Paul Hartwig Paul Hartwig was one of the most active U-boat captains in the river and later in the Gulf of the St. Lawrence. While on board U-517 he sank nine merchant ships or warships. His approximate six-week long stay in Canadian waters, from the month of August to the month of September, 1942, resulted in the following losses: SS Chatham, SS Arlyn, SS Donald Stewart, SS Mount Pindus, SS Mount Taygetus, SS Oakton, HMCS Charlottetown, SS Inger Elisabeth and SS Saturnus. The outcome of these attacks is weighty: 27,883 tons of goods swallowed by the gulf and river waters, nine ships sunk, about fifty men killed and many wounded. Paul Hartwig recalls his six weeks spent in the river and the Gulf of the St. Lawrence. He recalls the stress that RCAF surveillance caused, while on other occasions, patrol on the St. Lawrence was so quiet that the submarine cruised on the surface with the forward hatch open. These peaceful moments bring back good memories:   Still from the Bataille du Saint-Laurent episode in the Contrechamp TV program CBC photo " Many still recall a very early morning off a Gaspé shore. Only one small building in the tiny settlement showed any signs of life as the light of dawn began to hint at a new day: a shack with lights on, and smoke curling invitingly from its chimney. Conversation on the U-boat's bridge between captain, officer of the watch, engineer and look-outs moved casually and even intimately between the ranks, slipping from one memory to another. [There was] half-earnest, half-whimsical banter about launching a dinghy for a trip ashore. The desire remained a haunting dream." Excerpt from Michael Hadley's, U-Boats against Canada. German Submarines in Canadian Waters, p. 115-116. Taken from the work of Roger Sarty, Canada and the Battle of the Atlantic, p. 112-113. Despite his victories, Hartwig appears to have remained humble, as he knew that the tide could turn against him. He explains that he was satisfied with his victories because he was fighting for his country, as were the enemy, whom one should not hate, as they too were fighting to defend their country. His feats earned him an Iron Cross, one of the highest German decorations of World War II.