Johann-Friedrich Wessels

Johann-Friedrich Wessels
Johann-Friedrich Wessels
Born	28 May 1904 Wilhelmshaven-Rüstringen
Died	9 February 1988 (aged 83) Oldenburg
Allegiance	Weimar Republic (to 1933)  Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Reichsmarine  Kriegsmarine
Years of service	1923–45
Rank	Korvettenkapitän (Ing.)
Unit	Schlesien Cruiser Leipzig U-23 U-47 U-198 U-870
Battles/wars	World War II
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Johann-Friedrich Wessels (28 May 1904 in Wilhelmshaven-Rüstringen – 9 February 1988 in Oldenburg) was a German chief engineer on a U-boat in World War II and 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. Wessels was chief engineer on board of U-47 for four war patrols, including Günther Priens' infiltration of Scapa Flow and sinking of HMS Royal Oak. He then transferred to U-198 under the command of Werner Hartmann with whom he went on one patrol lasting 199 days. His final posting was on U-870 under Ernst Hechler.

Awards

• Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th and 3rd Class (2 October 1936)^[1]
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (25 September 1939)^[1]
  • 1st Class (17 October 1939)^[1]
• U-boat War Badge (1939) (19 December 1939)^[1]
• U-boat Front Clasp in Bronze (4 October 1944)^[2]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 9 March 1944 as Kapitänleutnant (Ing.) and chief engineer on U-198^[3]

References

Citations

1. Busch & Röll 2003, p. 427.
2. Busch & Röll 2003, p. 428.
3. Scherzer 2007, p. 781.

Bibliography

• Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (2003). Der U-Boot-Krieg 1939–1945 — Die Ritterkreuzträger der U-Boot-Waffe von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [The U-Boat War 1939–1945 — The Knight's Cross Bearers of the U-Boat Force from September 1939 to May 1945] (in German). Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn Germany: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 978-3-8132-0515-2.
• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000). 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.
• Kurowski, Franz (1995). Knight's Cross Holders of the U-Boat Service. Atglen, PA: Schiffer Publishing. ISBN 978-0-88740-748-2.
• 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

• "Johann-Friedrich Wessels". uboat.net. Retrieved 24 December 2012.
• "Johann-Friedrich Wessels". Lexikon der Wehrmacht (in German). Retrieved 24 December 2012.
• "Johann-Friedrich Wessels". Deutsche Marinesoldaten (in German). Retrieved 24 December 2012.