Naval History by Country : ROYAL NAVY US NAVY GERMAN NAVY FRENCH NAVY MORE PAGES

ALWAYS GREAT OFFERS : 20% FURTHER PRICE REDUCTIONS ON HUNDREDS OF LIMITED EDITION ART PRINTS BUY ONE GET ONE HALF PRICE ON THOUSANDS OF PAINTINGS AND PRINTS FOR MORE OFFERS SIGN UP TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER

Burkhard Mullenheim-Rechberg

Name : Burkhard Baron Von Mullenheim-Rechberg Died : 1st June 2003 Info Source : Print Signing This person has signed some of our artwork - click here for more info

Burkard Baron Von Mullenheim-Rechberg is a former German naval officer, lawyer, and ambassador. Born in Spandau into a family where the profession of arms was an established tradition, he entered the navy of the Weimar Republic in 1929. After service in a variety of ships and as assistant naval attache at the German Embassy in London, he was assigned to the Bismarck in May 1940. A year later he became the senior officer to survive her sinking. In 1952, after spending time as a prisoner of war and earning a law degree, the baron joined the diplomatic service of the Federal Republic of Germany. He served as consul general in Toronto and as ambassador to the West Indies, Zaire and Tanzania. Born in Prussia into a family with an established military tradition, Burkard Baron Mullenheim-Rechberg entered the Navy of the Weimar Republic in 1929. Burkard, like many Prussian officers, was critical of Hitler and his National Socialist Party. However, the regime did not accept criticism, and Burkard was forced to react with impotence or face the difficult fate awaiting dissenters. During his naval career Burkard served as an instructor at the Murwick Naval School, and as an assistant to the naval attachC, at the German Embassy in London. He had plenty of sea duty including time on both cruisers and destroyers. In May of 1940 Lieutenant-Captain Burkard was assigned to the Bismarck. He served as adjutant to Captain Ernst Lindemann, the Bismarck's commanding officer. Lindemann was an experienced gunnery expert, and given the Bismarck's enormous firepower, this background was deemed an asset. Captain Lindemann informed Burkard that the Bismarck would henceforth be referred to as a "he" instead of the traditional "she." In addition to being an ideal duty assignment, serving as the adjutant to Captain Lindemann, provided Burkard insights, into Lindemann's character. The Bismarck was commissioned on August 24, 1940, but was unable to go to sea for several months because a sunken ship blocked the channel. At the time of the Bismarck's demise on May 27,1941, Burkard was Fourth Gunnery Officer, and he was the highest ranking officer to survive the great ship's sinking. He became a prisoner of war, and spent much of the remainder of the war in Canadian prisoner camps. Burkhard earned a law degree after the war and joined the German diplomatic service in 1952. His first assignment was in Iceland followed by posting to Oslo Norway where he was head of the consular section on the German Embassy. He served in a variety of posts. He was Consul General in Toronto, and Ambassador to the West Indies, Tanzania, and Zaire. Burkhard retired from the diplomatic service in 1975. Since that time he has lived with his wife in upper Bavaria. He has authored two books on the Bismarck, and has served as a consultant to movie producers and other WW II authors. In addition to being one of the world's foremost authorities on the Bismarck, and its demise, Burkard has written extensively regarding his reflections on the political nature of the Nazi regime and its criminal misdeeds. Many officers which served their country during the war were unaware of the crimes and atrocities of the Nazis, where others with some knowledge were torn between their loyalty to their country and their opposition to Hitler's misdeeds. He died 1st June 2003.

Known Service Details :
Ship	Rank	Start of Service	End of Service	Known Date	Notes
Bismarck		May 1940	27th May 1941		Survived the sinking on 27th May 1941.

Everything we obtain for this site is shown on the site, we do not have any more photos, crew lists or further information on any of the ships. COPYRIGHT NOTICE. ALL IMAGES DISPLAYED ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROTECTED BY  COPYRIGHT  LAW, AND ARE OWNED BY CRANSTON FINE ARTS OR THEIR RESPECTIVE OWNERS.  NO REPRODUCTION OR COPYING ALLOWED ON OTHER WEBSITES, BOOKS OR ARTICLES WITHOUT PRIOR AGREEMENT.