The Treatment of Survivors and Prisoners of War, at Sea and Ashore

Summary

Philip Lundeberg's article discusses the events surrounding the sinking of the destroyer USS Frederick C. Davis during Operation TEARDROP. On 24 April 1945, the German submarine U-546 approached a group of US Naval destroyers, sinking the USS Davis. After the battle, the 77 survivors of the USS Davis and the 11 captured crewmen of U-546, including the Captain Lieutenant Paul Junst,were taken back to the United States. The German sailors were subject to torture and interrogation in Argentia, Newfoundland, and then at Fort Hunt, Virginia. The article discusses the immediate aftermath of the attack, including the interrogation tactics, and the eventual reunion of men from both ships in order to stimulate a discussion of military ethics.

Subject

• Junst, Paul
• United States Navy
• United States Office of Naval History
• Frederick C. Davis (Ship)
• Operation Teardrop US Navy, 1945
• Argentia Naval Facility (Canada)

Category

Smithsonian History Bibliography

Notes

Lundeberg, a former curator of Naval History at the National Museum of American History, was one of the survivors of the sinking.

Contained within

International Journal of Naval History Vol 13 Journal

Contact information

Institutional History Division, Smithsonian Institution Archives, 600 Maryland Avenue, SW, Washington, D.C. 20024-2520, SIHistory@si.edu

Date

• 2016
• 20th century

Topic

• WW II
• Fort Hunt Park
• Submarines (Ships)
• V-E Day, 1945
• Prisoners of war
• Naval battles
• History
• Military interrogation
• World War, 1939-1945
• Submarines (Ships)--History

Place

• Argentia (N.L.)
• Germany

Physical description

Number of pages : 05;

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