Horst von Schroeter

Horst von Schroeter (born July 25, 1919 in Bieberstein ( Saxony ), † July 25, 2006 in Bonn ) was a German naval officer in the Navy and the Federal Navy , most recently in the rank of Vice Admiral .

Military career

Navy

Patrols

U 123

1. April 10, 1941 to May 11, 1941 as II. WO
2. June 15, 1941 to August 23, 1941 as II. WO
3. October 14, 1941 to November 22, 1941 as II
4. December 23, 1941 to February 9, 1942 as II
5. March 2, 1942 to May 2, 1942 as IWO
6. May 16, 1942 to June 5, 1942 as IWO
7. December 5, 1942 to February 6, 1943 (1 ship of 3,385 GRT sunk)
8. March 13, 1943 to June 8, 1943 (5 ships with 29,538 GRT sunk)
9. August 1, 1943 to November 7, 1943
10. December 29, 1943 to April 24, 1944

Schroeter joined the Navy on October 9, 1937 and completed his basic infantry training in Stralsund until February 27, 1938 . This was followed by 30 June 1938, practical on-board training on the Albert Leo Schlageter where Schroeter on June 28 midshipmen was appointed. His further on-board training took place on the light cruiser Emden until March 15, 1939 . Schroeter then completed the ensign's main course at the Mürwik Naval School by September 29, 1939 , where he was appointed an ensign at sea on April 1, 1939 . Schroeter completed a subsequent ensign artillery course on November 30, 1939 in Kiel-Wik . This was followed by his transfer to the battleship Scharnhorst , where he was promoted to Oberfähnrich zur See on March 1, 1940 , and completed his practical training on April 28, 1940.

Then Schroeter switched to the submarine weapon, where he completed a UTO course, UWO course and the actual U course until October 6, 1940 and was promoted to lieutenant on May 1 . After his submarine training, Schroeter was an adjutant in the 1st U-Lehr Division. On April 6, 1941, he was transferred to U 123 , with which he ran out as a second and later as a first watch officer under various commanders until the beginning of June 1942 on six patrols.

After completing a commanders' course in the 24th U-Flotilla from June 16 to July 31, 1942, Schroeter became the commander of U 123 . With this he ran until June 17, 1944 on four more enemy voyages in the Atlantic, on which he sank six ships with a total of 32,925 GRT . Another ship with 7068 GRT was damaged. From June 18, 1944, Schroeter took part in the building instruction of the U 2506 , which was under construction , and became its commander on August 31, 1944. With U 2506 , Schroeter, who had been a lieutenant commander since January 1, 1945 , did not go on any patrols until May 8, 1945. In Bergen he was taken prisoner by the British, from which he was released in June 1947.

Federal Navy

On July 1, 1956, Schroeter joined the German Navy and was Chief Inspector at the Mürwik Naval School until October 31, 1958 . In this position he was appointed corvette captain on November 14, 1956 . From November 1, 1958 to March 31, 1960 he was chief officer on the destroyer Z 1 and then until the end of April 1961 a test officer at the command of the volunteer acceptance point in Kiel. From May 1961 to the end of March 1963 he acted as an operations staff officer at the command of the high-speed boats in Flensburg and was then appointed commander of the school squadron . He held this position until September 30, 1963.

Schroeter was then commander of the Weser tender until mid-April 1964, before taking up a position as a consultant in the personnel department of the Federal Ministry of Defense in Bonn from April 17, 1964 , where he was promoted to sea captain on December 23, 1964 . From October 1, 1966 to December 31, 1969, he was sub-department head in the Ministry of Defense and then until September 30, 1970 commander of the naval department at the command academy of the German Armed Forces in Hamburg , where he was promoted to flotilla admiral on April 20, 1970 . On October 1, 1971, Schroeter was appointed Rear Admiral Deputy Inspector of the Navy and on October 1, 1976 under promotion to Vice Admiral Commander of the Allied Naval Forces of the Baltic Sea Accesses ( COMNAVBALTAP ). He held this position until he retired on September 30, 1979.

Activity in retirement

From May 1982 to May 1990 Horst von Schroeter was chairman of the Navy Officers Association .

Awards

• U-boat war badge (1939) on August 25, 1941
• Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st class August 25, 1941 and February 10, 1942
• German cross in gold on December 12, 1943
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on June 1, 1944
• U-boat front clasp in silver on March 15, 1945
• Cross of Merit 1st Class of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany on September 4, 1972
• Great Cross of Merit of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany 1979

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 .