Friedrich Lützow

Friedrich Lützow
Born	(1888-08-31)31 August 1888 Neuendorf near Potsdam
Died	1 November 1964(1964-11-01) (aged 76) Celle
Allegiance	German Empire (to 1918) Weimar Republic (to 1933) Nazi Germany
Service / branch	Imperial German Navy Reichsmarine Kriegsmarine
Years of service	1899–1931, 1936–45
Rank	Vizeadmiral
Unit	SMS Nassau SMS Charlotte SMS Hamburg SMS Zähringen
Commands	U-2, U-4 SMS Hamburg
Battles / wars	World War I Battle of Jutland World War II
Awards	House Order of Hohenzollern
Relations	Günther Lützow (son) Eberhard Kinzel (brother-in-law)
Other work	Instructor at the Turkish Naval Academy

Friedrich Johannes Martin Lützow (31 August 1888 – 1 November 1964) was a German naval officer who served in the Kaiserliche Marine, the Reichsmarine and the Kriegsmarine, eventually reaching the rank of Vizeadmiral during World War II. He was also a writer on naval warfare.

Following the start of World War II in Europe on Friday, 1 September 1939, when German forces invaded Poland, Lützow was called back into military service on 24 December 1939. He served as head of the propaganda department of the Kriegsmarine. In this capacity, he was the speaker of the Oberkommando der Marine (Naval High Command). He regularly held Wednesday evening's radio broadcast lectures under the title "naval warfare and naval power," in which he explained the recent events of the war at sea.

Career

Lützow joined the Imperial German Navy as a cadet on 10 April 1899 and was commissioned on 27 September 1902 while serving on SMS Weißenburg. His first posting was as adjutant on SMS Wettin. From 1905 till 1910 he served in different capacities on torpedo-boats simultaneously undergoing submarine training and finally taking over command of SM U-4 in 1909.

From 1910 till 1913 he served in several staff positions and attended two courses at the naval academy. At the outbreak of World War I, he was serving as the navigation officer on SMS Victoria Louise. In October 1914 he was appointed First Admiralty Staff Officer with the U-boat Command, a position he held until May 1918, when he took over command of I U-boat Flotilla in Pola. From March 1917 till May 1918 he was also in command of the light cruiser SMS Hamburg.

After the Armistice with Germany he returned to the staff of U-boat Command in December 1918, where he was charged with demobilization of the Mediterranean U-boat Command. From February till April 1919 he briefly served with the staff of North Sea Naval Station before joining the Reich Naval Office.

In 1924, after having served as Chief of Staff of North Sea Naval Station, since 1922, he took command of Hamburg again. In September 1925 he became commander of the North Sea Training Division (Schiffsstammdivision der Nordsee), a post he would hold for the next two years. His last position before retiring in 1929 was as director of the admiralty staff training course (Führergehilfenlehrgang).

After retirement he continued to work at Naval Command's printing department while still teaching on the admiralty staff training course until 1931. In 1936 he joined faculty of the Turkish Naval Academy in Istanbul where he taught for three years.

In 1939 he was reactivated and served as the official spokesman of the Naval Command until spring 1945. He was taken prisoner by British forces on 8 May 1945 and held in captivity until 1947.

After the war he lived in Hermannsburg until his death in 1964.

Personal life

On 29. April 1908, Lützow married Hildegard Kinzel, the sister of Eberhard Kinzel. They had five children:

• Werner (24 May 1909 – 24 November 1943), a Korvettenkapitän (corvette captain) in the Kriegsmarine. His last command was chief of the 4. Schnellbootflottille. On 24 November 1943, he was killed in action in the Thames Estuary on board Schnellboot S-88.
• Elisabeth Charlotte (7 March 1911 – 29 May 1988)
• Günther Friedrich (4 September 1912 – 24 April 1945)
• Hildegard (17 October 1916 – 24 April 2003)
• Joachim (10 October 1917 – 28 October 2001), Kapitänleutnant in the Kriegsmarine. He was commander of Minensuchboot (minesweeper) of M-4 in the 5. Minensuchflottille. He was awarded the German Cross in Gold on 30 July 1942 as Oberleutnant zur See (first lientenant at sea) on minesweeper M-19 in the 3. Minensuchflottille.

Awards

• Iron Cross (1914) 2nd and 1st Class
• Order of the Red Eagle 4th Class
• Knight's Cross 2nd Class of the Albert Order
• Knight's Cross of the House Order of Hohenzollern
• Hanseatic Cross of Hamburg
• Friedrich-August-Kreuz

Dates of rank

10 April 1900:	Fähnrich zur See (Officer Cadet)
27 September 1902:	Leutnant zur See (Second Lieutenant)
1 April 1904:	Oberleutnant zur See (First Lieutenant)
9 August 1908:	Kapitänleutnant (Captain Lieutenant)
24 April 1916:	Korvettenkapitän (Corvette Captain)
1 October 1921:	Fregattenkapitän (Frigate Captain)
1 January 1924:	Kapitän zur See (Captain at Sea)
1 December 1928:	Charakter als Konteradmiral (unpaid Counter Admiral)
1 February 1941:	Konteradmiral zur Verwendung (Counter Admiral for disposition)
1 February 1943:	Vizeadmiral zur Verwendung (Vice Admiral for disposition)

References

Citations

Bibliography

• Bonacker, Max (2007). Goebbels' Mann beim Radio: Der NS-Propagandist Hans Fritzsche (1900–1953). Oldenbourg Verlag. ISBN 978-3-486-70281-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
• Braatz, Kurt (2005). Gott oder ein Flugzeug - Leben und Sterben des Jagdfliegers Günther Lützow (in German). Moosburg, Germany: NeunundzwanzigSechs Verlag. ISBN 978-3-9807935-6-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)
• Hildebrand, Hans H.; Henriot, Ernest (1989). Bradley, Dermot (ed.). Deutschlands Admirale 1849–1945. Die militärischen Werdegänge der See-, Ingenieur-, Sanitäts-, Waffen- und Verwaltungsoffiziere im Admiralsrang. Band 2: H–O. Osnabrück: Biblio Verlag. pp. 411–412. ISBN 978-3-7648-1499-1. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |trans_title= (help); Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Gustavs, Arne (2004). Herman und Elise Lützow. Zepernick: Gustavs Verlag. ISBN 978-3-929833-02-7. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help); Unknown parameter |trans_title= ignored (|trans-title= suggested) (help)

External links

• Vizeadmiral Friedrich Lützow