Rudolf Petersen (Kapitän zur See)

This article is about the German naval officer. For the German politician, see Rudolf Petersen.

Rudolf Petersen
Born	15 May 1905(1905-05-15) Atzerballig on Alsen, Denmark
Died	2 January 1983(1983-01-02) (aged 77) Flensburg
Allegiance	Weimar Republic (to 1933) Nazi Germany (to 1945) West Germany
Service/branch	Reichsmarine Kriegsmarine Bundesnachrichtendienst
Years of service	1925–1945
Rank	Kapitän zur See
Commands held	2. Schnellbootflottille
Battles/wars	World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Rudolf Petersen (15 June 1905 in Atzerballig on Alsen, Denmark; died 2 January 1983 in Flensburg) was a German officer in the Kriegsmarine during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves (German: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub). The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grade Oak Leaves was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Petersen, in his role as Kommodore, was the head of the court of what might have been the last desertion-trial of Nazi Germany. Matrose Fritz Wehrmann, age 26 from Leipzig, Funker Alfred Gail, age 20 from Kassel, and Obergefreiter Martin Schilling, age 22 from Ostfriesland were executed on board Buéa on 10 May 1945 two days after the Unconditional surrender of Germany.

The accused had received news of the German capitulation to the British forces on 4 May 1945. On 6 May 1945 they left their stations on Svendborg on Fünen to get to the mainland. They were caught by the Danish Police and handed over to the German authorities on Fünen.

Awards

• Iron Cross (1939) 2nd and 1st Class
• Fast Attack Craft War Badge with Diamonds (13 June 1944)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 4 August 1940 as Korvettenkapitän and chief of the 2. Schnellbootflottille
  • 499th Oak Leaves on 13 June 1944 as Kapitän zur See and leader of the Schnellboote (FdS)

References

Citations

Bibliography

• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939-1945. Friedburg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas, 2000. ISBN 3-7909-0284-5.
• Huß, Jürgen & Viohl, Armin (2003). Die Ritterkreuzträger des Eisernen Kreuzes der preußischen Provinz Schleswig-Holstein und der Freien und Hansestadt Lübeck 1939-1945 (in German). VDM Heinz Nickel. ISBN 3-925480-79-X.
• Range, Clemens (1974). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Kriegsmarine. Stuttgart, Germany: Motorbuch Verlag. ISBN 3-87943-355-0.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939 - 1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Miltaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
• Williamson, Gordon and Bujeiro, Ramiro (2004). Knight's Cross and Oak Leaves Recipients 1939-40. Osprey Publishing Ltd. ISBN 1-84176-641-0.

External links

• Berliner Zeitung Article about the desertion trial

Military offices
Preceded by none	Commander of 2. Schnellbootflottille 1 August 1938 – 20 October 1941	Succeeded by Korvettenkapitän Klaus Feldt