Klaus Scholtz

Klaus Scholtz (born March 22, 1908 in Magdeburg ; † May 1, 1987 in Bad Schwartau ) was a German naval officer , most recently a sea captain in the German Navy . As commander of U 108, he sank 25 ships with a total tonnage of 127,990 GRT during the Second World War on a total of eight patrols.

Reichsmarine and Kriegsmarine

Scholtz joined the Reichsmarine as a sea officer applicant on April 5, 1927 . There he was assigned to the 8th Company of the II. Ship Main Division in Stralsund - Dänholm , where he received his basic infantry training. He then began his practical on-board training on the sailing training ship Niobe . On November 1, 1927, appointed midshipman on the same day , he continued his on-board training on board the light cruiser Berlin . Following this, from March 18, 1929, Scholtz attended the ensign course and various weapons courses at the Mürwik Naval School, while being promoted to ensign at sea . After its completion, he returned to his company on January 31, 1931 to continue his practical on-board training on the Schleswig-Holstein liner .

After its completion, Scholtz was appointed lieutenant at sea and switched to October 2, 1931 as an officer on watch on the torpedo boat G 11 , which was subordinate to the 1st torpedo boat semi-flotilla. On September 29, 1932 he became a company officer in the V. Marine Artillery Department in Pillau , in whose service he was also appointed lieutenant at sea on October 1, 1933 .

After two years in the service of the naval artillery, Scholtz returned to the 1st Torpedo Boat Half Flotilla on September 25, 1934 and became an adjutant and officer on watch on board the G 8 torpedo boat . On July 6, 1936, he began a course to become a teaching and group officer at the Mürwik Naval School, in the course of which he was promoted to lieutenant captain . After its completion, Scholtz took on the function of a teaching group leader for future ensigns at the ship artillery school in Kiel-Wik . For this purpose, the torpedo boat Jaguar was available to him as an artillery school boat from June 3, 1937 , of which he was in command during this time. With this he was deployed in Spanish territorial waters during the Spanish Civil War . On April 4, 1939, Scholtz became company commander for officer candidates in the 7th ship master's department in Stralsund.

Second World War

Patrols with U 108

1. February 6 to March 12, 1941 (2 ships with 8,078 GRT sunk)
2. April 3 to May 2, 1941 (1 ship with 16,444 GRT sunk)
3. May 25 to July 7, 1941 (7 ships of 26,931 GRT)
4. August 19 to October 21, 1941
5. December 9 to December 25, 1941 (2 ships with 7,620 GRT sunk)
6. January 12 to March 4, 1942 (5 ships of 20,082 GRT sunk)
7. March 30 to June 1, 1942 (5 ships with 31,340 GRT sunk)
8. July 13 to September 10, 1942 (3 ships with 17,495 GRT sunk)

Scholtz did not take part in the operations against Poland , Norway and France . On April 1, 1940, he switched to the submarine weapon. In the 1st submarine teaching division , he completed a submarine course in Neustadt and Pillau. On June 30, 1940, a torpedo course (UTO course) followed at the torpedo school in Flensburg - Mürwik . After its completion, Scholtz was assigned the building instruction for U 108 in Bremen , whose commander he became on October 22, 1940.

With the U 108 , Scholtz took part in a total of eight enemy voyages until he was promoted to chief of the 12th submarine flotilla on October 15, 1942. These extended across the entire Atlantic . He was able to sink 25 ships with a tonnage of 127,990 GRT. On April 13, 1941 he succeeded in sinking the British auxiliary cruiser Rajputana with 16,568 GRT . During these trips Scholtz was promoted to Corvette Captain on November 1, 1941 and honored with the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on December 26, 1941 for his achievements . For his further successes, he was awarded the Knight's Cross Oak Leaves as the 123rd bearer. On October 14, 1942, he gave up command of U 108 to take up the position of flotilla chief. He held this position until August 1944.

After the Allied landing in Normandy on June 6, 1944, Bordeaux was cut off from the German lines. Scholtz then joined the combat group Elster , named after Major General Botho Henning Elster , in order to begin the march back south with her. Here he later acted as the commander of the field headquarters 541 in Biarritz . The Allied landing in southern France in August 1944 led to Scholtz and his staff being cut off again. In the Marine Regiment Badermann , named after the sea captain Friedrich Badermann , he was commander of the III from August 26, 1944. Battalions. This Scholtz came on September 11, 1944 in Beaujancie / Loire in American captivity and was shipped to the US. He was interned there from September 17, 1944 to April 20, 1946. Then he returned to West Germany.

Federal Border Guard and Federal Navy

Scholtz entered the maritime border protection department on September 1, 1953 and was appointed staff captain (BGS) . There he became head of the school and repair group of the Cuxhaven Sea Border Protection in January 1954 . In October of the same year he became head of the Maritime Protection Border Association I in Neustadt . On July 1, 1955, he was promoted to Oberstabskapitän (BGS). When the Bundeswehr was founded , Scholtz transferred to it on July 1, 1956 and was the first commander to set up the Kiel naval base command . In this function, Scholtz was promoted to captain at sea on August 20, 1959 . On November 16, 1959, he moved to the staff of the Commander of the Naval Forces of the Baltic Sea , to then be held from October 17, 1960 "for special use" in the Marine Section Command Baltic Sea. With effect from July 1, 1961, Scholtz took up the post of commander of the Naval Base Command in Cuxhaven . On March 20, 1962 he became site commander of the site command in Wilhelmshaven. Scholtz then remained in this position until he retired on April 1, 1966.

Awards

• Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st class
• Submarine War Badge (1939)
• Mentioned in the Wehrmacht report on July 6, 1941
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
  • Knight's Cross on December 26, 1941
  • Oak leaves on September 10, 1942 (123rd award)

literature

• Manfred Dörr: The knight's cross bearers of the submarine weapon 1939–1945 Volume II, letters L – Z, pp. 243–244
• Franz Kurowski: Klaus Scholtz. In: Franz Kurowski: Hunter of the Seven Seas. The most famous submarine commanders of World War II. Motorbuch Verlag, Stuttgart 1998 (2nd edition), pages 260–280. ISBN 3-613-01633-8 . (Biographical, representation of the patrols)