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Second World War Iron Cross |
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This image shows the
backing plate used to hold the Iron Cross 1st Class into position.
The 2nd class and the 1st Class were 44mm square and the Knight's Cross was 48mm square. Frames were made from an alloy of copper nickel & zinc, polished and sometimes lacquered. Towards the end of the war some were zinc only. They were dull. The core was iron. Some manufacturers started to use other materials, notably brass, as shown left, but were pulled back into line by the authorities. |
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There is speculation that the brass cored versions were originally made for the Kriegsmarine to avoid the problem of iron cored versions rusting in the humid, salt water atmosphere. |
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 The
Clasp for the Roll of Honour for the Navy
was intended to honour those recorded for performing heroic deeds. It
consisted of oak-leaves with an anchor, on which a swastika was
superimposed. It was clipped to the ribbon of the Iron Cross Second
Class and worn from the buttonhole. Very few were ever awarded. |
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 From
July 1942 accounts of heroic acts were recorded on the "Roll of
Honor of the German Army"
(equivalent to the British "Mentioned in Dispatches"). From 30
January 1944 soldiers receiving this honor were awarded a gilded metal Roll
of Honor Clasp; it was intended for men who, having
won the Iron Cross First and Second Class, further distinguished
themselves. |
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 The
Luftwaffe
Roll of Honor Clasp was instituted on 5 July 1944. It
consisted of a small gilt-metal wreath of oak-leaves containing a
Luftwaffe eagle and swastika. It was worn on the ribbon of the Iron
Cross 2nd Class ribbon (and was not worn if the ribbon was not worn). it
was awarded to members who had received the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd
Class. |
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Medal as per the Knights Cross of the Iron Cross (see left) with swords added as per this photo. |
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Some details from http://www.feldgrau.com/index.html |
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Post World War 2 |
The "de-nazified" Iron Crosses |
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| After WW2 the use or wearing of anything that had a swastika on it was outlawed. Therefore men who had won the Iron Cross at any level were disallowed from wearing it. In 1957 the rules were relaxed a little and men who were eligible were re-issued with a "politically correct" version of the 1939 Iron Cross as shown above. | |
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A group of 1957 type Iron
Crosses.
Comprising a Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with oakleaves, Iron Cross 1st class, Iron Cross 2nd class, 1st class clasp and 2nd class clasp on a length of ribbon, along with two single ribbon bars for the 1939 Iron Cross 2nd class. |
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Unofficial 1830 version of the 1813 Iron Cross 2nd Class |
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Iron
Cross 2nd Class of 1813: silver construction, 38x38
mm. Private or unofficial issue with the year of production
"1830" engraved on the obverse and "F.W.F.v.P."
(for Friedrich Wilhelm, King of Prussia) on the reverse. Much of
the original black coating, especially on the obverse, was removed in
the past.
An interesting example, most likely produced as a substitute for wear in lieu of the awarded piece, the distribution of which could be delayed for a period of more than ten years due to the limitations of the original manufacturing process. |
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This is how the deed begins which established the Iron Cross signed by King Frederick William III (in German: Friedrich Wilhelm III) of Prussia in Breslau. The deed is dated 10 March 1813. The best-known German medal has its origins in the War of Liberation against Napoleon. The Iron Cross was designed by Karl Friedrich Schinkel, the Prussian architect and sculptor. The spirit of the War of Liberation is reflected in the way the medal was awarded. The Iron Cross was awarded regardless of rank to officers, non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel. One out of every twenty combatants was awarded the Iron Cross for his commitment during the war. Some 9,000 awards were issued directly, other recipients had to wait until persons who had already been decorated died and their crosses could be awarded anew. Prussia was a poor country that had to economise. During the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 to 1871 the Iron Cross was reinstituted. Its design was retained, but the date of its establishment was changed on its face. Members of non-Prussian force contingents, too, were now eligible for this award. At the beginning of World War I, the Iron Cross was re-established for the third time, by German Emperor William II on 5 August 1914. Of the approximately 13 million who fought in the war, almost one in three was awarded one of the Iron Crosses suspended from a black and white ribbon. In addition, the Iron Cross was for the first time used in a stylised form as a German national emblem. The cloth-covered wings of Germany’s first military aircraft, for instance, were marked with the Iron Cross. During World War II further grades of the Iron Cross were instituted. Test pilot Hanna Reitsch was the only woman to receive the Iron Cross in 1942. Changed into a bar cross, it was also used on tanks and aircraft of the Wehrmacht. Among the officers who participated in the plot to assassinate Hitler on 20 July 1944 were 13 recipients of the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross. 711 recipients of the Knight’s Cross later served in the Bundeswehr, with 114 of them reaching the rank of general. All in all, the number of Iron Crosses issued during the war totalled some 2.3 million. The establishment of the Bundeswehr in the 1950s brought the traditional award for acts of bravery back to mind. It was the only decoration used in the vehicle warehouse in Bonn where Federal Minister of Defence Theodor Blank appointed the first 101 soldiers of the new armed forces. On 1 October 1956 the Federal President gave directions to use the Iron Cross as the official emblem of the Bundeswehr. Today, in the colours blue and silver, it is the symbol of the new Bundeswehr . However, this design does not replace the traditional black national emblem. |
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The framed medals & memorabilia of Erich Hartmann - top ace of all timeGerman Luftwaffe Me-109 pilot shot down 352 planes on the Russian Front.Flew with JG 52 from late 1942 to end of war, Soviet POW for 10 years.Joined the new German post war Luftwaffe in 1959 where he built up the new German Fighter Units. Died in 1993.
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