Authentic Wartime Wehrpass of Obermaschinenmaat Heinrich ‘Heinz’ Jelken. The Wehrpass was opened in September 1936 and in 1937, he joined the I. Schiffstammabteilung der Ostsee in Kiel. After training, he went on to serve on the German battleship “Gneisenau” from 1938 until 1940. On November 21, 1939, the “Gneisenau” together with her sister “Scharnhorst“, went on her first war cruise between Iceland and the Faroe Islands and managed to intercept the British auxiliary cruiser HMS Rawalpindi on November 23. After a brief combat, the Scharnhorst and Gneisenau succesfully sank the HMS Rawalpindi.
November 23, 1939: “The ship’s first combat operation, under the command of Admiral Wilhelm Marschall, began on 21 November 1939; the ship, in company with her sister Scharnhorst, the light cruiser Köln, and nine destroyers, was to patrol the area between Iceland and the Faroe Islands. The intent of the operation was to draw out British units and ease the pressure on the heavy cruiser Admiral Graf Spee, which was being pursued in the South Atlantic. Two days later, the German flotilla intercepted the auxiliary cruiser Rawalpindi.
Scharnhorst fired first, followed by Gneisenau eight minutes later. The ship was quickly reduced to a burning wreck; Marschall ordered Scharnhorst to pick up survivors while he stood by in Gneisenau. The cruiser Newcastle arrived on the scene, which prompted Marschall to halt rescue operations and flee. Four allied capital ships, the British Hood, Nelson, Rodney, and the French Dunkerque followed in pursuit. The Germans reached Wilhelmshaven on 27 November, and on the trip both battleships incurred significant damage from heavy seas and winds.” (Source: Wikipedia)
Soon after, he was transferred to the 57. Vorpostenflottille serving in Norway from 1940 until his death in 1943. Throughout his service, he was promoted four times and was awarded the Kriegsabzeichen für Minensuch-, U-Boot-Jagd- und Sicherungsverbände (Minesweepers, Sub-Chasers and Escort-Vessel War Badge) on May 9, 1941. Obermaschinenmaat Heinrich ‘Heinz’ Jelken met his fate on September 27, 1943 serving on Vorpostenboot V-5703 (or also mentioned as V-5705) “Elsaß“. The Vorpostenboot may have either struck a mine or suffered a boiler explosion.
The wreck was discovered in September 2018! A video of a diving can be seen below:
