(Translation: Broken... or Smashed)
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Manfred von Richtofen
Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von
Richthofen (1892 –
1918), also known as the Red Baron,
was a German fighter pilot in World War 1.
Officially credited with 80 combat victories, more than any other pilot
in WW1, he was originally a cavalryman.
His unit was known as the "Flying Circus" and by 1918, he was a
national hero in Germany.
Richthofen’s squadron, Richthofen in the
cockpit
Richthofen died on 21 April 1918, 7 months before the end of the war on 11 November, 1918.
Whilst pursuing a Sopwith Camel (as
flown by Snoopy in Peanuts comic strips) piloted a novice Canadian pilot, at
low altitude over France, Richthofen was hit in the chest by a .303 bullet
fired by ground troops. Although the
bullet had badly damaged his heart and lungs, he managed to land in a field
where he was quickly approached by Australian military personnel. According to Sergeant Ted Smout of the
Australian Medical Corps, Richthofen’s last word was “kaputt”.
Propaganda painting of Richthofen
Some quick comments:
·
Although
there has been ongoing controversy as to who fired the fatal shot, Sergeant
Cedric Popkin, an anti-aircraft machine gunner with the First Australian
Imperial Force (AIF) is now considered the most likely candidate.
·
Because
Richthofen was a sound tactician as well as a skilled and experienced fighter
pilot, he was well aware of the risks of ground fire from low altitude flying. This has led to examination of his lapse in
judgment in that regard at the time that he was killed. Theories advanced include the following:
o
that
he had sustained brain damage from a severe head wound sustained in 1917 which
affected his judgment and caused target fixation;
o
that
he was suffering from cumulative combat stress, causing hime to ignore his
usual precautions;
o
that
the wind conditions on the day of his death were such that he was travelling at
a much faster speed than usual, which inadvertently took him over Australian
held territory at a time when the front was fluid.
·
The
enemy created nicknames for Richthofen: Le Petit Rouge, the Red Devil, the Red
Falcon, Le Diable Rouge, the Jolly Red Baron, the Bloody Baron, and the Red
Baron. However, the Germans never called Richthofen the Red Baron; instead,
they called him der röte Kampfflieger ("The Red Battle Flier").
I share my birthday with the Red Baron, so I feel somewhat of a connection to him, which I hope he is in heaven.
ReplyDeleteYou're an idiot
DeleteMaybe Educate yourself, Mr. Unknown. The guy is considered a war hero, regardless of which side your ancestors might have been on.
Deletehttps://youtu.be/1snEYPg8TXs
rest in peace, manfred
ReplyDeleteVery interesting and informative article. I lost a great uncle in ww 1.
ReplyDeleteVery, very sad indeed. I don't care if he was smiling in the small amount of photos that were taken of him, I'm sure he was suffering. He knew he had a persona to keep up. He was only 25-looked in his 40's. They all suffered.
ReplyDeleteQUITE AN EXPERIENCE TO LIVE IN FEAR, IS IT NOT! DAY AFTER DAY, GOING UP, FIGHTING, TRYING TO STAY ALIVE! KNOWING HE HAD TO MEET THE ENEMY CONTINUOUSLY IN BATTLE UNTIL GERMANY WON THE WAR, OR HE WAS KILLED!
ReplyDeleteI THINK THIS GERMAN PILOT, AS ALL MEN WHO FOUGHT IN THESE WARS DID A GREAT JOB OF CONTROLLING THEMSELVES, KEEPING THEIR SANITY REGARDLESS OF THE OUTCOME!
I CHEER THEM ALL!