Exactly 100 years ago, on April 21, 1918, Baron Manfred Albrecht von Richterhofen, the best pilot of the First World War, was killed in an air battle. His landline was painted red, so he was called the "Red Baron" and his enemies were called the "Red Devils." Before Canadian Air Force Roy Brown hit him in the chest, the Red Baron had shot down 80 British-French warplanes.
Although the war lasted another six months after his death, Richterhofen's record of 80 shots remained unbroken. Even in World War II, despite the intensity and duration of the air battles, no non-German pilot had access to this record. The 26-year-old World War I ace pilot will always be a myth.
This was manfred von Richterhofen's landplanes from 1916 to 1917, the Albatross D.III and D.V fighters. From then on, Richterhofen began to paint the planes with red paint, as if challenging all opponents "This is me!" Come on, duel with me! ”
In April 1911, after graduating from the military academy, Richterhofen was assigned to the 1st Lancer Regiment, an elite unit marked in blood red. Later, Richterhofen painted his fighters blood red, also in honor of the 1st Lancer Regiment.
On 12 January 1917, Richterhofen was awarded the "Medal of Merit" by the Kaiser himself, commonly known as "Blue Max". The highest medal of the German Empire has been hanging around his neck ever since.
The walls of Richterhofen's residence are plastered with enemy aircraft numbers that he shot down, and chandeliers were modified from aircraft engines.
It's a very rare scene where the "Red Baron" is actually riding a bicycle. He is also a young man who loves life, but like most people in the photo, he buried his life in such a meaningless war.
In the fall of 1917, after acquiring the super-maneuverable Fokker triplane, Richthofen also painted the fighter in red, but initially only part of the red was.
Finally, Richterhofen painted the entire fighter in red. Although this all-red triplane did not exist for a long time, many people are willing to believe that it is the symbol of the "Red Baron".
Piloted by Richterhofen, the Fokker triplane was not afraid to be surrounded by multiple enemy fighters, but instead controlled the entire battle and won the battle.
On April 21, 1918, the "Red Baron" relaxed slightly for only two or three seconds, when he was in the excitement of chasing one enemy plane, not noticing that another enemy plane had bitten his tail. When the red "Falk" appeared in the scope, Roy Brown pulled the trigger, and only one bullet hit the target, but it hit the heart of the best pilot on the planet.
This is the remains of the "Red Baron" Manfred Albrecht von Richterhofen.
Roy Brown made a name for himself, but it is still debated who shot down the Red Baron, as the red Fokker triplane was flying on The Allied positions and was being fired at by soldiers on the ground.
For each enemy plane shot down, Richterhofen was given a silver glass engraved with a date, and another large silver glass for every ten shots. As a result he had a spectacular collection, but unfortunately he did not make it to the 80th victory cup.
It was the final victory for the "Red Baron", 23-year-old British pilot Richard Raymond Barker. On 20 April, the day after Richterhofen's death, he was shot down.
The British and Canadian soldiers present rushed to the wreckage of the "Red Baron" fighter despite the artillery fire and competed to cut the airframe of the fighter for commemoration.
The British held a very solemn funeral for the "Red Baron": in response to Manfred's rank, six Allied captains carried the coffin of the great enemy slowly under the guidance of a cleric. After the coffin was placed in the tomb, soldiers on both sides fired their guns into the air to show the highest respect. An Allied pilot pilot flew and dropped photographs and obituaries of flower-covered cemeteries on German positions.
It was Roy Brown's Camel fighter, a Canadian pilot who also liked to decorate his fighters with red.
Welcome friends to pay attention to the "fingertip soldiers"