Friedrich Guggenberger

Guggenberger was born in Munich on 6 March 1915. He joined the navy in1934, and just after the outbreak of WWII in 1939 he transferred to the new U boat arm. After training his first assignment was U 28, where he served under Günther Kuhnke. He took command of U 28 for a few months whilst she was part of the school flotilla. He was awarded the Iron Cross 2nd Class on 23 March 1940. While commanding the new U 81 launched on 26 April 1941, he earned the Iron Cross 1st Class. After a number of assignments on various U Boats, he joined Admiral Karl Dönitz's staff for a three months period. He returned to sea in May 1943 in command of U 513, but this vessel only managed one patrol before being sunk by depth charges on 19 July 1943. After serving in a number of establishments post WWII, he retired in October 1972. In his latter years, he suffered from Alzheimer's disease, which may have lead to his death when he left his home for a stroll on13 May 1988, and was not seen again. His body was found two years later.