German submarine U-325

German submarine U-325 was a Type VIIC/41 U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine during World War II.

The submarine was laid down on 13 April 1943 at the Flender Werke at Lübeck, launched on 25 March 1944, and commissioned on 6 May 1944 under the command of Oberleutnant zur See Erwin Dohrn.

Design
German Type VIIC/41 submarines were preceded by the heavier Type VIIC submarines. U-325 had a displacement of 759 t when at the surface and 860 t while submerged. She had a total length of 67.10 m, a pressure hull length of 50.50 m, a beam of 6.20 m, a height of 9.60 m, and a draught of 4.74 m. The submarine was powered by two Germaniawerft F46 four-stroke, six-cylinder supercharged diesel engines producing a total of 2800 to 3200 PS for use while surfaced, two Garbe, Lahmeyer & Co. RP 137/c double-acting electric motors producing a total of 750 PS for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two 1.23 m propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to 230 m.

The submarine had a maximum surface speed of 17.7 kn and a maximum submerged speed of 7.6 kn. When submerged, the boat could operate for 80 nmi at 4 kn; when surfaced, she could travel 8500 nmi at 10 kn. U-325 was fitted with five 53.3 cm torpedo tubes (four fitted at the bow and one at the stern), fourteen torpedoes, one 8.8 cm SK C/35 naval gun, (220 rounds), one 3.7 cm Flak M42 and two 2 cm C/30 anti-aircraft guns. The boat had a complement of between forty-four and sixty.

Service history
U-325's first patrol took her from Kiel in Germany to Horten Naval Base in Norway, between 1 and 4 December 1944. She then sailed from Horten on 9 December 1944, and around the British Isles into the western English Channel, before returning to Trondheim on 14 February 1945, although she recorded no successes.

Loss
U-325 sailed from Trondheim on 20 March 1945 for her third and final patrol and was ordered to return to the waters off Lands End. Even though her last report was received on 7 April, when Germany surrendered on 8 May 1945 U-325 was still considered operational by the U-boat High Command. However it soon became apparent that the submarine was lost.

The British initially attributed the loss of U-325 to a depth charge attack by the destroyers HMS Hesperus (H57) and HMS Havelock (H88) on 30 April 1945. However, after later analysis of German records that submarine was re-identified as GS U-242, and U-325's fate was officially classified as "unknown".

Discovery
The wreck of U-325 was finally discovered by Scuba divers in 2006, 17 km South of Lizard Point at position 49.80472°N, -5.20638°W. To counter the increasing number of schnorkel-fitted U-boats in UK coastal waters, the First Sea Lord ordered a heavy anti-U-boat mining programme to be undertaken in the Western Approaches, Plymouth and Portsmouth Commands on 15 January 1945. By April 1945, nine different fields (Serial B1, part 1 to 4, Serial B2, part 1 to 4, and Serial B3, part 1), comprising 900 Mk XVII/XVII(8) mines were laid off Lizard Head. U-325 struck a mine in field B3, part 1. This field was laid by the coastal minelayer HMS Plover (M26) escorted by the minesweepers HMS lfracombe and HMS Shippigan.