PETER HANSEN (251-LIFE-1987) spent time working for the ABWEHR (the German Secret Service) during WW II and he has information that is known to a mere handful of people. He gives this secret information especially to SHARKHUNTERS. Here he tells us:

We talked about nicknames in KTB #174. PETER continues:

Others had been tagged with such nicknames by their particular tripulations, often by the enlisted men, however these were frequently used only out of hearing of the so named officers usually, thus they were not widely known. However, there was one particular exception that I do recall – Monsieur Hans-Rudolf Rösing, who was assigned to a number of positions but was later on FdU West or Area Commander, Western Europe initially in Angiers, France using the new headquarters complex that had been under construction for Karl Dönitz as BdU (U-Boat High Command) but which was not finished by the time that Dönitz became Navy Chief on 30 January 1943. After the invasion forced Rösing to move to La Rochelle from where he managed to escape by aircraft to Germany while the rest of the U-Boat men had to march instead, Rösing talked Dönitz into reassigning him to Bergen, Norway for similar activities.

His Master’s Voice

Rösing was known as “His Master’s Voice” because he parroted all orders from Berlin and Dönitz like that well known spotted dog that was shown for advertising purposes on the old RCA Victrola record machines with the giant soundhorns! Everybody disliked his sermons and morale enlightening slogans and broken record speeches about final victory being just around the corner and “Dog Ear” as he was also called, made many men literally throw up! But in the case of Herr Rösing, it was best to use these names carefully otherwise one might very well get punished severely and put to considerable disadvantage for insufficient respect to higher officers and loudmouthed authority! Something like that could have serious consequences, particularly in 1944 and 1945.

EDITOR NOTE – During one time in particular when I was staying in the home of my friend OTTO KRETSCHMER (122-+-1985), OTTO told me that when the Allies were surrounding Lorient and the other western French bases, Rösing ordered the Skippers to take the boats out and make it to Norway – in line astern formation, surfaced! The Coastal Command planes had lines of sitting ducks, and many were lost.

Naturally, one remembers the case of Oskar Kusch, the Skipper who removed the photo of Adolf Hitler from his new U-Boat, stating that they did not want hero worship on board. It was on the orders of Rösing that Kusch was tried, found guilty, sentenced to the firing squad – and shot to death!

Rösing was not well loved during the war years or afterward. When Germany formed their new Navy, the Bundsmarine, Rösing became a high-ranked officer in this new navy and was one of the Board to pass judgment on incoming officers from the Kriegsmarine. More than one turned and walked out of the room when they saw Rösing in a position of authority in the new Bundsmarine.

There will be more from PETER in KTB #176 next month, but no sense to start a new letter with this short space left. We would just have to continue it partway through.