Immelmann: Tthe Eagle of Lille

by Frantz Immelmann, Claud W. Sykes

The story of one of Germany’s pioneers in aerial combat . . .

Max Immelmann was born in Dresden, the son of a container factory owner. When World War I started, Immelmann was recalled to active service, transferred to the Luftstreitkäfte and was sent for pilot training in November 1914. He was initially stationed in northern France as a reconnaissance aviator. On June 3, 1915 he was shot down by a French pilot but managed to land safely behind German lines. He was decorated with the Iron Cross, Second Class for preserving his aircraft. Later in 1915, he became one of the first German fighter pilots, quickly building an impressive score of victories as he became known as The Eagle of Lille (Der Adler von Lille).

Immelmann was the first pilot to be awarded the Pour le Mérite, Germany’s highest military honor. The medal became colloquially known as the “Blue Max” in the German Air Service in honor of Immelmann. His medal was presented by Kaiser Wilhelm II in January 1916. Oswald Boelcke received his medal at the same ceremony.

Founder of the aerial combat maneuver that still bears his name, Immelmann was credited with 15 victories, his final one coming on 30 March 1916. He will forever be associated with the Fokker Eindecker, Germany’s first fighter aircraft, and the first to be armed with a machine gun synchronized to fire forward through the propeller arc. Along with Oswald Boelcke and other pilots, Immelmann was one of the main instigators of the Fokker Scourge which inflicted heavy loses upon British and French aircrews during 1915.

Originally published in 1930 by John Hamilton in London, the book has been reprinted (most recently in the 1990’s by Greenhill Books as part of it’s Vintage Aviation Library) and each time has been reproduced from the original 1930’s version of the book.

This new Casemate edition has been entirely reoriginated. Not a word has been changed, but the original (very dated) type and page layout have been reworked, as has been the format in which the book is presented, to give a beautiful new treatment to this classic of aviation literature.

Table of Contents

Introduction

I EARLY DAYS
Childhood
School and Cadet Days
The Ensign
Student Days

II THE OUTBREAK OF WAR AND THE EVOLUTION OF AN AIRMAN
The Outbreak of War
Mobilisation and Garrison
Duty
First Flights
The Flying School
First and Second Tests
The First Crash
The Aircraft Park
The Third Tests
An Experience
The Front at Last!
Artillery Flier in the Champagne
Flying Section 62, the New Home
Affection and Loyalty
The Formation of Flying Section 62
The Youthful German Air Arm; a Survey
The Development of the Air Arm
Reconnaissances on the Somme
The First Airfight
To Arms!
Progress and Success
Lost!
Long Distance Reconnaissances
The First Scouting Flight and the First Victory
Immelmann the First Scout
The Biplane Fighter and the Fokker One-seater Fighter
Immelman and Boelcke
The Fokker Becomes Known
The Second Victory
Front and Home
The Third Victory
An Excursion and a Rough Landing
Days of Heavy Fighting
The Fourth Victory
The Fifth Victory
Modesty
Pioneers of the Air Arm
Aerial Supremacy

III THE EAGLE OF LILLE
The Sixth Victory
Honoured by the King of Saxony
Leave
The Seventh
A Visit to
Brunswick
The Fokker Turns Turtle
The Seventh
The Eighth
The ‘Pour le Mérite’
Christmas
Success and Comradeship
Rumours and Legends
The Ninth
A Double the Tenth and Eleventh
The Tenth
The Eleventh
Questions and Answers
The Twelfth
The Thirteenth
The Emperor’s Letter
Immelman and the ‘13’
The Fourteenth
On the Active List
Again and Full Lieutenant
Severe Fighting in the Air
One Year of Flying Section 62
The Fifteenth
Popularity
The Last Weeks
Shot Down by His Own Gun
The Beginnings of Formation Flying
A Premonitory Farewell
The First Combats on the Last Day
The Last Fight and the Last Victory
The End

Afterthoughts
The Victories of Max Immelman

Genres: Biography, Aviation

256 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2009

Reviews

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a short biography of Max Immelmann, one of the earliest aviation heroes of World War 1, written by his brother, Frantz. Most of the book is devoted to Max’s flying years, and is told primarily through his letters to his mother. As such, it provides a very interesting insight to the life and thoughts of a pioneer combat aviator. Written in 1934, only 18 years after Max’s death and during the rebirth of Germany on the path to National Socialism, some of Frantz’s commentary also provides insight into the German mindset during that time.

[Francis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Written by Immelman's brother. Contains his biography and the text of numerous letters.
One sees the devotion to duty that exists in the German soul.
One also sees the remnants of chivalrous warfare. Immelman personally treated the wounds of some of those whom he had shot down and visited them in the hospital as they recovered. Today, warfare has become brutal and impersonal.