Hans Zenker

Hans Zenker
Chief of the Admiralty Weimar Republic
In office 1 October 1924 – 30 September 1928
Preceded by	Paul Behncke
Succeeded by	Erich Raeder
Born	10 August 1870(1870-08-10) Bielitz, Duchy of Upper and Lower Silesia, Cisleithania, Austria-Hungary
Died	18 August 1932 (aged 62) Göttingen, German Reich
Spouse(s)	Mathilde Thiele
Children	Karl-Adolf Zenker
Military service
Allegiance	German Empire (1889–1918) Weimar Republic (1919–1928)
Service/branch	Kaiserliche Marine Reichsmarine
Years of service	1889–1928
Rank	Admiral
Commands	SMS "Von der Tann"
Battles/wars	World War I Battle of Jutland (Skagerakschlacht)
Awards	Iron Cross (1914) Prussian Order of the Crown, 2nd Class with Swords

Hans Paul Volkmar Zenker (10 August 1870 – 18 August 1932) was a German officer of the Kaiserliche Marine and the Reichsmarine, finally Admiral and head of the Naval Command within the Reichswehrministerium.

Military career (chronology)

Admiral Hans Paul Volkmar Zenker and General der Infanterie Hans von Seeckt (Head of the Army Command), Autumn 1925

Paul von Hindenburg with naval officers of the Reichsmarine and others: Hermann Wilhelm Bauer (1), Hans Zenker (2), Walther Franz (3), Wilhelm Prentzel (4).

• 13 April 1889 Joined the Imperial German Navy (other Kadetts of the Crew 1889 were, for example, Vizeadmiral William Michaelis and Konteradmiral Magnus Otto Bridges von Levetzow)
  • 1889/1890 attended the Naval School (Marineschule)
• 1905 Militärische Abteilung (A. I.) of the Allgemeines Marinedepartement (A.) in the Reichs-Marine-Amt (R. M. A.)
• 1908/1909 1907 Erster Offizier (executive officer/XO) on SMS "Deutschland")
• 1910 Admiralstabsoffizier/II. Geschwader (on board SMS "Preußen")
• 1911 Kommandant SMS "Lübeck" (Hochseeflotte)
• 1912 Kommandant SMS "Cöln"
• 1914 Head of a department in the Admiralstab der Marine in Berlin
• 2 August 1914 to 31 January 1916 Chef des Admiralstabs (Chief of Staff at the beginning of WWI) in the Großen Hauptquartier Seiner Majestät des Kaisers und Königs
• 5 February 1916 to 27 April 1917 Commandant of the Heavy Cruiser SMS “Von der Tann”
• 28 April 1917 to 10 August 1918 Section Chief, Operations Group, Naval General Staff
• 22 December 1917 to 18 February 1918 Acting Chief of Naval Operations
• 8 October 1918 to 7 November 1918 Commander of Security Formation, North Sea (Befehlshaber des Sicherungsverbandes der Nordsee)
• 10 November 1918 to 12 November 1918 Chief of Staff of the High Seas Forces
• 12 November 1918 to 29 November 1918 Anew commander of Security Formation, North Sea (Befehlshaber des Sicherungsverbandes der Nordsee)
• 3 January 1919 to 1 August 1919 Acting Chief of the Admiralty Staff, Imperial Naval Office
• 2 August 1919 to 9 November 1919 Placed at the Disposal of the Chief of the Admiralty (Commander-in-Chief of the Navy)
• 10 November 1919 to 23 May 1920 Inspector of Naval Artillery (Inspekteur der Marineartillerie)
• 24 May 1920 to 30 September 1923 Chief of the Naval Station of the North Sea (Chef der Marinestation der Nordsee in Wilhelmshaven)
• 15 October 1923 to 17 September 1924 Commander-in-Chief of the Naval Forces (Oberbefehlshaber der Seestreitkräfte)
• 18 September 1924 to 30 September 1928 Chief of the Naval Command (Chef der Marineleitung)
• 30 September 1928 Retired

Family

Descent

Hans was born the son of Dr. Carl/Zenker and his wife Emilie, wealthy daughter of a cloth manufacturer. His father was a teacher, taught mathematics, physics, chemistry and other subjects ath the Bielitzer Realschule from 1863 until 1872. He was a member of the Pädagogische Gesellschaft in Jena (Pädagogisches Seminar in Jena) and of the Presbyterium der Bielitzer evangelischen Gemeinde, which supported the foundation of the Evangelisches Lehrerseminar in Bielitz (1867—1936) by Prof. Dr. phil. Karl Volkmar Stoy (1815—1985).

Marriage

Hans Zenker married his fiancée Frieda Mathilde Thiele, daughter of Konteradmiral August Adolf Carl Thiele (1852–1912), niece of Konteradmiral Adolf Carl Johann(es) Thiele and sister of Vizeadmiral August Adolf Karl Hermann Thiele. Hans and Mathilde became parents of Karl-Adolf Zenker, Oberleutnant zur See of the Reichsmarine, Fregattenkapitän of the Kriegsmarine and Vizeadmiral of the German Navy of the Bundeswehr.

Promotions

Imperial Navy

• 13 April 1889 Kadett (after 1899 Seekadett)
• 15 April 1890 Seekadett (after 1899 Fähnrich zur See)
• 17 May 1892 Unterleutnant zur See (after 1899 Leutnant zur See)
• 18 February 1895 Leutnant zur See (after 1899 Oberleutnant zur See)
• 23 March 1901 Kapitänleutnant
• 8 December 1906 Korvettenkapitän
• 10 April 1911 Fregattenkapitän
• 27 January 1913 Kapitän zur See

Reichsmarine

• 21 January 1920 Konteradmiral
• 1 January 1921 Vizeadmiral
• 1 October 1924 Admiral

Awards and decorations

• Prussian Centenary Medal 1897 (Zentenarmedaille)
• Order of the Crown (Kronenorden), 4th Class
• Baden Order of the Zähringer Lion (Orden vom Zähringer Löwen), Knight's Cross 2nd Class (BZ3b)
• Hesse Order of Philip the Magnanimous (Verdienstorden Philipps des Großmütigen), Knight's Cross 2nd Class (HP3b)
• Red Eagle Order (Roter Adlerorden), 4th Class
• Southwest Africa Commemorative Medal (Südwest-Afrika Denkmünze) in Steel
• Crown to the Red Eagle Order 4th Class (PAO4mKr)
• Prussian Long Service Cross for 25 years (Königlich Preußisches Dienstauszeichnungskreuz)
• Prussian Order of the Crown, 3rd Class
• Knight's Cross of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern
• Iron Cross (1914), 2nd and 1st Class
• Oldenburg Friedrich-August Cross, 2nd and 1st Class (OFA1/OK1)
• Knight's Cross of the Imperial Austrian Order of Leopold with War Decoration (ÖL3K)
• Military Merit Cross 3rd Class with War Decoration of Austria-Hungary (ÖM3K)
• Golden Liakat Medal with Sabers (TL1⚔)
• Gallipoli Star (TH)
• Bavarian Military Merit Order (Königlich Bayerischer Militärverdienstorden, Offizierkreuz mit Schwertern), Officer with Swords (BMV.O⚔/BMO⚔)
• Swords to the Knight's Cross of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern on 5 June 1916
• Commander's Cross 2nd Class of the Saxon Albrecht Order with Swords (SA2b⚔)
• Commander's Cross 2nd Class of the Württemberg Friedrich Order with Swords (WF2b⚔)
• Order of the Crown, 2nd Class with Swords on 1 February 1918