Ernst Mengersen

Ernst Mengersen
Born	(1912-06-30)30 June 1912
Died	6 November 1995(1995-11-06) (aged 83)
Place of birth	Bremke
Place of death	Detmold
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service/branch	Kriegsmarine
Years of service	1933–1945
Rank	Korvettenkapitän
Unit	SSS Gorch Fock cruiser Karlsruhe Schleswig-Holstein Admiral Scheer
Commands held	U-18 U-143 U-101 U-607
Battles/wars	Spanish Civil War World War II Battle of the Atlantic (1939-1945)
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

Ernst Mengersen (30 June 1912 – 6 November 1995) was a German naval officer who reached the rank of Korvettenkapitän with the Kriegsmarine during World War II. He was also a recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (German language: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes). The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded to recognise extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership.

Military career

World War II

Mengersen commanded the U-18, U-143, U-101 and U-607, and sank twelve ships, including the SS Gairsoppa and HMS Broadwater, on eleven patrols, for a total of 68,071 gross register tons (GRT) of Allied shipping. The Gairsoppa carried 7,000,000 ounces of silver, which was worth £600,000 at the time of its sinking.

Two Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross recipients served as watch officers under Mengersen's command. Egon-Reiner von Schlippenbach served as first watch officer on U-101's fourth patrol under Mengerson, while Karl-Heinz Marbach was Mengerson's second watch officer on U-101.

In June 1943 Mengersen became commander of the 20th U-boat Flotilla based in Pillau, remaining in this position until 24 February 1945. During the last three months of the war, Mengersen served firstly with the 25th U-boat Flotilla and then in April 1945, he was selected to command the new 15th U-boat Flotilla.

Awards

• Spanish Cross in Bronze with Swords (23 October 1940)
• Iron Cross (1939)
  • 2nd Class (27 January 1940)
  • 1st Class (10 December 1940)
• U-boat War Badge (1939) (25 February 1942)
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross on 18 November 1941 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-101
• Mentioned in the Wehrmachtbericht on 3 December 1940
• War Merit Cross
  • 2nd Class (1 September 1944)
  • 1st Class (31 January 1945)

Reference in the Wehrmachtbericht

Date	Original German Wehrmachtbericht wording	Direct English translation
Tuesday, 3 December 1940	... An diesem Erfolg ist das unter Führung von Kapitänleutnant Mengersen stehende Unterseeboot mit der Versenkung von fünf Schiffen mit zusammen 41 000 BRT führend beteiligt.	...The submarine led by Lieutenant Mengersen contributed with the sinking of five ships of 41 000 tons as a leading participant to this success.

Later life

Mengersen survived the war and died in Detmold, at the age of 83.

References

Notes

Bibliography

• Busch, Hans-Joachim; Röll (2003) (in German). 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]. Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn Germany: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 978-3-8132-0515-2. 
• Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) (in German). Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 – Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtsteile [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]. Friedburg, 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) (in German). 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]. Jena, Germany: Scherzers Miltaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2. 
• (in German) Die Wehrmachtberichte 1939–1945 Band 1, 1. September 1939 bis 31. Dezember 1941 [The Wehrmacht Reports 1939–1945 Volume 1, 1 September 1939 to 31 December 1941]. München, Germany: Deutscher Taschenbuch Verlag GmbH & Co. KG. 1985. ISBN 978-3-423-05944-2. 

External links

• uboat.net : Ernst Mengersen