Manfred von Richthofen Trivia Quiz

Answer: The Red Baron

"For no particular reason" is what Richthofen said when he decided to paint his Fokker plane a glaring bright red. When he did this absolutely everyone knew that the red plane meant that Richthofen was in the pilot's seat. The name "Red Baron" was coined by the British media in 1916.

Answer: Uhlans (cavalry regiment)

The Red Baron graduated from Gross-Lichterfelde in 1911 and was posted as a Officer Candidate to his first choice of cavalry unit. He was commissioned as a Leutnant in 1912 to his unit which was then based in Milicz, Poland.

Answer: 80

The closet German ace to the Red Baron's mark was Oberleutnant Ernst Udet with 62. The leading Allied ace was the Frenchman Capitaine René Fonck with 75.

Answer: 1892

He was born on May 2 1892 to Albrecht von Richthofen who reached the rank of Major in the Leibkürassieren-Regiment 1 and his wife, Kunigunde.

Answer: 17th September 1916

He was embroiled in battle with an Englishman. Apparently they were flying so close together there was fear of a mid air collision. The Englishman drifted into the Baron's sights and he shot at his propeller which he succeeded in hitting. The Englishman managed to land his plane but he died later while he was being transferred to hospital. Manfred erected a gravestone in memory of his fallen enemies.

Answer: Man of peace

Manfred was named after his great uncle who had been a senior officer in the Prussian Army.

Answer: Bullet wound to the head

He said that it was caused by an error in judgment as he thought that the observer of the British plane he was chasing was too far away to hit him.

Answer: Pour le Mérite

It was awarded to him after his 16th victory. Despite its French name, this was a highly distinguished Prussian, and later, German honour. It's also the only official honour that has been revived (with modifications) in of Germany since 1945.

Answer: Lothar and Bolko

Interestingly, Lothar von Richthofen was no dunce in the air and was an ace in his own right. He claimed 40 scalps and survived the war only to die in a civilian plane crash in 1922. Bolko who went on to live a long life and died in 1971.

Answer: No

Even though he claimed them as kills they weren't officially recognised. They were probably listed as damaged.

Answer: Captain Field E. Kindley

Kindley went on to record 12 victories. Even though he was creditied with the victory, the evidence is circumstantial. However he received his fourth kill in the same vicinity as where Lothar went down.

Answer: 16th August 1917

40 days after he was shot down and seriously injured he was allowed back in the air. He was not 100% well, still having constant headaches and he was still weak, but he nonetheless managed to claim his 58th victory.

Answer: True

He did indeed have a sister named Ilse. Her full name was Elisabeth Therese Luise Marie and she was born 8th August 1890 and died in 1963.

Answer: Hauptmann Oswald Bölcke

They met in a train dining car. Richthofen, a new recruit to the air force, recognised the man from newspapers who had achieved four aerial victories. From that moment they became good friends. On 27th October 1916 Bölcke had a mid-air collision with fellow pilot Leutnant Erwin Böhme. When he hit the ground his skull was crushed and was killed instantly. He had 40 aerial victories.

Answer: True

It is indeed correct. 79 were scored against British manned aircraft accounting for the death, wounding, or capture of 126 British pilots. He rarely ever engaged the French in combat.

Answer: They formed a squadron whose sole purpose was to attack the red plane

German propaganda stated there were special squadrons formed by the British, who were also offering inducements such as cash rewards and a Victoria Cross.

See:
Burrows, William E. "Richthofen: A True History of the Red Baron". London: Rupert Hart-Davis, 1970, at page 131.

Answer: Because his plane was painted red

The misleading link with socialism was sometimes made in World War I in Germany and in the Weimar period, too.

Answer: 5,000 pounds, a promotion and his own plane

This could be fact, or it could have been German propaganda. The information was found in "The Red Baron: Manfred Von Richthofen", translated by Peter Kilduff. An autobiography composed of the Red Baron's own letters and inclusions from his brothers and Captain Roy Brown. Manfred claimed he saw a report of the reward in an issue of the "Vossische Zeitung", a leading German newspaper of the time.

Answer: Sopwith Camel F 1

The Sopwith Camel F 1 was famous for shooting down more enemy aircraft then any other allied plane. It was also the plane that was ultimately used to shoot down the Red Baron.

Answer: Fokker Dr. I Triplane

The last flight was indeed in the Fokker Dr. I. A single seater scout which arrived on the western front in August 1917. It reached speeds of up to 122mph at 8,900ft.

Answer: True

Buried near Amiens he wore the 1st Uhlan's uniform which he died in. Twelve Australian soldiers formed the guard of honour and six Australian flying officers, who were all decorated ,were his pallbearers. A fitting honour for a war hero. However at the family's request his remains were later exhumed and transferred to Germany to be given a formal state funeral in Berlin.

This information was found in "The Red Baron: Manfred Von Richthofen", translated by Peter Kilduff.

Answer: Belgium

The sole non-British pilot was indeed from Belgium and was flying in a Spad VII at the time.

Answer: 19

Among his 19 decorations he received honours from other countries such as Turkey, Bulgaria and Austria-Hungary as well as from Germany.

Answer: Order of Military Valour

A very lucky man to have so many honours!

Answer: Captain A. Roy Brown

On Sunday, 21st April 1918 the Red Baron flew his last flight. There is controversy about who actually shot down Manfred von Richthofen. Australian gun batteries were in operation in the vicinity of the dog fight between Brown and Richthofen. Brown was credited with shooting down the plane but the 53rd Australian field artillery battery, 5th division and the 24th machine gun company also claimed credit. Whoever shot him down - and both claims are plausible - it was the Red Baron's last flight and at the age of 25. Germany's greatest air ace was dead. This is the end of my quiz. All my sources come from three books. (1) "The Red Baron: Manfred Von Richthofen", translated by Peter Kilduff, (2) "The Red Baron: Beyond the Legend" by Peter Kilduff and (3) "The Red Baron's Last Flight: A Mystery Investigated", by Norman Franks and Alan Bennett.