During the Second World War the Kriegsmarine relied heavily on its fleet of Minensuchboote and Räumboote to keep vital sea lanes open against the growing threat of Allied mines, particularly those laid from the air in the North Sea, Baltic, English Channel, Norwegian waters and Mediterranean. The larger ocean-going Minensuchboote, designated by the prefix M and organized into numerous Minensuchflottillen under the Führer der Minensuchboote and later the Sicherungsdivisionen, included the successful Typ 1935 class of which around sixty-nine units were completed; these oil-fired vessels of roughly 870 tons displacement carried a relatively powerful armament of two 10.5-cm guns plus anti-aircraft weapons and could also lay mines or perform escort duties. As oil shortages intensified, the simpler coal-fired Typ 1940 class was mass-produced in greater numbers, exceeding 130 boats, while older First World War veterans continued in secondary roles. Complementing them were the smaller, highly versatile Räumboote, wooden-hulled diesel-powered motor minesweepers of which approximately 424 were built in successive classes from R 1 onward; grouped in Räumbootsflottillen, these craft excelled in inshore and coastal operations, clearing moored and magnetic mines with specialized gear such as the Scherdrachengerät and Ottergerät, and frequently doubled as convoy escorts, Vorpostenboote, anti-submarine hunters and even minelayers. Their maneuverability, sometimes enhanced by Voith-Schneider propellers, allowed effective service from the Arctic to the Black Sea. Together with large numbers of requisitioned fishing vessels converted into Hilfsminensuchboote, these forces formed the backbone of German coastal security, though heavy losses to aircraft, surface attacks and the mines themselves steadily eroded their strength. After the surrender many surviving Minensuchboote and Räumboote continued under the Deutscher Minenräumdienst to clear residual wartime minefields under Allied supervision.
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EICHENLAUBTRÄGER
Kapitän zur See Gerhard von Kamptz (1902-1998) was born on 27 December 1902 in Kopaschütz, Kreis Schroda in the Province of Posen, the son of Paul Wilhelm August von Kamptz, estate owner, and Hedwig Josephine Emilie Schmekel; he entered the Reichsmarine in 1923 and rose steadily through the ranks, becoming Leutnant zur See in 1927, Oberleutnant zur See in 1929, Kapitänleutnant on 1 April 1935, Korvettenkapitän on 1 April 1939, Fregattenkapitän on 1 April 1943 and finally Kapitän zur See on 1 July 1943. Early in his career he commanded the newly recommissioned Zieten as Oberleutnant zur See from October 1933 to September 1935 and later served as company leader in the V. Marineartillerie-Abteilung at Pillau; in November 1938 he was appointed Chef of the newly formed 2. Räumbootsflottille, a post he held until January 1941. During operations in the North Sea and especially in the Norwegian campaign of 1940 his flotilla performed with distinction under his personal leadership, repeatedly exceeding assigned objectives through his courage, skill and determination in overcoming every difficulty; for these achievements he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 6 October 1940 while still Korvettenkapitän and Chef of the 2. Räumbootsflottille. From mid-March 1941, with brief interruptions, until March 1943 he commanded the newly established 8. Räumbootsflottille (also referred to as 8. Minensuchflottille), under whose escort more than 400,000 BRT of shipping reached port without loss; for the outstanding leadership of this unit, which accomplished all its tasks in an exemplary manner, he received the Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz (the 225th award) on 14 April 1943 as Fregattenkapitän and Chef of the 8. Räumbootsflottille. He subsequently served as Chef of the short-lived 4. Geleitflottille at La Spezia, directed special operations in Italy, commanded the Sperrschule at Sønderborg from December 1943 to October 1944, and worked as Abteilungschef in the Wehrgeistigen Führungsstab of the OKM before becoming Inselkommandant of Bornholm in March–April 1945 as successor to Robert Moraht. Ordered to surrender only to Western forces, he refused Soviet demands after the partial German capitulation of 4 May 1945, leading to Soviet air attacks on Rønne and Nexø; the island was finally handed over on 9 May, after which he spent nearly nine years in Soviet captivity until his release on 1 January 1954. He settled in Kiel, where he died on 16 May 1998 at the age of 95 and was buried in the Kieler Nordfriedhof.
Fregattenkapitän der Reserve Dr.-Ing. Karl-Friedrich Brill (1898-1943) was born on 18 July 1898 in Stolzenau and volunteered for the Kaiserliche Marine in 1915. As Bootsmann aboard the Linienschiff Thüringen he took part in the Skagerrakschlacht and was promoted to Leutnant in 1917 before serving on the Minenkreuzer Bremse. After studying mechanical engineering and earning his doctorate he rejoined the reserves, reaching Kapitänleutnant der Reserve by the outbreak of the Second World War. In 1940 he became Kommandant of the Minenschiff Cobra and later Führer of a Minenschiffgruppe. The Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes was awarded to him on 27 December 1941 as Korvettenkapitän der Reserve, Kommandant of Cobra and Führer Minenschiffgruppe, primarily for his decisive role in laying the famous Juminda-Sperre in the Gulf of Finland during the summer of 1941. This extensive barrier, created under dangerous conditions, trapped the Soviet fleet and, during the subsequent Mine Battle of Reval, accounted for more than 130 000 GRT of Soviet shipping losses; he had earlier laid important defensive barriers in the North Sea and during the Norwegian campaign. He also received the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold on 20 November 1941. Continuing his minelaying career across European waters, Brill took command of the newly commissioned Minenschiff Juminda (named by him after the Baltic barrier) in late September 1943 and was promoted to Fregattenkapitän der Reserve on 1 October 1943 while serving as Führer of the Minenschiffgruppe in the western Mediterranean. On 22 October 1943 he was killed when Juminda was sunk by American PT-boats west of Porto Santo Stefano. The 330th Eichenlaub was conferred posthumously on 18 November 1943 in recognition of his unmatched record as the Kriegsmarine’s most successful minelayer captain: under his leadership more than 9 000 mines and blocking devices had been laid during some fifty missions. His earlier decorations included the Eisernes Kreuz II. Klasse of 1917 with 1939 Spange and the Eisernes Kreuz I. Klasse of 1940.
Fregattenkapitän Fritz Breithaupt (1892-1944) was born on 5 September 1892 in Bromberg and entered the Kaiserliche Marine as a Kadett in April 1911, serving initially aboard the cruiser Hansa before completing officer training at the Marineschule Flensburg-Mürwik. During the First World War he advanced to Leutnant zur See in March 1916 while assigned to the battleship Rheinland, later transferring to torpedo boats as Wachoffizier on S 167, S 168 and A 27, and eventually becoming Gruppenführer in the 6. Minensuch-Halbflottille by war’s end after promotion to Oberleutnant zur See on 26 April 1917; he left active service in June 1920. Reactivated at the outbreak of the Second World War as Kapitänleutnant der Reserve, he assumed command of the 14. Minensuchflottille, briefly led the 34. Minensuchflottille after the Western Campaign, and from September 1940 served as Chef of the 12. Minensuchflottille. On 3 August 1941, as Korvettenkapitän der Reserve and Chef of the 12. Minensuchflottille, he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes for repeatedly conducting difficult Geleit-Fahrten and Sicherungsaufgaben under intense enemy pressure in the English Channel and along the northern French coast, where his flotilla maintained vital supply routes despite constant threats from British surface forces and aircraft. After the 12. Minensuchflottille was dissolved in October 1942 its personnel formed the nucleus of the newly raised 24. Minensuchflottille, which Breithaupt commanded in the Channel and Channel Islands area under the 3. Sicherungs-Division. On 10 February 1944 he was awarded the Eichenlaub as Korvettenkapitän der Reserve and Chef of the 24. Minensuchflottille for successfully repelling three major enemy attacks on the Channel Islands, actions that preserved the islands’ defensive integrity and supply lines through determined minesweeping, escort and combat operations conducted in immediate proximity to superior Allied forces. Promoted to Fregattenkapitän der Reserve on 1 September 1944, he continued to lead the flotilla until he was killed on 25 December 1944 in an aircraft crash while returning from Guernsey. His decorations also included both classes of the Iron Cross from 1914 and 1939, the Cross of Honor, the Minesweeper War Badge and the War Merit Cross with Swords Second Class.
Source :
https://naval-encyclopedia.com/ww2/germany/raumboote.php
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