Gefreiter Rudolf Streifinger
Gefreiter Rudolf Streifinger was born on 12 November 1920 in Kiesling, Landkreis Passau in Bavaria, Germany. His identification tag number was: L.N. 15443/41 K.
Gefreiter Streifinger served in the Kriegsmarine. He was killed in action on 11 September 1944. He was presumably sailing on a Kriegsmarine inland vessel used to evacuate troops in Zeeland.
In September 1944, the Kriegsmarine, under the leadership of Sonderstab Knuth, organised a large‑scale evacuation of the German 15th Army across the Western Scheldt, as it risked being cut off by the Allied advance. Immediately after the order was issued, all available surface vessels were routed via Dordrecht to the Scheldt so the fleet could quickly concentrate for the operation. Between 7 and 20 September, a total of 100,000 soldiers, along with thousands of vehicles, artillery pieces, and horse‑drawn wagons, were ferried across using the routes Breskens–Vlissingen, Terneuzen–Hansweert, and later Ellewoutsdijk–Hansweert, while Allied air forces and artillery increasingly attacked the ports and waterways. Despite heavy bombardments on Breskens, Terneuzen, and Vlissingen, the evacuation was largely successful thanks to a growing fleet of ferries, KFKs (Kriegsfischkutter), artillery carriers, and minesweepers.1
Gefreiter Streifinger likely died during this operation in the Zeeland area. He was buried in row 14, grave 15 in the German section of the municipal cemetery in Dordrecht. On 22 July 1947, he was transferred to the German military cemetery in Ysselsteyn. He is buried in block CO – row 3 – grave 71.2.
