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June 16, 2009, at 10:29 am
Francisco Maceira. -April 29, 2009 .- On December 12, 1936 Republican submarine C-3 was sunk in the waters of the Alboran Sea, four miles from Malaga. Best said it sank a torpedo fired from German submarine U-34, the operation named “Ursula”. A secret operation that benefited both the rebel side and Hitler, who could train his famous “Gray Wolves” to launch torpedoes against the Republican fleet. Although the first launch of the “Poseidon” (code name of the German submarine U-34) destroyers against Republicans had not been satisfactory, the C-3 was not as lucky.
The submarine crew was 40 men and there were only three survivors. The rest is still inside the wreck lies in 70 meters deep in the place where fishermen known as the “Lower submarine.” Various versions emerged about the incident. As stating that the Republican leadership ordered that leave to navigate to the C-3 was a traitor. I knew the Germans were waiting and that the deplorable state that it was without electricity for a dive and ailing engine (the other was to repair Almería) – would become a safe target. Also considering the hypothesis that given the low yield of the explosion (most of the witnesses agree on this) had not been torpedoed. That was the collapse of other causes and what was there was a chemical reaction of hydrogen batteries in contact with seawater.
But the message that the commander of U-34 sent the same day the German command leaves no doubt about the causes of the accident: “Sunken Red Submarine C Class in Malaga”. Silence and darkness that surrounded the case was that families spend years without knowing that it was his own and became a C-3 in an underwater ghost. It was in 1996 when a few spots of oil and diesel fuel (even today emerge to the surface) led to a sport fisherman to the exact spot where the wreck lies. In 1998, 62 years after the sinking, a formation of warships, led by portaeronaves “Principe de Asturias”, paid for the first time in history, honors the C-3. A gesture but insufficient for these heroes of our navy. We have a moral obligation to revive the submarine. Not only as part of our history, but also to try to offset some families who have suffered throughout his life the stigma of being widows and orphans of “red.” Some families have never been able to bury their loved ones, to the passivity and lack of the Ministry of Defense. Let us not forget that Spanish navy who lost their lives defending their country. It is the duty of the Spanish Government to rescue the submarine C3. For its endowment can rest in peace and restore their dignity. Or, rather, to return who have never lost.
May 10, 2009, at 10:24 am
Hello,
When in the summer of 2,002, two friends of Malaga (Spain), decided to create this Submarine C3′s Web Site we did not think about it’s wide spread and really good welcome from the users as we can see one year after the Web Site start her navigation on October 15th, 2002. In spite of the difficulties, to accurately measure the received visits, we got some information to share with you, based on data obtained out of different counters and samplings.
During the first year, our Web Site received approximately 20,000 visits to some of the pages. This makes an average 55 pages per day, or means that every single hour “more than 2 pages” has been read anywhere world wide. This average includes the low visit rates during the first months of life of our Web Site. During the last 19 days we have had a total of 1,814 visited pages, with an average of 95.4 pages per day, which extrapolated for a complete year, makes a total of 35,000 visits per year, the minimum we forecast for the next 12 incoming months.
The Submarine C3′s Web site is virtually accessed from anywhere in the world. At this days, majority of our visitors are accessing through telecomm operators (“Internet Service Providers”) in 37 different countries, by decreasing order of visits: Spain, The United States, Uruguay, Mexico, Chile, Holland, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Venezuela, Peru, Australia, France, Dominican Republic, Portugal, Germany, Costa Rica, United Kingdom, El Salvador, Panama, Sweden, Italy, Guatemala, Puerto Rico, Finland, Bolivia, Canada, Singapore, People’s Republic of China, Egypt, Switzerland, Nicaragua, Belgium, Poland, Andorra, Ecuador.
In our Guestbook, we have received 100 signatures (approximately 2 per week) appreciating the contents and supporting our effort. Visitor’s scoring (“from 1 to 5″) is very high as rating of “5″ and “4″ are very frequent and this makes us to feel proud and motivated to follow with this project. A subject to emphasize is the elegance and respect of the commentaries, reflecting the gentleness and feelings of our visitors, commenting its points of view openly and respect to the others: we have only had to delete in all the year 2 Guestbook entries containing obscene and pornographic commentaries.
We want to share our success and happiness with all of you and give thanks for your visits to the Submarine C3′s Web Site. We hope that it was useful for you. In the list of gratefulness we need to specially mention to the enormous amount of collaborators who have helped us, to the crew’s relatives, to people that sent us to us material to publish: the list of names is long and would be complicated to publish it without involuntarily omit somebody. However, it is of justice to mention to Rita help us a lot, considering from our side, she made an enormous contribution, also is necessary to mention our families who take it with patience. THANKS TO ALL.
When an important event is celebrated, it is normal to create a commemorative object to remember it. In our case we have chosen the composition that accompanies this page. It is a silhouette of the C3 coursing towards Malaga overlapped to a “Sierra Nevada” view from the sea. The Sierra Nevada’s photo is, in our opinion of an incomparable beauty (in spite of our bad photo ability). It was taken to the dawn of a December’s day and represents the snow-white summits of “Mulhacen” and “Veleta” (highest summits in continental Spain, around 3,400 meters high each). The submarine passed necessarily by this site in its penultimate day’s trip from Almeria to Malaga: possibly the crew observed a landscape similar to this. The composition is prepared to print in size 10×15 cms. WE WAIT TO SEE YOU VISITING OUR WEB SITE AGAIN. THANKS!
“Pecio Submarino” Group
May 9, 2009, at 4:47 pm
A submarine is a vessel capable of navigating both conventional manner, such as submerged under water, governed by men.
All submarines use to sink the “principle of Archimedes.” This principle states that any object immersed in a fluid experiences an upward thrust equal to the weight of the displaced volume. This principle explains that the buoyancy of the objects and if you increase the weight of an object is floating (positive buoyancy), you can make your weight is greater than the weight of water displaced and thus cause it to submerge. Submarine ballast tanks used to be filled or emptied of water to change its properties buoyancy at will and can handle the transition from a positive buoyancy (the vessel fleet) to negative (dives) or vice versa.
It is clear that the submarines have not been the first ships that sailed riding our oceans, as they require a technology far more advanced than conventional ships. It is not our purpose to explain in detail the operation of a submarine: the reader who is interested in this can find detailed information click below and have access to two websites, one in Spanish and in English. To frame the technology used in the submarine C3, we will spell out the different technologies used in the construction of submarines along the story:
Muscular or Propulsion: The first submarine, based necessary force for traction and other needs in the muscles of the crew.
We can compare this situation to that of the boats moved by oars or vehicles driven by pedals or animal traction.
Propulsion or Steam: Though it may seem quaint, submarines existed steam traction.
Do not forget that the power of steam was the most commonly used for traction of ships until World War II, the industry felt comfortable using this source of energy to move underwater. According to data available to these submarines, some construction continued until the late 1930 (dates after construction of the submarine C3) but this time there were already more advanced technology.
It’s easy to imagine a surface vessel driven by a steam engine and we have all seen pictures of them with fireplaces emanate large amounts of smoke, but when you bring this concept to a submarine must be able to navigate underwater, we must solve two problems: What about fireplaces? What type of energy used for traction when the ship is submerged?. These two problems were solved through the use of chimneys to be folded-up when the ship sank. Later, when submerged, the ship used to pull the energy of water vapor pressure in the boilers.
We can imagine the limited effectiveness of this technology compared with either of those explained below, but it is also true that at the time there were no other alternatives.
or Joint Propulsion: Gasoline-Electric: This technology is used for gasoline engines in the navigation area and electric motors for navigation in immersive. The electrical power required to operate the electric motors is stored in batteries that are recharged through the engine to explode when the ship was at the surface.
This technology was clearly superior to the use of steam but had two big drawbacks: The enormous rate of fire and explosions on board due to the use of gasoline and the intense smell of fuel.
To partly remedy these drawbacks, it was used at some point a variant of this technology on the basis of replacing the gasoline engine with that of kerosene.
Mixed Propulsion Diesel-Electric: Same as above, but replacing the combustion engine for a diesel engine, which eliminated the risk of fire engines and provided significant power.
This is the technology used by the Submarine C3 and most of the submarine from World War II to (almost) present day, excluding nuclear submarine propulsion. Later we will see more details of the same applied to submarine C3.
Nuclear Propulsion: These submarines use a nuclear reactor as an energy source. The first nuclear submarine, the Nautilus was operational, in service by the Navy of the United States of America in the year 1966.
These submarines have a virtually unlimited autonomy but have the drawback of its high cost so that not all countries can maintain a fleet of these ships continued to use yet advanced diesel technology properly.
The submarine C3 was part of the C series of submarines of the Spanish Armada, which planned to acquire 18 units of which only six were eventually built. These submarines were identified by numbers corresponding to the C1 to C6, although not named any of them except the C1 with the name “Isaac Peral. They were virtually identical in design, equipment and technical features, and its main differences: the communication system between submarines dive deck and armament.
The C series is an improved design of the model number 150F Holland. ” The model was developed by one of the world’s largest manufacturer of military technology and in the years that saw the signing of the order to supply submarines armed major countries of world like Japan and England. The submarines were built in Cartagena by the Spanish Society of Shipbuilding (SECN). We can say that the series C had a design of the most advanced and most reliable of the era. Then we will tour the most important elements in terms of its technology that can help us after reviewing the circumstances of the sinking:
Diesel Engines: The submarine was equipped with two diesel engines Vickers brand power of a single 1000 HP, which gave a total power of 2000 HP, which were used to drive the ship during navigation on the surface and to recharge batteries the vessel.
Both engines were mounted at the stern of the submarine and aft, one to the other port and starboard. Behind the diesel engines and electric motors were then lanzatorpedos stern tubes.
Electric Motors: The submarine also had two 375 HP electric motors power each. These engines were installed in the aft, aligned with the respective diesel and behind them. Electric motors provide traction when the ship sailed in Cincinnati.
It is worth the difference in power between the diesel and electric engines, which translates into differences in the speed of navigation and self-immersion and surface. El Submarino C3 developed a maximum speed of 16.5 knots on the surface with a range of 6800 miles (a cruising speed of 10 knots and 3200 miles at 16.5 knots) in developing an immersion speed of 8.5 knots with a range of 150 miles. This is very normal at the time, where the submarines were basically surface ships that were sailing on an occasional immersion in but in time were fearsome weapons of war by the difficulty of detecting them limited to visual and acoustic techniques. Later, with the development of other technologies, submarines became faster ships sailing in that area and immersion usually remain submerged.
Propellers: The submarine was equipped with two propellers in the stern besieged and aligned with the respective pairs of Diesel-Electric engines mounted on both sides of the vessel. There was a mechanism for coupling the engine to the right of the propeller shaft at every moment in this way to change to electric traction diesel or vice versa.
The size of the propeller is “normal” and therefore had to develop their power to turn quickly. This result phenomena of “cavitation” important at the time of the construction of the C3 had not been adequately studied this phenomenon and therefore was not a consideration in the design.
Cavitation is a phenomenon caused by the pressure difference in each of the faces of the blades of the propeller of the vessel to rotate. This pressure difference causes the formation of bubbles from the air dissolved in the water, beating against the propeller blades produce noise. One of the points that facilitate the detection of a submarine is noise, so in modern designs, it increases the size of the propellers to develop their power at lower revolutions eliminating the phenomenon of cavitation.
Governance: As we used to see which aircraft are equipped with redundant elements in order to provide better traction conditions on flight safety, we are not striking double drive in the case of the submarine C3 but there’s another important reason on a ship to have two propellers.
Normally, the control element of the direction of a ship is the rudder, which enables to modify the balance of forces of friction of the hull and the water produced by the start of the vessel and thus change the course of it. A vessel equipped with only as a steering wheel is fully governable, but governance can be improved substantially by the use of two propellers mounted on the stern, symmetrical with respect to the axis of the bay and more separate as possible. In vessels with a double helix, combine the revolutions of each of them and the fly “forward-backward” in this way for a more flexible rule: If I can get it on the starboard tack very efficiently by the forward Port-engine propeller and benefiting (back) to starboard.
Snorkeling: The snorkeling is one that allows the submarine tuso the exchange of gases of combustion to the outside, where the vessel is submerged. Basically you have two channels: a fresh air intake for combustion of the diesel engine and the other for the expulsion to the outside of the exhaust.
The submarine was not equipped with C3 snorkel.
The snorkel has joined the fleet of German submarines during World War II. Until that time there was no need to use this device, but the use and improvement of radar by the Allies turned a submarine surfaced in a vulnerable and easily detectable, so it was very important to remain submerged for long space of time.
That is exactly the functionality provided by the snorkel, as the submarine was submerged to navigate depth with the energy of diesel engines and gas exchange through the combustion snorkel.
May 9, 2009, at 4:41 pm
Malaga is the biggest and more important Andalusian city facing the Mediterranean Sea. At the beginning of the Civil War, Malaga joined the Republican band and given its strategic and economic importance, both sides struggled to have it in their favor.
Today, we know Malaga’s province by its important contribution to Spanish economy due to the powerful service and tourist industries developed during the “sixties”. This situation not always was thus, as Malaga’s economy evolved from a strong industrial tradition.
1. Malaga’s Industry in the middle of XIX century:
In order to understand the evolution of Malaga’s economy, we must go back to the middle of XIX century. On this time, the tourism phenomenon did not exist as we understand it today, Malaga based its economy in the following industries, by decreasing order of “Industrial Contribution Volume”.
- Nourishing (Liquor Production), ranking first on national scale.
- Textile, competing strongly with products from other regions.
- Chemical. Ranking first on national scale
- Siderurgy: Blast Furnaces worked in Malaga until end of XIX century allowing the development of an important auxiliary and transformation industries, ranking this province in number two on national scale.
In this context and considering the positions reached about the different Industrial contributions from national scale, we conclude that the province of Malaga was one of the richest provinces in the middle of XIX century (Number one in Liquor Production and Chemical, important contribution of the Textile industry and number two in Siderurgy)
The economy of Malaga: Beginning of the Civil War
2. The Port:
The port of Malaga always has been of enormous importance for the city’s economy.
The first fact increasing its importance happened in XVIII century when Spanish’s Crown decided to enlarge it, given the proximity of UK’s Gibraltar colony. Later on this initiative changed in favor of Cartagena, creating there a Navy’s Military Base.
But, the Malaga’s industry export activity has been always very important and during XIX century the port takes enormous importance managing all the exports, mainly of: wines, raisins, liquors, chemical goods and iron and steel industry’s products towards other countries and rest of Spanish Peninsula.
The port is the natural communication gate for Malaga’s province with the rest of the world, as the “Penibética Mountains” ranges very close to the coast with craggy mountainsides that make very difficult the access to the City. An adequate and modern access by road was not available until “seventies” as before the antique and narrow road was full of close curves and hill climbs.
Additionally, at the beginning of XX century, the port is rearranged and enlarged again. This was a terrible consequence of the strong erosion produced for aggressive vineyard farming in Guadalmedina River’s valley during the previous centuries. The phenomenon was produced due to grapevine’s farming boom in the scarped mountainside areas. There were consequences: the elevation of the river’s channel (to the point that was needed to build protective walls in the section where the river crosses the city to prevent flooding) and settling of all dragged alluvium materials in the river’s mouth.
After some time the City decides to utilize the co called “terrains taken to the sea”: consequence of this city-planning activity is the construction of the new tree-lined Avenue and the port piers move towards the South.
As a result of these circumstances, when in 1.936 Spanish Civil War starts, Malaga’s port:
- It is important and it has frequent connections with the rest of Europe and North of Africa.
- It is relatively modern, by the reconstruction made at the beginning of the century.
- It is the best access way to the city, looking forward a potential military attack, as the accesses by road are very complicated, limited and therefore inadequate.
3. Malaga’s economy evolution at the beginning of XX century:
At the end of XIX century, there were two phenomena transforming Malaga’s economy: Closing of the Blast Furnaces and the phylloxera epidemic that destroyed the vineyards farming in the province. The consequences are important as far as the impact in the economy that reacts evolving towards other productive sources:
- Implantation of irrigable areas inside the province allowing to farm the orange trees with a clear market inside the Spanish Peninsula, facilitated by the newly built railway connection with Cordoba in 1.906.
- Development in all the coast of the sugar cane farming, with the consequent creation of an important sugar industry with the creation all along the coast, of new big and small (“trapiches”) sugar factories.
- Creation of new Chemical Sector’s industries, staying the previous centuries leadership in this sector manufacturing: phosphates, powder, colorants, ammoniac, etc.
- Strengthening of the steel and iron transformation industry
- Development of nutritional transformation’s industry (flours, oils, conserves, etc.)
- Enormous migratory movements from the country to the city, of farmers who did not find a job in the country.
- Unemployment growth.
4. Beginning of Spanish Civil War in Malaga:
At the beginning of the Civil War, the enormous masses of population in economically precarious situation took the control creating an enormous political chaos and lack of coordination, amount different groups, in the majority anarchists without no control.
The city joined the Republican side at the beginning, but there were not enough actions taken to warrant its defense. This means that it was an easy potential target for the Nationalist army, becoming also a good propagandistic element being a big city having the enormous potential of its port and the existing industrial infrastructure, although not all in production at the time being.
The Republican Government reacted in January, 1,937 to this situation commanding to colonel Villalba to prepare the defense of the city, but Malaga suffered a great ground offensive by three simultaneous fronts and its occupation was in 9 of February of 1,937, approximately two months after the sinking of the C3 Submarine. When the occupation took place 100,000 persons fled in the direction of Almeria being harassed by aviation and bombed from the sea by the cruises “Baleares” and “Canarias”, as well as by the German Navy’s “Graaf von Spree”.
This proximity in the time makes us think that the C3′s sinking was carefully planned being part of a plan to eliminate obstacles for the immediate military intervention in the city that could be eventually obstructed by the intervention of Submarine C3.
April 28, 2009, at 3:34 pm
The Commissioner for the Historical Memory of Andalusia Goverment, Mr. Francisco Salazar, wioll coordinate a research to revive the submarine C-3, which was sunk off the coast of Malaga in 1936 by a German submarine. It wants to present a draft to the various departments to study the feasibility of the rescue operation ……
LEER EL ARTICULO COMPLETO EN El País. READ COMPLETE STORY IN “EL PAIS”
April 26, 2009, at 10:26 am
In this Web Site we want to pay a tribute to the brave submariners who left their life defending the city and inhabitants of Málaga during the Spanish Civil War.
In December 12th, 1,936 the Republican Submarine C3 patrolled in the neighborhoods of Malaga (Spain), when it received a torpedo’s hit fired by the German submarine U34 in her way home back to Germany after participating in the so called “Operación Ursula” in which two submarines of German navy (without ensign and painted out all distinguishing marks) supported to one of combatant sides.
As a result of the impact, the Submarine C3 sank immediately with most of its crew, only being three survivors. After the sinking, the intelligence services manipulated the information to make think that the Submarine C3 passed to the Nacionalist band. Crew’s Relatives were during many years without knowing the destiny of their dear beings.
In 1.997, a sport fisherman, observed that in a certain zone Diesel oil bubbles emerged from the sea. Investigating the area, finally it was possible to positively determine that they came from the C3 Submarine’s sunken hull. Since then the relatives of the crew try to arise the hull and recover all the rests. They have funding to pay the shipwreck recovery. Today, only lacks the permission of the Spanish’s Ministry of Defense that refuses to approve that the Submarine C3 comes afloat.
In our Web site we try to collect all the data that we have been able to compile on the history of the Submarine C3. We appreciate from those people or crew’s relatives who may contribute to enrich this information, to leave your comments in our Guestbook, or email us. We have a section of Collaborators where we will be pleased to publish your articles or opinions if you send us.
Another Page dedicated to Submarine C3
NOTE: We scrupulously tried to respect regulations regarding to the publication of original material with copyrights. Case any person may find information that supposedly does not fulfill this criteria, PLEASE e-mail us with your comments allowing us to correct any deficiency. THANKS . Animated images in this page, have been downloaded by courtesy of http://club.telepolis.com/gifotas
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