Petty officer

Kurt Hendrich

Aft artillery calculation center

* 25.11.1917 in Stendal (Province of Saxony) - † 27.5.1941

Germany (1917)

Source:

Stefan Hendrich (grandnephew) / Langenau

Kurt Hendrich was born as the second of four children of Karl and Helene Hendrich, née Kassel, on November 25, 1917 in the Saxon town of Stendal. After school, he completed an apprenticeship as a painter until October 1936. This was soon followed by labor service in the Reichsarbeitsdienst. In the meantime, he had decided on a career in the navy and volunteered for service. His application was successful. On April 1, 1937, the nineteen-year-old started basic training and learned the basics of the soldier's profession during drills in the barracks yard. Together with a few comrades, including his best friend Willi Gronow, Kurt Hendrich was assigned to the artillery training ship Bremse on October 2, 1937 after completing basic training. "From day one we were friends and remained so until we were separated by the assignment," Willi Gronow later reported. "We stuck together for almost two years and I think everyone was happy to see him." Kurt Hendrich was called "Kuttel" by his friends. His naval career began on the Bremse. He remained loyal to the artillery training ship for two years until he was assigned to a new command in 1939.

Artillery training ship
Bremse

The Bremse served as a training ship for the naval artillery school in Kiel until the beginning of the war. After that, she was used primarily for escort duties in the North and Baltic Seas until she was captured by two British cruisers in September 1941.

Kurt Hendrich found his way around the Navy well and was eventually recommended as a petty officer. After the war started, he began petty officer training, which automatically extended his service to twelve years. During this time, he also completed a rangefinder course with sea target and electronic measurement training, which was intended to prepare him for his later role in artillery fire control. After completing the course, he was posted to the battleship Bismarck, where he served in the aft artillery calculation center.

Shortly before setting sail, Kurt Hendrich married his fiancée Ursula Voigt, with whom he had a son, Klaus. It was to be the last time he saw his family. After returning from special leave, he set sail on the Bismarck. He spent the next few days from his combat station in the aft artillery calculation center. This included May 27, 1941 and the Bismarck's last battle. After the guns had gradually failed and the ship already seemed lost, the order came through that all troop ID cards were to be destroyed and all hands should go on deck. At first the officer in charge of the aft artillery calculation center reacted hesitantly, but then gave in and ordered his men to leave the aft artillery calculation center. The men climbed up the armored connecting shaft to the aft position and here saw for the first time the catastrophic extent of the shelling. When Kurt Hendrich saw the horror, he handed his comrade Paul Rudek a cigarette, lit it and took one for himself. "This is our last one, Paul," he said and threw the still full pack into the sea. While Paul Rudek was lucky and was rescued, Kurt Hendrich died in the waves of the Atlantic. He was 23 years old.

Kurt Hendrich left behind his wife Ursula and his one-year-old son Klaus. His mother kept a hand-colored picture of her son, along with a small lifebuoy from the Bismarck, by her bed. Willi Gronow's letter of condolence to the family, in which he wrote about his best friend "Kuttel" and expressed his condolences, is still a worn-out document that bears witness to the mother's frequent reading and pain.