Heinz-Otto Schultze was a German U-boat commander in World War II and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. He is credited with the sinking of 20 ships for a total of plus damaging a further two ships for a total of.
Naval career
Heinz-Otto Schultze was the son of Otto Schultze, commander of during World War I and a recipient of the coveted Pour le Mérite and later Generaladmiral of the Kriegsmarine. Schultze joined the Reichsmarine on 8 April 1934 as a member of Crew 1934, where he received his basic military infantry training with the II. Schiff-Stamm-Abteilung der Ostsee of the Baltic Sea in Stralsund. He was transferred to the school ship SSS Gorch Fock on 15 June 1934 for his onboard training. Here he was promoted to Seekadett on 26 September 1934. He then was transferred to the light cruiserKarlsruhe on 27 September 1934. on 25 November 1943. He transferred to the U-boat service on 19 May 1937 and completed the U-boat school. Schultze was first posted on board of on 30 March 1938, initially serving as a second watch officer. He was made first watch officer on board of U-31 on 6 November 1938 and promoted to Oberleutnant zur See on 1 April 1939. He received command of his first U-boat,, a school U-boat, on 8 June 1940. Schultze was ordered to the Schichau-Werke, a shipyard in Danzig, for construction familiarization of. He commissioned U-432 on 26 April 1941. His first war patrol as a commander, his fifth of the war, lasted from 30 July until 19 September 1941 and resulted in the sinking of four ships totalling. Schultze surrendered command of U-432 on 16 January 1943, taking command of on 11 March 1943. His fifth patrol as a commander of U-432 targeted the East Coast of the United States of America. U-432 left La Pallice on 21 January 1942 and returned to La Pallice on 16 March 1942. During this patrol Schultze torpedoed and sank five ships for. After his return, Schultze was heavily criticized by the Befehlshaber der U-Boote for the sinking of a Brazilian ship without warning. This attack was conducted against standing orders. U-849 left Kiel on its first war patrol on 2 October 1943 and was sunk by depth charges from a US B-24 Liberator B-6 from Navy-Squadron VB-107 on 25 November that year in the South Atlantic west of the Congo estuary, in position. Schultze and the entire crew of U-849 were killed in the sinking. This was Schultze's 12th patrol of the war.
