Adalbert Zuckschwerdt was captain (Korvettenkapitän) of the German

German Empire

The German Empire refers to Germany during the "Second Reich" period from the unification of Germany and proclamation of Wilhelm I as German Emperor on 18 January 1871, to 1918, when it became a federal republic after defeat in World War I and the abdication of the Emperor, Wilhelm II.The German...

 raider, the SMS Cormoran

SMS Cormoran

SMS Cormoran or SMS Cormoran II was built at Danzig, Germany in 1909 for the Russian merchant fleet and named SS Ryazan...

, that sailed from the German colony of Tsingtao (Qingdao

Qingdao

' also known in the West by its postal map spelling Tsingtao, is a major city with a population of over 8.715 million in eastern Shandong province, Eastern China. Its built up area, made of 7 urban districts plus Jimo city, is home to about 4,346,000 inhabitants in 2010.It borders Yantai to the...

 today), China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

, until she was stranded and finally interned at Guam

Guam

Guam is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States located in the western Pacific Ocean. It is one of five U.S. territories with an established civilian government. Guam is listed as one of 16 Non-Self-Governing Territories by the Special Committee on Decolonization of the United...

 by the Americans

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Upon his ship's internment, Zuckschwerdt preempted the confiscation of the vessel by the Americans by igniting preplanted explosives and scuttling

Scuttling of SMS Cormoran

The Scuttling of SMS Cormoran off Guam on April 7, 1917 was the result of the United States entry into World War I and the internment of the Germanmerchant raider SMS Cormoran...

 her in Apra

APRA

APRA or Apra may refer to:* American Popular Revolutionary Alliance , a Peruvian political party* Australasian Performing Right Association, a copyright collecting society...

 Harbor. He was captured soon after by Captain William P. Cronan

William P. Cronan

William Pigott Cronan was a United States Navy Captain who served as the 19th Naval Governor of Guam. During his tenure in the Navy, he became decorated, commanded a number of ships, and came to be known as "the most popular man in the Navy". He participated in the Battle of Santiago de Cuba...

 who called him "a brave man" for his actions.

Zuckschwerdt also served on SMS Roon

SMS Roon

SMS Roon"SMS" stands for "Seiner Majestät Schiff", or "His Majesty's Ship" in German. was the lead ship of her class of armored cruisers of the Imperial German Navy. The ship was authorized under the second Naval Law in 1902, and built at the Imperial Dockyard in Kiel at the cost of 15.3 million...

 as an artillery officer (Artillerieoffizier) when she visited Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

 in 1913.

He was later the Konteradmiral commanding the Loire

Loire

Loire is an administrative department in the east-central part of France occupying the River Loire's upper reaches.-History:Loire was created in 1793 when after just 3½ years the young Rhône-et-Loire department was split into two. This was a response to counter-Revolutionary activities in Lyon...

/French South Coast command in 1943. On 23 March 1944 Adalbert Zuckschwerdt received the German Cross

German Cross

The German Cross was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 17 November 1941 as an award ranking higher than the Iron Cross First Class but below the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross respectively ranking higher than the War Merit Cross First Class with Swords but below the Knight's Cross of the War Merit...

 in Silver as Seekommandant Languedoc

Languedoc

Languedoc is a former province of France, now continued in the modern-day régions of Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées in the south of France, and whose capital city was Toulouse, now in Midi-Pyrénées. It had an area of approximately 42,700 km² .-Geographical Extent:The traditional...

.