Der Seekrieg; The German Navy's Story, 1939-1945
Annapolis, MD: United States Naval Institute, 1960. Second Printing [stated]. Hardcover. xiii, [5], 426 pages. Endpaper maps. Foreword by William D. Leahy, Fleet Admiral, U. S. Navy. Occasional Footnotes. Charts. Diagrams. Illustrations. Index. DJ somewhat worn & discolored: DJ edges worn & small edge tears/chips. Friedrich Oskar Ruge (24 December 1894 – 3 July 1985) was an officer in the German Navy and recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross of Nazi Germany. He served as the first commander (Inspector of the Navy) of the post-war German Navy. Friedrich Ruge joined the Imperial German Navy as a cadet in March 1914, he was soon a participant in the 1914, 1915, and 1916 Baltic Sea operations. In 1917 and 1918, he sailed with the destroyer raids in the North Sea and English Channel. For the next two decades he concentrated on mines and mine warfare. From 1928 to 1932, he had staff roles associated with mine and torpedo warfare, and in September 1932 became commanding officer of the 1st Half-Flotilla of minesweepers. On 1 June 1937, Ruge was appointed Führer der Minensuchboot (FdM). From 1940 to 1943, he was stationed in France, rising through the upper ranks to become Vice Admiral in 1943. He was appointed as Naval Advisor to Field Marshal Erwin Rommel in November 1943 to supervise the defense of northern France from the predicted Allied invasion. In August 1944, he became the Kriegsmarine's Director of Ship Construction, a position in which he served till the end of World War II. Called out of retirement when Germany became a part of NATO, Ruge was appointed Inspector of the Navy, a post he occupied until 1961. In Der Seekrieg, Admiral Ruge traces Germany's rise to a seapower in the early twentieth century, the effect on German naval strength of the Treaty of Versailles, the subsequent entry into World War II, by a Navy which was not ready for war; and how professional naval officers, hampered at times by a land-minded dictator, nevertheless completed daring and startlingly successful operations which caused great anxiety in both Britain and the United States. In importance of Der Seekrieg is indicated by this quote from the foreword, by Fleet Admiral William D. Leahy, USN: "Books from the enemy side which are the work of the former enemy leaders, who have both the knowledge of what happened as well as the ability to narrate it clearly, immediately assume the stature of professional studies of first rank for all military men and statesmen as well as for the historians and the general public of all countries that participated." Condition: Very good / Fair.
Keywords: Naval, German Navy, WWII, Kriegsmarine, Anti-Submarine, Karl Donitz, Erich Raeder, U-Boats, Taranto, Naval Operations, Amphibious Operations, Invasion of Norway, Minefields, Supply Routes, Convoys, Tirpitz, Bismarck, Merchant Raider, Shipbuilding, Na
[Book #57154]
Price: $60.00