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|serviceyears= |rank=Kapitän zur See |branch= |commands= |unit= |battles=U-boat Campaign (World War I) |awards= |relations= |laterwork= }} Captain Christian August Max Ahlmann Valentiner (December 15, 1883 – July 19, 1949) was a German U-boat commander during World War I. He was the third highest-scoring U-boat commander of the war, and was awarded the Pour le Mérite for his achievements. He was also branded a war criminal by the Allies, for killing hundreds of civilians by sinking the without warning on December 30, 1915, contrary to international law. ==Early life== The eldest of the four children of deacon Otto Friedrich Valentiner and Mathilde Julie Valentiner, Valentiner was born in Tondern (Tønder), Province of Schleswig-Holstein. In 1882 the family moved to Ketting on Als where his father held a job as a priest for two years, then moving to Sonderburg (Sønderborg). Valentiner started his time in school in Ketting, then Augustenburg (Augustenborg) and later in Sonderburg on Reimers school. At the age of 18, he joined the Kaiserliche Marine of the German Empire on April 1, 1902, as a Seekadett on the school ship .〔SMS ''Moltke'' was later renamed SMS ''Acheron'' on October 28, 1911. A battlecruiser launched in 1910 was also named SMS ''Moltke'', see for more details.〕 On August 15, 1902, he saved a ship's boy from drowning in Swinemünde's harbour, and received his first of many decorations, the Rettungsmedaille. In 1903, Valentiner joined the naval school where he attended many courses, especially in diving, his preferred topic. He ended his training on the . On May 14, 1903, he saved an able seaman in Heligoland harbour from the waves and certain death, and was awarded the Order of the Crown Medal for his courage and valour in action. On September 29, 1905, he was promoted to Leutnant zur See and in 1907 he became an officer on . He was promoted again on March 30, 1908, to Oberleutnant zur See. From 1908 to 1910, Valentiner was company commander for ''1. Matrosen-Artillerie-Abteilung'' in Kiel. In 1911, Valentiner became an officer on the U-boat salvage ship . In this job, on January 17, 1911, he saved all 30 men of by getting them out of the torpedo tube after it sank in Kiel Harbour due to an unclosed valve in the ventilation shaft. Among the saved crew was Otto Weddigen, later the commander of , and Paul Clarrendorf, the commander of ''U-boot-Abnahme-Kommando'' in Kiel which enlisted U-boat crews. Valentiner received the Order of the Crown 4th class for the life-saving mission. On July 1, 1911, Valentiner took command of the new U-boat . On board he showed incredible skill and boldness and on training manoeuvres he sank several ships with drill torpedoes without ever being sighted. His performance literally changed the German vision of U-boat warfare. On March 22, 1914, Valentiner was promoted to Kapitänleutnant and nine days later he became a teacher at the U-boat school in Kiel, a position he held until the outbreak of World War I on August 4, 1914, when the United Kingdom declared war on the German Empire. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Max Valentiner」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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