Andreas Heinrich Michelsen (19 February 1869 – 8 April 1932) was a German

Vizeadmiral (; abbreviated VAdm) is a senior naval flag officer rank in several German-speaking countries, equivalent to Vice admiral. Austria-Hungary In the Austro-Hungarian Navy there were the flag-officer ranks ''Kontreadmiral'' (also spelled ''Ko ...

and military commander. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he commanded several torpedo boats and the submarine fleet, participated in the

Battle of Jutland The Battle of Jutland () was a naval battle between Britain's Royal Navy Grand Fleet, under Admiral John Jellicoe, 1st Earl Jellicoe, Sir John Jellicoe, and the Imperial German Navy's High Seas Fleet, under Vice-Admiral Reinhard Scheer, durin ...

, as well as being the leading German commander during the Battle of Dover Strait.

Early military career

Andreas Michelsen was born on 19 February 1869 in

Hildesheim Hildesheim (; or ; ) is a city in Lower Saxony, in north-central Germany with 101,693 inhabitants. It is in the district of Hildesheim (district), Hildesheim, about southeast of Hanover on the banks of the Innerste River, a small tributary of t ...

to Eduard Michelsen and Agnes Michelsen (

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

Kisker). He joined the

Imperial German Navy The Imperial German Navy or the ''Kaiserliche Marine'' (Imperial Navy) was the navy of the German Empire, which existed between 1871 and 1919. It grew out of the small Prussian Navy (from 1867 the North German Federal Navy), which was mainly for ...

as a cadet in April 1888. He was promoted to lieutenant in April 1894, to corvette captain in March 1906, and promoted to frigate captain in May 1910. In 1903, Michelsen served as an adjutant under

Hans von Koester Hans Ludwig Raimund von Koester (29 April 1844 – 21 February 1928) was a German naval officer who served in the Prussian Navy and later in the Imperial German Navy. He retired as a Grand Admiral. Career overview Born Hans Ludwig Raimund Koester ...

and in 1905, he commanded the SMS ''

Grille Grill or grille may refer to: Food * Barbecue grill, a device or surface used for cooking food, usually fuelled by gas or charcoal, or the part of a cooker that performs this function * Flattop grill, a cooking device often used in restaurants, ...

''. For a while he also worked as a lecturer at the Maritime Academy. From October 1910, he served as Commander of the Torpedo Command, which he held until September 1911. In January 1911, he was promoted to the rank of Battleship Captain, and was appointed Deputy Commander of the

armored cruiser The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was designed like other types of cruisers to operate as a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a pre-dreadnought battles ...

World War I

At the beginning of

, Michelsen was appointed commander of the armored cruiser SMS '' Prinz Adalbert''. In addition to that command, from 20 April to 3 July 1915 he also held the position of Chief of Staff of the Scout Forces in the Eastern Baltic. In July 1915, the SMS ''Prinz Adalbert'' was severely damaged thanks to a torpedo attack, and Michelsen managed to tow it back to

Kiel Kiel ( ; ) is the capital and most populous city in the northern Germany, German state of Schleswig-Holstein. With a population of around 250,000, it is Germany's largest city on the Baltic Sea. It is located on the Kieler Förde inlet of the Ba ...

, running 240 nautical miles backward. In August 1915, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Supreme Command in the Eastern Baltic, and on 14 April 1916 he became Commander-in-Chief of the Torpedo Boats (''Erster Führer der Torpedobootsstreitkräfte''). In this position, he also took part in the

, where he commanded the SMS ''

Rostock Rostock (; Polabian language, Polabian: ''Roztoc''), officially the Hanseatic and University City of Rostock (), is the largest city in the German States of Germany, state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and lies in the Mecklenburgian part of the sta ...

''. On 1 June 1917 he was appointed commander of the submarine forces (''Befehlshaber der U-Boote''), which he held until the end of the war.

Later years

After the signing of the

Armistice of 11 November 1918 The Armistice of 11 November 1918 was the armistice signed in a railroad car, in the Compiègne Forest near the town of Compiègne, that ended fighting on land, at sea, and in the air in World War I between the Entente and their las ...

, Michelsen served as Chief of Staff of the

High Seas Fleet The High Seas Fleet () was the battle fleet of the German Empire, German Imperial German Navy, Imperial Navy and saw action during the First World War. In February 1907, the Home Fleet () was renamed the High Seas Fleet. Admiral Alfred von Tirpi ...

. After that, from 22 December 1918 he served as Chief of Staff of the North Sea Naval Area. On 2 January 1919 he became Commander of that area. In November 1919 he was promoted to the rank of Rear Admiral and promoted to Vice Admiral in January 1920. In December 1920 he retired. He died on 8 April 1932 at the age of 64 in

Fallingbostel Bad Fallingbostel (Northern Low Saxon: ''Bad Fambossel'') is the district town (''Kreisstadt'') of the Heidekreis, Heidekreis district in the Germany, German state of Lower Saxony. Since 1976 the town has had a state-recognised Kneipp spa and ha ...

Awards

Order of the Red Eagle The Order of the Red Eagle () 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 service to the kingdom, o ...

, 3rd Class *Order of the Red Eagle, 4th Class * Order of the Crown, 2nd Class *

House Order of Hohenzollern The House Order of 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 versions of the order were crosses an ...

with swords *

Iron Cross The Iron Cross (, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, the German Empire (1871–1918), and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). The design, a black cross pattée with a white or silver outline, was derived from the in ...

, 1st Class *Iron Cross, 2nd Class * Military Merit Order, III Class with swords * Order of the Griffon * Friedrich-August-Kreuz, 1st Class *Friedrich-August-Kreuz, 2nd Class *Knight of the

Albert Order The Albert Order () was created on 31 December 1850 by King Frederick Augustus II of Saxony to commemorate Albert III, Duke of Saxony (known as Albert the Bold). It was to be awarded to anyone who had served the state well, for civil virtue, s ...

, 2nd Class

Foreign awards

Order of the Star of Romania The Order of the Star of Romania (Romanian: ''Ordinul Steaua României'') is Romania's highest civil Order and second highest State decoration after the Order of Michael the Brave. It is the oldest Order of Romania. It is awarded by the Preside ...

, Knight *:

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

, Knight

References

Bibliography

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Michelsen, Andreas 1869 births 1932 deaths Admirals of the Reichsmarine People from Hildesheim Military personnel from the Province of Hanover Imperial German Navy personnel of World War I Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 1st class Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 2nd class Recipients of the Military Merit Order (Bavaria) Knights of the Order of the Star of Romania Members of the Royal Victorian Order