| Josef Veltjens | |
|---|---|
| Nickname | "Seppl" |
| Born | June 2, 1894 Geldern, Germany |
| Died | October 6, 1943 (aged 49) northern Italy |
| Buried at | Piacenza, Italy; reinterred at Travemunde, Germany . |
| Allegiance | Germany |
| Service/branch | Infantry, Air Service |
| Years of service | 1914 - 1919, 1940 - 1943 |
| Rank | Oberst d. R. (Colonel reserves) |
| Unit | Guards Regiment 4, Infantry Regiment 8, FFA 23, Jagdstaffels 14, 18, 15 |
| Commands held | Jasta 15, Jagdgeschwader II |
| Other work | Arms dealer during Spanish Civil War, Finnish Winter War and Continuation War; Hermann Göring's personal emissary during WW II. |
Josef "Seppl" Veltjens (2 June 1894 - 6 October 1943) Pour le Mérite, Royal House Order of Hohenzollern, Iron Cross was a World War I fighter ace credited with 35 victories. In later years, he served as an international arms dealer, as well as a personal emissary from Hermann Göring to Benito Mussolini.[1]
Contents |
Josef Veltjens was born in Geldern, Rhineland, Imperial Germany, the son of a factory manager. He attended Humanisti High School in Berlin, and later, the Technical University in Charlottenburg. His major was mechanical engineering, and his prime interest was internal combustion engines.[2]
He enlisted in the Kaiserin Augusta Guards Regiment Number 4 on 3 August 1914.[3] Four days later, he and his regiment were on the front lines. When his column was attacked by the French, Veltjens and three others tried unsuccessfully to defend it. The vehicles were set on fire. As a straggler, Veltjens joined Infantry Regiment Number 8. Promotion to Vizefeldwebel (Vice-Sergeant) rapidly followed.[4] After several requests, he was posted to aviation training.[4]
On 2 December 1915, at Johannisthal near Berlin, Veltjens soloed. On 15 December 1915, after three solo flights, he took his pilot exam. Without waiting for his official pilot's ticket, he took advantage of the confusion of the holiday season to take himself to Tergnier.[4]
He was posted as a member of Flieger Abteilung 23 on 10 May 1916, to fly reconnaissance missions. He did so well, he was commissioned a Leutnant der Reserve (lieutenant in the reserves). He served there with another future ace, Rudolf Berthold. From there, he moved on to single seat fighters with Royal Prussian Jagdstaffel 14 when Berthold was given its command.[2]
Veltjens scored his first victory, over a Spad, on 14 April 1917.[1] He was flying an Albatros D.III at the time, with his own personal aircraft marking of a white barbed arrow pointed back from the scarlet nose down the length of the royal blue fuselage.[2][5] By the first of June, he had downed three more Spads and a Farman.[1] Berthold mentored him through this, but was very demanding in so doing.[2]
Veltjens then was transferred to Royal Prussian Jasta 18 in August at the request of Berthold, its new commanding officer. This Jasta was then operating Albatros D.Vs or Fokker Dr.Is. Veltjens first scored for them on 16 September 1917; he scored his ninth victory on 15 November to close out 1917.
He marked up his tenth win on 18 February 1918. He then was reassigned to Prussian Jasta 15 the following month. This was an interesting swap, in which Berthold took his pilots with him when he transferred; Jasta 15's pilots in turn became Jasta 18. The exchange meant Berthold, Veltjens, and the rest of the new Jasta 15 were now part of the prestigious Jagdgeschwader II. Jasta 15 would soon re-equip itself with World War I's best fighter, the Fokker D.VII.
Veltjens rose to its command on 18 May, on the same day he scored his 13th victory.[1] He was appointed to replace an officer suspected of conspiring to have the wounded Berthold removed as JG II commander. May also saw Veltjens awarded the Knight's Cross of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern on the 20th,[1] as well as the First Class Iron Cross.
By 10 August 1918, Veltjens' score had risen to 23. That day's fighting saw him score two more.[1] It also marked the day Berthold collided with a British DH.4 and crashed into a house; he survived, but his injuries hospitalized him through war's end. Veltjens shot down two Caudrons and an RAF SE.5a the following day.
Another Hauptmann (captain) was appointed to his command, but Veltjens was chosen to lead JG II into aerial combat. Berthold temporarily escaped the hospital on the 12th despite serious injuries and returned to resume command. The commander of two days surrendered his position. Then Berthold was ordered the following day to return to hospital and turn command of the entire Jagdschwader over to Veltjens, who promptly turned leadership of Jasta 15 over to his former pilot in FFA 23, his old friend Joachim von Ziegesar.[6] Three days later, on 16 August, Veltjens received the Blue Max, as the Pour le Merite was nicknamed.[7]
His victory total was 31 when he went on leave, leaving Oscar Freiherr von Boenigk in charge. Upon his return, he resumed command of JG II on 28 September, only to be bumped down to once again command Jasta 15 from 12 October through Armistice Day. During this time, he raised his victory total to 35.
Veltjens joined Freikorps Gerstenberg in the aftermath of Germany's loss. He was wounded thrice while commanding an armoured car in a January, 1919 assault on Spartakists (German communists) in Bremen.
Following this was a spell as a merchant sailor with his own sailing ship, the Merkur, a 100 ton vessel. By helping the German Navy to rearm in secrecy, he drifted into arms dealing. This became his lifelong business. He supplied Atatürk for the establishment of the Turkish Republic, Chiang Kai-shek for the unification of a nationalist China.[8]
He joined both the Nazi Party and its Brown Shirts in 1929, as one of the early Nazis.[2] This did not last long, as, after a face to face confrontation with Hitler in 1931, he resigned from the party and the SA. This put him on the black list of the SS, who repeatedly arrested him. His World War I comrade, Hermann Göring, managed to protect him.
In 1935 Mussolini requested arms from Germany to support him in the Second Italo-Abyssinian War, and Göring delegated the task of supply to Veltjens. The United Kingdom and France were actually the official allies of Italy at the time in order to stop Italy from getting too close to Germany, but refrained from supplying arms because both warring countries were members of the League of Nations.
Just before the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in March 1936, Colonel Veltjens was contacted by Infante Alfonso, Duke of Galliera, Infante of Spain, who lived in Portugal at the time. He asked him to assist with the supply of arms to the generals, who planned a Coup d'état against the newly elected leftist alliance.[8]
In late 1936, he was instrumental in founding a shipping company of three vessels to supply munitions to the Nationalists. His shipments could be as large as ten million rounds of ammunition at a time, or half a dozen fighter planes. He specialised in transporting high explosives, though once he shipped a brigade of 600 Irish Blueshirts to the war.
He was requested by the Soviets to also supply the Spanish Republicans. This deal was cut in Paris. However, the cargo was not arms, but a load of rocks, loaded in boxes and disguised by a layer of boxes with rifles on top. The shipment went through Stockholm, where it was transferred to a Russian freighter, which took it to Gijon in the North of Spain. This operation got Veltjens into trouble with the Swedish government. The proceeds were, after costs, donated to a charity for German war widows of the Spanish Civil War, and to General Emilio Mola's war chest. He later added a few more ships to his little fleet, which sailed under the Panamanian flag to disguise German involvement.[8]
(The above version is the one that the Family Veltjens displays. However it does not seem to be accurate according to legal documents regarding the YORKBROOK- and ALLEGRO-shipments under dispute in legal procedures in Sweden for almost 20 years. Read further: http://matswerner.blogg.se/category/the-allegro-affair.html )
Veltjens was paid by both sides in British pounds sterling, which in that day was the next best thing to bullion. When Hitler later decided also to support Franco, he did so in secrecy at first, but Veltjens was allowed by Göring to continue his private dealings, mainly because of his possession of tungsten and molybdenum necessary for the prompt production of his orders.[8]
When Finland was about to be attacked by Red Russia in late 1939, Veltjens was approached by the Finns in the hope that he could help with the supply of arms. Finland was blockaded by Hitler and Stalin, and arms supplies where strictly prohibited by Hitler, however Veltjens was able to ship large quantities of arms and ammunition from various countries at extremely short notice, and Finland managed to keep the Russians at bay in their Winter War. He received the highest Finnish decoration given to foreigners: the Commander Cross First Class with Swords of the Order of the White Rose of Finland.
Veltjens was recalled into the Luftwaffe at the start of World War II.[4]
In August, 1940, Veltjens, with the rank of Oberstleutnant (lieutenant colonel), served as Göring's personal emissary in negotiations with Finland just before the Continuation War.[3] Despite his relatively low rank, he ended up dealing with Prime Minister Ryti and Marshal Mannerheim because of his close albeit secret prior relations with them before and during the Winter War. These negotiations resulted in a trade-off; German troops would have unhindered transit through Finnish territory in exchange for German arms that the Finns could use against a threatened Russian encroachment.[9]
As a result of the so-called Veltjens-Agreement in 1941, German troops moved into Finland beginning on 8 June 1941.[4]
Oberst (colonel) Veltjens next assignment was as special plenipotentiary against black marketing in occupied Europe, beginning in May, 1942.[10] It was his job to be sure only authorised German conglomerates bought the goods needed by Germany.[8]
Later in 1943 during World War II, Veltjens also served as Göring's emissary to Benito Mussolini in Salò. His assignment was to negotiate the distribution of the Italian National Reserves of gold bullion, that had been removed from Rome to Milan by the SS. This involved its allocation as payment of Italy's debts on behalf of the various stakeholders, including the Kingdom of Italy, the new Italian Social Republic, Germany, and the Swiss National Bank as the major creditor. Before his subsequent flight from Milan to Rome to finalise aspects of his negotiations, the pilot had been warned of the possibility of Allied fighters in the area, and elected to fly low across the Apennine Mountains, however on 6 October 1943 the Junkers 52 crashed into Monte Cervellino, and Veltjens and all but one of the crew died as a result.[8]
Veltjens was originally buried in Italy, but his body was later transferred home to Lübeck, Germany.[11]
|
||||||||||||||