Bernd Klug (12 December 1914 – 15 June 1975) was an admiral in the

West German Navy The German Navy (, ) is part of the unified (Federal Defense), the German Armed Forces. The German Navy was originally known as the ''Bundesmarine'' (Federal Navy) from 1956 to 1995, when ''Deutsche Marine'' (German Navy) became the official ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he served in the

Kriegsmarine The (, ) was the navy of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official military branch, branche ...

and was a recipient of the

Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II. While it was lower in precedence than the Grand C ...

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

Career

Klug joined

Reichsmarine The () was the name of the German Navy during the Weimar Republic and first two years of Nazi Germany. It was the naval branch of the , existing from 1919 to 1935. In 1935, it became known as the ''Kriegsmarine'' (War Navy), a branch of the '' ...

on 1 April 1933. He received his training aboard the

school ship A training ship is a ship used to train students as sailors. The term is mostly used to describe ships employed by navies to train future officers. Essentially there are two types: those used for training at sea and old Hulk (ship type), hulks us ...

SSS ''Gorch Fock'' and the light cruiser ''Karlsruhe''.Dörr 1995, p. 339. Klug sailed on ''Karlsruhe''s third training cruise. ''Karlsruhe'' left Wilhelmshaven on 14 October 1933 returning to Kiel on 16 June 1934. While stationed on ''Karlsruhe'', he advanced in rank to ''

Gefreiter Gefreiter (, abbr. Gefr.; plural ''Gefreite'') is a military rank used in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria since the 16th century. It is typically the second rank or grade to which an Enlisted rank, enlisted soldier, airman, or sailor can be prom ...

'' on 1 April 1934.Dörr 1995, p. 340. He was posted to the

Naval Academy at Mürwik A navy, naval force, military maritime fleet, war navy, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operati ...

on 28 June 1934. During his vacation he was promoted to Officer Cadet on 1 July 1934. The main cadet course lasted until 18 April 1935 and was interrupted by two navigational training cruises, the first on the tender ''Nordsee'' (10–16 October 1934) and the tender ''Saar'' (31 January – 6 February 1935). Klug led

E-boat E-boat was the Western Allies' designation for the fast attack craft (German: ''Schnellboot'', or ''S-Boot'', meaning "fast boat"; plural ''Schnellboote'') of the Kriegsmarine of Nazi Germany during World War II; ''E-boat'' could refer to a pat ...

s on 28 April 1944 in an attack against Convoy T-4 consisting of LSTs during the Allied large-scale rehearsals for the

D-Day The Normandy landings were the landing operations and associated airborne operations on 6 June 1944 of the Allied invasion of Normandy in Operation Overlord during the Second World War. Codenamed Operation Neptune and often referred to as ...

invasion of

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

, dubbed

Exercise Tiger Exercise Tiger, or Operation Tiger was one of a series of large-scale rehearsals for the D-Day invasion of Normandy. Held in April 1944 on Slapton Sands in Devon, it proved fraught with difficulties. Coordination and communication problems r ...

. During the attack, German E-boats sank USS ''LST-507'' and ''531'', and damaged ''289'', resulting in the deaths of 749 American servicemen.Hoyt 1999, p. 97.

Awards

Spanish Cross The Spanish Cross () was an award of Nazi Germany given to German troops who participated in the Spanish Civil War, fighting for nationalist general, later Spanish dictator, Francisco Franco. History With the outbreak of the Spanish Civil W ...

in Bronze without Swords (6 June 1939) *

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 ...

(1939) 2nd Class (10 April 1940) & 1st Class (7 August 1940) *

Wound Badge The Wound Badge () was a German military decoration first promulgated by Wilhelm II, German Emperor on 3 March 1918, which was first awarded to soldiers of the Imperial German Army, German Army who were wounded during World War I. Between the worl ...

(1939) in Black (25 April 1940) *

Fast Attack Craft War Badge The Fast Attack Craft War Badge or S-Boat War Badge () was a World War II German military decoration awarded to members of the ''Kriegsmarine'' for service on fast attack craft or patrol/torpedo boats. The award was instituted on 30 May 1941. Requ ...

(16 December 1940); with Diamonds (1 January 1944) *

** Knight's Cross on 12 March 1941 as ''

Kapitänleutnant , short: KptLt/in lists: KL, ( or ''lieutenant captain'') is an officer grade of the captains' military hierarchy group () of the modern German . The rank is rated Ranks and insignia of NATO navies' officers, OF-2 in NATO, and equivalent to i ...

'' and commander of

Schnellboot E-boat was the Western Allies' designation for the fast attack craft (German: ''Schnellboot'', or ''S-Boot'', meaning "fast boat"; plural ''Schnellboote'') of the Kriegsmarine of Nazi Germany during World War II; ''E-boat'' could refer to a pa ...

''S-28'' in the 1. SchnellbootflottilleScherzer 2007, p. 451. ** Oak Leaves on 1 January 1944 as chief of the 5. Schnellbootflottille * Commanders Cross of the French

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour ( ), formerly the Imperial Order of the Legion of Honour (), is the highest and most prestigious French national order of merit, both military and Civil society, civil. Currently consisting of five cl ...

(1960)

References

;Citation ;Bibliography * * * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Klug, Bernd 1914 births 1976 deaths Military personnel from Wuppertal Reichsmarine personnel Bundesmarine admirals Kriegsmarine personnel German military personnel of the Spanish Civil War Recipients of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves Military personnel from the Rhine Province Flotilla admirals of the German Navy Grand Cross of the Legion of Honour