The Pour le Mérite was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order for German soldiers until the end of World War I.

[1] Schultze was born on 11 May 1884 in Oldenburg and following his primary education, he joined the Kaiserliche Marine (Imperial Navy) on 7 April 1900 as a Seekadett (sea cadet).

He initially served on König during World War I before transferring to the U-boat service in 1915, taking command of U-63.

He then served as a first officer of the admiral staff of the commander in chief of the U-boats at the Mediterranean Sea.

While in this capacity, with headquarters in Wilhelmshaven, Schultze was responsible for the area stretched from the North Sea to the West Coast and to Denmark and it also controlled the Schelde Delta.