Georg Lassen

Georg Lassen
Born	(1915-05-12)12 May 1915 Berlin-Steglitz, German Empire
Died	18 January 2012(2012-01-18) (aged 96)[1] Mallorca, Spain
Allegiance	Nazi Germany
Service / branch	Kriegsmarine
Rank	Korvettenkapitän
Commands	U-29 U-160 1. U-Boot-Lehrdivision
Battles / wars	Battle of the Atlantic
Awards	Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves

Georg Lassen (12 May 1915 – 18 January 2012)^[1] was a German U-boat commander during World War II. He was a Watch Officer on U-29 at the outbreak of the war and later the skipper of the U-160 and recipient of the Knight’s Cross.

Whist aboard the U-29 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Otto Schuhart the crew sunk a total of 12 ships, including the British aircraft carrier HMS Courageous. Lassen became commander of U-29 on 3 January 1941 when Otto Schuhart was reassigned as a training instructor. The U-29 was under Lassen's command until from 3 January 1941 to 14 September 1941 during which the submarine was a training boat attached to the 24th (Training) Flotilla.

After his stint aboard the U-29, he was assigned command of U-160. On his first patrol with the crew of U-160 they sank and damaged a total of 6 vessels during the time between March and April 1942. A year later aboard U-160 during a patrol in South African waters Lassen and his crew sank and/or damaged 6 ships in under 5 hours. Lassen received the Oak Leaves for his Iron Cross for his success during the South African patrol.

In June 1943, Lassen was reassigned as a tactics instructor with the 1. U-Boot Lehrdivision, the same training division his former commander Otto Schuhart was reassigned to earlier.^[1]

Lassen became a businessman after the war and later worked as a managing director for a large company. In a traffic accident he lost an arm. His wife died after 55 years of marriage. In old age he moved to a retirement home in Mallorca, where he died on 18 January 2012 at the age of 96.

Awards

• Wehrmacht Long Service Award 4th Class (5 April 1939)^[2]
• Iron Cross (1939) 2nd Class (26 September 1939) & 1st Class (18 July 1940)^[3]
• Memel Medal (26 October 1939)^[3]
• U-boat War Badge (1939) (18 July 1940)^[3]
• U-boat Front Clasp (22 October 1944)^[3]
• Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
  • Knight's Cross on 10 August 1942 as Oberleutnant zur See and commander of U-160^[4]
  • Oak Leaves on 7 March 1943 as Kapitänleutnant and commander of U-160^[4]

References

Citations

1. Helgason, Guðmundur. "Georg Lassen". German U-boats of WWII - uboat.net. Retrieved 25 February 2007.
2. Busch & Röll 2003, p. 234.
3. Busch & Röll 2003, p. 235.
4. Scherzer 2007, p. 495.

Bibliography

• Busch, Rainer; Röll, Hans-Joachim (2003). Der U-Boot-Krieg 1939–1945 — Die Ritterkreuzträger der U-Boot-Waffe von September 1939 bis Mai 1945 [The U-Boat War 1939–1945 — The Knight's Cross Bearers of the U-Boat Force from September 1939 to May 1945] (in German). Hamburg, Berlin, Bonn Germany: Verlag E.S. Mittler & Sohn. ISBN 978-3-8132-0515-2.
• Scherzer, Veit (2007). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives] (in German). Jena, Germany: Scherzers Militaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.