Friedrich Bengel
Friedrich Bengel (born October 6, 1892 in Dirmstein ; † August 23, 1985 ibid) was a locksmith and served as a non-commissioned officer in the First World War . He prevented an explosion in 1916 and was therefore awarded the Silver Medal of Bravery , the Bavarian Army's highest award for NCOs and men .
Life
During the First World War, Bengel was a non-commissioned officer with the mine thrower company No. 3 in the II Army Corps of the Bavarian Army. The mine throwers were a new kind of weapon back then. In guns with steeply towering barrels, thin-walled grenades were inserted into the barrel from the front and fired with rocket-like propellants. Due to the steep trajectory, covered targets could be reached that conventional cannons shot over. The official documents state the following facts about Friedrich Bengel, which took place at the summer battle in northern France:
“ When a medium-sized mortar was being fired on July 14, 1916 in the Hohenzollern works near Auchy, the ammunition room was hit by an enemy grenade of heavy caliber. The means of ignition caught fire immediately, and some of the propellant charges blew up. Then, quickly resolved, Sergeant Bengel jumped over from the throwing stand and tore the burning boxes with propellant charges and fuses out of the ammunition room. A further spread of the fire and with it the exploding of the remaining detonators and the 120 stored mines was prevented, heavy losses of people and unpredictable material damage prevented by the villain's presence of mind and contempt for death; although, in addition to the actually more than dangerous act, the enemy artillery put the heaviest fire on the launcher, as they had become particularly attentive to the smoke. "
With his courageous and selfless act, Bengel had prevented a serious explosion. For this he received the Silver Military Merit Medal, the highest Bavarian honor for bravery for NCOs and men. Due to the rarity of the order, Bengel enjoyed the highest reputation in the home community. He remained the only porter there.
The veteran was active in the war club and Bengel, like all other still living holders of the bravery medal, was given the character of a lieutenant in the Landwehr on August 27, 1939, the 25th anniversary of the Battle of Tannenberg .
Bengel remained warmly connected to the state of Bavaria and the Wittelsbach royal family throughout his life. After the Second World War , when the Rhine Palatinate was separated from Bavaria and should eventually be reconnected, he became involved in the “Bund Bayern und Pfalz”, which - unsuccessfully - sought to reintegrate his Palatinate homeland to Bavaria. Bengel also remained active in the circle of medal winners. In 1954 he took part in the celebrations for the 85th birthday of Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria . A photo shows him with the jubilee among the invited holders of the Bavarian Bravery Medal. In 1964 he visited the battlefield of Ypres with other veterans and received an anniversary certificate from the local city administration. Bengel lived on the property at Metzgergasse 7 and died very old on August 23, 1985.
According to the "Law on Titles, Orders and Medals" of 1957, as the holder of one of the highest German bravery awards, he received a monthly honorary salary of DM 50 . At the funeral he was entitled to an honorary delegation of the Bundeswehr who held a wake at the coffin and carried the medal on a pillow at the funeral.
Bengel's outstanding act was described in 1928 in the work “Bavaria's Golden Book of Honor”, which was recently published as a reprint. A separate chapter is also dedicated to him in the new local history of Dirmstein.
literature
- Bavaria's Golden Book of Honor. Bavarian War Archives . Munich 1928.
- Bavaria's Golden Book of Honor. The holders of the Military Max Joseph Order and the Military Merit Medal in the First World War. Reprint. Phaleristic publisher Michael Autengruber. Constance 2000.
- Michael Martin (Ed.): Dirmstein. Nobility, peasants and citizens. Chronicle of the Dirmstein community. Self-published by the Foundation for the Promotion of Palatinate Historical Research. Neustadt an der Weinstrasse 2005. ISBN 3-9808304-6-2 . Own chapter on Friedrich Bengel, by Joachim Specht
- A Dirmsteiner with presence of mind and contempt for death. Joachim Specht. The Rheinpfalz . Local edition Grünstadt from August 31, 2001. Local edition Frankenthal from December 24, 2001.
Remarks
- ↑ Colloquially and since 1918 also officially - called Bavarian Bravery Medal.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Bengel, Friedrich |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Bengel, Fritz (nickname) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German locksmith, knight of the Bavarian Bravery Medal |
| DATE OF BIRTH | October 6, 1892 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Dirmstein |
| DATE OF DEATH | 23rd August 1985 |
| Place of death | Dirmstein |