Kurt Albrecht (1887)
| Kurt Albrecht | |
|---|---|
 The Laboe Naval Memorial, completed in 1936, originally memorialized the World War I fallen; Albrecht's name is listed there in the register of the fallen of the Imperial German Navy. | |
| Birth date | 2 January 1887 |
| Place of birth | Magdeburg, Province of Saxony, Prussia, German Empire |
| Death date | ⚔ 8 May 1918 (aged 31) |
| Place of death | Western Mediterranean |
| Allegiance |  German Empire
|
| Service/branch |  Kaiserliche Marine
|
| Years of service | 1906–1918 |
| Rank | Kapitänleutnant |
| Battles/wars | World War I |
| Awards | Iron Cross |
Kurt Albrecht (2 January 1887 – 8 May 1918) was a German naval officer of the Kaiserliche Marine and U-boat commandant (U-Boot-Kommandant), finally Kapitänleutnant (Lieutenant Captain) in World War I.
Contents
Life
After his Abitur during Eastern 1906, Kurt Albrecht joined the Kaiserliche Marine as Seekadett on 1 April 1906, receiving his first training aboard the SMS "Charlotte". He than began his academic naval education at the Marine-Akademie and, as all officer candidates, took part in special courses (everything from torpedo to infantry courses).
As a Leutnant zur See, he served on the SMS "Rheinland" (I. Geschwader/Hochseeflotte). In 1912, he served on the SM Torpedoboot "S. 105" (VII. Halbflottille/4. Torpedobootsflottille), afterwards on board of SM Torpedoboot "S. 119". In 1913, as Oberleutnant zur See, he was commanded to the VII. Reserve-Halbflottille and then to the II. Torpedo-Division as company officer (simultaneously service in the VII. Reserve-Halbflottille), where he received his first U-boat training.
In November 1915, he was experienced in combat and took over his first own boot. The SM UB 24 was a German Type UB II submarine, ordered on 30 April 1915 and launched on 18 October 1915. With SM UC 53 (twenty-six crew members), he was even more successful than with SM UB 24, sinking or damaging 39 ships between 4 June 1917 and 30 January 1918. With SM U 32, he managed to sink on 21 April 1918 the British collier "Bellview", her complete crew survived, being allowed to by Albrecht to disembark, and on 1 May 1918, the Australien cargo ship "Era", sunk in an Algiers–Gibraltar convoy with 12 casualties.
U-boat Commands
- SM UB 24 18 November 1915 to 12 December 1915
- SM UB 36 22 May 1916 to 12 December 1916
- SM UC 53 5 April 1917 to 5 February 1918
- SM U 32 16 February 1918 to 8 May 1918
Ace of the seas
Albrecht sank 38 ships with a total of 41,772 GRT, damaged another 8 ships with a total of 17,437 GRT and took one ship with a total of 644 GRT as prize during his patrols (Feindfahrten).[1]
Death
The 3 September 1914 commissioned Seiner Majestät (SM) Unterseeboot 32, on it's 11th patrol, was shelled and then depth charged by "Arabis" Class sweeping sloop HMS "Wallflower" of the Royal Navy under Lieutenant-Commander Francis C. Platt in the Western Mediterranean (NW Malta at 3607N 1328E). Kommandant Kapitänleutnant Kurt Albrecht and all his 40 men were lost.
Promotions
- 1 April 1906 Seekadett (Crew 1906)
- 6 April 1907 Fähnrich zur See
- 30 September 1909 Leutnant zur See
- 19 September 1912 Oberleutnant zur See
- 26 April 1917 Kapitänleutnant
Awards and decorations
- Iron Cross (1914), 2nd and 1st Class
- Brunswick War Merit Cross (BrKr)
- U-boat War Badge 1918 (U-Boot-Kriegsabzeichen)
Albrecht was also nominated for the Pour le Merite, but it was not awarded due to his fatal stay at sea.
