German submarine U-56 was a Type IIC U-boat of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine that served in the Second World War. She was built by Deutsche Werke, Kiel as yard number 255. Ordered on 17 June 1937, she was laid down on 21 September, launched on 3 September 1938 and commissioned on 26 November under the command of Kapitänleutnant Wilhelm Zahn. U-56 was initially assigned to the 5th U-boat Flotilla during her training period, until 31 December 1939, when she was reassigned to the 1st U-boat Flotilla for operations. She carried out twelve war patrols, sinking three ships for a total and one auxiliary warship of ; she also damaged one vessel of . Design German Type IIC submarines were enlarged versions of the original Type IIs. U-56 had a displacement of when at the surface and while submerged. Officially, the standard tonnage was , however. The U-boat had a total length of , a pressure hull length of , a beam of , a height of , and a draught of . The submarine was powered by two MWM RS 127 S four-stroke, six-cylinder diesel engines of for cruising, two Siemens-Schuckert PG VV 322/36 double-acting electric motors producing a total of for use while submerged. She had two shafts and two propellers. The boat was capable of operating at depths of up to . The submarine had a maximum surface speed of and a maximum submerged speed of . When submerged, the boat could operate for at ; when surfaced, she could travel at . U-56 was fitted with three torpedo tubes at the bow, five torpedoes or up to twelve Type A torpedo mines, and a anti-aircraft gun. The boat had a complement of 25. Service history First and second patrols U-56s first two patrols, completed during her workup and training period, were relatively uneventful cruises in the North Sea. No ships were attacked during this period. Third patrol U-56 started her third patrol on 23 October 1939. At 10 a.m. on 30 October 1939, U-56 avoids detection by ten British destroyers and battle cruiser Hood, protecting the Home Fleet west of the Orkney Islands and came within striking distance of HMS Nelson and Rodney. In U-56 Captain Zahn's own account of the events, three cruisers were heading straight toward his U-boat's position, making any attack by him almost impossible, when suddenly they veered by twenty to thirty degrees from