NOTED ADMIRAL PASSES

Northern Advocate, 8 March 1930, Page 9

NOTED ADMIRAL PASSES

I ALFRED VON TIRPITZ. . EX-KAISER’S EIGHT-HAND MAN. : (Received 9 a.m.) .BERLIN, March 6. The death is reported from Munich of Admiral von. Tirpitz. Von Tirpitz had recently been failing in memory. He was living unobtrusively in a small house on Lake Stamburg.

' A few, days ago .he suffered a sharp attack .of bronchitis,, from .which he died. . •

; The 'death of von Tirpitz, -on ee grand admiral of the German 'Navy and right-hand man of the Raiser,” bfihgsT.to-.;ia. close: a career that was dedicated, in preTwar years, to the betterment of the German navy and its elevation to a standard at least comparable with that of Britain’s Grand Fleet. Although von Tirpitz was best and most notoriously known because of his organisation, of the nearly-sueeessful submarine campaign ( against Britain, his services .to. the navy Of his country as “a whole were pre-eminent and to him. must go the; credit, of bringing' state of .;elficieWy lKe:rmpdffahf naval' cop in the powerful lighting machine that ;was Germany. A German sailor-of tlu ' old school of machine-like efficiency, von Tirpitz was born at Kustrum in 1849. He,.entered the navy in 1865, ‘and was Prussian Minister of State ip 1898. Thereafter he devoted his energies to the strengthening and improvement of the navy, and in 1903, he became Grand" Admiral and head of the. naval staff. Shortly after the outbreak of the Great War, he announced the submarine campaign against the Allies, but, in the end, disputes in the Fatherland as to. the real value .of the campaign, brought about, his; downfall and, in 1916, he resigned and retired. The subsequent- months showed only too clearly, .the tactical wisdom of. the campaign he featured . and launched, and in 1917 the problem of ■tlie. .German submarine operations and the groat toll under-water, craft were taking of . Allied shipping, caused very serious concern in Britain and came nearer to turning the tide of enemy fortunes than any other of Germany’s moves since 1914. In, his retirement von Tirpitz was the active head of the Fatherland Party, which was particularly hostile to Great Britain. Throughout the remainder of his life the portion of which was'devoted to the publication in 1919 of his autobiography, “My Memories,”, .he remained loyal to the training,of the Prussian regime land a ,tnan whose great ability and personality were to bo admired unstint- | ingly by friend and foe alike.