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In terms of mileage, Orion topped among the raiders.
She wandered in the Pacific, Indian and Atlantic, but sank all but two
victims in the Pacific. After circumnavigating the globe she returned to
France safely. |
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Atlantis was the first raider to strike. Commanded
by an excellent captain, she was to sink or capture more tonnage in a
single cruise than any other raiders. She also circumnavigated the globe
and finished the longest voyage of all raiders. |
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Widder ran like a wild ram indeed. Under a determined
captain, she sank ten ships in the Atlantic in three months. His aggresive
and sometimes brutal tactics, including leaving survivors alone, were
sometimes considered atrocities. |
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Thor had the most violent career among the raiders'.
She operated in the Atlantic and survived three confrontations with armored
merchant cruisers, two of whom were crippled and one sunk by Thor. She
was able to leave all engagements almost unscathed. |
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Pinguin sank or captured, numerically, more ships.
She laid the most successful minefield and netted a whole Norwegian whaling
fleet. Finally, she was cornered by HMS Cromwell and exploded in action
when her mines were hit. |
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Stier, named after the captain's wife's sign in
the zodiac, had only a short career. She was the last raider to break out
from Europe. She was forced to be scuttled after a fight with a U.S.
liberty ship. |
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Komet was probably the most adventurous of all the
raiders. She traveled farther north and south than other raiders, besides
having circumnavigated the globe. Komet was also the only raider
to successfully attack targets on land. |
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Kormoran was the largest and most powerful of the
raiders. Operating mainly in the Atlantic, she also hunted in the Indian.
Finally she was caught up by HMAS Sydney, which Kormoran sank
after a vicious fight. |
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Michel had a colorful career. She was captured by Germans
in Poland. Vastly successful in the Atlantic, she was ordered to Japan due
to the difficulty to return to France. Her second journey from Japan
was ended dramatically by a U.S. submarine. |
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Coronel was the last raider to attempt to break
out through the English Channel. She was harassed and attacked by British
naval forces and the RAF and had to turn back to Germany. She never
attempted a second breakthrough. |
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Hansa was the last vessel ever to be converted
into a raider. She was damaged by bombs in the process of conversion
and never left the dock as a raider. The naval situation was hopeless
and she would not have accomplished much anyway. |