Walter Gladisch

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Walter Gladisch (born January 2, 1882 in Berlin , † March 23, 1954 in Bad Homburg in front of the height ) was a German naval officer , most recently an admiral in World War II .

Life

Gladisch joined the Imperial Navy on April 12, 1898 as a midshipman . After his basic training on the cruiser frigate SMS Charlotte and attending the naval school, where he was appointed ensign at sea on April 18, 1899 , he left for Kiautschou on October 22, 1900 . He served with the East Asian Squadron there on the large cruisers SMS Fürst Bismarck and SMS Hertha and was promoted to lieutenant on September 13, 1901 . After his return from East Asia, Gladisch was from November 3, 1902 to March 31, 1903 initially a company officer in the Second Sailor Division and at times a watch officer on the small cruiser SMS Zieten , before joining the artillery training ship SMS Mars until August 31, 1903 . This was followed by the transfer of the first lieutenant to the sea (since March 28, 1903) to the main company of the sailor artillery department Kiautschou, Gladisch traveled again to the German colony on May 12, 1904 and was used there as a company officer for two years. On his return he was again a company officer in the Second Sailor Division and was then used as a watch officer on the ships of the line SMS Brandenburg , SMS Hannover and SMS Schwaben from April 16, 1907 and was promoted to lieutenant commander on March 30, 1908 . Relocated to the II. Sailor Division for five months, Gladisch was then officer on watch on the large cruiser SMS Victoria Louise and from April 1 to September 30, 1911 as a cabin boy officer on the training ship SMS König Wilhelm . On October 1, 1911, he was transferred as 2nd artillery officer to the ship of the line SMS Nassau . A year later he became 1st Artillery Officer there, stayed on board at the beginning of the First World War and was promoted to Corvette Captain on May 13, 1915 . Gladisch was the 1st artillery officer from October 17, 1916 to August 23, 1917 on the large cruiser SMS Von der Tann and was then transferred to the command of the high seas as 2nd Admiral Staff Officer.

After the end of the war, Gladisch was initially responsible for the settlement in the staff of the High Seas Armed Forces, then joined the political department of the Reichsmarinamt as a department head and, on October 1, 1919, in the same function in the Admiralty's naval department (from September 15, 1920 naval command ). There he became a frigate captain on November 30, 1920 . On September 27, 1922 he was appointed head of the department and on July 3, 1923, Gladisch became captain of the sea (since March 1, 1923) in command of the small cruiser Arcona . He gave up this command on December 1, 1923 and commanded the small cruiser Amazone until March 23, 1925 . Subsequently, Gladisch was Chief of Staff of the Fleet Command until October 14, 1928, and as such, was Rear Admiral on October 1, 1928 . He was then appointed commander of the naval forces of the Baltic Sea as well as the leader of the Association of Reconnaissance Forces. On October 1, 1930, he acted as commander of the reconnaissance forces and on September 29, 1930, he became chief of the naval command office in the naval command for one year. At the same time as his promotion to Vice Admiral , Gladisch was appointed Fleet Commander of the Fleet Command on October 1, 1931. On September 30, 1933, Gladisch was retired from active service with the character of Admiral.

In the years to come, Gladisch worked as an employee of the naval archive .

On March 22, 1939, Gladisch was made available to the Navy , but was not used until September 13, 1939. He was appointed Reich Commissioner at the Oberprisenhof Berlin. He worked there until June 30, 1943, when he finally retired.

Gladisch headed a working group on the subject of martial law of the German Society for Defense Policy and Defense Sciences .

After the end of World War II, Gladisch was President of the Supreme National Sports Commission for Motor Racing in Germany from December 1949 to April 1950 . He was also a member of the Himmeroder group of experts , which pursued the aim of rearming the Federal Republic of Germany .

Walter Gladisch died in 1954 at the age of 72 in Bad Homburg vor der Höhe. His grave is in the Zehlendorf cemetery in Berlin.

Awards

literature

  • Hans H. Hildebrand and Ernest Henriot: Germany's Admirals 1849-1945 Volume 1: AG (Ackermann to Gygas) , Biblio Verlag, Osnabrück 1988, ISBN 3-7648-2480-8

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Hans-Jürgen Mende : Lexicon of Berlin burial places . Pharus-Plan, Berlin 2018, ISBN 978-3-86514-206-1 , p. 673.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f g Ranking list of the German Reichsmarine , Ed .: Reichswehrministerium , Mittler & Sohn , Berlin 1929, p. 39.
personal data
SURNAME Gladisch, Walter
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German naval officer and admiral in World War II
DATE OF BIRTH January 2, 1882
PLACE OF BIRTH Berlin
DATE OF DEATH March 23, 1954
Place of death Bad Homburg vor der Höhe