Hermann Josef von dem Bongart
Hermann Josef Freiherr von dem Bongart (born April 15, 1897 in Paffendorf (Bergheim); † December 21, 1952 there ) was an officer and pilot in the air force of the Wehrmacht , as well as a German marksman and vice world champion in target shooting .
Origin and life
Herman Josef von dem Bongart was the son of Pius Wilderich Graf von Walderdorff (1871-1933, adopted by the Ludwig Freiherr von dem Bongart family ) and Ludwiga Countess Schaffgotsch called Semperfrei von and zu Kynast and Greiffenstein (1870-1933), he had nine more siblings. On May 27, 1926 he married Marietta Freiin von Elverfeldt (1899–1982) in Canstein , from whose marriage a son and two daughters emerged.
He lived at Paffendorf Castle in Bergheim in the Rhein-Erft district , where he was also a member of the St. Sebastianus Brotherhood Paffendorf from 1422 e. V. where he became the rifle king in 1925 . After his death in 1958, his widow sold the property to a predecessor company of RWE Power .
Military career
As a young soldier, Bongart joined the air force of the German Empire to become a pilot. However, he made his actual pilot career in the air force of the Wehrmacht during World War II . In July 1938 as a captain he became squadron captain of the 5th squadron of Kampfgeschwader 257 in Lüneburg. From this, the Kampfgeschwader 26 was formed on May 1, 1939 , where he was promoted to major on September 12, 1939 .
Promoted to lieutenant colonel on April 1, 1941 , he went to Kampfgeschwader 55 as commander of Group IV on April 10, 1941 . In September 1942 he became commander of the III. Group. After his promotion to Colonel on September 2, 1942, he again took command of Group IV in Kampfgeschwader 55.
In October 1943 he was appointed to the staff as "Special Assignments Officer" of Air Fleet 3 ( France , Belgium , the Netherlands ). In December 1943 he took over the Fliegerzielgeschwader 2 as commodore , which consisted of four groups and twelve squadrons. From their III. and IV. Group he formed in April 1944 Groups I and II of the "Bongart Squadron" with seven squadrons to fight partisans in France.
In September 1944 he took over his last official post as commandant of the Neumünster Airfield Command - Air Base Command A (o) 5 / XI.
Awards
- Iron Cross 2nd Class , major in 1939
- Luftwaffe trophies of honor for special achievements in the air war , on August 10, 1942 as a lieutenant colonel
- German cross in gold , on November 5, 1942 as a colonel
Career as a marksman
In addition to his flying career, Bongart was a successful German sports shooter in trap shooting (then clay pigeon shooting ) in the discipline "Shotgun Trap". He achieved his greatest success at the World Championships in Berlin-Wannsee in 1939 , where he was runner-up in the men's individual ranking with 285 targets and only had to admit defeat to Sándor Lumniczer from Hungary , who scored three more targets. With the team he achieved the world title, they won gold in the team championship.
Two years earlier, at the World Championships in Helsinki in 1937 , he and Rudolf Sack, Kurt Schöbel and Mr. von Gramon were runner-up world champions with 1,121 targets, and the Finnish team became world champions.
International medals - individual evaluation
- 1939: World Championship, silver
- 1939: European Championship, silver
International medals - team competition
- 1937: World Championship, silver
- 1937: European Championship, silver
- 1939: World Championship, gold
- 1939: European Championship, gold
literature
- Noble family of the Lower Rhine Imperial Knighthood , Genealogical Handbook of the Adels , Adelslexikon Volume I, Volume 53 of the complete series, p. 500, CA Starke Verlag, Limburg (Lahn) 1972, ISSN 0435-2408
- Klaus D. Patzwall, Veit Scherzer: The German Cross 1941–1945, History and Owner Volume II, Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall, 2001, ISBN 3-931533-45-X ( online )
Individual evidence
- ↑ Death note - University and City Library Cologne. Retrieved May 3, 2020 .
- ^ Career Summaries - Luftwaffe Officers 1935 - 1945, Section A - F, p. 453 (PDF). Retrieved May 3, 2020 .
- ↑ Atleht: van de (n) m Bongart. In: ISSF - International Shooting Sport Federation. Retrieved May 3, 2020 .
- ↑ The Majesties of the 20th Century. St. Sebastianus Brotherhood Paffendorf from 1422 e. V., accessed on April 26, 2020 .
- ^ Air Force Officer Career Summaries; Section AF, p. 453. Retrieved April 26, 2020 . (PDF)
- ^ EK II, Major Freiherr von dem Bongart. Reich Aviation Ministry, Scherl Verlag Berlin, p. 24, accessed on April 26, 2020 .
- ^ Wolfgang Lamée: Success at world championships. Support group national team throwing disc, accessed on April 26, 2020 .
- ↑ Historical Results, Shotgun World Championship. International Shooting Sport Federation, accessed April 26, 2020 .
- ↑ European Pigeon Shooting Championships. Retrieved April 26, 2020 .
- ↑ Historical Results - Shotgun Team World Championship. International Shooting Sport Federation, accessed April 26, 2020 .
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Bongart, Hermann Josef von dem |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Bongart, Hermann Josef Freiherr von dem |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German officer, pilot and marksman |
| DATE OF BIRTH | April 15, 1897 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Paffendorf |
| DATE OF DEATH | December 21, 1952 |
| Place of death | Paffendorf |