On Board the Tirpitz

First Edition (2014)

The hero, Gerhard Traeger, and heroine, Elaine Fabian, are both fictional characters along with many Germans and non-Germans. Most of the senior German and British officers are real people; however, a good deal of liberty has been taken in conversations and exploits. All ships are real. The battles and most of the losses are real. Since the ships ply the Norwegian coast from Bergen to North Cape, there would be little story if only the real anchorages were always used; thus, a number of fictitious fjords have been created to make the story flow.

The hero entered the German Navy in January, 1918 to become the gunnery officer on the Schleswig-Holstein in July, 1918. In 1934, he was transferred to the newly commissioned battle cruiser, the Scharnhorst. After a poor start, the ship participated in a very successful sortie into the Atlantic in early 1941. She needed repairs and went to Brest, France. In a training exploit, she was badly damaged and laid up for many months. During his time in Brest, Gerhard met a French widow, Elaine Fabian, and fell in love with her.

Because the Scharnhorst was laid up, Gerhard was transferred to the Battleship Tirpitz as the chief gunnery officer. The ship moved to Trondheim, Norway where it basically remained. Elaine followed Gerhard to Norway, and they had a charming love affair because the ship rarely left the port because of fuel shortages. They became active in the Norwegian State Church and celebrated two traditional spiritual Scandinavian Christmases. The story ends in tragedy for the ship and the happy couple.

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