Postwar Signature of Friedrich Jaquet, on a small but interesting Postwar ID wearing his KC and medal miniatures. Comes with an extra letter.
Knight’s Cross was awarded for:
During the final battles around Danzig in early 1945, Leutnant Jaquet received the order to hold an outlying estate along the Nogat front (near Klein-Lesewitz). At his disposal were just 36 troops, including 15 from his unit and the remainder being stragglers. Due to ammunition shortages this small unit had no heavy weapons support, yet it still held off Soviet attacks by both day and night. On the night of the 8./9.03.1945 he lost 2 men dead via headshots, the rest were by now wounded.
On the 09.03.1945 the homestead was set on fire, and so Jaquet and his remaining battleworthy troops pulled back 500 m to have a better field of fire. With 8 men he defended against an attack by a Soviet battalion the whole morning. Jaquet himself, armed with a sniper rifle, bore the brunt of the defensive battle. Two deserters reported that the attackers had sustained 66% casualties in the battle that morning.
By holding this position the 7. Infanterie-Division was able to pull back the following night and thereby avoid encirclement. Later, on the 15.03.1945, Jaquet was badly wounded in the head by a shell splinter while he was conducting sniper duty without a helmet. He would be evacuated by sea. For the aforementioned defensive achievements he would be submitted for the Knight’s Cross.
This awarding was submitted by telegram on March 27th 1945. According the RK-Karteikarte, the submission was completed on April 12th 1945 and probably send by curier. No furthers actions are known. The Ordensgemeinschaft der Ritterkreuzträger des Eisernen Kreuzes e.V. (OdR), has accepted the awarding in accordance with the so-called “Dönitz-Erlass”, which formally allowed lower commanders to award the RK themselves.
