Johannes Joachim Theodor Krüger

Johannes Joachim Theodor Krüger (born November 4, 1887 in Garwitz , † December 10, 1917 in Le Tréport ) was a German field artilleryman in the First World War .

Kruger died in a British military hospital after being wounded on November 20, 1917 in the Battle of Cambrai . In this battle it was switched to the approaching British tanks of the 51st (Highland) Division to fight directly by direct judging . After the battery to which Krüger belonged was worn out, he was the last man left to operate one of the field guns and destroyed 16 of the advancing tanks. When raiding forces entered the positions, he shot a pistol and was eventually wounded and captured.

The British Field Marshal Douglas Haig later noted in his reports: “Many of the hits on our tanks at Flesquières were made by a German artillery sergeant who was left alone with his battery and operated a field gun independently until he was killed on this cannon. This great bravery aroused the admiration of everyone. "

The Kuseler Unteroffizier-Krüger barracks was named after Johannes Joachim Theodor Krüger . In the justification for the naming by the BMVg , it is stated that “thanks to the heroism he demonstrated during the First World War, he still has a role model function today. […] After he had not heard the order to retreat, remaining alone at his gun, he heroically destroyed 16 enemy tanks before he was wounded himself and shortly after succumbed to his injuries ”.

literature

• Jakob Knab : False Glory: The Bundeswehr's understanding of tradition. Ch. Links Verlag, Berlin 1995, ISBN 3-86153-089-9 , p. 97.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Carl-Gideon von Claer: Tank hunt at the zone boundary? In: Der Spiegel . No. 50 , 1966, pp. 62 ( Online - Dec. 5, 1966 ).
2. ↑ Materials on the history of the NCO Krüger barracks and the artillery troops at the Kusel location. Press Officer Artillery Training Regiment 345 , Haischbachstr. 100, 66869 Kusel