Klaus-Degenhard Schmidt

class="fn" colspan="2" style="background-color: #B0C4DE; text-align: center; vertical-align: middle;" | Klaus-Degenhard Schmidt
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Birth date	3 January 1918 (1918-01-03)
Place of birth	Kiel, Province of Schleswig-Holstein, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire
Death date	⚔ 23 December 1944 (1944-12-24) (aged 26)
Place of death	Südhoofden, north of Dunkirk (North Sea)
Allegiance	National Socialist Germany
Service/branch	Kriegsmarine
Years of service	1937–1944
Rank	Kapitänleutnant
Commands held	10. Schnellboot-Flottille
Battles/wars	World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Klaus-Degenhard Schmidt (3 January 1918 in Kiel – 23 December 1944) was a German naval officer, finally Kapitänleutnant (Lieutenant Captain) and S-Boot (E-boat) commandant of the Kriegsmarine and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross in World War Two. He was involved in a total of at least 103 naval sorties (Feindfahrten) in the Mediterranean, the English Channel and the southern part of the North Sea. He especially distinguished himself during the occupation of Venice after the betrayal by Italy as well as the capture of the islands of Leros and Samos.

Military career (chronology)

File:Oblt. z. S. Klaus-Degenhart Schmidt (links) - Foto aus Storia Militare Briefing Nr. 18.png

Oberleutnant zur See Schmidt (left) in North Africa

File:S 54 (Oblt. z. S. Schmidt) vor dem Dogenpalast (Venedig).png

"S 54" (Schmidt) in front of Doge's Palace (Venice)

File:S 61 (Blömker) in front of Piazza St. Marco, Venice.png

"S 61" (Blömker) in front of Piazza St. Marco (Venice)

• Eastern 1937 Abitur, then six months mandatory service with the Reich Labour Service (Reichsarbeitsdienst; RAD)
• 9.10.1937 to 27.2.1938 Basic military training at the Schiffsstammabteilung der Ostsee
• 28.2.1938 to 30.6.1938 Basic seamanship training on the sail training ship "Horst Wessel" (Segelschulschiff "Horst Wessel")
• 29.6.1938 to 31.3.1939 Board training including trip abroad (Atlantic) on the training ship "Schlesien"
• 1.4.1939 to November 1939 Officer course at the Naval Academy in Mürwik
• 1.12.1939 to 5.6.1940 Board internship/watch officer minesweeper M 11 (Bordpraktikum/Wachoffizier Minensuchboot M 11)
• 6.6.1940 to 22.4.1941 Kommandant of a port protection boat (Hafenschutz- or HS-Boot)
  • 11.1940 to 22.4.1941 At the same time Group Leader of the 11. HS-Flottille (Kaiser-Wilhelm--Kanal)
• May 1941 to June 1941 Torpedo Boat Course at the Torpedo School (TS) in Flensburg-Mürwik
• 15.7.1941 to 7.11.1941 S-Boot Commandant Course (Kommandantenschüler at the 4. Schnellboot-Flottille)
• 7.11.1941 to 15.12.1941 Kommandant S 36/5. Schnellboot-Flottille
  • Torpedo training near Saßnitz (Rügen)
• 17.12.1941 to 15.2.1942 Kommandant S 30
• 16.2.1942 to 25.2.1942 Kommandant S 22
• 15.3.1942 to 14.7.1942 Kommandant S 54
  • 21 to 27 May 1942 Transfer with (S 54, S 56, S 57, S 58, S 59) from Augusta via Navarino (May 22), Suda (May 23-26) and Ras-el-Hillal (May 27) to Derna (North Africa), later advance into the sea area off Tobruk.
  • 21 June 1942 Sinking of the British Navy tug "Alaisia" (72 GRT)
  • 21 June 1942 Torpedoing (together with S 58) of the South African auxiliary minesweeper "Parktown" (250 GRT), which was severely damaged.
  • 1 to 2 July 1942 Transfer (S 54, S 56, S 59) from Tobruk to Marsa Matruh (Egypt)
  • 4 to 5 July 1942 Advance (S 33, S 54, S 56, S 59, S 60, S 61) from Marsa Matruh into the sea area off Alexandria
  • 6 July 1942 British bombing raid on Marsa Matruh, S 61 severely damaged
  • 7 to 10 July 1942 Transfer (S 54, S 56) from Marsa Matruh to Augusta
  • 14 July 1942 Transfer (S 36, S 54, S 56) from Augusta to Palermo for a general overhaul
• 15.7.1942 to 6.10.1942 Kommandant S 35
• 6.10.1942 to 15.3.1944 Kommandant S 54
  • 20.7.1943 Sinking of an Allied freighter (8000 GRT)
  • 26.10. to 10.11.1943 Engine overhaul in Venice
  • November 1943 Operations in Leros, Kos, Portolago and Samos during Operation "Leopard" (Unternehmen „Leopard“) with Brandenburgers and Kampfgruppe Müller
  • 22.4.1944 S 54 hit a mine in the evening near Cape Leukas, when it was sailing from Salamis back to her flottilla at Cattaro. The stern broke off (about 8 m), but the boat keep swimming. It was towed back to Salamis. Schmidt, after receiving leave, was ordered to the 10. S-flottilla at Swinemünde.
• 3.6.1944 to 23.12.1944 Kommandant S 185
  • Transfer from Swinemünde to Ijmuiden, later to Ostende
  • 19 to 20 August 1944 Transfer (S 184, S 185, S 186, S 192) from Ostend to Boulogne-sur-Mer, night fighter attack; Deputy Commandant (first day as such) Stabsobersteuermann Herrmann Adam (before that Kommandant S 191) was killed in action ⚔.
  • 18/19.9.1944 Transport trip (S 198, S 199, S 185, S 186) to the encircled fortress of Dunkirk with security by group (S 183, S 200, S 702), security group intercepted and sunk by British battle group with frigate "Stayner" and MTB (motor torpedo boat).
    • 18.9.1944 to 15.10.1944 At the same time Deputy Flotilla Commander of the 10. Schnellboot-Flottille

Venice 1943

On the evening of 8 September 1943, at 9:28 p.m., the keyword for the Fall Achse came from Rome. Everywhere in Italy, German troops and officials began to implement the measures that had been worked out for the "harvest case". Disarm treacherous Italian troops and occupy and secure important positions. On the morning of 9 September 1943, the operation was officially launched across the board. According to a report by Army Group B, from 8 to 19 September 1943 alone, a total of 82 Italian generals, 13,000 other officers and around 400,000 soldiers were disarmed and taken prisoner.

The ships of the weak German Kriegsmarine were also involved. Among them a group (2 boats) of S-boats, which were ready for action in Taranto (3rd Schnellboot-Flottille). "S 54" under tactical leader Oberleutnant zur See Schmidt and "S 61" under Oberleutnant zur See Axel von Gernet. After receiving the keyword, Schmidt wanted to leave immediately to carry out the secret assignment given to him as part of "Harvest". But the port's anti-submarine net was closed. The Italian port commander, Admiral Brevonesi, summoned Schmidt. When he arrived at the Admiral's command building, Schmidt immediately demanded that the barrier be opened and that he be allowed to set sail with his boats and the German MFP (Marinefährpram) "F 478", which was also ready to sail in the harbour. He was permitted to do so immediately. As they departured on 9 September 1943, Schmidt ordered, the harbor entrance to be mined with 30 mines. The Later, a British minelayer, the "Abdil", promptly ran onto the mine belt. On board were 400 soldiers who were to be landed in Taranto. 168 died in the sinking on 10 September 1943.

On the same day, 9 September 1943 at 12:25 p.m., the Italian auxiliary minesweeper "Vulcania" (91 GRT) faced the German S-boats and was sank by Schmidt. Since the MFP was only running at 9 knots, the convoy trundled along rather delicately and slowly. However, when a, now assumed hostile, Italian cruiser (auxiliary miner) appeared, "F 478" sank itself and the S-boats were now able to escape at 18 knots with Kapitänleutnant Winkler and his crew of "F 478" on board. When the S-boats encountered the Italian cruiser "Scipione Africano", it took no notice of the them. Some Italian navy officers were still loyal to Mussolini and considered the Germans as comrades-in-arms. In the Straits of Otranto they were then attacked by Italian shore batteries with 30 volleys, but they did no damage. Then, Valona Bay, where they would spend the nicht, they got into a net mine barrier (net with mines attached to it), from which they could free themselves with difficulty but without damage. Then, on the way to Ragusa on 10 September 1943, "S 54" drove over a sea mine, which fortunately only exploded ten meters behind the ship.

In the night from 10 to 11 September 1943, "S 54" fired two torpedoes at an armed yacht (gun boat) off Ancona. The torpedoes hit amidships but did not detonate. "S 61" fired a torpedo which, as it turned out, sank the Italian admiralty yacht "Aurora" (935 t). The 70 survivors were taken on board, although the S-boats were already overcrowded due to the crew of "F 478". At dawn, the 4,572 GRT troop carrier "Leopardi" was seized. In addition to the c. 1,500 Italian soldiers, many women and children had been discovered on board and an order to torpedo was avoided by Schmidt. The captain and all officers were taken to the S-boats by Kapitänleutnant Winkler and his caper group, the "Leopardi" was "guided" to Venice as a prize. Schmidt ordered Oberleutnant zur See Axel von Gernet and a few of his men to take command of the "Leopardi". Command of "S 61" was given to Seem. Nr. 1 Bootsmannsmaat Friedrich "Friedel" Blömker. A little later the Italian cargo steamer "Saubasia" (1590 GRT) was taken as a prize by "S 61".

In the afternoon of 11 September 1943, at 4:50 p.m., "S 54" stopped the Italian steamer "Pontinia" (715 GRT) about 30 nm south of Venice and was taken as a prize. At 5:45 p.m., the approaching Italian destroyer "Quintino Sella" (1,480 tons at full load), which was actually on her way to Taranto to surrender to the British, was sunk with two torpedoes from "S 54" and "S 61". The "Quintino Sella" had only sighted the "Leopardi" and the "Pontinia", which they considered harmless, the small S-boats were hidden (on the lee side) by the large ships. The "Quintino Sella" passed them at 400 meters distance and it slow speed. Now Schmidt gave the order to attack, and the battle was short, on board the destroyer there was just time to uselessly open fire with all the machine guns on the port side and to attempt a counter maneuver. After only four seconds of running time, the first and one second later the second torpedo crashed into the ship, which then broke into three parts and sank. The captain, Capitano di Corvetta Corrado Cini, seriously wounded (he later had to suffer the amputation of a leg), and most of the survivors (over 80 men of the crew) were rescued by order of Schmidt and brought to "Pontinia" and "Leopardi" (both under German command), others were rescued later by Italian fishing boats. A total of 27 crew members of the ship perished, but also many of the 300 civilians from Venice, which "Quintino Sella" had on board.

On the evening of 11 September 1943, both S-boats arrived off of Venice. Since the prize steamers had set their entry signals, the harbor barrier was opened. The German war flags of the S-boats had been shrouded and the sailors' uniforms defaced, leading the Venetians to believe an Italian force had arrived. "S 54" and "Leopardi" entered the harbour, "S 61" with "Pontinia" and "Saubasia" stayed at the entrance to give them cover. All three would follow two hours later, after Venice appeared secure. Both S-boats were completely without fuel, water and provisions. "S 61" still had one torpedo, "S 54" was empty. In Venice there were about 10,000 Italian navy men, the Italian destroyer "Sebenico", the Italian torpedo boat "Audace", two Italian S-boats, eight auxiliary ships and 30 merchant ships as well as c. 6,000 soldiers and policemen.

Schmidt with Winkler (MFP) and only four armed soldiers went ashore and went to the German Consul General Dr. Köster. Under the threat of a Stuka attack and the attack of ready Panzer, all a bluff, Schmidt, together with the Consul General and the German railroad representative, achieved the capitulation of the garrison of 16,000 men represented by the naval commander North Adriatic (Vice Admiral Emilio Brenta) and the chief of the Venice naval station (Rear Admiral Franco Zannoni), who both assured not to destroy any facilities. The chief of police assured the Germans of his full support.

Later, during the Admirals' of the Regia Marina Trial in May 1944 by the Special Tribunal for the Defense of the State of the Italian Social Republic, they and others were accused of treason by the Italian Social Republic for their behaviour in the summer of 1943 and after the armistice of Cassibile. Charges against admirals Zannoni and Matteucci were dropped at the end of the preliminary investigation, on 12 May 1944, as it was established that Venice and Toulon had been occupied by the Germans without any bloodshed, since the two admirals had judged armed resistance to be futile and negotiated their surrender, and thus the accusation of fighting against the Germans was void.

On 14 September 1943, S 54 and S 61 conducted a "demonstration sortie" in the port of Venice. Klaus-Degenhard Schmidt received the German Cross in Gold and somewhat later the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross for the coup. Friedrich "Friedel" Blömker also received the German Cross in Gold on 18 September 1943 for his extraordinary command of "S 61" in representation of Kommandant von Gernet and was promoted to Oberbootsmannsmaat. Oberleutnant zur See Axel von Gernet, who some sources state never commanded S 61 during the operation to Venice (presumably wounded or sick), received the German Cross in Gold on 30 July 1944 and would survive the war.

Death

In the night from 22 to 23 December 1944, the 6. (S 211, S 212, S 222, S 223, S 704, S 705), 8. (S 194, S 196, S 197, S 199, S 701) and 9. Schnellboot-Flottille (S 130, S 167, S 168, S 175, S 207), with the support of S 185 and S 192 from the 10. Schnellboot-Flottille, were ordered to a mine operation on the Thames Scheldt Way by ongoing contact with British MGBs (motor gunboats). The operation was successful, but on the journey back, S 185 and S 192 were seperated from the group and attacked by a battle group consisting of the destroyer "Walpole", the frigates "Curzon" and "Torrington" and the corvette "Kittiwake". S 192 was hit and sank, all men were lost. Then Schmidt's S 185 was hit, the eight men of the bridge crew (Kommandant Oberleutnant zur See Klaus-Degenhard Schmidt, flotilla doctor Marine-Ober-Assistenz-Arzt d. R. Friedrich Klefehn, Obersteuermann Hans Wibbeling, Maschinenobermaat Werner Missbach, Maschinenobermaat Willi Schlotzhauer, Bootsmannsmaat Herbert Nikolai, Matrosenobergefreiter Johann Rohmann and Matrosenobergefreiter Heinrich Kroner) were killed in action ⚔. The remaining crew then sank the severely damaged boat themselves. 22 men of S 185 survived.

Promotions

• 9.10.1937 Matrose (Officer Candidate)
• 28.6.1938 Seekadett (Cadet at Sea)
• 1.4.1939 Fähnrich zur See (Officer Cadet at See)
• 1.7.1939 Oberfähnrich zur See (Senior Officer Cadet at See)
• 1.5.1940 Leutnant zur See (2nd Lieutenant at Sea)
• 1.4.1942 Oberleutnant zur See (1st Lieutenant at Sea)
• Kapitänleutnant with effect from 21.12.1944 (posthumously), other sources state with effect from 1 December 1944

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1939), 2nd and 1st Class
  • 2nd Class on 5 June 1940
  • 1st Class on 10 December 1942
• Minesweeper War Badge (Kriegsabzeichen für Minensuch-, U-Jagd- und Sicherungsverbände) on 5 June 1940
• S-Boat War Badge (Schnellboot-Kriegsabzeichen) in 1942
• German Cross in Gold on 18 September 1943
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 22 December 1943 as Oberleutnant zur See and Kommandant of Schnellboot S 54/3. Schnellboot-Flottille