Talk:Sinking of U-85

Did you know nomination

The following is an archived discussion of the DYK nomination of the article below. Please do not modify this page. Subsequent comments should be made on the appropriate discussion page (such as this nomination's talk page, the article's talk page or Wikipedia talk:Did you know), unless there is consensus to re-open the discussion at this page. You can locate your hook here. No further edits should be made to this page.

The result was: rejected, closed by Launchballer (talk) 14:16, 12 February 2026 (UTC)

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The crew of U-85 being buried in Hampton on 15 April.

• ... that 29 German sailors from U-85 are buried in Hampton, Virginia (pictured)?

• Source: https://www.uboatarchive.net/U-85A/U-85DistrictIntelOfficeReport.htm page 35: "Each body was placed in an individual casket, which in turn was sealed in a shipping box. When sealed the boxes were placed in trucks and transported in convoy to Hampton National Cemetery, Hampton, Virginia."

https://nmsmonitor.blob.core.windows.net/monitor-prod/media/docs/u85_nrn.pdf page 29: "The 29 bodies were later interred at night in relative secrecy at a cemetery in Hampton Roads, Virginia"

• • ALT1: ... that the sinking of U-85 inadvertently stopped the landing of German spies in the United States? Source: https://www.usni.org/magazines/proceedings/1982/june/old-navy-under-cloak-night: "When their bodies were later recovered, some of the Germans were wearing civilian clothes with their wallets filled with U. S. currency and identification cards. They had been preparing to row ashore in a rubber raft when the submarine was discovered. The Roper had averted a landing of German spies on U. S. shores."
  • ALT2: ... that U-85 was the first U-boat lost in American waters in World War II? Source: https://monitor.noaa.gov/shipwrecks/u-85.html: "U-85 is significant to American military history, maritime history and historic archaeology as it was the first German U-boat sunk by United States naval forces off the American East Coast during World War II's Battle of the Atlantic."
  • ALT3: ... that an airship, a British trawler, and seven airplanes helped an American destroyer find the bodies and debris left behind from the sinking of U-85? Source: https://www.uboatarchive.net/U-85A/U-85RoperActionReport.htm: "At 0727 an airship was observed approaching. She was asked to circle the ship as a protection against submarines while the boats were in the water. This she did. Communication by flashing light was made without difficulty, and on one occasion the airship idled her motors and communicated by megaphone. A maximum of seven planes of various types appeared on the scene at one time. Near the end of the recovery operation a British trawler stood over and was asked to watch for submarines."

• • Reviewed: Template:Did you know nominations/16th Mechanized Infantry Brigade (Indonesia)

Created by PhoenixCaelestis (talk). Number of QPQs required: 1. Nominator has 5 past nominations.

PhoenixCaelestis ‣ _Talk // ^{Contributions} 17:24, 18 December 2025 (UTC).

• Hi @PhoenixCaelestis:, you have successfully guilt-tripped me into reviewing your nomination. I think ALT1 is the most interesting due to the involvement of espionage and the direct tie-in to the sinking. The article was made the day before the nomination, has also been made a Good Article (nice job!), and the hook is short and fully cited with no other visible issues with a QPQ done. Since ALT1 does not have a corresponding image, I would not check the current image as it only makes sense with the main hook. GGOTCC 00:27, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

• @GGOTCC think you're tripping on the "been made a Good Article" part, I've merely nominated it. But thank you regardless! Phoenix ‣ _Talk // ^{Contributions} 12:17, 5 January 2026 (UTC)

• , I'm rejecting this as it was nominated by someone engaged in socking. TarnishedPath^talk 09:36, 12 February 2026 (UTC)

On the myth of spies

I've removed the bit about spies being aboard U-85. It appears to be an unfounded claim. Please see forum on the U-boat.net site if you are curious of the historicity of the subject. Phoenix ‣ _Talk // ^{Contributions} 11:46, 17 September 2026 (UTC)