Hans-Joachim Merks

Hans-Joachim Merks
Born	2 February 1917 Kiel
Died	21 June 1961 (aged 44) Bremen
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Kriegsmarine
Rank	Kapitänleutnant
Unit	SSS Gorch Fock Schleswig-Holstein
Commands held	2. Räumbootflottille
Battles/wars	World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Hans-Joachim Merks (2 February 1917 – 21 June 1961) was a Kapitänleutnant with the Kriegsmarine during World War II and a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (German: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes). The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Awards

• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (20 November 1939)^[1]
  • 1st Class (22 May 1941)^[1]
• German Cross in Gold on 21 November 1942 as Oberleutnant zur See on R 10/6. Räumbootsflottille^[2]
• Minesweeper War Badge (12 November 1940)^[1]
• Italian War Merit Cross with Swords (Voce al valore militare) (29 December 1942)^[1]
• Cuff title "Afrika" (30 August 1943)^[1]
• Wound Badge in Black (6 November 1944)^[1]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 28 May 1945 as Kapitänleutnant and chief of the 2. Räumbootsflottille^[3][a]

Footnotes

• ^a There is no reference of the Knight's Cross awarded to Hans-Joachim Merks in the German Federal Archives. His personal file contains a letter from 1955 by the Deutsche Dienststelle (WASt), indicating that no proof of the award exists. The date was assigned by the Association of Knight's Cross Recipients (AKCR).^[4]

References

Citations

1. Dörr 1996, p. 57.
2. Patzwall & Scherzer 2001, p. 305.
3. Fellgiebel 2000, p. 308.
4. Scherzer 2007, p. 159.

Bibliography

• Dörr, Manfred (1996). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Überwasserstreitkräfte der Kriegsmarine—Band 2: L–Z [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the Surface Forces of the Navy—Volume 2: L–Z] (in German). Osnabrück, Germany: Biblio Verlag. ISBN 978-3-7648-2497-6.
• 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.
• Huß, Jürgen; Viohl, Armin (2003). Die Ritterkreuzträger des Eisernen Kreuzes der preußischen Provinz Schleswig-Holstein und der Freien und Hansestadt Lübeck 1939–1945 [The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Bearers of the Prussian Province of Schleswig-Holstein and the Free and Hanseatic City of Lübeck 1939–1945] (in German). Zweibrücken, Germany: VDM Heinz Nickel. ISBN 978-3-925480-79-9.
• 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.
• Range, Clemens (1974). Die Ritterkreuzträger der Kriegsmarine [The Knight's Cross Bearers of the Navy]. Stuttgart, Germany: Motorbuch Verlag. ISBN 978-3-87943-355-1.
• 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 Miltaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.

External links