Editing MV Wilhelm Gustloff (section)

==Cruise ship==
''Wilhelm Gustloff'' was the first purpose-built [[cruise ship]] for the [[German Labour Front]] (''Deutsche Arbeitsfront'', DAF) and used by subsidiary organisation [[Strength Through Joy]] (''Kraft durch Freude'', KdF). Her purposes were to provide recreational and cultural activities for German functionaries and workers, including concerts, cruises, and other holiday trips, and to serve as a public relations tool that would present "a more acceptable image of the [[Nazi Germany|Third Reich]]".<ref>Williams, David, ''Wartime Disasters at Sea'', Patrick Stephens Limited, Nr Yeovil, UK, 1997, p. 227.</ref> She was the flagship of the KdF cruise fleet, her last civilian role, until the spring of 1939.

The ship made her unofficial maiden voyage between 24 and 27 March 1938 carrying Austrians in an attempt to convince them to vote for the [[Anschluss|annexation of Austria]] by Germany.<ref name=Petruskevich>{{Citation | last= Petruskevich |first= Edward |title= North Sea Rescuer |journal= [[Ships Monthly]]|pages= 24–31 |date= November 2018 }}</ref> On 29 March she departed on her second voyage carrying workers and their families from the Blohm & Voss shipyard on a three-day cruise.<ref name= Petruskevich/>

===Rescue of ''Pegaway''===
For her third voyage, ''Wilhelm Gustloff'' left [[Hamburg]] on 1 April 1938 under the command of Carl Lübbe to join the KdF ships ''Der Deutsche'', ''Oceania'' and ''Sierra Cordoba'' on a group cruise of the North Sea.<ref name= Petruskevich/> A storm developed on 3 April with winds up to {{convert|100|kph|mph}} that forced the four ships apart. Meanwhile, the 1,836 gross ton British coal freighter ''Pegaway'', which had departed [[Port of Tyne|Tyne]] on 2 April for [[Hamburg]], was also caught up in the storm. Cargo and machinery were washed from ''Pegaway''{{'}}s decks and the ship soon lost maneuverability. By 4 April, it was taking on water and slowly sinking.

At 4 am, Captain G. W. Ward of ''Pegaway'' issued an [[SOS]] when the ship was {{convert|20|nmi|km}} northwest of the island of [[Terschelling]], off the coast of the Netherlands.<ref name= Petruskevich/> The closest of the ships that answered the distress call was ''Wilhelm Gustloff'', which reached ''Pegaway'' at 6 am. She launched her Lifeboat No. 1, with a crew of twelve under the command of Second Officer Meyer. The oar-powered lifeboat was unable to come aside ''Pegaway'' in the heavy seas and looked in danger of needing to be rescued itself. Lifeboat No. 6, with a crew of ten under the command of Third Officer Schürmann, was then lowered. As it was motor-powered, it was better able to handle the waves.
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-L12207, Lazarettschiff "Wilhelm Gustloff".jpg|left|thumb|''Wilhelm Gustloff'', 1940]]
After first assisting their shipmates in Lifeboat No. 1 to head back towards ''Wilhelm Gustloff'', Schürmann was able to reach ''Pegaway''. One by one, the 19 men on ''Pegaway'' jumped into the sea and were hauled onto Lifeboat No. 6, with both them and the crew of the lifeboat back at ''Wilhelm Gustloff'' by 7:45 am.<ref name= Petruskevich/> A Dutch [[tugboat]] soon arrived but was unable to save ''Pegaway'', which soon rolled to port and sank. Lifeboat No. 1 had been so badly damaged by the waves that after its crew had climbed up via ladders to the safety of their ship that it was set adrift, to later be washed up on the shores of Terschelling on 2 May.
[[File:Bundesarchiv Bild 183-L12212, Lazarettschiff "Wilhelm Gustloff".jpg|left|thumb|233x233px|''Wilhelm Gustloff'', 1940]]

===Anschluss===
On 8 April 1938 ''Wilhelm Gustloff'' departed Hamburg for England, where she anchored over {{convert|3|nmi|km|disp=flip}} offshore from [[Tilbury]] so as to remain in international waters. This allowed her to act as a floating [[polling station]] for German and Austrian citizens living in England who wished to vote on the approaching [[1938 German parliamentary election and referendum|plebiscite on Germany's unification with Austria]]. During 10 April, 1,172 Germans and 806 Austrians were carried from the docks at Tilbury to the ship where 1,968 votes were cast in favour of the union and ten against.<ref>{{cite web |title= London Polling Station: Annexation of Austria |publisher= Wilhelm Gustloff Museum |url= http://www.wilhelmgustloffmuseum.com/london_polling_station.html |access-date= 14 March 2019}}</ref> Once the voting was complete, ''Wilhelm Gustloff'' left Tilbury, reaching Hamburg on 12 April.

After undertaking a further voyage on 14 to 19 April 1938, the ship went on an ''Osterfahrt'' (Easter Voyage) before her actual official maiden voyage, which was undertaken from 21 April to 6 May 1938, when she joined ''Der Deutsche'', ''Oceania'' and ''Sierra Cordoba'' on a group cruise to the [[Madeira Islands]]. On the second day of her voyage, the 58-year-old Captain Lübbe died on the [[bridge (nautical)|bridge]] from a heart attack. He was replaced by First Officer Friedrich Petersen, who commanded ''Wilhelm Gustloff'' for the remainder of the cruise. Petersen relinquished his command; he would later serve as captain on the ship's final voyage.<ref>{{cite web |title= The 'Official' Maiden Voyage of the Wilhelm Gustloff April 21st, 1938 – May 6th, 1938 |publisher= Wilhelm Gustloff Museum |url= http://www.wilhelmgustloffmuseum.com/maiden_voyage.html |access-date= 17 March 2019}}</ref>

===Condor Legion===
Between 20 May and 2 June 1939, ''Wilhelm Gustloff'' was temporarily repurposed by the German navy. Along with seven other ships in the KdF fleet, she transported the [[Condor Legion]] back to Germany from Spain following the victory of the [[Spanish state|Nationalist]] forces under General [[Francisco Franco]] in the [[Spanish Civil War]].

From 14 March 1938 until 26 August 1939, the ship took over 80,000 passengers on a total of 60 voyages. <ref name="Wilhelm Gustloff Museum"/> The outbreak of war rendered the KdF defunct, as all large ships were now needed for wartime use.