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Heinrich Schroeteler

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Heinrich Schroeteler
SSS Gorch Fock
Born(1915-12-10)10 December 1915
Essen-Katernberg
Died19 January 2000(2000-01-19) (aged 84)
Bochum
NationalityGerman
EducationRuhr University
Notable workSSS Gorch Fock
Kortum-monument
AwardsRuhr-Universität Medal
Military career
Allegiance Nazi Germany
Service/branch Kriegsmarine
Years of service1936–45
RankOberleutnant zur See
UnitSchlesien
Panzerschiff Admiral Scheer
U-96
Commands heldU-667
U-1023
Battles/warsWorld War II
AwardsKnight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Dr. Heinrich Andreas Schroeteler (10 December 1915 – 19 January 2000) German sculptor. During World War II, he commanded U-boat and received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (German: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes); during the post-war years, he pursued a career in art history and archeology.

Family

Schroeteler was born in Essen in 1915, one of eleven children. He followed his family's tradition of marine service in 1936.[1]

Military career

Schroeteler was credited with damaging one merchant ship, the British steam merchant Riverton, of 7,345 gross register tons (GRT), and sinking one warship, the Norwegian minesweeper HNoMS NYMS-382, of 335 GRT. The sinking took place on 7 May 1945, three days after the U-boats had been ordered to surrender.[citation needed] Subsequently, Schroeteler transferred to the U-boat service in September 1941 and sailed on one patrol from 23 April 1942 to 15 July 1942 on U-96 as a Kommandantenschüler (commander-in-training) under the command of Hans-Jürgen Hellriegel.[2] He spent three years as a prisoner of war in England before returning to Germany in 1948.[1]

Artist

Following the war, he worked as a freelance painter in Bochum. Schroeteler, at the age of 50 years, began his studies of art history, archeology and medieval history at the Ruhr University Bochum.[1] After his graduation in 1969 he worked as a research associate at the Institute of Archaeology.[1] He led the modeling workshop, and was curator of collections.[1] His success as a reconstructor of ancient works of art was honored with the University Medal from the Ruhr University in 1981.[1][3] Under the leadership of Bernard Andreae [de], Schroeteler together with Silvano Bertolin [de], worked on the plastic reconstruction of "The Blinding of Polyphemus".[4][5]

Demagogue

The historian Hans H. Hanke summarized Schroeteler's biography in a memorandum written for Bochum's Committee on Culture and Sport (Ausschuss für Kultur und Sport) dated 5 February 2014. According to Hanke, Schroeteler remained an agitator of National Socialism his entire life.[6] Hanke attributed this statement to the fact that Schroeteler hosted numerous meetings of former German U-boat and British submarine crews in his atelier under the banner of the Reichskriegsflagge. In addition, Schroeteler supported the political views of the Neo-Nazis, in particular where these views matched his ambitions "to do justice to the Wehrmacht merits for its country" ("den Verdiensten der Wehrmacht um das Vaterland gerecht zu werden") and to "reestablish the Wehrmachts honour abroad" ("um die Ehre der deutschen Wehrmacht im Ausland wiederherzustellen").[7]

Schroeteler also attended Großadmiral (grand admiral) Karl Dönitz's funeral. Dönitz was the former Commander-in-Chief of the Kriegsmarine, Adolf Hitler's successor as the head of state of Nazi Germany and convicted war criminal at the Nuremberg trials. There, Schroeteler was one of the six pallbearers who carried Dönitz to his grave, all six wearing their wartime Knight's Crosses.[7]

Finally, Schroeteler allowed himself to be photographed wearing his uniform and Knight's Cross and sent signature postcards to interested people. He also supported war glamorizing publications. Hanke stated that he has no sympathy for Schroeteler's ambitions to rehabilitate the Wehrmacht which fostered the myth of the clean Wehrmacht. Hanke believes that Schroeteler should have used his position as an academic and artist to distance himself from the political right.[6]

Military awards

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Hanke 2014, p. 1.
  2. ^ a b c Busch & Röll 2003, p. 518.
  3. ^ Honour Roll.
  4. ^ Andreae 2004, p. 41.
  5. ^ Vetters 1977, p. 195.
  6. ^ a b Hanke 2014, p. 4.
  7. ^ a b Hanke 2014, p. 3.
  8. ^ a b c Busch & Röll 2003, p. 517.
  9. ^ Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 425.
  10. ^ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 389.
  11. ^ Scherzer 2007, p. 685.

Bibliography

  • Andreae, Bernard [in German] (January 2004). "Der wiedererstandene Polyphem" [The Resurrected Polyphemus] (PDF). Deutsches Museum (in German). Retrieved 4 September 2017. {{cite web}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (2003). Der U-Boot-Krieg 1939–1945 — Die Ritterkreuzträger der U-Boot-Waffe von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [The U-Boat War 1939–1945 — The Knight's Cross Bearers of the U-Boat Force from September 1939 to May 1945] (in German). Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn Germany: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 978-3-8132-0515-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) [1986]. Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 — Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches] (in German). Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Hanke, Hans H. (5 February 2014). "Memorandum Schroeteler". Stadt Bochum (in German). Retrieved 31 August 2017. {{cite web}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Patzwall, Klaus D.; Scherzer, Veit (2001). Das Deutsche Kreuz 1941 – 1945 Geschichte und Inhaber Band II [The German Cross 1941 – 1945 History and Recipients Volume 2] (in German). Norderstedt, Germany: Verlag Klaus D. Patzwall. ISBN 978-3-931533-45-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • 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 [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Vetters, Hermann [in German] (January 1977). "Ephesos. Vorläufiger Grabungsbericht 1976" [Ephesus. Preliminary Excavation Report 1976] (PDF). ResearchGate (in German). Austrian Academy of Sciences. Retrieved 4 September 2017. {{cite web}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • "Honour Roll". Ruhr University Bochum. 17 July 2017. Retrieved 4 September 2017.

External links

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