ATLAS

Verified factsOMEGA-11-2-4Sheet 4 of 6 of the dossier Nazi Antarctic base

The real anchors: the 1938-39 expedition and Argentina in 1945

What documents show about the Schwabenland voyage, the settlements that never existed and the two submarines that surrendered in Argentina.

Color map strip of Antarctica with a red rectangle labelled Neu-Schwabenland, Deutsch, along the coast.
Section of a 1941 German military atlas showing "Neu-Schwabenland" in red as a German territory (the red area is printed mirrored, according to the file page). OKH/Abt. Inland · public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Summary

The thesis rests on events that did happen, and this sheet sets them out. The German Antarctic Expedition of 1938-39, led by Kriegsmarine captain Alfred Ritscher, had a mainly economic purpose: finding a whaling station and fishing grounds so that Germany would depend less on imported fats. It sailed in secret from Hamburg on 17 December 1938 aboard the Schwabenland with 82 crew members, and used two Dornier Wal seaplanes, Passat and Boreas, to make survey flights. Insufficient equipment prevented sled journeys or landings in the mountains, and no member of the expedition entered the inner territory. Germany never developed any permanent settlement in Antarctica.

The other anchor lies in South America. U-530 surrendered at Mar del Plata, Argentina, on 10 July 1945, and U-977 surrendered there on 17 August 1945. Separately, Nazi fugitives did reach Argentina after the war through escape networks known as ratlines, among them Adolf Eichmann and Josef Mengele, which explains why Argentina features so much in the legends. None of these documented facts involves a polar base: they describe a survey voyage, two surrendered submarines and escapes that went through Europe and the Atlantic, not through the ice.

Verified facts

  1. Verified fact

    The expedition, led by Kriegsmarine captain Alfred Ritscher, had a main objective that was economic: a whaling station and fishing grounds to reduce the Reich's dependence on imported industrial oils and fats.

  2. Verified fact

    The secret expedition left Hamburg on 17 December 1938 aboard MS Schwabenland with 82 crew members.

    • New Swabia, Wikipedia
      the secret New Swabia Expedition with 82 crew members left Hamburg for Antarctica aboard MS Schwabenland
  3. Verified fact

    Seven photographic survey flights were made by the ship's two Dornier Wal seaplanes, Passat and Boreas.

    • New Swabia, Wikipedia
      Seven photographic survey flights were made by the ship's two Dornier Wal seaplanes named Passat and Boreas.
  4. Verified fact

    Equipment was insufficient for sled journeys or mountain landings, and no expedition member entered the inner territory.

  5. Verified fact

    Nazi Germany never developed any type of permanent settlement in Antarctica.

  6. Verified fact

    U-530, commanded by Otto Wermuth, surrendered at Mar del Plata, Argentina, on 10 July 1945, two months after the end of the war in Europe.

    • German submarine U-530, Wikipedia
      Oberleutnant zur See Otto Wermuth, who led her to surrender in Mar del Plata, Argentina, on 10 July 1945, two months after the end of WWII in Europe.
  7. Verified fact

    U-977 was a Type VIIC U-boat that tried to reach Argentina after the war; on arrival its crew were arrested and extradited to the US and Britain on 17 August 1945.

    • German submarine U-977, Wikipedia
      attempted to escape to Argentina after the end of World War II in Europe, but on arrival its crew were arrested, and on 17 August 1945 extradited to the US and Britain.
  8. Verified fact

    After the war a number of significant Nazis escaped through ratlines, including SS officers Adolf Eichmann and Josef Mengele.

    • Ratlines (World War II aftermath), Wikipedia
      A number of significant Nazis and their collaborators escaped, including Ustaše leader Ante Pavelić, as well as Schutzstaffel (SS) officers Adolf Eichmann and Josef Mengele, both perpetrators of the Holocaust.