I won’t talk about the Army. I’ll add the Air Force and Navy.
Compilation of rankings of German Air Force aces in World War II.
Super Ace: Hans Rudel
Hans Rudel is not an "armored ace" like Michel Wittmann and Erst Bachmann . But he destroyed more Soviet tanks than both combined. He was the greatest Ju87 Stuka pilot of all time, and his specialty was destroying enemy armored vehicles from the air. The amount of enemy equipment he destroyed is unimaginable to ordinary people, including 519 (some say 530) Soviet tanks (enough to form 5 complete Soviet armored corps!) and countless other targets (including "Mara" The battleship "Red October"! He also damaged the battleship "Red October"), and this was just his achievement! (Details below).
List of aces of the German Air Force who shot down more than 100 aircraft
Number of aircraft shot down by name (planes)
Erich Hartmann (Erich Hartmann) 352 < /p>
Gerhard Barkhorn (G. Barkhorn) 301
Günther Rall (G. Lall) 275
Otto Kittel (Otto Kittel) 267
Walter Nowotny 258
Wilhlem Batz 237
Erich Rudorffer Rudolph) 224
Heinz B?r (Heinz Bell) 220
Hermann Graf (Herman Graf) 212
Heinrich Ehrler 208
Theodor Weissenberger 208
Hans Philipp 206
Walter Schuck 206
Anton Hafner 204
Helmut Lipfert 203
Walter Krupinski(Walter Krupinski) 197
Anton Hackl 192
Joachim Brendel 189
Max Stotz 189
Joachim Kirschner 188
Kurt Br?ndle 180
Günther Josten 178
Johannes Steinhoff 178
Ernst-Wilhelm Reinert 174
Günther Schack 174
Emil Lang grid) 173
Heinz Schmidt 173
Horst Ademeit 166
Wolf-Dietrich Wilcke 162
Hans-Joachim Marseille(Marseille ) 158
Heinrich Sturm 158
Gerhard Thyben 157
Hans Beisswenger 152
Peter Düttmann 152
Gordon Gollob (Gordon M. Golub) 150
Fritz Tegtmeier 146
Albin Wolf 144
Kurt Tanzer 143
Friedrich- Karl Müller 140
Karl Gratz 138
Heinrich Setz 138
Rudolf Trenkel 138
Walter Wolfrum 137
Horst-Günther von Fassong 136
Otto F?nnekold 136
Karl-Heinz Weber 136
Joachim Muencheberg 135
Hans Waldmann 134
Alfred Grislawski 133
Franz Schal
l 133
Johannes Wiese 133
Adolf Borchers 132
Adolf Dickfeld 132
Erwin Clausen 132
Wilhelm Lemke 131
Gerhard Hoffmann 130
Franz Eisenach 129
Walther Dahl 129
Heinrich Sterr 129
Franz D?rr 128
Rudolf Rademacher 126
Josef Zwernemann 126
Dietrich Hrabak 125
Wolf Ettel 124
Herbert Ihlefeld 123
Wolfgang Tonne 122
Heinz Marquardt 121
Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer(Heinz-Wolfgang Schnaufer( Also translated as: Xie Nufa)) 121
Robert Weiss 121
Erich Leie 121
Friedrich Obleser 120
Franz-Josef Beerenbrock 117
Hans-Joachim Birkner 117
Jakob Norz 117
Walter Oesau (Walter Oesau) 117 (some say it is 127)
Heinz Wernicke 117
August Lambert 116
Wilhelm Crinius 114
Werner Schroer 114
Hans Dammers 113
Berthold Korts 113
Helmut Lent 113
Kurt Bühligen 112
< p>Kurt Ubben 110Franz Woidich 110
Reinhard Seiler 109
Emil Bitsch 108
Hans Hahn 108
< p>Bernhard Vechtel 108Viktor Bauer 106
Werner Lucas 106
Günther Lützow 105 (also known as 110)
p>Eberhard von Boremski 104
Heinz Sachsenberg 104
Adolf Galland(Adolf Grande) 103
Hartmann Grasser 103
Siegfried Freytag 102
Friedrich Geisshardt 102
Egon Mayer 102
Max-Hellmuth Ostermann 102
Josef Wurmheller "Sepp" Wormheller) 102
Rudolf Miethig 101
Werne
r M?lders (Werner M?lders) 101
Josef Priller (Josef Priller) 101
Ulrich Wernitz 101
Number One U Boating ace——Otto Kretschmer
Date of birth: May 1, 1912
Date of death: August 5, 1998, Germany
Meals received: Iron Cross, Second Class (October 17, 1939) U-Boat Combat Medal (November 9, 1939) Iron Cross, First Class (December 17, 1939)
< p>Knight's Cross (August 5, 1940) Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves (November 4, 1940) Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Silver Oak Leaves, Double Swords, December 26, 1941 (at this time he was captured and was awarded posthumously )U boats commanded: U-35 (July 31, 1937 - August 15, 1937)
U-23 (October 1, 1937 —April 1, 1940)
U-99 (April 8, 1940 - March 17, 1941)
Everyone knows that Germany had three ace boats in 1941 Captain, their high performance at that time astonished other captains, and the three of them were very famous in the country. But at the same time, in 1941, these three aces died one after another. Two of them were buried in the sea with their U-boat, and one was captured. The captured one was Otto Kretschmer.
Otto was Germany's number one ace in submarine warfare. He sunk 47 ships in total, totaling 274.386 tons. Ranked first among all U-boats.
In April 1930, Otto began his training voyage as a trainee captain. He first stayed on the aviation school's training ship "Niobe" for three months, and then sailed with the light cruiser "Emden" More than 1 year. Prior to this, 17-year-old Otto spent 8 months in Essex, England, where he learned English.
In January 1936, Otto began to participate in the training of the U-boat unit. Because he had extensive sailing experience before, he was designated as the captain of the U-boat. When the Spanish Civil War broke out in 1936, Germany sent troops to intervene. In 1937, he served as the first captain of the submarine U-35 and participated in patrol missions in Spanish waters.
In September 1937, he was transferred from the U-35 submarine to receive the new Type 2 U-boat, U-23. Soon after the outbreak of World War II, he commanded U-23 to achieve its first victory in the British North Sea near the coast of Scotland. Later he successfully laid nine mines in the heavily guarded Moray Firth in Scotland. On January 12, 1940, he sank the Danish oil tanker "Denmark", which was his first major victory. One month later he sank the British destroyer HMS Bold (1,375 tons).
In April 1940, Otto left U-23 and was appointed captain of the submarine U-99 in the same month. Two months later, U-99 left the training base in Kiel, Germany, and began the most glorious "hunting and stealth flight" in his life. During this sortie, he carried out surface attacks on Allied convoys nine times and sank many Allied ships. It is particularly worth mentioning that he sank three 10,000-ton British armored cruisers: "Laurentic" (18,724 tons), Patroclus (11,314 tons), and Forfar (16,402 tons). By November 1940 he had sunk more than 46,000 tons of ships in total. From then on, "Silent Otto" became the "King of Tonnage" among many U-boat captains, and no one has ever surpassed him. He also had a famous saying - "A torpedo... a ship."
But his good luck did not last, and in March 1941 he embarked on his final voyage. After sinking 10 Allied ships, he encountered the British destroyer "Rambler" southeast of England on the 17th. After the "Rambler" discovered U-99, it immediately launched a pursuit and launched depth charges. After multiple attacks, the U-99's hull was severely damaged and forced out of the water. Otto and 43 crew members got out of the submarine (note: the chief engineer on board had died) and were immediately captured by a British ship. Captured, the submarine U-99 subsequently sank.
After being captured, Otto was first held in a British prisoner of war camp for a year and a half, and then transferred to Canada's No. 30 prisoner of war camp for further detention. He was released in December 1947 and returned to Germany. He joined the newly formed Federal German Navy in 1955, became the commander of the 1st Escort Fleet in 1957, and the commander of the amphibious force in 1958. He entered the staff department in 1962, served as chief staff officer of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization's Naval Department in 1965, and retired in 1970.
In 1998, Otto was injured in an accident while on vacation in Bavaria and died shortly after being sent to the hospital.
No. 2 U-boat ace, recipient of the Order of the Order of the Swords with Diamonds and Oak Leaves
——Colonel Wolfgang Roos
Born: October 1913 15th, Riga, Latvia
Died: May 12, 1945, Flansburg, Germany
Achievements: 47 ships sunk, 225,756 tons, damage 2 ***17343 tons
His military ranks:
Enlisted in service on September 23, 1933
Military cadet on July 1, 1934
< p>Warrant Officer April 1, 1936Second Lieutenant October 1, 1936
Lieutenant June 1, 1938
January 1, 1941 Captain
Major on April 1, 1943
Lieutenant Colonel on August 1, 1944
Colonel on September 1, 1944
Honors
January 25, 1940, Iron Cross Second Class
May 15, 1940, Iron Cross First Class
1940 On October 24, 1942, Knight of the Order of the Order of Oak Leaves
November 13, 1942, Knight of the Order of Oak Leaves
On April 15, 1943, Knight of the Order of Oak Leaves and Swords
August 9, 1943, Knight of the Order of the Order of the Swords with Diamonds and Oak Leaves
Shipments commanded and records of sea voyages
U-13, December 16, 1939--December 1939 28th, no record of going to sea
U-9, December 30, 1939-June 10, 1940, 6 times going to sea (74 days)
U-138, June 27, 1940 - October 20, 1940, 2 voyages to sea (29 days)
U-43, October 21, 1940 - April 11, 1942, 5 voyages Went to sea (204 days)
U-181, May 9, 1942 - October 31, 1943, went to sea twice (335 days)
In 1933, in school After three semesters of law, Wolfgang Roos began his naval career. In the summer of this year, as usual, he was sent to the navigation school's ship "Fokker" for a three-month internship. In the next nine months, he sailed around the world with the lightweight cruiser "Karlslu", passing through India, Indonesia, Australia, North America and South America switched defenses to the "Koenigsberg" a year later. Transferred to U-boat service in February 1937. In July 1937, he became the second officer of the submarine U-27. That year, the Spanish Civil War broke out, and the boat patrolled the waters near Spain. In October of the same year, Russ became the first mate of the U-38 boat.
When World War II broke out in September 1939, Ruth immediately began his real U-boat career. After spending a short period of time on the military academy's submarine U-13, he took over a IIB-class submarine, U-9. The boat's six patrols made him successful. The most notable achievement was in May 1940. Sunk the French submarine Doris.
In June 1940, Wolfgang Roos transferred to the IID-class boat U-138 as captain. During the late night of September 20 and the early morning of the 21st, using his new submarine, Lute sank four ships for a total of 34,633 tons. In October, he set another record of sinking and damaging one ship. This result earned him the Knight Medal. As a small boat commander, he was the only one.
In the same month, he boarded the larger U-43. With the five expeditions of the boat, the Soviet Union sank 12 ships totaling 68,077 tons. In April 1942, he left U-43; one month later Later he served as the captain of the IXD2 class boat U-181.
In September 1942, Russ began a new round of sea voyages. This voyage reached as far as Cape Town, South Africa and the Indian Ocean. In two months, he sank four more ships with a total of 21,987 tons. On the eve of his return on November 16, in a congratulatory message from the headquarters, Russ learned that he had just been awarded the Knight of Oak Leaf. In the next two weeks, he was greatly encouraged and sank 8 more ocean-going cargo ships. It weighed 36,394 tons and arrived at the French port of Porteux in January 1943. After a short rest, he resumed his voyage to the African Sea and the Indian Ocean in March. Even in the harsh conditions this time, he still achieved impressive results: sinking 10 ships with a total weight of 45,331 tons. At this time, Ruth became the first U-boat commander to be awarded the Order of the Knight with Diamonds, Oak Leaves and Swords. Another outstanding feature of this voyage is that it was the longest submarine voyage in history (only 20 days less than the 225 days of the U-196 Kenttrat). At that time, in order to boost morale, Colonel Russ invented many ideas , such as publishing submarine newsletters and holding various competitions and other activities to keep the crew active. At the military meeting of naval officers on December 17, Ruth gave a report using the above example.
In January 1944, Ruth, who had served in U-boats for five consecutive years, was appointed commander of the 22nd Formation. In July, he was transferred to the 1st Department of the Flansburg Naval School. In September, He became the youngest principal in the history of the German Naval Academy.
However, late at night on May 12, 1945, after the war ended, this legendary figure died in an accident. At that time, when a sentry asked for the password, Ruth did not respond. This unforgivable mistake caused him to be shot in the head by the sensitive sentry and he fell to the ground dead. There are still various speculations about this, some believe that he wanted to commit suicide, others speculate that the guard was hard of hearing. The more likely theory is that he was drunk, slow to react, and somehow tried to take a shortcut through the playground of the military academy.
Ruth is the most controversial figure among all U-boat officers. First of all, he openly declared that he was a firm believer in Nazism. On the other hand, his character and achievements enabled him to establish many influential figures. Although he set a record for the highest tonnage sunk against the enemy, most of them were in the African Sea and the Indian Ocean, which were relatively easy to fight. People at the time thought his military management methods were boring and ridiculous. At the same time, his paternalistic approach to his men was also well known. He believed it was a leader's duty to care about the performance of his men, even after they left the submarine. On the ship, all technical results had to be approved by him, and even posters on the walls were prohibited. He held events to eliminate "sexual problems on board ships" and actively promoted his theory of maintaining physical health while sailing. Dress code is regulated and food, drink and cigarettes are controlled. Of course, Ruth's father-like style made most of his subordinates loyal to him and respect him to this day. After he left U-181, he still took time out of his busy schedule as a military academy instructor to help his former subordinates with their personal affairs. D?nitz had even reserved a position for him on the Naval Staff at the time. Then again, if he had not died, he might have spent a few years in an Allied prison.
Two days after Ruth's death, the Third Reich held a state funeral for him. Six U-boat officers of the Order of Knights held a wake for him, and D?nitz delivered a eulogy. To this day, a marble monument still bears the legendary story of this outstanding U-boat commander.
No. 3 U-boat ace, recipient of the Order of the Knights with Oak Leaves and Two Swords
——Lieutenant Colonel Erich Topp
Born: July 1914 2nd, Hannover
Achievements: 36 ships sunk 198,658 tons, 4 ships damaged 32,317 tons
History:
1935 Cadet on July 1, 1937
Second Lieutenant on April 1, 1937
Lieutenant on April 1, 1939
Captain on September 1, 1941
p>
Major on August 17, 1942
Lieutenant Colonel on December 1, 1944
Rewards and Honors
November 7, 1939 , U-Boat Combat Medal
June 20, 1941, Knight Medal
April 11, 1942, Ubootskriegsabzeichen mit Brillanten
August 17, 1942 Japan, Knight of the Order of Oak Leaves and Double Swords
Ships commanded and records of sea voyages
U-57, June 5, 1940-September 15, 1940, 2 sea voyages ( 38 days)
U-552, December 4, 1940 - September 8, 1942, 10 times at sea (308 days)
U-3010, 3, 1945 U-2513, April 27, 1945 - May 8, 1945, no voyage record
U-2513, April 27, 1945 - May 8, 1945, no voyage record
In the German Navy, apart from Ruth and Brandy, who were later awarded the Knight's Order of Oak Leaves and Diamonds, the only ones in the German Navy who were awarded the Order of Oak Leaves and Two Swords with Diamonds were Erich Topp, Reinhard Schulen and Otto Kritzma Three people.
Erich Top joined the Navy in April 1934 and served on the cruiser Karlsruhe for six months before joining the U-boat force in October 1937. A year later he became an observer for U-46.
After going to sea four times, Top took command of U-57, using the boat he sank six ships totaling 36,862 tons. But on September 3, 1940, U-57 had an accident and sank.
Top served as captain of the VIIC-class boat "Red Devil" U-552. His points were getting higher and higher while attacking Allied escort ships in the North Atlantic and North American coasts. In March and April of 1942, he sank eight ships totaling 45,731 tons.
In September 1942, Top took office as the commander of the 27th Formation. At that time, the formation was used for tactical training of new members. In 1944, Top compiled a combat instruction book. When World War II ended, Top was the commander of U-2513, which surrendered to the Allies in Norway in May 1945. [
After the war, Top worked as a fisherman for several months. Like Brandi, he later became an architect. In 1958, he joined the then German Navy. He served as a member of the NATO Military Committee in the United States for four years. This article is reproduced from World War II military base w2war.com
Topp retired in 1969 and received the Grand Federal Medal of Merit. He worked as an industrial consultant for 14 years, from 1970 to 1984.
Gault Prien
Born: January 16, 1908, Osterfeld Thoeingen
Died: March 8, 1941, North Atlantic
< p>Achievements: ***31 ships were sunk, totaling 193.808 tons, and 8 ships were damaged, totaling 63.282 tons.Military rank
March 1, 1933, military academy student
January 1, 1935, quasi-comfort
April 1935 January 1, second lieutenant
January 1, 1937, lieutenant
February 1, 1939, captain
March 1, 1941, major
Rewards received:
1939.9.25 Iron Cross, Second Class
1939.12.17 Iron Cross, First Class
1939.12. 18 Knight's Cross
1940.12.20 Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves
Ships commanded and sea voyage records
U-47 1938.11.17-1941.5.7 Went to sea 10 times (238 days)
Gutter Prien joined the German Navy in January 1931 and worked in the merchant ship before that. After a year on the light cruiser Kaogsberg, he entered service in the Kriegsmarine submarine force in October 1935. In 1938, during the Spanish Civil War, he patrolled Spanish waters in U-26, captained by Captain Hartmann.
Prien's most famous deed was the sinking of the British battleship "Royal Oak" in Scapa Flow on October 14, 1939, which was heavily guarded by the British Northern Fleet. Churchill recorded the superb skills of the German U-boat commander in his diary. Prien was the first U-boat commander to be awarded a knighthood.
The following is the description of Pullman by an American reporter after his return:
October 18, Berlin (W.L. Shirer: Berlin Diary 1934-1941)
< p>German U-boats sank the British battleship "Royal Oak" in Scapa Flow, Britain's largest naval base. It's unbelievable. Tonight, a World War I submarine commander told me that the Germans tried to drive U-boats into Scapa Flow twice during World War I, but the operation failed and the submarine sank.This afternoon, at a press conference held by the Propaganda Department, Prien and his crew, a group of 18, 19, and 20-year-old boys, met with reporters. Prien is a 30-year-old, capable, proud and confident, loyal Nazi convert. Under the introduction of Hitler's press officer, Dr. Dietrich, a man who kept cursing Britain and Churchill for lying, Prien hardly told us what he had done. He said he had no trouble crossing the defense. I got the impression, but could not confirm it from his conversation, that he must have followed the British, possibly a torpedo boat, into the base. The consequences of the British negligence were disastrous. .
On February 20, 1941, before Prien's last voyage
Over the next 18 months, Prien proved that he was one of Germany's best commanders. one. During his six tours in 1940, he sank eight ships totaling 51,483 tons. In battles against convoys, he was always the first to spot the convoy and radio the other ships.
For example: During his attack on the HX-79 convoy, he was the first to discover and track the enemy ship. U-47 attracted other U-boats and hit four ships. [
D?nitz had wanted to transfer him to the training department, but Prien decided to stay on his boat.
On February 20, 1941, U-47 left St. Nazaire (France) on its tenth trip. Four days later, they attacked convoy OB-290, sinking four ships totaling 16,310 tons. The last radio signal from U-47 was received on the morning of March 7.
On March 7 or 8, 1941, Gott Prien sank into the sea together with U-47 and all its crew members (45 people).
Now, people have raised questions about this incident. It is traditionally believed that it was the British Navy's Wolverine that sank the U-47. However, there is now information showing that the Wolverine actually attacked because of the attack. Captain Ackerman's UA boat was seriously injured and retired from the battle.
It is now speculated that U-47 was hit by a self-launched torpedo. (Two U.S. submarines are also believed to have sunk in the Pacific due to the same equipment failure.
)
U-boat ace, recipient of the Order of Oak Leaves with Diamonds and Double Swords
——Lieutenant Colonel Albert Brandy
Born: 1914 June 20, Dortmund, Germany
Died: January 6, 1966, Dortmund, Germany
Sinked 12 ships totaling 31,689 tons
Historical military ranks
Served on September 25, 1935
Military cadet on July 1, 1936
Second lieutenant on January 1, 1938
< p>October 1, 1939 LieutenantOctober 1, 1942 Captain
June 8, 1944 Major
December 18, 1944 Lieutenant Colonel
Awarding status
January 21, 1943, Knight of the Order of Merit
On April 11, 1943, Knight of the Order of Oak Leaves
May 19, 1944, Knight of the Order of the Order of Oak Leaves with Double Swords
November 24, 1944, Knight of the Order of the Order of Oak Leaves with Diamond Swords and Double Swords
Served as U-boat commander and sea voyage records
U-617 April 9, 1942-September 12, 1943, 7 voyages (185 days)
U-380 December 1943- - One voyage to sea on March 11, 1944 (33 days)
U-967 April 1944 - One voyage to sea on July 1, 1944 (37 days)
Among the 27 German soldiers who have been awarded the Knight Medal of Oak Leaves with Diamonds and Swords, only two are from the navy, which makes them even more precious. In addition to the top seed Colonel Wolfgang Russ, Albert Brandy is another naval hero. Since many of his achievements are unproven, on the surface, his results are not as good as those of other double-sword Oak Leaf Knight Medal recipients. many.
Brady began his military career as a Navy officer cadet on April 1, 1935. From June 1936 to March 1937, he studied at the Flansburg Naval School. On the eve of his graduation, he served as an intern on the cruiser Karlsruhe for six months and received basic surface training as usual. Later he received further training on a mine-clearing ship. Then, Brandi's M-1 ship was incorporated into the 1st Minecraft Fleet and participated in the battle against Poland in September 1939, escorting the German battleship Hustin. During this battle, Brandy expressed his desire to transfer to a U-boat for the first time, but his efforts failed. In May 1940, he was promoted to captain of the M-1 mine clearance ship. In April 1941, Brandy began to receive submarine tactics training at Hustin. He tried every means to be transferred to the U-boat unit for the second time, and this time he finally got his wish. After the training, Brandy was first on standby and then sent to the Saint-Nazaire base to start his first U-boat journey.
At the end of 1941, Brandi boarded the "Red Devil" boat - U-552 according to the order of the training department, and went to the Azoris sea area for training. Once there, he received orders to divert to Canadian waters. At that time, there was neither time to carry winter combat equipment nor detailed maps, so they reached Point Reyes and sank two ships totaling 7,000 tons there. Judging from the harsh conditions at the time (storms, seas full of mines, and damaged engines), Brandi did not look like a novice, but rather an experienced and excellent commander.
On April 9, 1942, Brandi was appointed captain of the VIIC-class boat U-617. Apart from him, the boat had only five crew members with any experience in U-boat operations. From April to August, U-617 completed regular training with the 5th Formation (the training formation at Kiel Base). A month later he left Kiel for Saint-Nazaire, sinking 4 ships on the way. In November, U-617's second tour began. Brandi claimed to have sunk one ship and damaged another during this trip, but this cannot be confirmed.
Strike at Gibraltar
On November 4, 1942, Brandi was ordered to go to the Meditlanan waters. When he reached the heavily defended Strait of Gibraltar, he was attacked by the British Air Force. During the attack, U-617 survived the catastrophe. The two bombs thrown at it failed to hit.
On the 19th, Brandi retaliated against a British frigate, and the result of touching the tiger's butt can be imagined: U-617 then spent 4 hours hiding in the deep sea, and the angry British rewarded them with many Type 80 depth bombs. .
Later, in September 1943, Brandi and U-617 were incorporated into the 29th formation.
On his fourth trip to sea in 1943, Brandi encountered an Allied submarine after leaving the base. At that time, both sides were trying to get closer and try to annihilate each other. Three hours later, Brandy became impatient and ordered to dive and continue moving forward. On his way back to the division on January 21, 1943, Brandy was awarded the Knighthood of the Order of Merit in Rasspese. Ten days later, Brandy's fifth trip to sea brought great success. This time he sank the British Royal Navy minelayer HMS Wilhelm.
On April 11, on his sixth voyage, Brandi was awarded the Knight of Oak Leaves. He claimed to have sunk a cruiser (Uganda?) and another merchant ship with a tonnage of 23,500, but the results remain unconfirmed. This is very detrimental to him. But for submarines in the Meditlanian waters, this is a thorny problem that is often encountered (especially Brandi). In fact, it was really difficult for the U-boat commander to judge the results of his victory. Everyone knew that they had to dive and leave immediately after launching the torpedoes.
In August 1943, starting from Toulun, Brandy began his eighth tour. In the first few days, Brandy passed between two British air force transports, the Renown and the Formidable, but had no chance to fire. On September 6, the destroyer USS Parker Ridge was sunk 40 nautical miles east of Gibraltar. On the night of the 11th, U-617 arrived off the coast of Morocco and was attacked by Allied fighter planes. Three bombs severely damaged it. Brandy ordered the ship abandoned and the submarine sunk. They floated to the shore in a rubber boat and were captured by Spanish troops. Brandy was imprisoned in a camp near Cadiz, but he later managed to escape and return to Germany, where he was received by D?nitz in Berlin and told of his adventures.
1944
In January 1944, Brandy returned to Toulon Port and served as captain of the VIIC-class boat-U-380. On March 13, he only served as captain. After one voyage, U-380 was bombed by the US 9th Aviation Group in Port Toulon. In April, Brandi took over U-967 again, and on May 9, he was awarded the Knight Medal of Oak Leaves with Two Swords. During another trip to sea in June, Brandy fell seriously ill and had to return to the base.
A month later, Brandi was appointed commander of the Eastern Baltic U-boat group. On November 24, after Ruth, he became the second naval personnel in the Navy to be awarded the Knight Medal of Diamonds and Oak Leaves.
1945
In January 1945, Brandy was appointed commander of the Small Ship Force. He was arrested by the Allies after Germany surrendered.
After the war
In September 1945, Brandy was released from a Canadian prison. Before studying architecture, he worked as a mason. Later, Brandi became an outstanding architect in his hometown of Dortmund and even in other countries such as Saudi Arabia. Among them, he served as president of the German Architects Association for three years. In 1964, as a member of the Rotary Club, he was elected administrator of the province of West Falonia.
On January 6, 1966, Brandy died of illness in his hometown of Dortmund. Federal German naval officers held a wake for him. Many U-617 crew members also came to pay their respects to their comrades. Another ace, Reinhard Schullen, called him a "fearless, undefeated knight" in his speech.
Reinhard, U-boat ace and recipient of the Order of Oak Leaves with Two Swords
——Lieutenant Colonel Schullen
Born: April 16, 1916 Japan, Taunus
Died: August 25, 1984, Hamburg
Achievements:
Sinked 19 ships of 96,444 tons, damaged 5 ships ***31036 tons
History of military ranks
Served on September 25, 1935
Military academy student on July 1, 1936
1938 Warrant Officer on January 1, 1938
Second Lieutenant on April 1, 1938
Lieutenant on October 1, 1939
Captain on January 1, 1942
p>Major on September 1, 1942
Lieutenant Colonel on June 1, 1944
Awarding status
September 25, 1939 , Iron Cross Second Class
December 21, 1939, U-Boat Medal
February 25, 1940, Iron Cross First Class
1940 On November 3, 1942, Knight of the Order of Merit
On September 1, 1942, Knight of the Order of Oak Leaves with Two Swords
Served as U-boat commander and sea record
U-564 April 3, 1941-October 1, 1942, 6 trips to sea (284 days)
Lieutenant Colonel Shulen, who went on the voyage, was dressed very shabbily. Note that he was wearing A bonnet with no windband and the unique markings of U-84 and U-564 next to the eagle emblem - the shrugged leopard (refer to the U-boat logo on the homepage)
Reinhard Schullen is here Entered U-boat unit combat training in March 1938. Then served as first officer on U-48 for one year. Several years of underwater life earned him a knighthood. In 1941, he transferred to U-564 as commander. In August, he sank the British warship HMS Zinnia.
In October 1942, he left the submarine and taught in a submarine class. Later, he joined the 27th formation and followed another U-boat ace commander Erich Top. In later years, Schuren served as commander of the U-boat group in the Norwegian Sea until the end of the war.