Early Aviation Career and Aceship
Rudolf Berthold was born on March 24, 1891, into a forester’s family. Life in the remote forest did not appeal to the young Bavarian, and after finishing school, he chose a military career. After serving two years in the Brandenburg Infantry Regiment, Rudolf was captivated by the romance of aerial flight and, in 1913, secured a transfer to aviation.
From the first days of the war, he participated in combat operations on the Western Front as an observer in a reconnaissance aviation detachment. For flights deep into enemy territory during the Battle of the Marne, Berthold received his first award: the Iron Cross.
In the winter of 1914-1915, Rudolf completed a flight school course and returned to his unit with a pilot’s diploma at the end of January. On January 11, 1916, a fighter aviation group, one of the first in the German army, was formed based on the reconnaissance detachment where Berthold served. Rudolf quickly mastered the Fokker E.I fighter and achieved his first victory on February 2.
On February 16, he shot down his fifth aircraft, entering the list of aces, but soon after, he was involved in an aviation accident and only returned to the front three months later. In late August, Berthold was transferred to the 4th Fighter Squadron. By September, he had increased his tally to 10 victories and was awarded the “Blue Max” (Pour le Mérite).
Wartime Heroics and Injuries
Until August 1917, Rudolf served on the French sector of the front, where the enemy offered little aerial resistance. However, when he took command of Jasta 18 in September, fighting against the British, he had to engage in intense daily battles. Within a month, his combat score doubled, reaching 28 victories. In early October, Berthold’s right arm was shattered by an explosive bullet. Losing consciousness, he managed to land his aircraft.
Even before his recovery, Rudolf received orders for his appointment as commander of the 2nd Fighter Wing. Despite his arm remaining partially paralyzed after the injury, Berthold resumed flying in March 1918. Mastering the new Fokker D.VII fighter, he achieved another aerial victory on May 28.
August 10 marked Major Berthold’s last aerial combat. By this day, he had accounted for 42 enemy aircraft shot down. Rudolf led his wing in an attack on British De Havilland bombers, which were escorted by fighters. In a few minutes, he managed to set two “Havillands” on fire. However, in the heat of battle, the pilot did not notice a Sopwith coming up behind him. A burst of machine-gun fire severed the control rods, and the uncontrolled aircraft plummeted to the ground from an altitude of 2,000 meters. When the crippled pilot was pulled from the wreckage, no one believed he would live. But against doctors’ predictions, Rudolf began to recover two months later.
Post-War Struggles and Tragic End
Berthold learned of Germany’s capitulation while still in the hospital. In February 1919, Rudolf became commandant of the civilian airfield in Dobritz. But, as it turned out, the war was not over for him. In April, a revolution erupted in Bavaria, and communist rebels occupied Munich. In response, volunteer detachments were formed to defend the democratic government. Berthold formed and led the “Iron Brigade,” which, on May 1, together with other detachments, drove the rebels out of Munich.
After the civil war, Berthold settled in Hamburg, but the revolution caught up with him there too. In March 1921, street fighting broke out in the city. Rudolf was stopped by a rebel patrol on one of the streets. He was demanded to surrender his weapons and awards. Berthold refused to remove his decorations. He was then thrown to the ground and strangled with the ribbon from his Pour le Mérite cross.