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Manfred von Richthofen. Photo by C. J. von D眉hren.

Top 10 Astonishing Facts about Manfred von Richthofen

Manfred Von Richthofen was called the ace of aces for his valor in air combat. He was regarded as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during world war I.

He was born on 2nd May the year 1892 and he died on the 21st of April the year 1918 at the age of 25. However, Richthofen is considered the ace of aces of the war him being officially credited with 80 air combat victories.

He famously grew with each new victory he had and eventually became the most famous and feared pilot of the war.

Here are top 10 astonishing facts about Manfred von Richthofen:

1. Manfred had a curious way to celebrate his victories

He celebrated his first official victory on September 17th the year 1916 shortly after being transferred to a fighter squadron.

However, to mark the occasion he ordered a silver cup for himself that was engraved with the date as well as the make of the enemy aircraft he shot down which was a British F.E. 2b.

Interestingly Richthofen ordered another new cup for every subsequent Victory he had.

Furthermore, he had to discontinue the ritual on his 60th triumph simply because silver was becoming scarce due to the war that scourged Germany.

2. He became Squadron leader at the age of 24

Portrait Manfred von Richthofen. Photo by Cassowary Colorizations.

Richthofen famously grew with each new victory he had and therefore he became an ace on October 16th the year 1916 and won the Blue Max formally known as the Pour le Merite citation for his 16th confirmed kill in January the year 1917.

However, that same month Richthofen was appointed commander of Jagdstaffel.

3. Manfred joined the German army in the year 1912

Richthofen joined the German army in the year 1912 and when war broke out two years later he served as a mounted scout on both the eastern and the western fronts in the war’s opening months.

However later his cavalry regiment was forced to give up its horses and fight in the trenches alongside the infantry.

Richthofen pondered a transfer to supply and logistics but then reconsidered and pushed to join Germany鈥檚 fledging air cops instead.

Interestingly he wrote this to his superiors 鈥淚 have not gone to war in order to collect cheese and eggs, but for another purpose.鈥�

4. Richthofen acquired his famous triplane at the end of his career

Manfred being ever mindful of his growing status as a celebrity in early 1917  painted the wings of his aircraft a brilliant shade of red.

However later he would color his entire plane crimson and eventually he became known to friend and foe alike as 鈥渢he Red Knight鈥�, 鈥渢he little Red鈥�, 鈥渢he Red Devil鈥�, and finally 鈥渢he Red Baron.鈥�

Interestingly he only began flying his signature Fokker Dr. I triplane in the early months of his life and nearly three-quarters of his victories were won in various makes of Albatross as well as the Halberstadt D. II.

5. He was raised in a wealthy family

Picture postcard of Manfred von Richthofen. Photo by Nicola Perscheid. .

Richthofen was born on May 2nd the year 1882 in the town of Kleinburg which today the town isn鈥檛 in Germany at all however it’s near Wroclaw in Poland.

Richthofen was raised in an aristocratic Prussian family and he inherited the medieval title of Freiherr which means 鈥渇ree lord.鈥�

The designation is roughly equal to a baron in English however it鈥檚 one of the lower levels of nobility.

6. He became a best-selling author

After being hospitalized following a crash in July of the year 1917 he penned a shamelessly self-aggrandizing autobiography from the hospital bed.

The book was entitled Der rote Kampffliegeri in English known as 鈥淭he Red Battle Flier鈥�. However, the book sold well in Germany and it was translated into English the following year.

Interestingly Richthofen was later embarrassed by the boasts he had made and even hoped to edit out some of the book’s more self-serving aspects unluckily he did not get the chance.

7. Manfred’s first kills were not counted

His very first air-to-air kill was never officially counted however when he was serving as an observer and rear gunner on a two-seat reconnaissance plane.

In late 1915 he shot down a French pusher bi- plane above the Champagne sector. Since the enemy machine went down over unfriendly territory the victory couldn鈥檛 be confirmed as such was never added to his official tally of 80 kills.

8. There was a controversy that surrounded his death

On the morning of April 21st the year, 1918 Richthofen was killed in action near Somme.

He met his end while chasing a 22-year-old rookie flier from the Canadian prairies named Wilfred May.

However, during the low-level dogfight, Richthofen was fatally struck in the torso by a 303 round fired by either of May鈥檚 squadron mates Roy Brown or by Australian army machine gunners in the trenches below.

Interestingly the angle of Manfred鈥檚 wounds suggested that it was indeed ground fire that killed the Red Baron.

Furthermore, the wounded ace who was still wearing his pajamas beneath his flight suit when he was hit managed to force land his plane in a meadow but died from his injuries just as Allied infantrymen arrived at the crash site.

9. His enemies buried him with full military honors

Manfred with his red-painted three-decker. Photo by Vitold Muratov. .

Richthofen鈥檚 body was turned over to a nearby Australian fighter squadron who buried him with all the pomp and ceremony of a genuine war hero.

However, his largely intact aircraft on the other hand was pulled apart by souvenir hunting soldiers.

His body was disinterred in the year 1925 and repatriated to Germany for a second funeral.

10. His wrecked plane became a trophy

Manfred-von-Richthofen-Street. Photo by Colin Smith on geo.hlipp.de. .

The seat from Manfred鈥檚 famous red tri-plane was recovered by Brown and later handed over to the Royal Canadian Military Institute where it鈥檚 been displayed for decades along with some of the plane鈥檚 fabric and a wingtip.

However, despite what many believe the hole that鈥檚 clearly visible in the back of the seat isn鈥檛 from the fatal shot.