Walther Forstmann (9 March 1883 – 2 November 1973) was one of the most highly decorated

U-boat U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare ro ...

commanders in the ''

Kaiserliche Marine {{italic title The adjective ''kaiserlich'' means "imperial" and was used in the German-speaking countries to refer to those institutions and establishments over which the ''Kaiser'' ("emperor") had immediate personal power of control. The term wa ...

'' during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He also served in the '' Kriegsmarine'' during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

in different staff positions. In his time as commander of and in World War I, he conducted 47 patrols and succeeded in sinking 148 ships for a total tonnage of . As such, he is the second most successful submarine commander ever (by tonnage sunk), after de la Perière.

World War I

On 12 August 1916 ''

Kapitänleutnant ''Kapitänleutnant'', short: KptLt/in lists: KL, ( en, captain lieutenant) is an officer grade of the captains' military hierarchy group () of the German Bundeswehr. The rank is rated OF-2 in NATO, and equivalent to Hauptmann in the Heer an ...

'' Forstmann of ''U-39'' was awarded the

Pour le Mérite The ' (; , ) is an order of merit (german: Verdienstorden) established in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia. The was awarded as both a military and civil honour and ranked, along with the Order of the Black Eagle, the Order of the Red Eag ...

for his achievements so far in the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. In 1917 Forstmann, in command of ''U-39'', sank five valuable steamers within only two days in the Straits of Gibraltar with over , the (3,862 tonnes), (3,847 tonnes), (4,385 tonnes), (4,702 tonnes) and the Japanese steamer (3,555 tonnes). The ships carried a total load of 31,500 tonnes of

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when ...

, of which more than 26,000 tonnes were meant for

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

for use in the winter.

Interbellum

''Forstmann'' wrote his memoirs after the war in the book ''Hunting in the Mediterranean'' (german: Auf Jagd im Mittelmeer). In 1921 he qualified as an attorney and in 1924 he became social departmental head and director with the August Thyssen coal company in

Duisburg Duisburg () is a city in the Ruhr metropolitan area of the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. Lying on the confluence of the Rhine and the Ruhr rivers in the center of the Rhine-Ruhr Region, Duisburg is the 5th largest city in No ...

. From 1929 to 1933 he was a city delegate and parliamentary group leader of the

German People's Party The German People's Party (German: , or DVP) was a liberal party during the Weimar Republic that was the successor to the National Liberal Party of the German Empire. A right-liberal, or conservative-liberal political party, it represented politi ...

in Duisburg. Between 1933 and 1950 he was a member of the board (1951-1953 member of the supervisory board) of four large housing cooperatives of the Ruhr steel plants.

World War II

In the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

Forstmann served as chief of different commands in

Osnabrück Osnabrück (; wep, Ossenbrügge; archaic ''Osnaburg'') is a city in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a population ...

and

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...

. In Copenhagen, he was the commander of the Wehrwirtschaftsstab Denmark, Germany's chief industrial purchasing entity in occupied Denmark.See Phil Giltner, ''In the friendliest manner : German-Danish economic cooperation during the Nazi occupation of 1940-1949'' (Peter Lang, 1998). He was promoted to ''

Kapitän zur See Captain is the name most often given in English-speaking navies to the rank corresponding to command of the largest ships. The rank is equal to the army rank of colonel and air force rank of group captain. Equivalent ranks worldwide include ...

'' on 1 July 1942. He retired from the navy in 1945.

Postwar career

1951 - 1955 He became one of the advisors of the housing company - Rheini dwellings A.G. in Duisburg which was responsible for the movement of several villages to enable development of open cast coal mining. In 1954 he became a member of the supervisory board of this company. In 1956 he was involved in the design structure of the 30 Pestalozzi villages ( de) and became vice-president of the German settler federation, chairman of the executive committee of youth centre place work e. V.

Awards and decorations

* Gold

German Sports Badge The German Sports Badge (German: ''Deutsches Sportabzeichen'' (DSA)) is a decoration of the German Olympic Sports Federation DOSB. The German Sports Badge test is carried out primarily in Germany, and in other countries abroad. History The Ger ...

(1933) *

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia es ...

of 1914, 1st and 2nd class * Order of Saint Stanislaus, 3rd class *

Hanseatic Cross The Hanseatic Cross (German: ''Hanseatenkreuz'') was a military decoration of the three Hanseatic city-states of Bremen, Hamburg and Lübeck, who were members of the German Empire The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 188 ...

of Hamburg * Knights Cross with Swords of the

House Order of Hohenzollern The House Order of Hohenzollern (german: Hausorden von Hohenzollern or ') was a dynastic order of knighthood of the House of Hohenzollern awarded to military commissioned officers and civilians of comparable status. Associated with the various ...

Order of the Red Eagle The Order of the Red Eagle (german: Roter Adlerorden) was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful se ...

4th Class *

The Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 The Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (german: Das Ehrenkreuz des Weltkrieges 1914/1918), commonly, but incorrectly, known as the Hindenburg Cross or the German WWI Service Cross was established by Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, Presiden ...

U-boat War Badge The U-boat War Badge (german: U-Boot-Kriegsabzeichen) was a German war badge that was awarded to U-boat crew members during World War I and World War II. History The ''U-boat War Badge'' was originally instituted during the First World War on Feb ...

WW1 *

Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany The Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany (german: Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, or , BVO) is the only federal decoration of Germany. It is awarded for special achievements in political, economic, cultural, intellect ...

: ** 1st class, 1952 ** Grand Cross, 3 August 1960 (for his part in the 25-year-old existence of the German settler federation) ** Grand Cross with Star, 9 March 1968 In 1968 he received an honorary Doctorate from the Roman Accademia Tiberina and in 1972 another from the university of the Mediterranean in Rome.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Forstmann, Walther 1883 births 1973 deaths Military personnel from Essen People from the Rhine Province U-boat commanders (Imperial German Navy) Recipients of the Pour le Mérite (military class) Knights Commander of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Imperial German Navy personnel of World War I Kriegsmarine personnel