WAR
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"if von richthofen liked a man it was for purely material reasons . . . His<br />
estimate of a man was formed by what that man achieved for the cause, and<br />
whether he happened to be a good fellow or not was a secondary consideration.<br />
But once you had proved your worth, he supported you by every means in his<br />
power and with his whole personality. If you were a failure he dropped you without<br />
a second's hesitation, without the nicker of an eyelid." Thus did Ernst Udet<br />
isolate one of von Richthofen's salient characteristics—mountainous dedication.<br />
During much of his career his ordinary feelings were buried under it and he<br />
rarely permitted familiarity. Away from the squadron or in private, as when he<br />
celebrated his birthday with Count von Hoick, he relaxed and allowed friendly<br />
sentiment to show itself.<br />
"Each time we came back von Richthofen told us what we had done right<br />
and where we had made mistakes. Thus I<br />
noticed, to my great astonishment, that<br />
he never lost sight of us even when fighting for his life." In this way, Carl-August<br />
von Schoenebeck describes the effect and value of another of von Richthofen's<br />
attributes, the ability to see what was going on around him. Whether his clearheadedness<br />
was the result of sheer determination or whether he was by nature<br />
unexcitable will probably never be known; those who knew him in the climactic<br />
years of his life were not psychologists.<br />
Carl-August von Schoenebeck emphasized the value of von Richthofen's<br />
ability to see everything that was happening:<br />
"We knew we could depend on him<br />
like a rock. If things were going badly, if we were ever in a hole, he'd notice it<br />
and pull us out. It gave the Jasta a great feeling of safety."<br />
Born in Bernstadt, in Silesia, on January 19, 1898, von Schoenebeck entered<br />
the service in May 1915 when he joined the Guards Grenadier Regiment at<br />
Karlsruhe/Baden. His interest centered on flying, however, and he managed eventually<br />
to transfer into aviation. In December 1916 he was sent to F.E.A. 3 at<br />
Gotha and reached the Front with Fl. Abt. (A)203 at Rheims in April 1917. In<br />
Peter Grosz
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