Background
Franz Ritter von Keil was born the son of an Austrian army officer at the federal fortress of Mainz, Germany, on September 15, 1862.
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Franz Ritter von Keil
Edit ProfileEducation
Keil entered the navy in 1881 after successful completion of studies at the Naval Academy at Fiume.
Career
He was promoted captain in 1910, rear admiral three years later, and vice admiral in 1917. Keil served as instructor at the Torpedo School in Pola from 1896 to 1900, and it was largely owing to his urgings that the Dual Monarchy bought its first torpedo boat, the Huszar, from Great Britain. In 1907 Keil was placed in charge of the cruiser squadron that was sent to North America. Five years later he was recalled to Vienna to serve as head of the Präsidialkanzlei in the War Ministry, and in 1913 he was the ranking flag officer in the Naval Section of the War Ministry.
Rear Admiral Keil entered the war as naval commandant of the port of Pola on the Adriatic Sea, a post which he held until February 1917, when he took command of the Second Battleship Division. Promotion to vice admiral came in August 1917, and on March 1, 1918, when the new Emperor Charles divided the naval command, making Rear Admiral Miklos Horthy fleet commander and Vice Admiral Franz von Holub head of the Naval Section, Keil was appointed naval adviser to the emperor. This proved to be a meaningless assignment as Charles required all naval chiefs to seek his personal approval before any major operations could be undertaken. In May 1918, Keil was promoted full admiral and that year appointed chief of the Naval Officer Corps. The last naval adviser to the Habsburgs died in Vienna on November 22, 1945.
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Born
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Died
November 22, 1945 (aged 83) -
Nationality
German -
Ethnicity
Education
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1881
Career
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1910
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1912
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1913
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1913
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1917
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May, 1918