east of Narvik, where they might attempt to ambush pursuing British destroyers. Thiele still had some ammunition and torpedoes left, and took up position at the Straumen narrows with Z18 Hans Lüdemann to give the remaining two destroyers time to scuttle themselves at the head of the fjord. The pursuing British destroyers initially engaged Lüdemann, until the ship retreated to the head of the fjord after exhausting all of its ammunition. The British destroyers then switched their attentions to Thiele. The German ship struck the first blow when one of her torpedoes blew the bow off , but the return fire from the British ships started several fires and damaged her so heavily that Korvettenkapitän Max-Eckart Wolff, the ship's captain, ordered her run aground to allow her crew to abandon ship safely. Fourteen men were killed during the battle and another 28 wounded. The surviving crew of the ship took part in the land fighting at Narvik in the following weeks. Wolff served as a battalion commander in the Marine-Regiment Berger during the land battle. He was awarded the Iron Cross First Class on 12 May 1940 and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross the following August for his command of Thiele at Narvik. The ship later broke in two and capsized. Today, the wreck is one of the most popular diving sites in Narvik. It also appeared in documentary series Abandoned Engineering, season 2 episode 7 Germany's Lost Warship. Notes References External links Zerstörer 1934 German Naval History website Wrecks of Narvik – wreck diving in the Narvik area Type 1934 destroyers Ships built in Kiel 1935 ships World War II shipwrecks in the Norwegian Sea Maritime incidents in April 1940 Wreck diving sites Underwater diving sites in Norway