Jeschonnek, Gert Gustav Paul.

Jeschonnek, Gert Gustav Paul, born 30-10-1912 in Liegnitz,  the son of the Gymnasialdirektors Friedrich Jeschonnek and his wife Anny Jeschonnek, born Gardiewski. His older brother was the later Generaloberst der Flieger. Stabchef der Luftwaffe, Hans Jeschonnek, born 09-04-1899 and who commited suicide in 1943.

Gert Jeschonnek later married Elisabeth “Babeth” Crüsemann, and they had four children. Gert entered the Kriegsmarine in 1930 and had his basic military training at the 2nd ship’s tribal division of the Baltic Sea in Stralsund  and then from 1 July to 9 October the seafaring basic training on the sailing school ship Niobe . From 10-10-1930 to January 04-01-1932, he became a cadet on the Light Cruiser Emden . He was then trained as a naval officer, where he completed the military train driver training at the Schiffs tribal division Baltic Sea in Stralsund and the theoretical and practical formation of the ensign at the Marine School in Flensburg-Mürwik. From 28-03-1933, he took part in various weapon courses at the Waffenschulen Kiel, Flensburg-Mürwik, and Wilhelmshaven. From 02-10-1933, he received the Bordausbildung Fähnrich and Oberfähnrich on the Schulschiff Schleswig-Holstein  , where he later became an officer a Norway trip to Oslo and the Hardangerfjord. From 15 February to 29-05-1935, he took part in the artillery officer training course B at the Kiel ship artillery school. The bombardment of the Westerplatte from the Schleswig-Holstein, started on September 1, 1939, by the harbor canal in Gdańsk, is considered the beginning of the Second World War.

From 30-03-1935, Jeschonnek was again employed as a train officer on the Schleswig-Holstein, which became the first fleet flagship of the Kriegsmarine since May 2, On 19-08-1935, Adolf Hitler (did you know), Werner von Blomberg, Hermann Goering, and the commander-in-chief of the Kriegsmarine, Erich Raeder, observed the fleet artillery shooting. On 22 September her time ended as a fleet flagship and she was moved to Wilhelmshaven. From 28-09-1935 to 27-09-1937, Jeschonnek was a training officer and teacher at the Kiel Shipyard School. From 28-09-1937 to 25-06-1939, he was the second artillery officer on the Light Cruiser in Nuremberg, and then completed the artillery officer training course at the Ship Museum in Kiel, and was promoted to Kapitän zur See  on 01-04-1939.

At the outbreak of the Second World War on September 01-09-1939, Gerd Jeschonnek was again a second artillery officer on the cruiser Nuremberg until 14-10-1940. After the Polish campaign, this shipwreck took part in mining operations in the North Sea, where it was torpedoed and damaged by the British submarine HMS Salmon (N65)    on the night of 13-12-1939.  The HMS Salmon was lost, probably sunk by a mine, on 09-07-1940. From December 1939 to May 1940, the ship had to be repaired in a shipyard and was relocated to Trondheim after the completion of the repairs, which included the battlegrounds Scharnhorst and Gneisenau, as well as the heavy cruiser Admiral Hipper. On 25-07-1940, the ship passed the damaged Gneisenau to Kiel and then remained in German waters from August 1940 onwards. On 15-10-1940, Jeschonnek left the cruiser and again worked as a training officer and teacher at the Kiel Shipyard School. From 01-03-1941 to 01-11-1943 he served as an artillery officer on the heavy cruiser Lützow . However, the ship did not return to Kiel until 10-06-1943, in the company of five destroyers, in order to carry out cruises in the Atlantic during the summer cruise. At the south-western tip of Norway, she received a torpedo at the port side by a Bristol Beaufort on 12 June, had to return to Kiel, and was repaired until 17-01-1942.  The Lutzow was broken up in 1953. In the meantime, Jeschonnek was again employed as an officer and teacher at the Kiel Shipyard School. In May 1942 the ship was relocated to Narvik and from July 1942 the Lützow took part as a flagship at the company Rösselsprung, but was damaged by a basic contact and returned again for shipyards to Kiel and was only ordered again from 08-12-1942 to Norway, Where the ship participated in the battle in the Barents Sea. On 01-04-1943, Jeschonnek was promoted to Corvette captain. In September 1943 Lutzow returned from Kiel to Kiel, and Jeschonnek took part in a course at the Marine War Academy in Bad Homburg from 01-11-1943 to 29-02-1944, and subsequently became the Chief of Staff for the First Warfare Command (Skl) at the Oberkommando of the Kriegsmarine  (OKM). The naval warfare (Skl) was one of the highest commanders of the German navy in the First and Second World War. It directed and carried out the naval war and directed the deployment (= distribution) of naval forces.

After the end of the World War II, Jeschonnek worked as a lecturer in the German mine clearing service until November 1947, and was then as a viceadmiral responsible for the registration and administrative support of the Rhine Fleet under the control of the French occupation force at the Wasserstraßendirektion Mainz. At his own request, he then moved to the main administration of maritime traffic, later administration for traffic in the United Economic Area and from 1949 to the Federal Ministry of Transport, Maritime Transport in Hamburg.

Death and burial ground of Jeschonnek, Gert Gustav Paul,

On 01-10-1967 he became the Inspector of the Bundes Marine . He also served serving at the NATO Headquarter at Karup airbase  In 1969 became Helmuth Schmidt’s,

   here with a visit with Vice Admiral Gerd Jeschonnek of the German navy in Kiel, defense minister under Willy Brandt and retired form this position on 30-09-1971. Living in Bonn Gerd Jeschonnek died at the age of 86 on 18-04-1999 and is buried with his wife Elisabeth “Babeth” Crüsemann on the Nordfriedhof of Kiel,  close to Grossadmiral Erich Raeder. On this cemetery are also buried, Vize Admiral, Kommandeur Kriegsarsenal Kiel, Karl Kaufmann, General Admiral, Commander of the German Naval Forces in Norway, Hermann Boehm, Chief of the Navy, General Admiral Walter Warzecha,  Generaladmiral and commander of the Naval station Command East, Rolf Carls, General Admiral, commander of the SMS “Hessen” Wilhelm Marschall and Kapitän zur See, Chief of the 2^nd Räumbootflottille, Gerhard von Kamptz.   Jeschonnek’s grandson Doug Campbell from Niles, Michigan USA, kindly sent me the grave photo of his grandfather in Kiel.