World War II Database

Contributor: C. Peter Chen

ww2dbaseDestroyer Z36 was built by the DeSchiMAG shipyard in Bremen, Germany. She was commissioned into service in Feb 1944 under the command of Korvettenkapitän Fredric von Hausen. In mid-1944, she was assigned to the 6th Destroyer Flotilla. On 30 Jul and 1 Aug 1944, she and other destroyers of the 6th Destroyer Flotilla bombarded Soviet positions in Latvia from the Gulf of Riga. On 5 Aug, the flotilla escorted heavy cruiser Prinz Eugen off the island of Saaremaa (German: Ösel) in Estonia. Between 19 and 20 Aug, the flotilla once again escorted Prinz Eugen, this time off the Latvian coast. On 16 Sep, destroyers Z28 and Z36 escorted the passenger ship Monte Rosa, with refugees aboard, from Paldiski (German: Baltisch-Port), Estonia to Gotenhafen, Germany (occupied Gdynia, Poland). That month, the flotilla also covered the convoys evacuating Finland and Tallinn, Estonia. Between 10 and 15 Oct, the flotilla escorted heavy cruisers Lützow and Prinz Eugen as the cruiser shelled Soviet targets in the areas of Klaipėda (German: Memel) and Liepāja (German: Libau), Latvia. Between 20 and 24 Nov 1944, the flotilla and heavy cruisers Admiral Scheer and Prinz Eugen shelling Soviet positions during the evacuation of the Sõrve (German: Sworbe) peninsula on the Estonian island of Saaremaa (German: Ösel). On 11 Dec 1944, she departed with sister ships Z35 and Z43 and torpedo boats T28 to deploy a new minefield off the Estonian coast. At about 0200 hours on the following date, she and Z35 accidentally ventured into a German minefield 2.5 miles to the north, struck a mine, and sank. Due to the darkness and her position being in a minefield, the German decided against sending any craft to rescue survivors. 70 survivors from Z35 were rescued by the Soviets, while all hands aboard Z36 were lost. Her wreck, at the depth of 50 meters, was discovered and surveyed by the Finnish Ministry of the Environment in 1994.

Destroyer Z36 Interactive Map

Z36 Operational Timeline