Del Prado U-Boat Officer 1914–18: The Submarine War Before the Kriegsmarine

Del Prado · First World War · Imperial German Navy, 1914–18

A peaked cap and dark naval clothing give this officer a restrained appearance. Del Prado’s figure belongs to the Imperial German Navy of the First World War, an important distinction in a range containing several later German naval subjects.

A First World War naval subject

German submarines attacked Allied shipping during the First World War, with the campaign intensifying sharply in 1917. Merchant crews, escort forces and submarine crews all became part of the struggle over sea communications. The model represents an officer within that earlier submarine service.

The detailed dealer reference gives 1914–18, although the shorter product title ends at 1918. Retaining the full range is useful. It avoids treating the figure as a Second World War U-boat commander or applying the later Kriegsmarine name to the imperial navy.

A compact officer at rest

The photograph shows a dark cap, double-breasted-looking jacket and trousers, with one hand resting at the hip. The other arm hangs nearer the side. A pale area at the neck breaks up the otherwise dark clothing, and the figure stands squarely on a brown rectangular base.

The pose contains no miniature submarine equipment to identify a boat or patrol. Its interest lies in the uniform and the officer’s stance. Compare the cap, jacket front and arm positions when matching a loose example, rather than assuming that every dark-coated German naval figure is the same issue.

Inspecting dark paint

Ask for evenly lit views of the cap peak, jacket buttons and cuffs. Dark colours can hide chips in low-resolution photographs, while flash may make them appear glossier than they are. A side view should show whether the hand-on-hip arm is intact at both ends.

A naval display can place this officer beside a sailor or signals rating from another period, with clear dates under each. Keep the comparison about service and clothing rather than implying that their equipment was interchangeable.

The compact pose needs little shelf space, but it benefits from a light or mid-tone background. Positioning the figure slightly forward of a dark ship model helps keep the shoulders and cap visible. Photograph the rear as well as the front so the collection record preserves the shape of the coat when the figure is later moved.

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