33/33a0289.pdf |title=Lloyd's Register, Navires a Vapeur et a Moteurs de moins de 300 tx, Chalutiers &c. |author=Lloyd's of London |year=1933 |publisher=Plimsoll Ship Data |accessdate=22 February 2015}}</ref> With the change of Code Letters in 1934, ''Sachsen'' was allocated the letters DICM.<ref name=S34>{{cite web |url=https://plimsoll.southampton.gov.uk/shipdata/pdfs/34/34a0475.pdf |title=Lloyd's Register, Navires a Vapeur et a Moteurs de moins de 300 tx, Chalutiers &c. |author=Lloyd's of London |year=1933 |publisher=Plimsoll Ship Data |accessdate=22 February 2015}}</ref>

On 22 May 1940, ''Sachsen'' was requisitioned by the [[Kriegsmarine]]. She was converted to a [[weather ship]] and was commissioned on 18 September. She had a crew of fifteen, plus five meteorologists. From 18 September to 23 November, she was employed on a mission to the [[Denmark Strait]]. In the spring and summer of 1941, she operated off the Norwegian island of [[Jan Mayen]]. On 10 October 1941, ''Sachsen'' sailed from [[Tromsø]], Norway with {{ship|German weather ship|WBS 4 Fritz Homann||2}} for Jan Mayen, where an automatic weather station was to be established. This was completed on 29 October and the two ship departed from Jan Mayen on 15 November.<ref name=Warcovers/>

''Sachsen'' was later renamed ''Hermann''.<ref name=Warcovers/> On 22 August 1942 she sailed from Tromsø to operate off the east coast of Greenland, arriving at [[Shannon Island]] on 27 August. The ship was disguised in an attempt to make her look like sea ice. In the spring of 1943, the Germans were discovered by the ''[[Slædepatruljen Sirius]]'', but they later managed to capture its leader, and ordered him to help them find a new site for a weather station. He took Kapitän Ritter to [[Scoresbysund]], where Ritter was captured by the Allies and made a [[prisoner of war]].<ref name=Arctic>{{cite web |url=http://d-dayforecast.com/contents/arctic-weather-war/ |title=Arctic Weather Warriors |first=John |last=Rees |publisher=d-dayforecast.com |accessdate=22 February 2015}}</ref> ''Hermann'' was scuttled on 17 June 1943 in Hansa Bay. Her crew were evacuated by a [[Dornier Do 26]] [[flying boat]].<ref name=Warcovers/>

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{June 1943 shipwrecks}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hermann}}
[[Category:1929 ships]]
[[Category:Fishing vessels of Germany]]
[[Category:Ships built in Bremen (state)]]
[[Category:World War II auxiliary ships of Germany]]
[[Category:Weather ships]]
[[Category:World War II shipwrecks in the Norwegian Sea]]
[[Category:Scuttled vessels of Germany]]
[[Category:Maritime incidents in June 1943]]