The submarine was initially discovered in 1918 by the HMS Coreopsis, near the coast of Northern Ireland, floating on the surface. The German crew surrendered peaceably, claiming they were unable to dive due to an encounter the previous night that damaged their ship. According to the ship’s captain, Günther Krech, the vessel had surfaced at night to recharge on-board batteries when a beast with “large eyes, set in a horny sort of skull … with teeth that could be seen glistening in the moonlight,” attacked them. The crew drove the sea beast off with small arms fire from the deck, but were left unable to submerge due to the monster’s assault and would be discovered by the Coreopsis the following morning.
While legends of sea monsters and supernatural phenomena have plagued sailors for centuries, the truth of the encounter is yet to be known. It is generally believed that a simple mishap with the primary hatch caused flooding on the U-boat while it attempted to avoid patrol ships, thus forcing it back to the surface where the crew surrendered. However, submarines and their crews delve deeper into the seas than any other vessel, and who knows what undiscovered creatures lurk in the fathoms, waiting to be awoken.