Until seven months ago, the sight of a bright red Fokker triplane on the horizon struck fear in the hearts of Allied pilots.
Manfred von Richthofen had many nicknames – the Red Baron, le Petit Rouge, le Diable Rouge, the Red Knight – all of which were synonymous with resounding victory. He scored 80 combat wins in two years, making him the highest-scoring ace of the Great War.
But long before his domination of the skies above Europe, the future legend was merely a young cadet with a thirst for adventure.
Richthofen was born to an aristocratic family in Breslau, Germany, in 1892. He was active as a young boy; he loved riding horses, hunting and participating in gymnastics. He began his military training at the age of 11, and joined a cavalry unit eight years later. He was a reconnaissance officer on both the Eastern and Western Fronts during the first years of the war.
But Richthofen was disappointed about not being able to participate in direct combat. He says in his autobiography released last year: "I am a restless spirit. Consequently, my activity before Verdun [my first air victory] can only be described as boring.
"At the beginning I was in the trenches at a spot where nothing happened. Then I became a dispatch bearer and hoped to have some adventures. But I was mistaken." Richthofen sent a letter to his commanding general requesting a transfer. In May 1915, he joined the flying service.
The Red Baron takes flight
Richthofen worked as a reconnaissance observer on the Eastern and Western Fronts in 1915, and fell in love with being in the air.
"It was a glorious feeling to be so high above the earth, to be master of the air. I didn't care a bit where I was and I felt extremely sad when my pilot thought it was time to go down again. I should have liked best to start immediately on another flight." He began pilot training in October 1915, worrying the war would end before the adventure of his first air battle.
Richthofen met Oswald Boelcke that month, an ace pilot whom Richthofen idolized.
His encounter with Boelcke strengthened his resolve: "My whole aim and ambition became concentrated upon learning how to manipulate the sticks myself. [Until then] I had been nothing but an observer."
Richthofen completed his training and started flying a two-seater Albatross C.III in April 1916. He scored his first victory over Verdun, but received no official credit. Regardless, the Red Baron was proud of his win, the first of many.
Boelcke's squadron
Boelcke came to the Eastern Front in August 1916, searching for new pilots for his new fighter unit. While Richthofen enjoyed his time at the Eastern Front, his mind raced again with thoughts of adventure on the Western Front with Boelcke's squadron.
"I did not feel bored by the fighting in Russia. On the contrary, we made extensive and interesting flights. We bombed the Russians at their stations. Still, the idea of fighting again on the Western Front attracted me. There is nothing finer for a young cavalry officer than the chase of the air." Richthofen soon set off for the Western Front. He earned his first official victory, downing British ace Major Lanoe Hawker in November 1916.
After scoring 16 victories, The Baron earned the Ordre pour le Merite, the highest honour in the German military, and was promoted to commander of the Eleventh Chasing Squadron. The team's distinctive red planes would earn it the moniker "The Flying Circus." The squadron shot down 22 British planes in April of last year alone, taking Richthofen's personal tally to 52, and prompting the Royal Flying Corps to dub the month "Bloody April."
Baron shot down
The Red Baron was shot down just east of Lens, France, in March 1917, but managed to escape without injury. He was not so lucky last July, when he was shot down above Wervicq, Belgium, and sustained a serious head injury.
It was several weeks before The Red Baron returned to combat, this time in his famous red Fokker triplane in which he earned 20 more victories, and cemented his status as the highest-scoring ace in the Great War.
The flying legend was finally brought down in April. The Baron was chasing Canadian pilot Wilfrid May, when he was attacked by May's superior, Canadian Captain Arthur Brown.
Brown has been credited with firing the single bullet that tore through the Baron's chest and killed him the day after his 80th victory.
Copyright (c) CW Media Inc.