Years of service 1918, 1920–1945 Died September 13, 1995 | Name Eberhard Godt | |
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Born 15 August 1900Lubeck ( 1900-08-15 ) Battles/wars World War ISpanish Civil WarWorld War IIBattle of the Atlantic | ||
Eberhard Godt (15 August 1900 – 13 September 1995) was a German naval officer who served in both World War I and World War II, eventually rising to command the Kriegsmarine's U-boat operations.
Contents
Biography
This article incorporates information from the equivalent articles on the German WikipediaGodt joined the Kaiserliche Marine in summer 1918 as an officer cadet and served on board the SMS Schlesien. After the war he served in the Marinebrigade Ehrhardt. In March 1920 he was accepted in the Reichsmarine, becoming an officer in 1924. He served aboard numerous surface ships and naval installations until 1935; when he was serving on the light cruiser Emden as adjutant to Kapitän zur See Karl Dönitz. Then Korvettenkapitän (Lieutenant Commander) Godt transferred to the newly established U-boat arm; commanding German submarine U-25 during the Spanish Civil War.
In January 1938 he was appointed to the staff of the commander of the U-boat force, Admiral Dönitz. In October he became the force's chief of operations. He continued in this role until January 1943 when he assumed full tactical command of U-Boat operations after Dönitz was promoted to command the Kriegsmarine. In March Godt was promoted to Konteradmiral (Rear Admiral) and assigned, additionally to his U-boat duties, to a department command at the Naval High Command. In 1945 he became a POW and remained in British custody until 1947. During this time he also testified as a witness in the Nuremberg trials.
Following the war he wrote a history of Kriegsmarine operations in World War II as member of the Naval Historical Team.