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The Sinking of the Laconia
Episode 1
Season 1
Episode 1
On September 12, 1942, the British liner Laconia was torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-156 commanded by Werner Hartenstein. She carried women, children, wounded soldiers, and Italian prisoners of war. Having sunk the ship, Hartenstein should have left them to their uncertain fate in the water, but instead he made the incredible decision to save as many lives as he could.
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1:25:14
The U-boat is full of Allied survivors, but it is spotted by an American bomber.