Gunter Behnisch
was born ( June 12, 1922) in the village of Lockwitz, south of Dresden, Germany. He was the second of three children.
His father, a veteran of the First World War, was an elementary school teacher and strong social democrat.
Behnisch was influenced by his parents' views and by the economic, social and political crisis of the time.
When the Nazis seized power in 1933, his father was arrested and dismissed from his post.
In 1935 he was re-employed, but sent to the industrial town of Chemnitz, often called "the Saxon Manchester", noted for its textile industry and technical colleges
In December 1939, aged 17, Behnisch volunteered for the navy. By so doing, he avoided the one-year compulsory labour service, and the tougher conditions facing conscripted soldiers. As an officer cadet, he faced lengthy training to become a U-boat officer, which included voyages from the Baltic to the Mediterranean.
On 1 May 1942, he was promoted to lieutenant (Leutnant zur See). Finally, on 1 December 1943, he was promoted to senior lieutenant (Oberleutnant zur See) and on 4 October 1944 became one of the youngest U-boat commanders in the German navy. By that time, he had been awarded the Iron Cross (2nd class) after serving in Toulon. His boat, U2337,
When the War ended in Europe, in May 1945, he surrendered his vessel to the British at Kristiansand Sud, Norway. They ordered him to sail it to Scotland. He remained a POW from May 1945 until 1947, quartered in Featherstone Camp in Northumberland, together with 4,000 to 5,000 other officers, many of them older, many university educated. They underwent a "re-education" programme and could also study sciences, languages, architecture and much more.
After training and working as a bricklayer, Behnisch studied, from 1947 to 1951, at the Technical University in Stuttgart. He then worked for Rolf Gutbrod, who was to become known for his Liederhalle in Stuttgart. This apprenticeship lasted for one year,
after which...
