Hermann Göring is remembered today as one of the most powerful figures in the Nazi regime, but long before he became a political leader, he was a decorated fighter ace of World War I. His wartime record and aristocratic background set him apart from many of the men who would later surround Adolf Hitler.
Göring brought a certain respectability to the early Nazi movement. While the party was largely built around lower-middle-class nationalists, Göring came from a more privileged background. His mannerisms and bearing reflected the upper classes, a stark contrast to the street-level politics of the movement’s early days.
He was born in January 1893 in Rosenheim, Bavaria. His father, Dr. Heinrich Göring, had served as German consul general in Haiti and had previously been governor general in German South West Africa. Göring was the fourth of five children from his father’s second marriage to Franziska Tiefenbrunn, who came from Bavarian peasant stock.
Much of Göring’s childhood was spent at Veldenstein Castle near Nuremberg. The castle was owned by Hermann Eppenstein, a Jewish doctor who had been knighted by the Austrian emperor and who was romantically involved with Göring’s mother. Göring’s father, already elderly, lived at the castle as well and appeared aware of the arrangement.
Growing up in a medieval castle had a lasting effect on young Hermann. He became fascinated with weapons and military life. At age 11, he was sent to boarding school, which he hated so much that he eventually ran away and returned home, feigning illness. His mother did not send him back.
At 16, Göring followed the traditional path for sons of the upper class and began an army career. He attended the military academy at Berlin-Lichterfelde, where he proved to be an excellent student. He was then commissioned into the 112th Prince Wilhelm Regiment, based in Alsace, a region Germany had taken from France after the Franco-Prussian War.
When World War I broke out, Göring’s early service was not glamorous. He was sent on patrols along the French border, gathering intelligence on enemy positions. The work was dangerous, and he was often shot at by the French and sometimes even shelled by his own side. He received the Iron Cross Second Class for his efforts, but his health suffered, and he ended up in the hospital with rheumatism caused by damp trench conditions.
While recovering, a friend named Bruno Loerzer told Göring about the German air force and encouraged him to apply for a transfer. Göring eagerly submitted a request, but it was denied. Undeterred, he began flying unofficially with Loerzer anyway, sometimes leaving his regiment without permission to fly into action. When authorities caught on, he faced only a light punishment of three weeks’ confinement, which was never carried out.
Loerzer wanted Göring as his permanent observer, and after negotiations, Göring was transferred to Flying Battalion No. 25. The work was risky. Loerzer piloted the plane over enemy territory while Göring took photographs from the rear cockpit, marked maps, and manned the rear machine gun when threatened by Allied fighters.
Göring became known for his daring. He earned the nickname “the flying trapezist” for the risks he took to get clear photographs, often leaning out of the cockpit while clutching a bulky camera under heavy ground fire. Both he and Loerzer were decorated for gallantry by Crown Prince Wilhelm of Prussia, receiving the Iron Cross First Class.
Göring wanted more, though. He completed pilot training and later wrote of the experience, saying he felt like a little god when up in the air looking down at the earth. His first aerial victory came on November 16, 1915, while flying a two-seater Albatros C.I. He shot down a French Maurice Farman MF.7.
In September 1916, Göring was transferred to a fighter squadron, and by November he had moved again, this time to Jasta 5. On November 2, 1916, he was wounded in the hip during an attack on a Royal Aircraft Factory R.E.8. Six Nieuports set upon his Halberstadt D.II, but he managed to fly the damaged plane back to base before crash-landing. He spent six weeks in the hospital.
In March 1917, his old comrade Loerzer arranged for Göring to join his squadron, Jasta 26. By May 1917, Göring had shot down seven enemy aircraft, surpassing the threshold to be considered an ace. This led to his first command, Jasta 27, based near Lille in northern France.
Göring worked hard to secure aircraft, pilots, and spare parts for his squadron, which was severely short of everything. But he was not well liked by the men under his command. He was noted for his standoffish manner.
His personal plane at the time was an Albatros D.III painted black with a white nose and tail. On June 8, 1917, Göring led ten aircraft into a large dogfight with about twelve Royal Flying Corps Nieuports over the Lys River. An Australian pilot, Second Lieutenant Frank Slee, managed to get on Göring’s tail and hit his plane several times with tracer fire before Göring turned the tables and shot Slee down. His tally now stood at eight.
Better aircraft became available, and Göring moved to the Albatros D.V. He took part in the heavy air campaign over Flanders during the autumn 1917 battle known as Passchendaele. By the end of it, his tally had risen to 16 enemy planes shot down.
An application was made for the Pour le Mérite, the coveted award known as the Blue Max. It was rejected, however, because fighter pilots were now required to have shot down 20 aircraft to be considered. Göring was becoming increasingly exhausted, touchy, and argumentative, which did little to improve his relationships with fellow pilots.
A command change saw Jasta 27 merged into a new fighter wing, Jagdgeschwader 3, under Loerzer’s command. Göring updated his aircraft again, this time flying a Fokker Dr.I triplane, the same model used by the Red Baron, but painted green with a white nose and tail.
On his 25th birthday, April 7, 1918, Göring shot down an R.E.8 of the newly formed Royal Air Force, bringing his total to 18 victories. He still had not reached the 20-kill minimum, but General Ernst von Hoeppner, commanding the German air force, put his name forward for the Blue Max once again. This time the application was accepted, and Göring received the famous medal worn around the neck.
His victories continued. On June 3, 1918, flying a Fokker D.VII, he shot down a French Breguet 14. He added a SPAD 7 on June 9 and a SPAD 13 on June 17, bringing his total kills to 21.
By then, Germany’s most famous fighter ace, Manfred von Richthofen, was dead. The Red Baron had been killed by Australian ground fire after chasing a Canadian pilot low over British lines. His successor to command the famous Flying Circus, Wilhelm Reinhardt, was killed in a flying accident in July 1918 while Göring and other aces attended an exhibition in Berlin showcasing new aircraft.
There was much speculation about who would take command of the high-scoring unit. In a move that surprised many, the command chose Göring, despite his relatively modest score of 21 kills. His command style was notable. He often stayed on the ground, allowing his flight commanders, many with far higher scores, to lead once airborne.
On July 18, 1918, Göring joined them in his distinctive yellow Fokker D.VII with a red nose, leading the squadron to attack Allied bombers near Nivelles. In the dogfight that followed, Jagdgeschwader 1 shot down 13 enemy machines for the loss of two of their own. Göring claimed his final aerial victory, a SPAD, bringing his tally to 22.
Some of the aces he commanded had far higher scores. Erich Löwenhardt had 54 victories by the war’s end, and Manfred von Richthofen’s brother Lothar had 40.
When defeat came, it was a shock to the officers and men of Jagdgeschwader 1. Göring ordered the squadron’s planes destroyed rather than handed over to the victorious Allies.
Hermann Göring ended his military service with a collection of high decorations, but he was a bitter and angry man. He blamed Germany’s defeat on Jews and communists at home, embracing the so-called stab-in-the-back theory. This view eventually brought him into common cause with Hitler and the Nazis.
In 1922, when Hitler was told that Göring had just joined his party, he reportedly said, “Splendid. A war ace with the Pour le Mérite. Imagine it. Excellent propaganda.”