The Incredible Story of U-47 and “The Bull of Scapa Flow”

What this episode is about

The story focuses on the remarkable mission of the German submarine U-47, commanded by Captain Günther Prien, which infiltrated the seemingly impenetrable defenses of Scapa Flow in October 1939 and sank the British battleship Royal Oak. This audacious attack shattered the Royal Navy's perception of invulnerability and marked a significant moment in naval warfare during the early stages of World War II.

Key takeaways

• Scarpa Flow: Where the British Navy's 'invincibility' met the audacious U47—a history lesson in overconfidence.
• Captain Gunther Prian turned a quest for revenge into a tactical triumph, underscoring that underestimation is a deadly sin.
• Complacency at Scarpa Flow made it a swashbuckler's paradise—how disrepair turned a fortress into a target.
• The U-boats' early adherence to 'cruiser rules' proved futile against Britain’s supply lines—morality meets strategic necessity.
• Hitler's disregard for submarines nearly cost him the war; sometimes, the mightiest weapons are the ones overlooked.

Who speaks in this episode?

• Captain Gunther Prien (Host) · 5 min speaking

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 3:00: Scapa Flow, Gunther Prian, Battle of Jutland
2. 3:00 – 6:00: Scapa Flow, Gunther Prian
3. 6:00 – 9:00: Scapa Flow, Battle of Jutland
4. 9:00 – 12:00: Scapa Flow
5. 12:00 – 15:00: Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill, Scapa Flow, Gunther Prian, My Way to Scarpa Flow

Notable quotes from "The Incredible Story of U-47 and “The Bull of Scapa Flow”"

• Allowing the Royal Navy and the German Imperial Navy to glower at each other across the North Sea. It was from here that the Grand Fleet sailed to the historic 1916 Battle of…

  about Battle of Jutland · at 0:25

• Generate treacherous 10 knot rip currents that could easily ground and damage his boat. The best chance of getting through would be at high tide on the 13th or 14th, barely two weeks away.

  about Scapa Flow · at 6:11

• Chosen because Prian's frowning face and hunched shoulders as we entered Scarpa Flow reminded me of a bull in a ring. In 1940, Prian released a book titled My Way to Scarpa…

  about My Way to Scarpa Flow · at 11:55

• A political firestorm and shook the Royal Navy out of its pre-war complacency. Winston Churchill then first lord of the admiral te fired Sir William French flag officer in…

  about Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill · at 12:48

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Gunther Prian — Person · Primary subject (referenced historical figure) · 3 mentions · first at 1:09
  Central figure of the episode: commander of U-47 who infiltrated Scapa Flow in Oct 1939 and sank HMS Royal Oak; later became a major U-boat ace and propaganda icon before being lost at sea in 1941.
  Before being recalled home. Having sunk over 66,000 tons of shipping on his first patrol, Prian was awarded the Iron Cross secondass and quickly became a favorite of Admiral…
• Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill — Person · Referenced government leader (historical figure) · 3 mentions · first at 12:51
  Shown as the British political authority responding to the Scapa Flow disaster: orders leadership changes and major defensive upgrades (including the 'Churchill Barriers') and later announces U-47's loss in Parliament.

Books & papers

• My Way to Scarpa Flow — Book · 1 mention · first at 12:02

Places & events

• Scapa Flow — Place · 14 mentions · first at 0:41
• Battle of Jutland — Event · 2 mentions · first at 0:32

Full transcript with timestamps

0:00 Sculpa flow lies barely 7° below the Arctic Circle in the cold windswept Ornne Islands at the northern tip of Scotland. Measuring 10 km wide by 8 km long with an average depth of 30 m. This natural anchorage is bounded to the north by the mainland, to the east by the islands of Bar and South Ronald, and to the west by the island of Hoy. In 1904, Scarper Flow was chosen as the home base for the British Grand Fleet, allowing the Royal Navy and the German Imperial Navy to glower at each other across the North Sea. It was from here that the Grand Fleet sailed to the historic 1916 Battle of Jutland. And here that the German high seas fleet sailed to surrender in 1918. In the years leading up to the Second World War, Scarpa Flow was thought to be impregnable and came to symbolize the supposed invincibility of the Royal Navy itself. But in the early morning hours of October the 14th, 1939, a lone German

0:53 yubot succeeded in doing the impossible, penetrating the harbor's defenses, sinking a 30,000 ton battleship and slipping away undetected. It was one of the most daring feats of the war and one which shattered the Royal Navy's illusion of invulnerability. This is the incredible story of the U47 and Captain Gunther Prian, the bull of Scarathlow. Though best remembered for its campaign of unrestricted submarine warfare against Allied merchant shipping, the German Yubot arm was in the early days of the war a very different animal operating by very different rules. In September 1939, the fleet stood at barely 56 boats, only half of which were larger than oceangoing types. And while Yubot crews were the most capable and well-trained submariners in the world, they were still bound by the so-called cruiser or prize rules. These required them to stop merchant vessels and allow their crews to escape before sinking or

1:44 sailing them home as prizes. Warships, on the other hands, were fair game. And barely two weeks into the war, the Yubot Arms scored its first major victory when U29 torpedoed and sank the 19,000 ton aircraft carrier HMS Courageous off the coast of Ireland. But Admiral Car Donuts, head of the Yubot arm, had bigger plans. With a fleet of 500 yubot and Hitler's blessing to unleash them on Allied merchant shipping, Donets believed that he could sever Britain's vital supply lines from North America and starve the island nation into submission. Convinced he could win the war single-handedly for Germany, he begged Hitler to approve the construction of more submarines. But Hubot didn't fit Hitler's vision of a mighty German fleet, and the furer dithered. Donuts thus decided to plan a daring mission that would demonstrate the utility of Yubot once and for all.

2:31 And it didn't take long for him to choose the target, Scarpa Flow. To the German Navy, Scarpa Flow was symbolically important. Following the armistice of 1918, the Imperial High Seas fleet was ordered to sail to the British Anchorage and surrender itself. The ships and their crews remained interred in Scarpa Flow for 7 months until on June the 21st, 1919, on the orders of Rear Admiral Ludvig Vonro, the crews scuttled their ships in the final act of defiance. The scuttling of the high seas fleet was romanticized Nazi propaganda portrayed as an atoning act which rid the navy of the shame associated with the 1918 ke mutiny that triggered the German socialist revolution and the abdication of Kaiser Bilhelm II for Donitz. Striking at the heart of the Royal Navy's innermost sanctum was the perfect means of avenging this national humiliation. But it wasn't going to be easy. Two Ubot had already tried to infiltrate Scarpa Flow.

3:23 U8 in November 1914 and UB116 in October 1918. Both were spotted and destroyed by British forces. In the wake of these attempts, the British had tightened security, increasing patrols, erecting anti-ubmarine booms and nets across the harbor entrances and sinking block ships in the smaller channels. Yet, aerial photographs taken by the Luftwaffer revealed that Scarpa flow was no longer as impregnable as it seemed. Thanks to a combination of complacency and into war budgetary cuts, the base's defenses had fallen into disrepair. Anti-ubmarine patrols were infrequent, anti-aircraft offenses were wholly inadequate, and many of the block ships had disintegrated and collapsed, leaving several smaller channels open to infiltration. One in particular, Kirk Sound, was around 50 ft wide, just wide enough for a single yubot to slip through. And Donitz knew the man who was going to command it. 31-year-old Captain

4:15 Lieutenant Gunther Prian. Described by American War correspondent William Shyer as cleancut, cocky, a fanatical Nazi, and obviously capable, Prian was the epitome of the daring new breed of commanders that had made the Yubot arm the most elite and respected service in the German armed forces. Born on January the 16th, 1908 in Osterfeld, Prussia, Prian joins the German Merch Marine at the age of 15, serving on board the passenger liner Hamburg and earning his sea master certificate in 1932. Unable to find a commercial job due to the Great Depression in 1933, Prian joined the German Navy, serving on board the light cruiser Koigsburg before transferring to the Yubot service in 1935. Brienne's first posting was as watch officer aboard the U26, assigned to patrol the Spanish coast during the Spanish Civil War. Brienne rose steadily through the ranks, finally being commissioned as captain lieutenant on

5:07 February the 1st, 1939 and given command of the new type VICU U47. The Second World War began while U47 was out on its first war patrol and Prian wasted no time making a name for himself. On September the 5th, 1939, two days after Britain declared war on Germany, Prian stopped and sank the British freighter Bosnia, transferring her crew to a neutral Norwegian ship. This was the Yubodarm's first official victory of the war. While 2 days earlier, U30 had torpedoed the British liner Athenia off the coast of Ireland. This was condemned as a war crime and the German government denied responsibility until 1946. Prian quickly followed up his feet by sinking the freighters Rio Clarara and Garchivon before being recalled home. Having sunk over 66,000 tons of shipping on his first patrol, Prian was awarded the Iron Cross secondass and quickly became a favorite of Admiral Donitz, who on October the 1st, 1939, summoned Prien to

5:57 his office to present his plan for Special Operation P, the infiltration of Scarpa Flow. Prian was immediately enthusiastic, though he knew the mission would be a dangerous one. Not only were the channels into Scarpa Flow extremely narrow, but tides in the area could generate treacherous 10 knot rip currents that could easily ground and damage his boat. The best chance of getting through would be at high tide on the 13th or 14th, barely two weeks away. In the end, the potential targets proved too tempting for Prian to resist for aerial reconnaissance had revealed a full lineup of capital ships mored along the northern shore. And so on October the 8th, Prian, first officer Engelbert, Endrass, and the rest of U47's 42man crew set sail from Wilhelm Shaven bound forclo. Though Prian had every confidence in his crew, he waited until he was well underway before revealing their destination, giving each man the

6:46 option of leaving if he wished. Unsurprisingly, nobody was terribly tempted to disembark in the middle of the North Sea and the crew stayed on as U47 slowly made way to the Orcnes. The journey took 4 days with U47 lying on the seafloor during the day and traveling only at night. Then at 4 p.m. on October the 14th, U47 arrived just off the entrance to Scarpa Flow. The weather on the crossing had been overcast and rainy, making navigation difficult. But judging from coastal navigation lights, Prian determined that he was only 2 km from his intended position. A remarkable feat of navigation. As they waited on the seafloor for night to fall, the crew were treated to a feast of soup, ve pork ribs, potatoes, and cabbage. Or as they called it, a hangman's dinner. Finally, at 7 p.m., U47 surfaced and began her mission. But right away, pre-incense trouble. Though it was a moonless night, the Aurora Borealis danced brightly

7:37 overhead, bathing his Ubot in light. For a moment, Prian considered aborting the mission, but eventually decided to press on regardless. At 10 p.m., the Orcne navigation lights came on, allowing Prian to fix his position and locate the proper channel to enter Scarpa Flow. Nonetheless, Priarly chose the wrong channel between Lambholm and Bar Islands before realizing his mistake and doubling back toward Kirk Sound. Then, while trying to negotiate the narrow channel, the swift current swung the yubot stern into one of the block ships, causing her to become fouled on an anchor chain. It was many tense minutes before the crew was able to free the boat. Gradually, however, the channel widened, the current slowed, and U47 finally entered open water. At midnight, Prian wrote in his log, "We are in Scarpa Flow." Yet, once again, something didn't feel quite right. Prian had expected to find the harbor bustling

8:24 with activity, but the scene before him was eerily quiet with barely a ship in sight. Undeterred, pre-anordered U47 forward, creeping towards the north anchorage where the home fleet was mored. Then suddenly, the yubot was bathed in bright light as a truck on the shore turned on its headlights. The crew froze and looked on in horror, knowing that they could be fired upon at any moment, but the truck quickly turned and disappeared into the night, and once more, all was quiet. It was not until 1250 that Pri and first officer Andreas finally spotted a pair of ships at anchor. The first was quickly identified as the HMS Royal Oak, a 30,000 ton battleship and veteran of the Battle of Jutland. Enra identified the second as the battle cruiser HMS Repulse, although it was in fact an aging sea plane carrier called the HMS Pegasus. Though puzzled about the rest of the fleet's whereabouts, Prian could not pass up

9:13 such plum targets. And at 1255, he fired a spread of four torpedoes at Royal Oak. One torpedo struck home, blowing a 50-foot hole a midship and shaking visiting Rear Admiral Henry Blagrove out of bed. Blro immediately ordered a thorough inspection of the ship, but as it was widely believed that Scarflow was impregnable, few crewmen could even conceive that they had been torpedoed. The blast was chocked up to a minor explosion in a paint locker and Blra and the rest of the crew went back to bed. Meanwhile, Prian looked on in confusion.

9:41 Though he had heard the sound of the torpedo detonating, the scene before him was still eerily quiet, as if nothing had happened. Convinced that the torpedoes had malfunctioned, a common occurrence early in the war, Prian ordered U47 about and launched his stern torpedo. This also missed, and in frustration, Prian swung the boat back around and at 1:16 a.m. fired another salvo of three torpedoes. This time, all three struck home, igniting Royal Oak's powder magazines and causing the ship to erupt into a column of flame. As Pion later recalled, "Flames shot Skyward, blue, yellow, red, like huge birds.

10:13 Black shadows soared through the flames, fell, hissing and splashing into the water huge fragments of the mast and funnels. Royer quickly killed over and sank to the bottom of Scarpa Flow, taking 835 of her crew with her, including Rear Admiral Blangrove. The harbor suddenly exploded with activity, and Prian took that as his cue to slip away. The bay awoke to feverish activity. Search lights flashed and probed with their long white fingers. Small swift lights low over the water. The lights of destroyers and yubot chases. I could see no other worthwhile target, only pursuers. At high speed, I passed the column block ship with nothing to spare. The helmsman does magnificently. High speed ahead both finally 3/4 speed and full ahead out. At 2:15, we were once more outside. As it turned out, the darth of targets inside Scarpa Flow was the result of bad timing by the crease marine. Less than a week

11:02 earlier, the battle cruisers Gennai, Salow, and Cole had sailed out into the North Sea in an attempt to lure the home fleet within range of the Luftwaffer. The fleet duly sailed out in pursuit with the older Royal Oak, unable to keep up with the rest of the ships, remaining behind in Scarpa Flow. When the chase was eventually abandoned, the fleet returned not to Scarpa Flow, but to alternate anchorages at Lock U and Rossith. Nonetheless, Prian had pulled off one of the greatest naval coups of the war and returned to Germany in October the 17th to instant fame. Adolf Hitler sent his personal aircraft to fly the crew of U47 to Berlin where Admirals Carl Donuts and Eric Rada presented them with iron crosses and Prienne with the Knights cross with oak leaves, the highest German military honor at the time. Prien became a national celebrity known throughout Germany as the bull of Scarpa Flow. Prien painted a snorting

11:47 bull on U47's Corning tower and this image soon became the emblem of the entire seventh Yubot flotilla. According to first officer Andrass, the image was chosen because Prian's frowning face and hunched shoulders as we entered Scarpa Flow reminded me of a bull in a ring. In 1940, Prian released a book titled My Way to Scarpa Flow and in dozens of interviews and articles recounted his exploits in a suitably propaganda friendly fashion. We diddled our way through the Guardine and were suddenly inside inside of Scarpa Flow, the harbor of the English sea force. It was absolutely dead calm in there. The entire bay was a light because of a bright northern light. We then cruised the bay for approximately 1 and a half hours, chose our targets, fired our torpedoes. In the next moment, there was a bang, and the Royal Oak blew up. The view was indescribable, and we sneaked out in a similar fashion as we got in

12:34 close past the enemy guards, and they did not see us. You could imagine the excitement and happiness we all felt about the fact that we managed to fulfill our task and achieve such a huge victory for Germany. Meanwhile, back in Britain, Prienne's daring raid unleashed a political firestorm and shook the Royal Navy out of its pre-war complacency. Winston Churchill then first lord of the admiral te fired Sir William French flag officer in charge of Shhatland and Ornne and ordered Scarpa flow's defenses overhauled patrols were increased new block ships booms and mines installed across the main entrances larger anti-aircraft batteries in place and large causeways dubbed Churchill barriers were erected between the mainland and the islands of South Ronald Bar Lam and Glimpse Holm. While these upgrades were being installed the Royal Navy was forced to use other anchorages which the Germans promptly

13:19 mined. This resulted in the battleship HMS Nelson and the cruiser HMS Belfast being damaged and four other vessels sunk an unexpected side effect of Pri's mission. It was not until March 1940 that the home fleet was able to return to scar flow. Pri himself would go from strength to strength carrying out a total of 10 war patrols in which he sank 30 Allied ships totaling 200,000 tons making him one of the top yubot aces of the war. But in the end his fame and legendary skill could not save him from the fate that befell nearly 70% of his fellow submariners. In the early morning hours of March the 8th, 1941, Prien was attacking the merchant convoy OB293 off the coast of Ireland when he was spotted and fired upon by the British destroyers HMS Wolverine and HMS Varity. For the next 5 hours, the two destroyers kept U47 locked in their sonar beams while relentlessly pounding her with depth charges. At 519, U47 was forced to the

14:10 surface only to dive again and disappear in a massive explosion. Neither Prian nor his 45man crew were ever seen again. 10 days later, two more top yubot aces would be lost. Crmmer of the U99 and Shepki of the U 100 captured and killed respectively by Allied forces. Due to his massive propaganda value, Gunther Prian's death was kept secret for nearly 2 months. However, now Prime Minister Churchill officially announced U47's loss in Parliament while British propaganda broadcasts to Germany taunted listeners with the question, "Where is Pri?" until finally on May the 23rd, the German government was forced to admit that the great Yubot ace had been lost.

14:46 However, in order to soften the blow, the announcement was buried among figures of Allied shipping sunk that month by Yubot. Despite the blow it struck to British naval prestige and morale, even Winston Churchill was forced to admit that Prian's attack was a remarkable feat of professional skill and daring. And despite the fame and adulation his exploits brought him in Germany, to the end, Prian remains level-headed and dedicated to his duty writing, success had singled me out. But what after all is success? A matter of luck, of providence, that which matters among men, is to have the heart of a fighter and to lose oneself in the cause he serves. So, I really hope you found that video interesting. If you did, please do hit that thumbs up button below. Don't forget to subscribe and as always, thank you for watching.

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "The Incredible Story of U-47 and “The Bull of Scapa Flow”"?

Captain Gunther Prien (Host).

What is "The Incredible Story of U-47 and “The Bull of Scapa Flow”" about?

The story focuses on the remarkable mission of the German submarine U-47, commanded by Captain Günther Prien, which infiltrated the seemingly impenetrable defenses of Scapa Flow in October 1939 and sank the British battleship Royal Oak. This audacious attack shattered the Royal Navy's perception of invulnerability and marked a significant moment in naval warfare during the early stages of World…

What is mentioned in this Today I Found Out episode?

5 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Scapa Flow, Gunther Prian, Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill, Battle of Jutland, My Way to Scarpa Flow. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "The Incredible Story of U-47 and “The Bull of Scapa Flow”"?

The episode runs 16 min; the transcript is about 2,974 words in 20 timestamped sections.

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