U-85 1942
Marker: recorded wreck position (Second World War).
Key facts
| Name | U-85 | Wikidata label |
|---|---|---|
| Year lost | 1942 | Wikidata P793 significant event, point-in-time qualifier |
| Era | Second World War | derived from year |
| Ship type | U-boat | Wikidata P31 instance of |
| Nationality / flag | Nazi Germany | Wikidata P8047 country of registry |
| Operator | Kriegsmarine | Wikidata P137 operator |
| Conflict | World War II | Wikidata P607 conflict |
| Sea / ocean | North Atlantic Ocean | Natural Earth marine areas (public domain), point-in-polygon |
| Nearest coast | United States | Natural Earth (public domain); approx. 31 km from land |
| Position | 35.9167, -75.2167 | Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0) |
About the wreck
German submarine U-85 was a Type VIIB U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.
She was laid down at the Flender Werke in Lübeck on 18 December 1939 as yard number 281. Launched on 10 April 1941, she was commissioned on 7 June and assigned to the 3rd U-boat Flotilla under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Eberhard Greger.
U-85 conducted four war patrols with the flotilla, and sank three ships, totalling 15,060 gross register tons (GRT). She was sunk in April 1942 by the US destroyer Roper.
Diving & visiting
The hatch of U-85 is on display in the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum; the submarine herself still serves as an attraction for divers. The Labrador current influences the site and visibility can be low. The majority of the debris lies within a 100 metres (330 ft) radius of the wreck. The wreck site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2015.
The Enigma machine was recovered from the wreck by private divers (Jim Bunch, Roger & Rich Hunting) and in 2003 the German government agreed to allow the machine to be displayed at the Graveyard of the Atlantic Museum, in Hatteras, North Carolina.
Location
- Recorded position: 35.9167, -75.2167 (Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0); may be approximate)
- Sea / ocean: North Atlantic Ocean
- Nearest coast: United States
Wreck positions on this site are for interest only and are not for navigation. Many wrecks are war graves or legally protected: never disturb human remains or remove artefacts, and check local law before diving.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article German submarine U-85 (1941) (revision 1379988876), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section and section(s) “Wreck”; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations and formatting removed. No text added. This excerpt is available under the same licence.
Wreck facts from Wikidata (CC0).
Nearby wrecks
- Wreck of the Ephraim Williams 1884 · 73 km
- SS Lancing 1942 · 88 km
- United States lightship Diamond Shoal 93 km
- MV Belgian Airman 1945 · 105 km
- U-576 1942 · 119 km
- SS Dixie Arrow 1942 · 123 km
Other wrecks of the World War II
- U-434 1941
- USS Arizona (BB-39) 1941
- USS Hopewell 1941
- Vasilefs Georgios 1941
- Zara 1941
- Akagi 1942
- Aviere 1942
- Diana 1942
- Giovanni delle Bande Nere 1942
- HMAS Nestor 1942
All 599 wrecks of the World War II →
Browse more: North America wrecks · wrecks off United States · North Atlantic Ocean · Second World War