U-28: The World War I Submarine That Encountered a Sea Monster… Or Did It?

In the annals of history, where the lines between fact and fiction occasionally collide like two overeager sumo wrestlers, there lies a tale so outlandish that even Jules Verne would have raised an eyebrow. Picture this: a German U-boat, minding its own nefarious business during World War I, encountered a menace from the deeps that terrified even the saltiest seafarer. The source of the horror? Not depth charges, enemy fire, or a catastrophic engineering failure. No, the culprit, according to eye witnesses, was… wait for it… a sea monster.

So strap in, fasten your life jackets, and join us as we dive (sorry… it had to be said) into the murky depths of U-28, the German U-boat that reported a Kraken problem.

The U-28: When Your Worst Enemy is Godzilla’s Cousin (Sort Of)

The year was 1915, and Kapitänleutnant Freiherr Georg-Günther von Forstner was at the helm of U-28, a German submarine tasked with disrupting Allied shipping. Von Forstner was known for his steely demeanor. He had one job: send ships to Davy Jones’ locker with ruthless efficiency. Even this unflappable officer was unprepared for what happened after U-28 torpedoed the British vessel Iberian off the coast of Ireland.

As von Forstner later recounted, when the Iberian went down, an explosion from the sinking ship sent wreckage hurtling toward the surface. It also sent something else to the surface: a creature that looked like it had wandered off the set of Jurassic Park. He described a 60-foot-long sea monster with flippers and a crocodile-like body, which allegedly thrashed about before disappearing back into the depths.

Before you expect a similar ending to the story about the sea monster that attacked Tokyo in 1947 and was later shown to be just a hoax, von Forstner was not joking. The giant creature from the ocean’s depths was no hoax. As he described it:

the description of an animal estimated at 20 metres in length, seen by me and some of the crew of the submarine U28 on 30 July 1915 in the Atlantic Ocean; [it] was sighted on the starboard side, about 60 nautical miles south of Fastnet Rock, off the southwest corner of Ireland, after the sinking of the British steamer Iberian. This animal was hurled some 20 or 30m into the air by an underwater explosion about 25 seconds after the sinking of that vessel, thrown full length from the water. It is possible that this was caused by the detonation of an explosive device on board, the existence of which we assumed was  concealed in the ship’s papers, or from a small boiler explosion… This explosion certainly could have been the result of a detonation, but in my opinion only the bursting of the spaces deep inside the ship could have produced such air pressure.

The animal was about 20 meters long and crocodile-like in shape, with pairs of strong front and hind legs adapted for swimming, and a long head that tapered towards the nose…

Our senior engineering officer, marine engineer Romeihs, watched the animal for 10 to 15 seconds at a distance of about 150 to 100m in bright sunshine with the aid of powerful glasses.”

Source: The Case For The Sea Serpent by R.T. Gould

A Monster of a Story

That’s a pretty compelling account, considering the source. Or is it?

Before we start rearranging our maps to include a new underwater “Here Be Dragons” section, it’s worth considering the source. Von Forstner recounted this tale in 1933 — nearly two decades after the supposed encounter. He somehow neglected to mention it in his journal, which was published in 1917. One would think a detail such as seeing a not-so-extinct dinosaur would have warranted at least a footnote.

While memory has a way of embellishing things over time (as anyone who’s ever told a fishing story knows), this particular whopper reads more like a rejected subplot from 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea.

The first time von Forstner’s account of the cryptid encounter first surfaced in 1933 — a year that just happened to coincide with the global media frenzy surrounding the Loch Ness Monster. It was in an article he wrote about Loch Ness. In the article, he mentioned his own sighting and said the creature had also been seen by five other members of the submarine’s crew, all standing in the conning tower. Perhaps inspired by the Nessie craze or simply eager to reclaim a bit of his former glory, von Forstner’s tale gave cryptozoologists and conspiracy theorists plenty to work with.

Apparently his account was fantastic enough, however. Today, if you search for stories about U-28 and the sea monster, you will find plenty of results that report the submarine was sunk by the elusive creature. But even with his vivid description, von Forstner never claimed that the sea monster attacked U-28. The submarine carried on with its operations, none the worse for wear — at least until 1917, when it went down after taking damage during a battle.

Occam’s Razor vs. Nessie’s Cousin

Occam’s Razor — that trusty philosophical tool that suggests the simplest explanation is usually the correct one — offers a more reasonable explanation for what the crew saw that fateful day. It was likely a case of debris, optical illusion, and post-traumatic imagination running wild. Perhaps a piece of wreckage, combined with an explosion and turbulent waters, created the illusion of a monstrous leviathan breaking the surface.

On the other hand, conspiracy theorists and cryptozoologists (because you know they were summoned by this story like moths to a flame) are all too happy to point out that stranger things have happened. If we can have coelacanths — those ancient fish that supposedly went extinct 66 million years ago but turned out to be alive and well — who’s to say a prehistoric sea monster didn’t decide to make a surprise guest appearance in 1915?

U-28 and the Kraken: A Legacy of Mystery

While the sinking of the Iberian is well-documented, von Forstner’s tale of a sea monster remains firmly in the realm of speculative fiction. If it ever existed, it has maintained a level of stealth that would make a ninja jealous. No further sightings, no remains, and certainly no museum displays featuring a 60-foot crocodilian with a taste for submarines.

Why We Love a Good Sea Monster Story

At the end of the day, tales like these remind us that the unknown still has the power to captivate and terrify us. Whether it’s the possibility of undiscovered species or just the human tendency to see monsters in the murk, we are hardwired to be fascinated by what lurks beneath. After all, if a U-boat captain can claim to have seen a prehistoric beast rise from the depths, who’s to say what else is out there, biding its time?

So, the next time you find yourself by the seaside, gazing out over the waves, remember — history is full of surprises. And maybe, just maybe, keep one eye on the horizon. You never know when a 60-foot sea monster might decide to resurface.

As for von Forstner? Well, if nothing else, he gets points for creativity. And who knows? Maybe he was telling the truth. But until we have definitive proof, we’ll be over here, maintaining a healthy respect for the unknown — and a slightly irrational fear of giant sea reptiles with a penchant for photobombing U-boats.

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