Walther von Zatorski
Walther von Zatorski (born June 6, 1894 in Bremerhaven - Lehe ; † May 16, 1981 in Osterholz-Scharmbeck ) was a German captain and naval officer. Zatorski is of outstanding importance because of his position as one of the last captains of cargo sailing ships around Cape Horn and his activity within the friendship alliance of the International Brotherhood of Long-Distance Captains, Kaphoorniers (AICH for short from French Amicale Internationale des Capitaines au Long Cours, Cap Horniers ) to.
details
Early years and World War I
After attending grammar school, von Zatorski began to sail at sea on cargo ships belonging to the North German Lloyd at the age of 17 . In 1914, after completing his training, he was transferred to a steamer in the Australian service and taken prisoner of war in New Zealand after the beginning of the First World War . Together with Count Luckner , he attempted to escape, for which von Zatorski built a sextant out of a thermos. The escape failed and in 1919 von Zatorski returned to Germany and took his first exam.
Between the wars
In 1922 he was employed as a fourth officer at Hapag and in 1923 temporarily stayed in the United States. This was followed by travel times, in 1924 as third officer and in 1925 as second officer on the Grand Duchess Elisabeth . After he had completed his captain's license in 1926, he boarded the training ship Bremen as first officer and took over the command as captain in February 1928. After the decommissioning of the Bremen at the end of 1931, von Zatorski made some trips on steamships until he took over command of the training ship Germany , which lasted until August 1936, in early 1933 . From October 1936 to December 1938 von Zatorski operated the Orotava banana steamer .
Second World War
During the Second World War , von Zatorski was part of crew XII / 17 and initially led supply ships . From January 1940 to March 1942 the Dithmarschen , from March 1942 to May 1942 the Franconia and from May 1942 to November 1942 the Uckermark . From November 1942 to April 1943 he worked as a naval attaché in Tokyo and from April 1943 to March 1944 for a year as head of the Singapore naval base. von Zatorski finished his military service as head of the shipping agency Naval Base Yokohama (March 1944 to May 1945) and was officially dismissed on March 26, 1947.
Post-war years
In 1955, von Zakorski was one of the first Germans to attend a meeting of the Friendship Association of Cape Horniers in Le Havre, where he gave a speech with the words “Vive l ésprit de St. Malo” (German: “Long live the spirit of St. Malo ”) ended. A saying that became the motto of the Cape Hornier League. Soon afterwards, von Zatorski was the first president of the newly founded German section of the Cape Horniers and also published the newsletter Der Albatros . After von Zatorski was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit, First Class, in 1957 for his efforts to promote Franco-German relations, in 1959 he had the task of awarding Federal President Theodor Heuss the Cape Horn Medal on behalf of the Cape Horniers. In the same year, von Zatorski reached retirement age, but he worked for another eleven years on land and at sea for Norddeutscher Lloyd and Bremer Schlüssel Reederei.
In 1969 von Zatorski Schaffer was the Schaffermahlzeit .
literature
- Men fight, not ships: South Sea adventure with Count Luckner . Dünen Verlag, Bremen 1936.
- Gottfried Clausen: Obituary . In: Kehrwieder . tape 26 , no. 7 , July 1981, p. 24-25 .
- Hans Wille: The sad end of an era. The elderly brotherhood of Cape Horniers meets for the last time . In: Berliner Zeitung , May 16, 2003
Web links
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Zatorski, Walther von |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German captain |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 6, 1894 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Bremerhaven - Lehe |
| DATE OF DEATH | May 16, 1981 |
| Place of death | Osterholz-Scharmbeck |