Career
He commanded the Type VIIB U-boat U-46 and the Type VIIC U-567, sinking twenty-two ships on ten patrols, for a total of 118,528 tons of Allied shipping, to become the 23rd highest scoring U-Boat ace of World World War World War II The Knight"s Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership. lieutenant was Germany"s highest military decoration at the time of its presentation to Engelbert Endrass. Endrass began his naval career in April 1935.
After some months on the cruiser Deutschland and service on escort ships, he was assigned in October 1937 to the U-boat force.
He joined U-47 in December 1938 as Leutnant zur Secretary He was first Watch Officer when Günther Prien made his famous Scapa Flow attack and sank HMS Royal Oak.
The famous snorting bull emblem on U-47"s conning tower was painted by Endrass before they returned. Endrass remained on U-47 until December 1939, when he left the U-boat and after some training courses took over command of U-46 in May 1940 from the relatively unsuccessful Herbert Sohler, who had only sunk two ships in five patrols.
Endrass had immediate success and sank five ships, including the British auxiliary cruiser HMS Carinthia.
Endrass" success continued on his second patrol with U-46, sinking five more ships, including another British auxiliary cruiser, HMS Dunvegan Castle although the main periscope was damaged. Five patrols later he received the Oak Leaves to his Knight"s Cross. The presentation was made on 30 June 1941 by Hitler at the Führer Headquarter Wolfsschanze (Wolf"s Lair) in Rastenburg (now Kętrzyn in Poland).
In September 1941 Endrass left U-46, which would become a training vessel, and a month later took over U-567.
On his second patrol, he was killed on 21 December 1941 while operating against Convoy HG 76, when U-567 was sunk with all hands by depth charges from the British sloop HMS Deptford and corvette HMS Samphire, northeast of the Azores. Wehrmachtbericht references Promotions Bibliography.