RISE IN RANKS
Born in Quanditten, East Prussia on October 2, 1854, Julius Guido von Usedom came from a Pomeranian noble family… the son of Lieutenant Kuno von Usedom (1804–1855). The young Guido joined the Imperial German Navy on May 31, 1871 . After his training and first tours of duty on board, Guido was given his first command. For a time he served as adjutant to Prince Heinrich of Prussia.
In October 1895, Usedom, with the rank of Korvettenkapitän (lieutenant commander), was in command of the aviso (dispatch vessel) SMS Pfeil. He served in this capacity until the end of the year.
In March 1896, Usedom was in command of the aviso SMS Jagd for six months. From September 1896 until July 1898, he was in command of the coastal defense ship SMS Hagen. He was also made a senior Korvettenkapitän during this time.
Usedom then took command of the large cruiser SMS Hertha, which had just been put into service, on which he was promoted to the new rank of Fregattenkapitän (commander). He was eventually promoted to the rank of Kapitän zur See (captain) on September 18, 1899.
THE BOXER REBELLION
Both Usedom and the Hertha were deployed to the Mediterranean and East Asia. At the beginning of the Boxer Rebellion, the commander of the East Asia Squadron (Vice Admiral Felix von Bendemann) ordered landing corps to be formed from the crews of all German cruisers to help protect the European embassies in Peking. Usedom became the leader of the entire German expeditionary force of around five hundred men. This group was subordinate to the British commander of the foreign armed forces involved, Vice Admiral Edward Seymour. Usedom simultaneously served as its chief of staff.
On June 10, 1900, the entire expeditionary force left Tanggu by rail for Peking. The advance was stopped by Chinese troops and insurgents, forcing the expeditionary force to withdraw by land. The commander of the British landing corps, Captain John Jellicoe (who later became the commander of the Grand Fleet in the Battle of Jutland), was wounded. In this distressed situation, Seymour requested the use of Usedom’s troops. He was said to have spoken the historical phrase “the Germans to the front”.
Due to his experience with the landing corps, Usedom was relieved from command of the Hertha in September 1900… and assigned to the staff of the commander-in-chief of the allied troops in China (which enforced the end of the uprising). Parallel to this task, he had already been formally appointed as wing adjutant to the Guangxu Emperor on July 21, 1900. On April 5, 1902, Usedom was awarded the Pour le Mérite for his achievements in China.
PRE-WAR YEARS
From August 1902 until October 1904, Usedom took command of the imperial yacht SMS Hohenzollern. He then became Inspector of the I. Marine Inspection. In this capacity, Usedom was promoted to rear admiral on March 14, 1905.
During the same period, Usedom was named deputy of the chief shipyard director in September 1905 as well as chief shipyard director of the imperial shipyard at Kiel in January 1906. On August 21, 1908 he was promoted to vice admiral… and with his retirement at the end of 1910, Usedom was brevetted admiral.
SONDERCOMMANDO TURKEY
As war began to spread across Europe in August 1914, Usedom was reactivated and sent to Constantinople as head of the special command in Ottoman Turkey. Because the signs of an operation by the Triple Entente against the Dardanelles increased and the risk of conquering the capital of the Ottoman Empire increased, Usedom was appointed commander-in-chief of the Straits in agreement with the Turkish government.
Having extremely limited resources, Usedom expanded his coastal positions by (1) pulling garrisons from Turkish forts further inland and (2) laying minefields. In mid-February 1915, Usedom managed to man the heavy artillery in the most important forts along the Straits. He also managed to lay extensive minefields IN the Straits. The French battleship Bouvet and the British battleships Irresistible and Ocean were sunk by his mines during the Dardanelles campaign. Usedom was bestowed the rank of field marshal by the Ottoman General Staff.
The course of the Gallipoli campaign was determined less by Usedom than by the leadership of the Turkish armies under German general Otto Liman von Sanders. But in working closely with Sanders, Usedom netted future rewards. In August 1915, he became the Kaiser’s adjutant general and was awarded the oak leaf clusters to his Pour le Mérite.
FINAL YEARS
On January 27, 1916, Usedom received the substantial promotion to full admiral. He remained in Ottoman Turkey for the duration of the war before finally retiring on November 26, 1918.
Guido von Usedom passed away in Schwerin on February 24, 1925 at the age of seventy.