The Wilhelm Gustloff Story by Michael Capek Content Consultant Milan Hauner Honorary Fellow History Department University of Wisconsin Madison Famous Ships Essential Library An Imprint of Abdo Publishing abdopublishing com
Wilhelm Buſtloff
Chapter 1 Created as a recreational vessel the Wilhelm Gustloff would be pressed into service as a refugee carrier in early 1945 TERROR IN EAST PRUSSIA DISTRU EN T he Wilhelm Gustloff had not been to sea in several years Its I engines were stiff as the ship eased slowly away from the pier at Gotenhafen now Gdynia Poland Aboard on that bitterly cold night of January 30 1945 were approximately 10 000 people crammed into every nook and cranny of a ship designed to carry only 1 500 passengers The Gustloff had been designed and built for pleasure cruises to calm and sunny Mediterranean Sea isles and Norwegian fjords It was never meant to sail in strong winds and choppy waves The object of
