The Red Baron: Remembering a 100 Year Milestone

 

By Joy Neighbors

Tomorrow, September 17, will mark the 100^th anniversary of the Red Baron’s first air combat victories during World War One. An odd milestone to remember, but what makes it newsworthy is that the family members of First World War fighter ace, Manfred von Richthofen, and his first victims, Captain Tom Rees and Second Lieutenant Lionel Morris will be meeting to commemorate the day together.

Manfred von Richthofen

Von Richthofen, also known as The Red Baron because of the bright red color of his Fokker aeroplane, transferred from the German cavalry to the air corps in 1915. On September 17, 1916, Manfred von Richthofen was flying with his Jasta 11 squadron near the town of Marcoing when he saw a group of British bombers. He attacked and shot down one of the British planes. Twenty-one year old gunner, Captain Tom Rees died immediately. Second Lieutenant Lionel Morris was wounded and died in a German hospital at the age of 19.

Replica of Schnapps Cup

In honor of his adversaries and to commemorate his first victories, von Richthofen had a silver schnapps cup made which listed the enemy plane involved and the date of the action. He would then drink a toast to his opponents. In all, von Richthofen commissioned over 60 cups before silver became a prime commodity in Germany. Very few of the cups still survive.

The Red Baron was Germany’s most famous fighter pilot during the war. He was credited with a total of 80 kills between September 17, 1916 and April 21, 1918 – the day he was shot down and killed.

Lionel Morris

Tom Rees

Tomorrow, the family members of Morris, Rees and von Richthofen will gather to share a schnapps toast from a replica of the original cup to honor the three airmen, and to mark the centenary of that fateful day.

WWI Zeppelin Crew Left To Die In North Sea - 1916

“War is hell” so the old adage goes. Far too true for the 16 German soldiers that survived the crash of a Zeppelin in the North Sea, only to be left to die by a British skipper and his crew.

Capt. Odo Lowe

It was January 31, 1916 when nine German zeppelins headed out to bomb the English Midlands. Commanded by Captain Lieutenant Odo Lowe, the L-19, a German Imperial Navy Zeppelin, was on her first bombing raid after having spent the previous autumn as a scouting vessel over the North Sea.

The surprise raid was one of the largest launched against Britain during WW1. It was considered a success with the Germans dropping close to 400 bombs on the villages of Burton on Trent, Birmingham and Tipton. The L-19 caused no damage, unlike her sister ships, which killed more than 70 people and injured another 113.

German L-19

But on her return flight, engine problems began to develop for the L-19. With a malfunctioning radio, and three of her four engines failing, the airship came under fire from the Dutch as it drifted over Holland, a neutral country. The shooting punctured the gas cells, and the airship crashed into the North Sea during the night of February 1 – 2, 1916. Two crew members were killed, but 15 men and Captain Lowe survived.

Print of L-19 and King Stephen Fishing Vessel

The next morning, February 2, the King Stephen, a British fishing vessel, arrived at the wreckage site, after following the L-19’s distress signals for most of the night. The trawler’s skipper, William Martin with his crew of nine men, waited until daylight before approaching the broken zeppelin. There they discovered 16 German soldiers waiting on top of the sinking airship. Captain Lowe requested that his men be rescued, but Martin refused to give aid. Instead he sailed back to his homeport of Grimsby, Britain before reporting the downed airship to authorities.

The weather was growing worse as the airmen watched Martin’s vessel disappear. Those that could wrote out short messages for their loved ones and placed them in bottles to be thrown into the sea.

Captain Lowe’s final note read:

"With fifteen men on the top platform and backbone girder of the L 19, floating without gondolas in approximately 3 degrees East longitude, I am attempting to send a last report. Engine trouble three times repeated, a light wind on the return journey delayed our return and, in the mist, carried us over Holland where I was received with heavy rifle fire; the ship became heavy and simultaneously three engines broke down. 2 February 1916, towards one o'clock, will apparently be our last hour.”

Martin said later that he refused to rescue the airmen because he was afraid the Germans would overpower his crew and take control of the boat. 

Almost 50 years later a remaining crewman reported that Martin had been fishing in prohibited waters and knew if he’d returned with rescued soldiers, he would have had to report where he had been, which would have resulted in his being banned from fishing for breaking the law. Instead, the skipper gave Royal Navy authorities false coordinates for the downed zeppelin so no one would ever know he'd been fishing illegally.

 

The British, and the world, were divided on their sentiments. Some saw Martin’s act of abandonment as necessary in order to protect his crew. Others saw it as an act of retribution for the Germans having bombed civilian targets on January 31.

But still others felt that Martin’s refusal to save the men had been unpardonably cruel. The thought of leaving 16 helpless men to drowned in the North Sea – enemy or not – did not sit well with the morality of British citizens.

German Propaganda medal

The Germans used the incident for propaganda with an anti-British medal designed  showing the men on the L-19 being abandoned to the sea.

English Postal Box

The King Stephen never sailed again as a fishing vessel. The British Navy took it over as a Q-ship, and the Germans sunk it three months later. Captain William Martin died just over a year after the incident of heart failure. During his last year, Martin continued to receive letters and messages of support, along with death threats and hate mail.

~ Joy

100 Years Ago - First Aerial Bombing Raid On Britain

One hundred years ago World War One was gaining momentum across Europe. But on the evening of January 19, 1915 the war took a turn that made all participants realize it was not going to be like any other war.

On the night of January 19, three German Naval Zeppelins, L3, L4 and L6 were to carry out the first strategic bombing raid, but airship L6 had mechanical problems and had to turn around. Dirigibles L3 and L4 proceeded on toward the target, the town of Humberside, but strong winds forced the raid to end quickly, so the Zeppelins sought targets of opportunity on which to unload their bombs.

The towns of Great Yarmouth and King’s Lynn on the eastern coast of England were hit, instead. Four people were killed when bombs fell from the sky: Martha Taylor and Sam Smith died in Great Yarmouth, Alice Gazely and Percy Goate were killed in King’s Lynn that night; the first aerial bombing raid had been completed.

Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin

The first idea for a Zeppelin came about in 1874 and was built in 1893. Germany embraced and patented the balloon in 1895. (The U.S. issued a similar patented in 1899.) Named for its inventor, Count Ferdinand Graf von Zeppelin, the rigid steel-framed airship was propelled with a motor and carried a crew of about 20, along with massive amounts of hydrogen gas for fuel. The dirigible was first used to carry passengers between German cities in 1910. But the Zeppelin was temperamental and not sturdy in high winds; it could be brought down by any adverse weather and most ended their careers crashing to the ground due to high winds and bursting into flames.

Zeppelin Caught in Spotlights

Since the Zeppelin did not stand up well to being fired at (hydrogen gas was extremely flammable), the Germans decided to use the dirigibles for bombing villages and towns that did not have weapons or military stations, thereby killing or wounding civilians in an attempt to lower the morale of the English.

Instead of lowering morale, such raids only re-enforced the British sense of outrage and united English citizens against the Germans. Most Londoners would rush out into the streets when an air-raid signal was given in order to cheer on the English pilots defending their country against the Germans in the air.

Although the dirigible could travel great distances, antiaircraft fire rendered the airship practically useless in war compared to the airplanes being used in battle.  By 1915, the main use of the Zeppelin was for reconnaissance over the Baltic and North Seas. By the end of the year, the German Navy had 15 airships in commission. The air raids continued into 1916. By 1917, the Zeppelin could now fly higher with an altitude of 16,500 feet and a ceiling of 21,000 feet, but high winds and engine problems continued to plague the ships. They were soon replaced by airplanes, which could carry more bombs, resulting in more deaths, injuries and damage.

In all, 84 Zeppelins were built by Germany during the war: over 60 were lost – half to accidents, weather and mechanical problems: the other half due to repercussions from the enemy. German Zeppelins took part in over 50 bombing raids on Britain during WWI, killing 557 people and injuring 1,358.

In the Treaty of Versailles it was stated that Germany could not keep any “dirigibles … dirigible sheds or shelters, or … plants for the manufacture of hydrogen.”

It would take a few years before Germany, again, became openly involved with the production of Zeppelins, this time for the purpose of carrying passengers and mail across the ocean, and around the world.

~ Joy

100 Facts about World War One - 100 Years After It Began

This week marks the 100th anniversary of the start of World War One. Here are 100 facts about that fateful war, 100 years after its beginning.

Ramp Up To War

1) The final trigger for the war came on June 28th when Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and his wife Sophie were gunned down

Archduke Ferdinand

2) “The Black Hand,” a Serbian terrorist group, planned the murders

3) Serbian nationalist and Black Hand member, Gavrilo Princip was the assassin

4) The war had actually been a long time in coming; spanning four decades of diplomatic conflicts between Italy, France, Britain, Germany, Austria-Hungary and Russia concerning political issues, the economy, and unresolved territorial disputes involving the Balkans

Players

5) World War One was known as “The Great War”; The War to End All Wars; The War of the Nations, and is abbreviated as WWI

6) Great Britain and the British Empire declared war on Germany after the Central Powers invaded Belgium

7) The Central Powers were made up of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Turkey, and Bulgaria

8) The Allied Powers were made up of Great Britain, France, Russia, Italy, Japan, Rumania, Serbia, Belgium, Portugal, Greece, Montenegro, and, eventually, the United States

9) This was the first global conflict

War Facts

10) WWI lasted for 4 years - from 1914 to 1918

  

11) WWI changed the way war was fought and influenced the way future wars would be fought

12) 65 million soldiers fought during WWI

13) It was the sixth deadliest conflict in world history

14) Soldiers came from over 40 countries and numerous colonies

15) Russia marshaled 12 million fighting troops: this was the largest army in the war

16) Of those 12 million, more than ¾ of the men were killed, wounded or MIA

17) More than 10 million soldiers died; 6 million for the Allies and 4 million for the Central Powers

Mata Hari

18) That equates to over 6,000 deaths every day during the war

19) Another 21 million were wounded

20) Mata Hari’s name was Margaretha Zelle, a Dutch exotic dancer

21) She was executed in France in 1917, accused of being a spy

Air Warfare

22) WWI was the first war to be fought in the air

Air War

23) Over 65,000 aircraft had been produced by the end of the war

24) Thirty-eight American volunteers fought in the French Air Service years before the U.S. entered the war

25) Their unit was known as the Lafayette Escadrille: One of the best fighting units on the Western Front

Zeppelin

26) The Escadrille men flew more than 3,000 missions

27) Germany built 123 Zeppelin airships

28) Zeppelins flew more than 100 bombing runs on Great Britain

29) The title “Flying Ace” was bestowed on a pilot after he had downed 5 enemy aircraft

The Red Baron

30) The Allies Top Ace was Rene Fonck of France who shot down 75 enemy planes

31) Eddie Rickenbacker was America’s Top Ace with 26 kills

32) Manfred Von Richthofen, better known as “The Red Baron,” was Germany’s Top Ace with 80 kills

33) Richthofen died April 21, 1918 after being shot down near Amiens

34) WWI was the first time aircraft carriers were used in a war

Naval Warfare

35) WWI was the last war to feature defining naval battles

German U-Boat

  

36) In the Battle of Jutland, over 250 ships took part in the fight

37) Germany built over 400 U-boats during the war

38) Of those 400, Germany lost on 178 U-boats during the war

39) The Central Powers sank over 5,500 Allied and neutral ships

40) Most were sunk in the English Channel

RMS Lusitania

41) The most famous ship to be sunk during the war was the RMS Lusitania in 1915

RMS Lusitania

42) A German sub sank her on May 7, 1915

43) A total of 1,198 people died when the Lusitania sank

44) 128 were Americans

45) The Lusitania went down within 18 minutes

 

46) This single act propelled the U.S. into the war

 

46) The United States entered the war on April 6, 1917

47) During those 18 months, over 116,000 Americans were killed

48) And 204,000 American soldiers were injured

Ground Forces

49) 1.2 million soldiers died during the Battle of the Somme

Ssgt. York

50) 58,000 British soldiers died during the first day of the Somme Battle

51) The most decorated American solider of the war was Alvin York who received a medal of honor for leading an attack on a German gun nest; killing 28 German soldiers and capturing another 32

52) The Western Front was made up of 466 miles, which stretched from the English Channel to Switzerland

53) Over 2,500 miles of trenches were dug on The Front

In the Trenches

54) For every 4 inches of trench dug, there was one soldier to defend it

55) By the end of the war, over 200,000 men had lost their lives in the trenches

56) Trench foot was a major problem during the war

57) The British army had over 20,000 cases reported during the first year

Battle of Verdun

  

58) The trenches were crawling with rats and lice

59) In 1916, the Battle of Verdun resulted in over one million causalities – all within a 10-month time frame

60) The Germans were the first to use flame-throwers in the war

WWI Tank

61) The flames could go as far as 130 feet

62) Tanks were first used in WWI

63) Tanks were originally called “landships”

64) The first tank prototype was named “Little Willie”

Little Willie

65) British tanks were designated as male and female: male tanks had cannons; female tanks had guns

66) This was the first war where self-powered machine gun use was widespread

67) Artillery weapons were responsible for 70% of all battlefield deaths

Big Bertha

68) Artillery barrages could be heard for hundreds of miles

69) The French had 75mm guns called “Devil Guns” by the Germans

70) Germany had a 48-ton Howitzer nicknamed “Big Bertha”

71) Big Bertha could fire a 2,0050 pound shell almost 10 miles

Chemical Weapons

72) Germany had a total of 13 of these guns

73) WWI was the first time chemical weapons were used in war

74) France was the first country to use tear gas against the enemy in 1914

75) The following year, Germany was the first country to use poisonous chlorine gas against the enemy

Shell Shock

76) Over 30 different poisonous gases were used during the war

77) Over 1-million soldiers were gassed during the fighting

78) Of those, lose to 92,000 died

79) At the end of the conflict, most countries signed treaties, which outlawed the use of chemical weapons

80) More than half-a-million men died from mustard gas during the war

81) After the war over 80,000 British soldiers were diagnosed as suffering from shell shock

82) By the end of the war over 250,000 British soldiers had undergone at least one amputation

Disease

Spanish Influenza

83) The Spanish Influenza epidemic spread far and wide due in part, to WWI

84) By 1918, the U.S. Army had lost 60% of its soldiers to the flu

85) The U.S. Navy lost 40% of their men to the influenza

86) When the flu outbreak ended, at least a third of the soldiers had died from it

Other Causalities

87) Civilian deaths were over 6.6 million during the war

Aerschot

88) German soldiers shot and killed 150 civilians at Aerschot as part of their war strategy to incite terror in the public

89) Russia lost over 2 million civilians

90) During the four years of the war, 11% of France’s residents were either killed or wounded

Execution of Edith Cavell

91) A British nurse, Edith Cavell assisted 200 Allied soldiers in escaping from Belgium during the war

92) The Germans had her executed by a firing squad

93) Cavell’s death helped turn public sentiment against the Germans and the Central Powers

Sergeant Stubby

94) Over 1 million dogs died on WWI battlefields while scouting, acting as sentries or carrying messages

95) Dogs were also used to lay telegraph lines

96) The most decorated military dog during the war was Sergeant Stubby, a bull terrier mix 

97) Stubby took part in 17 battles and captured a German spy

WWI Poster

98) The war resulted in the loss of 8 million military horses

99) Over half-a-million carrier pigeons were used to carry messages along the front

100) After the war, a total of four empires collapsed: Germany, Ottoman, Austro-Hungary, and Russia

~ Joy