Hans-Werner Kraus
Hans-Werner Kraus | |
---|---|
Born |
Beulwitz/Saalfeld | 1 July 1915
Died |
25 May 1990 74) Wanger/Allgäu | (aged
Allegiance | Nazi Germany |
Service/branch | Kriegsmarine |
Years of service | 1934–45 |
Rank | Kapitänleutnant |
Unit |
SSS Gorch Fock cruiser Karlsruhe cruiser Königsberg U-47 |
Commands held | U-83, U-199 |
Battles/wars | |
Awards | Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross |
Hans-Werner Kraus (1 July 1915 – 25 May 1990) was a German U-boat commander 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.
Kraus served as 1st watch officer on U-47 from January 1940 until November 1940 having replaced Engelbert Endrass. He later commanded U-83 and U-199. He was on board the latter when it was bombed and sunk by aircraft off the coast of Brazil on 31 July 1943. Captured, he was sent as a POW to the United States. Kraus was one of the 25 POWs who escaped from Camp Papago Park, Arizona, during the night of 23–24 December 1944.
Kraus was repatriated to Germany in February 1946 and released from imprisonment in the British zone of Allied-occupied Germany on 22 May 1946.[1]
Summary of career
Ships attacked
Date | U-boat | Ship | Nationality | Tonnage | Fate[2][3] |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
12 October 1941 | U-83 | Corte Real | Portugal | 2,044 | Sunk |
26 October 1941 | U-83 | HMS Anguani | Royal Navy | 6,746 | Damaged |
17 March 1942 | U-83 | Crista | United Kingdom | 2,590 | Damaged |
8 June 1942 | U-83 | Esther * | Mandatory Palestine | 100 | Sunk |
8 June 1942 | U-83 | Said | Egypt | 231 | Sunk |
9 June 1942 | U-83 | Typhoon * | Mandatory Palestine | 175 | Sunk |
13 June 1942 | U-83 | HMS Farouk | Royal Navy | 96 | Sunk |
17 August 1942 | U-83 | Princess Marguerite | Canada | 5,875 | Sunk |
4 July 1943 | U-199 | Changri-Lá | Brazil | 20 | Sunk |
24 July 1943 | U-199 | Henzada | United Kingdom | 4,161 | Sunk |
* Sailing vessel
Awards
- Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th Class[4]
- U-boat War Badge (1939) (29 April 1940)[4]
- Medaglia di bronzo al Valore Militare (18 March 1942)[4]
- Iron Cross (1939)
- Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 19 June 1942 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-83[5][6]
- Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht on 22 March 1942
References
Citations
- ↑ "Kraus, Hans Werner". Lexicon der Wehrmacht. Retrieved 2014-02-04.
- ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrols by U-83". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
- ↑ Helgason, Guðmundur. "Patrols by U-199". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 27 September 2013.
- 1 2 3 4 5 Busch & Röll 2003, p. 225.
- ↑ Scherzer 2007, p. 471.
- ↑ Fellgiebel 2000, p. 272.
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) [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.
- Moore, John Hammond (2006). The Faustball Tunnel: German POWs in America and Their Great Escape. Annapolis, Md.: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1-59114-526-4.
- 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 Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
- Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 2, 1. Januar 1942 bis 31. Dezember 1943. München: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG, 1985. ISBN 3-423-05944-3.