The Blue Max and First Command
Richthofen received the Pour le Mérite (the “Blue Max”) during January of 1917 after his 16th confirmed kill. He assumed command of the elite fighter squadron Jasta 11 later that month. Richthofen shot down 22 British aircraft including four in one day, and the squadron shot down 89 aircraft during April of 1917. His victory total stood at 52 when he assumed command of the famous “Flying Circus.”
Lasting Effects of a Head Wound
Richtofen was wounded in the heard during aerial combat on July 6th 1917. The wound is thought to have caused lasting and debilitating damage. Richtofen experienced severe headaches had had difficulty focusing even after convalescing for several months. By 1918, Manfred von Richthofen had become such a legend that it was feared that his death would be a blow to the morale of the German people. Still refusing ground duty and continuing to fly and fight after his close call, the German propaganda machine built him up until he achieved a cult following.
Mortally Wounded While Helping a Cousin
On 21 April 1918 just after 1100 local time, Manfred von Richtofen was shot and killed while flying at low altitude over Morlancourt Ridge, near the Somme River in the Amiens area of France. A Canadian pilot had just fired on the Red Baron’s cousin Wolfram and he was attempting to assist when he was taken under fire by another Canadian pilot, Captain Arthur “Roy” Brown. Manfred maneuvered clear and attempted to assist Wolfram again but he sustained a serious chest wound and crash-landed just north of the village of Vaux-sur-Somme. He died soon after he reached the ground.
Who Shot Down the Red Baron?
Brown was initially credited with shooting down the Red Baron but posthumous examination indicated that a single .303 caliber round had killed him and that it had been fired from the ground up rather than from above and behind as Brown had been when he took Richtofen under fire. A full military funeral was conducted by the personnel of No. 3 Squadron of the Australian Flight Corps. Richtofen was buried in the cemetery at the village of Bertangles, near Amiens, on 22 April 1918. Australian officers served as pallbearers and a salute was fired. Allied squadrons stationed nearby presented memorial wreaths, one of which was inscribed with the words, “To Our Gallant and Worthy Foe.”
Other High Scoring Aces
For the sake of comparison to the Red Baron, the Allied ace with the highest score was Frenchman René Fonck who achieved 75 confirmed victories (with an additional 52 unconfirmed behind enemy lines). The highest-scoring British Empire fighter pilot was Canadian Billy Bishop, who was officially credited with 72 victories, followed by Mick Mannock, with 61 confirmed victories, Canadian Raymond Collishaw, with 60 confirmed victories, and James McCudden, with 57 confirmed victories. The Red Baron was indeed World War I Ace of Aces.
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