Hans Bartels
| Hans Bartels | |
|---|---|
 Kapitänleutnant and commander of Minensuchboot M-1 Hans Bartels, Norway 1940 | |
| Born |
5 July 1910 Frankfurt |
| Died |
31 July 1945 (aged 35) near Rendsburg |
| Allegiance |
.svg.png){kind=small} Weimar Republic (to 1933).svg.png){kind=small} Nazi Germany |
| Service/branch |
.svg.png){kind=small} Reichsmarine.svg.png){kind=small} Kriegsmarine |
| Years of service | 1931-45 |
| Rank | Korvettenkapitän |
| Unit |
sail training ship Niobe cruiser Karlsruhe battleship Schlesien destroyer Z-24 |
| Commands held |
Minesweeper M-1 Torpedo boat T-14 |
| Battles/wars | World War II |
| Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Hans Bartels (5 July 1910 – 31 July 1945) was a Korvettenkapitän with the Kriegsmarine during World War II and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.
On 24 February 1940, without prior warning, M-1 rammed and sank four Esbjerg based Danish trawlers, Ejjam (E 92), Gerlis (E 456), Mercator (E 348) and Polaris (E 504) in the vicinity of the Dogger Bank. Bartels reported to his superiors that no one was rescued due to "military reasons"; 16 fishermen from the then neutral Denmark lost their lives.[1]
He was transferred to command the Kleinkampfverbände (small combat units) and after a training course was appointed leader of the Kleinkampf-Flottille 261 (261st Biber flotilla), operating the midget submarine Biber, in August 1944. After the war ended Bartels was retained in British custody and was assigned to the German Mine Sweeping Administration, where he was killed in an accident near Rendsburg on 31 July 1945.
Awards
- Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th Class (2 October 1936)[2]
- Medaille zur Erinnerung an den 1.10.38 (20 December 1939)[2]
- Iron Cross (1939)
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 16 May 1940 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of M-1[3][4]
References
Citations
- ↑ Rohwer & Hümmelchen 2007.
- 1 2 3 4 Dörr 1995, p. 16.
- ↑ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 122.
- ↑ Scherzer 2007, p. 202.
Bibliography
- Dörr, Manfred (1995). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Überwasserstreitkräfte der Kriegsmarine—Band 1: A–K [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the Surface Forces of the Navy—Volume 1: A–K] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2453-2.
- Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
- Rohwer, Jürgen; Hümmelchen, Gerhard (2007). "Unterlassene Hilfeleistung an oder Erschießung von Schiffbrüchigen" [Failure to Provide Assistance to or Shooting of Shipwrecked]. Württembergische Landesbibliothek (in German).
- Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.