Günter Hessler

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Günter Hessler (born June 14, 1909 in Beerfelde ; † April 4, 1968 in Bochum - Laer ) was a German naval officer in the Reichsmarine and the Kriegsmarine , most recently in the rank of frigate captain .

Military career

Patrols

U 107

  1. January 24, 1941 to March 1, 1941 (4 ships with 18,482 GRT sunk)
  2. March 29, 1941 to July 2, 1941 (14 ships with 86,699 GRT sunk)
  3. September 6, 1941 to November 11, 1941 (3 ships with 13,641 GRT sunk)

On April 5, 1927, Hessler joined the Reichsmarine as a candidate for naval officers and completed the usual military training there. Here he was on 1 October 1927 midshipmen , April 1, 1929 Midshipman and on June 1, 1931 Midshipman appointed. On October 1, 1931, Hessler was made division lieutenant on the ship of the line Schleswig-Holstein while being appointed lieutenant at sea . From September 1932 to June 5, 1933 he worked at the North Sea naval station . Following this, Hessler attended another naval course and was assigned to the 2nd Marine Artillery Department at the end of September 1933, meanwhile appointed first lieutenant on July 1, 1933 . From September 24, 1934 to October 1, 1936 he acted as III. Officer on watch on board the torpedo boat Greif , where he was appointed lieutenant captain on October 1, 1936 . Subsequently, he worked on board the Grille as chief officer on watch. On March 30, 1938, Hessler became permanent staff on the battleship Gneisenau , but in May 1938 he switched to the 2nd artillery officer and later a training officer on the ship of the line Schlesien .

From March 27, 1939 to March 31, 1940 he was in command of the torpedo boat Falke . Then Hessler switched to the submarine weapon, where he completed the U-training and a commanding course from the beginning of April to September 16, 1940. On September 17, 1940 he was delegated to the building instruction for U 107 , whose commander he became on October 8, 1940. With U 107 , Hessler ran out to three enemy voyages, during which he was able to sink 21 ships with 118,822 GRT . With 14 ships sunk, his second patrol was the most successful single action by a submarine in World War II. For his achievements he received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on June 24, 1941 and on September 1, 1941 he was promoted to Corvette Captain . On November 24, 1941, Hessler transferred to the staff of the commander of the submarines as an admiral staff officer . He then held this position until the end of the war. He had previously been appointed frigate captain on December 1, 1944 .

From July 1945 Hessler then worked in the German mine clearance service, from which he was released on October 15, 1945. In October 1945 he appeared as a witness at the Nuremberg trials , where he was incarcerated in the witness wing of the Nuremberg prison. He was later transferred to other detention centers. On September 17, 1946 he was released from this and was employed from 1947 to 1951 in the War History Department of the Royal Navy . Here he worked on the war history of the German submarines in World War II.

family

In 1937 Hessler married Ursula Dönitz, daughter of the later Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz . The children Peter, Klaus and Ute emerged from the marriage.

Awards

literature

  • Rainer Busch and Hans-Joachim Röll: The U-Boat War 1939–1945: The knight's cross bearers of the U-boat weapon from September 1939 to May 1945. Mittler and Son, 2003, ISBN 3-8132-0515-0 .
  • Franz Kurowski: Günter Hessler. In: Franz Kurowski: Hunter of the Seven Seas. The most famous submarine commanders of World War II. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 1998 (2nd edition), pages 435–453. ISBN 3-613-01633-8 . (Biographical, representation of the patrols)

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Dieter Hartwig: Grand Admiral Karl Dönitz. Legend and Reality, Paderborn: Verlag Ferdinand Schöningh, 2010, ISBN 3-506-77027-6
personal data
SURNAME Hessler, Günter
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Hessler, Günther
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German officer, most recently frigate captain
DATE OF BIRTH June 14, 1909
PLACE OF BIRTH Beerfelde
DATE OF DEATH 4th April 1968
Place of death Bochum - Laer