Reinhold Henrici

Reinhold Henrici
Dr. rer. pol. Rear Admiral Henrici
Birth name	Fritz Julius Paul Reinhold Henrici
Birth date	9 April 1890(1890-04-09)
Place of birth	Wiesbaden, Province of Hesse-Nassau, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire
Death date	2 June 1948 (aged 58)
Place of death	Wadersloh, North Rhine-Westphalia, Allied-occupied Germany
Allegiance	German Empire Weimar Republic National Socialist Germany
Service/branch	Kaiserliche Marine Reichsmarine Kriegsmarine
Years of service	1907–1920 1936–1945
Rank	Rear Admiral
Battles/wars	World War I World War II
Awards	Iron Cross
Relations	∞ 1921 Irene Wolff
Other work	Doctor of Political Science Businessman

Fritz Julius Paul Reinhold Henrici (9 April 1890 – 2 June 1948) was a German naval officer of the Empire and the Reich, finally Rear Admiral of the Kriegsmarine in WWII. Henrici died on 2 June 1948 in Wadersloh, Westphalia from a heart attack. He had never gotten over the death of his beloved wife just five and a half months earlier.

Life

Postcard dated 30 November 1914 from 1st Lieutenant at Sea Henrici, commandant of S.M. Torpedo Boat T. 66, to his uncle, Major z. D. Granier, commander of the Borkum Island Battalion; the back reads: "Reinhold sends his esteemed uncle warm greetings from the Jade Watch. Fritz is now back in the field after his second wound. Waldemar is writing today from Czenstochau."

Major z. D. Ferdinand Rudolph Albrecht Granier (b. 27 April 1847 in Hannover; d. 18 October 1918), commander of the Borkum Island Battalion in WWI (right), a veteran of the German-Franco War as well as knight of the Iron Cross and a cousin of Admiral Alfred von Tirpitz; his mother was Ottilie, née Tirpitz (1814–1897).

• 3 April 1907 Joined the German Navy
  • basic training, on-board training (training ship cruiser frigate SMS Charlotte), Naval School and special purpose courses
• Rank List 1910 Officer Cadet on small cruiser SMS Mainz
• Rank List 1911 Commissioned officer on small cruiser SMS Mainz
• Rank List 1912 Company officer with the I. Torpedodivision in Kiel
  • 1912 at the same time watch officer on board of the torpedo boat SMS G. 193 with the 2nd Torpedo Half Flotilla of the 1st Torpedo Flotilla (S)
  • 1913 at the same time watch officer on board of the torpedo boat SMS G. 193 with the 2nd Torpedo Half Flotilla of the 1st Torpedo Flotilla (M)
• Rank List 1914 Officer in the staff of the I. Torpedodivision in Kiel
• 1914 to 1918 WWI Torpedo Boat Commandant
  • Commandant of S.M. Torpedoboot S. 66, renamed T. 66 on 4 September 1914 and served as a minesweeper with the harbor flotilla (Hafenflotille) of Jade and Weser
  • 17 August 1915 lost all of his personal belongings when SMS V. 99 (commissioned: April 20, 1915) sank after a battle with several Imperial Russian destroyers and finally two mine hits.
    • The Baltic forces of the Imperial Navy attempted to block the entrances to the Bay of Riga. The German staff decided on 16 August 1915 that it would be promising to deploy the fast and heavily armed torpedo boats V. 99 and V. 100, each with a crew of approximately 114, for a night torpedo attack on the Russian battleship Slava. At 1:10 a.m. on 17 August, both German boats encountered the older Russian boats Vojskovoi and Ukrajna southeast of Zerel, which were attacked with torpedoes. Both torpedoes were flat-bottomed shots that undermined the Russian boats, forcing them to break off the engagement. At around 4:15 a.m., V. 99 spotted a Russian destroyer and immediately attacked it. This one turned out to be the powerful Novik, supported by three older Emir Bucharskij-class boats. V. 99 received several hits, and fires broke out in the bow and amidships. The boat then attempted to escape through the known Russian minefields and was hit by two mines. At 5:00 a.m., V. 100 intervened and covered the stricken boat with smoke, while S. 31, S. 34, and V. 108 rushed to the aid of the stricken boat, and SMS Posen, a Nassau class battleship, drove off the Russian boats. All rescue efforts were in vain, however, as the boat, which was sinking deeper and deeper, could not be held. At 8:00 a.m., V. 99 sank off Pissen at 57° 37′ N, 21° 52′ E, with the loss of 21 men. Meanwhile, SMS Posen fired on the approaching Slava, which immediately withdrew. At 7:40 a.m., Slava reappeared on the battlefield and was this time allowed to close to 16,300 meters of the German ships before SMS Nassau and SMS Posen fired back, scoring three hits. The Slava could not hit the German ships.
• 19 November 1918 Left Wilhelmshaven for England for internment as Commander of the 1st Torpedo Half Flotilla
  • The Half Flotilla consisted of the torpedo boats SMS G. 38, SMS G. 39, SMS G. 40 (commandant: Kapitänleutnant Henrici), SMS G. 86 and SMS V. 129.
• 22 November 1918 Arrived at Scapa Flow
  • The British stole all of his equipment, as well as his personal belongings, which he then reported in writing in 1920, back in Germany.
• 21 June 1919 Half Flotilla commander Henrici ordered the scuttling of the five boats (Scuttling of the German fleet at Scapa Flow)
• 31 January 1920 Repatriated and placed at disposal of the Marinestation der Ostsee (Baltic Sea Naval Station)
• 8 June 1920 Received leave until retirement
• 18 August with effect from 31 August 1920 Retired with permission to wear the uniform
• 1920 to 1923 Studies in Kiel and Berlin; doctorate in Berlin with the dissertation Die Stellung der deutschen Sozialdemokratie zu den Kartellen und zur Konzentrationsbewegung in der Industrie
• 1923 to 1933 Merchant. businessman and employee, including department head at the Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft (AEG) in Berlin
• 9 January 1933 Employee of the FAD under Dr. phil. Friedrich Heinrich Karl Syrup and under Konstantin Hierl
  • 9 January to 22 February 1933 Intern (FAD) at the Berlin-West employment agency (Bismarckstraße 50/51)
  • 23 February to 21 May 1933 Clerk (FAD) with the District Commissioner for the Brandenburg State Labor District
  • 22 May 1933 to 31 March 1934 Referent (consultant / specialist) in the organizational department of the Reich leadership of the FAD (Scharnhorststraße 35)
• 28 May to 27 August 1934 Civilian employee (employment confirmed in writing on 16 May 1934) with the Chief of Naval Operations (Chef der Marineleitung) at the Reichswehr Ministry (probationary L-Offizier)
• 28 August 1934 Landesschutzoffizier (territorial protection / state security officer; L-Offizier) as Korvettenkapitän a. D.
• 5 March 1935 Supplemental officer (Ergänzungsoffizier; E-Offizier)
  • 11 January 1936 (at the latest) Served with the Defense Economy Department of the OKM (Naval High Command)
• 1 August 1939 Chief of the Fabrications Department for Industrial Arms, Office for Armaments and Military-Economics of the Kriegsmarine, OKM
• 21 July 1940 to 4 December 1942 Armaments Inspector South-West France
• 15 December 1942 Appointed Office Group Chief in the Reich Ministry for Armaments and Munitions (Reichsministerium für Bewaffnung und Munition) in Berlin under Albert Speer
  • 2 September 1943 renamed Reich Ministry of Armaments and War Production (Reichsministerium für Rüstung und Kriegsproduktion)
    • The Armaments Inspection I, which was responsible for the northern German region and thus also for the Navy, was relocated to Flensburg-Mürwik in 1945.
• 30 April 1945 Retired

Family

On 11 October 1921 in Berlin, economist (Volkswirt) in Berlin-Zehlendorf Kapitänleutnant a. D. Henrici married his fiancée Irene Klara Wolff (b. 13 July 1901), daughter of factory director Major a. D, Dipl.-Ing. Ernst Wolff (1868–1928) who resided in his Villa in Berlin-Lichterfelde Ost (Bismarckstraße 7). They would have two children:

• Rotraud (b. 7 August 1922)
• Else Susanne Klara Gudula (b. 26 May 1924)

Irene Henrici had undergone an operation with complications and died on 10 January 1948 in Wadersloh. Her husband would soon follow.

Promotions

• 3 April 1907 Seekadett (Officer Candidate)
• 21 April 1908 Fähnrich zur See (Officer Cadet)
• 28 September 1910 Leutnant zur See (2nd Lieutenant at Sea)
• 27 September 1913 Oberleutnant zur See (1st Lieutenant at Sea)
• 15 February 1918 Kapitänleutnant (Lieutenant Captain)
• 28 May 1934 Kapitänleutnant a. D. and L-Offizier-Anwärter (candidate)
• 28 August 1934 Korvettenkapitän a. D./L-Offizier (retired Corvette Captain / Lieutenant Commander)
• 5 March 1935 Korvettenkapitän/E-Offizier (supplemental Corvette Captain / Lieutenant Commander)
• 19 April 1936 Fregattenkapitän/E-Offizier (supplemental Frigate Captain / Commander) with effect from 1 April 1936
• 1 Juli 1939 Kapitän zur See/E-Offizier (supplemental Captain at Sea)
• 20 April 1941 Kapitän zur See (active Captain at Sea) with Rank Seniority (RDA) from 1 Juli 1939
• 19 February 1944 Konteradmiral (Rear Admiral) with effect and Rank Seniority (RDA) from 1 February 1944

Awards and decorations

• Iron Cross (1914), 2nd Class
• Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 with Swords
• Wehrmacht Long Service Award (Wehrmacht-Dienstauszeichnung)

Gallery

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Sources

• German Federal Archives: BArch PERS 6/2405