U-534 German U-Boat at Birkenhead Woodside

[panzerabwerkanone]

It was most likely cut up so the more inacessible parts could be accessed for preservation. It would be a real pain in the ass to preserve it without taking it apart somehow. Most restorations involve taking the ship, airplane , auto apart. It was welded together when it was built it can be welded again. They did a neat job of the cut, not a hack job.

[antl82]

hasnt this gone now? i remeber being a kid, and visiting when they had the sub, and big war boat there.

[Eaglefly0]

We want our steel back home :(

[mendacha]

someone had it cut...EPIC FAIL!!!!

[agwhitaker]

One of the very few type IX U boats left.

And it gets cut up.

How deeply and profoundly retarded.

[MrOTTOMAN66]

JUST PLAIN WRONG, SHOULD HAVE LEFT IT INTACT

.

[Pitchplus8]

the crew R.I.P.

[freeharddrive]

My GOD what is this putting the U534 in pieces, this is vandalism en destroyed a piece of historie!

[addernoir01]

Don't worry too much! The owner wanted alot of money for the submarine. No one would pay. MerseyTravel have cut this in places which haven't damaged its structural integrity, and the quality of the cuts are perfect. Looks like it's been planed off on a machine bed almost! Was the only way to save her, and it has been done to give her a far better chance of being saved and put back together in the future. Also means she can be transported easier, if a new buyer comes along :o) It's not the end!!!

[ilovetallwomen22]

chopping that historical item up is so so disrespectful!! it should of been presurved like it was when it was first brought back up....so disrespectful.

[priedeco]

this symphony is that? I know there is the Symphony No. 5 because I have and it is not like the sound of the video

[searaider2]

What's this? Frustrated vengeance?

[QuiteNiceFilms]

cant belive this is gone , finaly wirral got to have a part of esternal history and it has been swiped from us

[Heritagius]

I agree with the comments about it being nuts they cut it up. This was just five mins from my house by car, and luckily I went on for a look-see beforehand. I have ppl in my family one or most two generations who sailed the Atlantic terrified of these, it's almost like a bit of personal history. Hope they enjoy it in bits.... although I highly doubt it.

[Bulletguy07]

Does seem a shame they decided to cut it into sections but having been inside it when it was in one piece, I can understand why as I found parts a bit of a struggle back then. Now I'm ten years older, had a knee operation and suffer with arthritic problems. There would be no chance of crawling through U-534 if it was still in one piece.

The guy who took us round told us the Captain of U-534 was one of Germany's youngest at just 23 years old.

[cabbyman2705]

@Bulletguy07 The captain was called Herbert Nollau,one of the Knights of Pfaltz and was the oldest man onboard at the time of sinking.

[Bulletguy07]

@cabbyman2705 Just shows how even a guide can get it wrong! A google on Nollau reveals that he was b. March 1916 which would make him 29 years old when U-534 was sunk in May 1945. He was promoted to Captain in October 1943.

It was a worthwhile visit and I would like to see it as it is now. The men who worked on U Boats were a breed on their own. I recently watched a drama doc on the sinking of the Laconia. Just google Laconia or Capt Hartenstein for more info.

[megatwingo]

Thanks for uploading this video. Thumbs up!

[HuasoPodrido]

to the victors the spoils.

[vincentwade1]

I saw the U- 505 in Chicago. There was a huge fat chick in the line behind me. I asked her if she was going thru the sub, she said yes, it was her second time. I thought "Oh, great. It's all cut out inside" Sure enough, the pressure hatches were cut out. Miss Piggy got stuck in a tight spot in the engine room for about 10 mins. The tour guide had to call for help to unclog the sub. They finally got her loose, tearing her dress to do it. They need a sign to warn fat chicks about the hatches.

[Lockbar]

@vincentwade1 LOL Fat girl stuck in a sub!! I've been on the U 505 many times. Wished I could have seen that. No fat dummies allowed, please!

[stuka52]

It was cut up so handicapped people could enter it. Has something to do with the disabilities act law. The USS Cod in Cleveland is the only WW2 sub that has the original hatchway intact I believe.

[InhabitantOfOddworld]

Sorry, 52 crewmen, the five were in the torpedo room, they escaped through the loading hatch and three of them died. Only 4 of them are still alive today.

[InhabitantOfOddworld]

This sub won't float again unfortunately, the interior is rusted up beyond any form of repair, plus a great big hole in the side from the Allied depth charge that sank it. Like I said, the outside has been repainted, but it would cost huge, unnecessary amounts of money to repair it fully. With the credit crunch and Tory budget cuts, it wouldn't be worth it.

[InhabitantOfOddworld]

Five crewmen were on board at the time of sinking. One died on the 64 metre rise to the surface, and another two died from exposure while on the raft at the surface

[InhabitantOfOddworld]

Looks very rusty here, but has been repainted. It's also in bits so visitors can see the interior, as well as all the note books and journals and stuff that was inside and preserved by silt.

[Potatonaught]

should paint it and refloat it

[RUSSSELLLLL]

heard they cut it up so that it could never be used again. bloody hell

[salamander162A]

this is a piece of junk. Go see a perfectly intact VIIC type German U boat, at Laboe (near Kiel), Germany. There is the U995, amazingly beautiful, from the in and outside, the very last original one.

[G0YAP]

Just returned from a trip to Liverpool just to see U-534...Brilliant!... Well worth the journey from Norfolk.

[rallygsc]

it's a shame the morons cut it up, they could have done something similar to the museum of science and industry did in chicago with the U-505 , a real dumbass must have came up with the idea to cut it up

[TheVeneth]

how truly british.. fucked-up anything they can..

[winchuni22]

@TheVeneth

Fuck off.

[TheVeneth]

@winchuni22 :DDDD

[TheVeneth]

@winchuni22 Tahni do prdele ty zprcance.. :DD

[IanHunedoara8]

Like the U-534- the Confederate submarine Hunley (1862-3) had to be cut in half in order to be properly restored.

[musiclovr2]

@IanHunedoara8

so are they restoring this then

i dont see anywhere for gold to be sitting around

[IanHunedoara8]

@musiclovr2 HEHEH you were watching Sahara!

[musiclovr2]

@IanHunedoara8

yea i watched a few of these ,really neat stuff

[clintonearlwalker]

I've read that in those days subs were built with the hull first and then the insides brought in through the hatches. Roughly akin to trying to build a pocketwatch through the stem hole. Current subs are built in sections, then welded together. I see little problem cutting this antique into sections, I'm sure it could be simply welded back together. It's very unlikely it will ever sail again anyway.

[DaManzMoney]

@clintonearlwalker It is to dangerous to let people inside to see them thats why they did it and like u say its only metal its eazy to fix

[clintonearlwalker]

@DaManzMoney I was inside a WW II sub in Baltimore Harbor, I think it was Japanese but I don't remember. I do remember it was in one piece, it had bunks that looked like large sardine cans, and shiny brass colored torpedos. I assumed they cut this one up to make cleaning and restoration about 10 times easier. I guess it would make it easy for tourists to examine it in sections. I couldn't imagine being in one of these things under the ocean under attack.

[cestrianvlogger]

they should have tried at least to restore it in one piece, yes it would of cost money but come on, id pay to clamber aboard the beast and take a look around

[Lockbar]

Yep. Cutting it up really made it look better. Will probably get 8 paid admissions a year.

[chinookking97]

poor rusty thing

[czwij]

hey, i've an idea, to save space and put up a parking lot or some other immensly useful object, lets take down the eiffel tower, carve it to pieces so that all the wheelchair bound can frolic on the veiwing paltform without having to take a special elevator.

should have left the thing at the bottom of the kattegat, much more dignified.

[blobby1972]

@czwij I don't know why people keep putting the blame on the disabled because it was also health and safety not alowing anyone to go down into the u boat this was the only way they could display the thing and it was cheaper to transport .but thankyou for not being as hurtfull to disabled people as some of the horibble people on here .

[bellakoolah]

Idiots !

[jallendubya]

What's long-hard and filled with seamen?

[leadeddown]

@jallendubya lol its been a few years since i heard that joke

[lordzeppo]

There's a reason why the inside of uboats were kept out of bounds to spectators,it's a freaking tomb to about 44 braves lads that gave their life after countless days in hell.

Pay respect to them.

[janusx66]

All 44 seamen survived the sinking of this u-boat ;)

No vicitms felt when it got hit by a depht charge.

Gr, Ramon

[Gott0300]

Okay, but many, many others died..

And just because we know today that they died for a madman shouldn't mean that those guys don't deserve the same respect as the allied sailors and submariners; they thought that they would do the right thing for their country!

And living in one of those subs was tough..

[janusx66]

I know 30.000 men of the 40.000 never returned home.

But the casualties could be less, if the Kriegsmarine had invested in new radar technologies, some times the wolfpackt just ran in a destoyer escort, and if you have to fool the ASDIC, i wish you the best of luck, not to mention the radio traffic from the U-boats to the BDU.

When the allies had the Enigma it was very easy to locate a boat, just because the radio traffic.

[Gott0300]

That's right. The germans thought, the Enigma was absolutely safe and so they've transmitted the exact locations of their boats - bad mistake!

Many mistakes have been made. But then again: if they hadn't been made, we would probably still live in a world ruled by the Nazi party and I'm not sure if that would be a good thing... ;)

[janusx66]

Yes thats right !

Butt if i may be a little bit ironic, hitler wanted a one Europe, but look what we have now here, one eurpe and the coin, the euro looks very simmilar as the german mark xd

But you still are right it was terrible to live in such a boat, and the regime was not that pretty no!

[bulldog000]

1 Crewman drowned. I think he was 18 year old,and i think he was a telegraphist/wireless operater.

[Danie9989]

@lordzeppo i totally agree with you

[lordzeppo]

good thing.

[jallendubya]

@lordzeppo possibly due to the structural instability. its a 60+ yr old piece of rusted out steel only 1inch thick at the hull

[tupsumato]

@jallendubya, "only"? One inch is pretty thick considering the size of the submarine.

[jallendubya]

@tupsumato I do c yer point although if you think of the depths they went to its kinda thin. But all the other supports and what not gave it more stability & have to rely on the welding too. Kinda like the LEMs that went to the moon foil, paper was what some of the bulkhead was made of & all it takes is a piece of dust to disable it. and inch thick is like frum fingr tip 2 1st knuckle.

[tupsumato]

@jallendubya, well, I'm not familiar with the plate thickness requirements for submarines while they are in operation, but I was simply thinking about the current structural integrity. If the plates alone are still 1" thick (and there are frames and stiffeners as well!) you could probably drop this sub in its current condition from a crane and it wouldn't break. Wouldn't be dangerous to enter after it had been cleaned, but I guess they wanted to be sure that no-one got hurt.

[jallendubya]

@tupsumato I'm not arguing negative and with no disrespect. All i mean is if i were on one of these knowing the hull thickness i'd be pooping while being depth-charged @ a very deep depth. The German u-boats could take a better beating & could run a little deeper than the US u-boats. I live by the U-505 & and hve seen the intact hull & its paper thin which is an un-nerving thought. thems was some brave cats.

[f1racer]

The UK now is a nation of PC spineless islamic-appeasing bastards. This is the nation that let HMS Warrior rot as a fuel jetty for almost one hundred years because of laziness. This is the nation that scrapped HMS Warspite and as late as 1938 had planned to chop up HMS Victory.

PATHETIC...the Brits who won WW1 and WW2 would be ashamed of what their country has turned into

[Damo3445]

@f1racer Not wrong there mate Not fuckin wrong at all.

[mikelsok]

I really wanted to see this as I enjoyed the 'Das Boot' series.Its only as one gets older does history become important. (Don't ask me why, just hated history at school). Anyway, as soon as I found out that they had cut the U-boat up I lost all interest in wanting to see it. I would rather see the real thing. I have seen the U-boat pens at St Nazaire in France that was interesting. Whoever is responsible for this act of historical sabotage to meet Political Correctness policy should be sacked.

[pablof59]

@ 3:38 looks like a London's Underground coach.

[7seattle7]

...submarine was cut into sections- idiots!!!

[gaktkr]

Pictures from 1:44 - 3:45 made me feel sick. Cutting an amazing piece of history up into bits is wrong. Those were the first submarines in the world and there isn't many U-Boats left about 4 and you cut one up? Hell you should be put in jail.

[G0YAP]

@gaktkr They cut it up because of Health And Safety Laws. If it stayed whole you could not have disabled access etc. This is the way Great Britain has gone. I agree with you, its a bloody shame. It makes me wonder how we would have won the war with todays H&S laws and bloody risk assessment. God Help this country.

[gaktkr]

True, I'll be outa this country in a few years. Sick of it.

[DaManzMoney]

@gaktkr I think there 9 left

[Hemhraban]

The boat in Birkenhead ( U 534 ) is a exalted wreck from the Type IX C /40 which was raised in 1993 from a danish company...i have senn this bvoat in Hanstholm / Danmark...it was killed on May 5th 1945 from two B 24 Bombers on his way to Norway.

One bomber was shot down from the AA gun of the boat, but the second bomber hits the boat so that it sunks. Three crew members died due of exhaustion inside the cold water..

[Hemhraban]

Currently there are only a hand full of german U-Boats which still exists

U1 in the German Museum in Munich..This was the first boat of the Imperial Navy in WW I

The next is U-Vessiko in Helsinki / Finland

This is a licenced Type II boat

U-505 in front of the Museum of science in Chicaco / USA a Type IX C Boat

Than U 995 in Laboe / Germany

This is a typical VII C Boat

The next is U-2540 in Bremerhafen / Germany.this is the last existing U-boat of the Type XXI

[PitbullNL]

WTF!!

What was this drunken moron thinking of cutting an uboat in pieces??!!!

JESUS

[23929500]

I am very disapointed at the fate of this boat.She should have been preserved as she was as a memorial to all submariners of all nationalities. The tour of this boat left me awestruck ! The whole collection of warships should have been kept together.

[run202run]

As a historical preservationist I find saving historical artifacts, and then cutting them into swiss cheese disgusting.

[AdeV2]

I also live locally, and I'm mad as hell that the developers forced the Historic Warships out (not just this U-boat), and all for a block of over-priced flats stuck in the middle of what is, effectively, still an industrial estate with live docks... And they knocked most of the cotton buildings down too, which was criminal.

Unfortunately, industrial heritage is not something we Brits do well with. Too many greenist morons, I think.

[SSUnitedStateslife]

excuse me what is the vessel towards the end of the movie, the one painted black?

[birkonian]

This is a replica of the Resurgam, a prototype submarine built in 1879 which was reputed to be the world's second machanically propelled submarine.

[SSUnitedStateslife]

Thanks

[robinhood48]

This boat is not in pieces it is in sections. This is exactly the way these boats were built. What they did in Birkenhead is to show how such boats looked in detail.

This is no lack of respect.

But they should bring the sections into a building or at least protect them from rain.

[iroscoe]

I think cutting it up for display was misguided but i understand why it was done,the site is supposed to be developed in the in the way you suggest into a semi-enclosed exhibition with other relics of the Battle of the Atlantic to be added over time . Negotiations had been going on to purchase a Black Swan class Sloop for the exhibition but the deal fell through because the Egyptians wanted more money for it .

[robinhood48]

@iroscoe

If I remember correctly it was the El Melek Faruk. Not sure.

The German "Navy" got some Black Swans after joining NATO in the 50ties. No special ships but very reliable.

I´m sure, Birkenhead will do the right thing, they respect all ships.

[iroscoe]

Yes the West German Navy got quite a few of them and they ended up carrying some very proud names such as Admiral Scheer,they were the prefered mount of a lot of sub hunters,as well as possesing useful dual purpose armament . Im sure it will turn out to be a good museum,but these things take time,i would like to see a similar exhibition on the South coast to comemorate the war of the narrow sea i know there's a few Fairmile boats about and an S boat is being restored in Southampton .

[robinhood48]

@iro

I remember HMS Starling, a real U Boot butcher. But the commander (Walker?) did not like the Germans very much.

But can be wrong, it´s long ago I have read of him.

S- Boot? German S- Boot?

I thought they were all gone?

[iroscoe]

Walker was a ruthless individual whose drive to fight lead to excesses as well as excellence the same drive that probably killed him in the end . Yes a German S-boat,two of the later numbered types were evaluated post war one of which was converted for clandestine(anti-communist) missions with British Napier Engines and a German crew,its in private hands and i believe a seven figure sum has been commited to its restoration,its an very exciting project .

[robinhood48]

@iro

That´s good news, thought all of them were gone. Will be difficult to restore.

I knew one was in Private hands but I lost trace. Two boats were recommissioned by reestablished German Navy in 1955.

Maybe some survived in USA- as yacht.

The later numbered types had a domed wheelhouse, very tough ships and f.... fast!

[iroscoe]

Yes they were extremely useful boat not just fast but with a very good range for that class of boat,it would be fantastic to see one in the water doing its thing .

[bildaloco]

Hell cannot burn hot enough for the jackasses that cut this historic boat apart. Let's cut down the Tower of London as well, because hey, it's hard for handicapped people to get up there. IDIOTS!

[CHILLO1231]

i had the priveledge of a tour around this u boat when it was in one piece and part of the historic warships collection at birkenhead....brilliant day ...fantastic idea massive potential..in revenue and tourism...some twat decides the warehouse on site would make nice flats lol

[brunosis]

Hate to piss on anybody's purist chips, but I went down to the (gasp) cut-up U-Boat, and it's a really great attraction. My little boy loved it, and I thought the interior views that the glass-ended segments allowed were fantastic. I'd driven past it countless times when it was a rusty hulk on blocks stood in wasteland, and visiting it never occurred to me. Whether I'm a philistine or not is open to debate, but I'd not have bothered discovering it if it hadn't been 'exhibitified'!

[hinkyponky]

I was lucky enough to go through this boat in 2002 before some idiot cut her up - may of well have scrapped it - shame

[birkonian]

The U-534 was bought by Merseytravel as a tourist attraction. They have installed decking around it and glazed the cut sections for viewing but I personally preferred it in one peice as they found it.

[BassGoodForTheSoul]

@birkonian Yes, it was loads better like that. And ORIGINAL!

[Bevoin1970]

I made a delivery in Liverpool area some time ago and came across this boat, It was on blocks in dry dock and close to a main road with a tea van. It blowed my brains seeing a real life U boat in the flesh, the tea van chap gave me some brief history on it and I felt truly humbled. It was in one piece back then and all rusty, but against the blue sky with its machine gun pointing upwards it stuck with me. I'll never forget it, Das Boot, Shame it was cut up and painted, rust looked more fitting.

[NederSaks]

Imagine building such a ship without the modern welding robots, c02 welding systems, hydraulic cranes and such.

[GodHatesMeToo]

It brings tears to my eyes to see such a wonderful machine treated so badly. :(

[nevek20]

I live just up the road from where this used to be People protested aganst it but next door the building was being converted into flats and they made the musem close and the worse out come is what you see before you

[dean11081988]

shame realy i like the look of it in one peise evan if it was german it still histery

[Elgrande555]

what you mean by "even" when German it still is history??? German military equipment of that time was state of the art and therefore masterpieces of engineering

[dean11081988]

whot i mean is i am english it was a american english crew that raised the cash and the boat . and yes it was state of the art i know we invented it all they just made more of them im not having a go its just the trueth

[auf23]

they  should giveth home in Germania.

[Robkat3751]

and the back ground music is?

[birkonian]

The background music is Mahler's Symphony No.5

[priedeco]

@birkonian

this symphony is that?

 I know there is the Symphony No. 5 because I have and it is not like the sound of the video

[freakforlax17]

why did they cut it up it was a part of history. Ya know

[stevelaw6673]

would have liked to visit, but not now they have chopped it into pieces-stupid people

[mcwoppadong]

going to see this on saturday, shame they cut it up though

[hansioned]

wow i never knew this got moved to woodside- i saw it by the docks for years driving past in the car... I might take a trip down there later

[mixerd0822]

I saw on a video that they cut her up because disabled people could not get in. this was wrong!what a great boat.

[birkonian]

Yes, that is correct. They should have made an exception in this case as it was the only intact Uboat in existance. The one in Chicago has sections cut out of it for viewing purposes.

[Rohrkrepierer88]

Only intact in existance isnt right , remember U 995 near Kiel .

[DSMeclipsegst]

damn yiu can see where the depth charged crumppled the back. how cool

[MaiMorti]

Was better unite not cut !!! shit !! 14/88

[shibbaddywa]

Went inside u534 when she was in one peice at the historic warships collection, what an experience. There was air trapped inside part of the vessle when it was on the sea bed for 44 years and the upper part of some of the interior were the air was is still like brand new. A couple of the batteries even still had some power in them when it was raised, unbelievable. Wouldn't av liked to be in one during the war.

[diaso2]

ZIEG HEIL

[krhonhos]

no por ser un submarino nazi en la 2ª guerra deben dejarlo en abandono debe ser concervado como recuerdo de unas de las epocas mas sangrientas de la historia reciente del mundo

[taff1976]

Bloody vandalism that they cut her up. A disgrace. Would they do that to HMS Victory? I've heard the arguments why this was done...not enough money to keep her where she was etc. It does not make it right

[chevyvictor]

German Govt should of claimed her back as a remeberance to the family of the Crew or branded it a Wargrave

[hansioned]

seeing the u-boat reminds me how anti german i should be, i am glad they lost the war, yes they lost alot of there family, but so did the english

[robitsme]

Why should you be anti German - Most of the german people from that time period are dead..

[luvpump1]

thats a moronic attitude

[wulff707]

They couldn't 'brand' it as a war grave because the crew didn't die inside!

Although one man drowned..... they safely excaped.

As for your other comment, Germany wasn't interested in it.

[bevmar123]

they all survived

[hansioned]

i have just been recieving comments on this and i dont remember being anti german- i had family memebers- obvs i wasnt alive who died in the wars, but i am niot anti german. I think maybe my friend who hs a very bnp veiw might of been here and posted that. sorry if it offends people xx

[freakforlax17]

fucking anti german

[Speeddemon3]

Yes! All made it off, 3 I believe died later of complications but everyone got off.

[GordonALWAYS]

Shes beautiful!!!

[adam200784]

i used to work right next to the old sub. i used to be in the old grain warehouse right next to it (spiller mill). the lads that worked at the historic warships that looked after it were great. i can remember every year they used to spray it with an oil to stop it rusting.

[flyguy4fun]

This is an amazing video. It is great that you have taken the time for this. I only wish that this project was going on near me so i could volunteer some man hrs towards it.

[cleberaguiard]

essa maquina mostra a capacidade do povo alemão, que pena que em portugal sejamos tão burros opa!

[SMGJohn]

President of USA and the President of Russian sitt on a hotell with out the sea and talk about ho that have the best uboat

President of USA: my Uboat can be in weater in 3 months

President of Russian: my uboat can be in weater in 5 months

but then a uboat come up from the sea and president of usa and russian turn them self around and look aout at the sea then a old man come out from the uboat it look like he whas 80 year old

the old man: (on german) do yer have some diesel

[flyguy4fun]

i love it, so true. Germany had the best.Shame there uboat fleet had to be destroyed and the last few scuttled

[taff1976]

Will have to remember that one :-)

[Jeansschwimmer]

@SMGJohn The not so-politically-correct version of that joke is: The grey bearded captain pops out of a hatch and says, "Heil Hitler, who has won?"respectively, "Is it over?"

[Jan7MAP]

Thanks for share fhis nice/ungry images.

What is the music in the background?

Jan.

[birkonian]

Hello

The music is Mahler's symphony number 5

Thanks for your comments