INTRODUCTION
ARMY INSIGNIA
CUFFBANDS
CAMPAIGN SHIELDS
MEDALS
AIR FORCE INSIGNIA
THE WOUND BADGE
UNIT LEVEL INSIGNIA
THE PLATES
IT MAY BE USEFUL to explain at the outset the terminology used in this book, and the decisions taken over which subjects to include and which to exclude.
The term ‘battle insignia’ is taken from the German Kampfabzeichen. In the context of this book it is intended to indicate that the badge was awarded either for participation in a specific battle, as with campaign awards or those for specific actions; or was awarded for participation in a particular type of battle, i.e. infantry combat, armoured combat, etc.
SS-Untersturmführer Erich Zeppe, a Knight’s Cross holder who served with SS-Panzergrenadier-Regiment 10 ‘Westland’ of 5.SS-Panzer-Division ‘Wiking’. Note the correct positioning of the Close Combat Clasp, above any medal ribbon bar which was worn. Other visible awards here are the Iron Cross 1st Class, Infantry Assault Badge in the bronze version for men of Panzergrenadier units, and the top of a Wound Badge. The bar appears to include ribbons for the Iron Cross 2nd Class/ Eastern Winter Campaign 1941/42 Medal/ ? /West Wall Medal / Czechoslovakia Occupation Medal.
For this reason many badges which are, in collectors’ terms, extremely desirable – such as the Pilot’s Badge, Paratrooper’s Badge, etc – are not included here, because they are qualification badges and did not, in themselves, require the recipient to have taken part in any actual combat. As far as this work is concerned, the humble Infantry Combat Badge is a far more significant award than the desirable Pilot’s Badge, simply because it could only be earned in battle.
After some consideration it was decided that the ‘war badges’ of the Navy – termed Kriegsabzeichen, rather than Kampfabzeichen or Sturmabzeichen – also fall outside the scope of this work. Though these awards did require the recipient to have participated in operational war cruises, qualification for them did not demand the element of personal combat experience which governed the bestowal of those badges awarded for ground warfare.
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To avoid repetition throughout the text, some salient points which are common to all of the awards contained in this work will be covered here.
Unless otherwise mentioned in the text, all these types of insignia were supplied by the manufacturers in a simple paper envelope, usually printed with the title of the award. Sometimes these packets also feature the logo ‘LDO’. This is the mark of the Leistungsgemeinschaft Deutscher Ordenshersteller or Association of German Orders Manufacturers, a form of ‘trade guild’ which regulated standards and exercised quality control. The insignia were usually wrapped in protective tissue paper within the envelope. In some cases the envelope would be made of clear glassine paper; in others, the award would be contained in a small cardboard carton, once again wrapped in protective tissue. These protective containers were more often than not simply thrown away at the time of the award, when the officer bestowing the piece pinned it to the recipient’s tunic.
When bestowed the insignia would usually be accompanied by a small award document. Most of the standard official types were in DIN A5 size, printed in a fairly simple format with the title of the award and with spaces for the recipient’s details to be entered at unit level with a typewriter (or sometimes by hand, if a skilled calligrapher was available). Once completed, the document was signed by the authorising officer and the ink stamp of the issuing authority was applied in the lower left corner. In some cases larger and more elaborate award documents were made up locally, sometimes by individual units and pre-printed with unit details. The study of award documents is a major undertaking in its own right; for instance, those for the Infantry Assault Badge and the Crimea Shield, in particular, seem to have had a huge range of variants. For the purposes of this work only a few representative examples will be shown.
The award documents presented to recipients with their insignia varied greatly in the degree of elaboration. This is a very simple example: the Besitzzeugnis or ‘possession certificate’ for the Infantry Assault Badge in silver, to SS-Grenadier Georg Stahl of 2nd Co, SS-PzGren-Regt 7 (from 4.SS-Polizei-PzGren-Div, then serving in the Balkans), dated 5 September 1944 and signed by the major commanding that regiment.
A typical example of Soldbuch (paybook) entries for awards. The top entry, dated 15 July 1943, is for the Wound Badge in Black. On 20 October, note the award of the Iron Cross 2nd Class (‘EK II Kl’). On 15 December 1944 the Wound Badge in Silver marked a third wound. It is puzzling that the the award of the bronze Infantry Assault Badge is dated as late as 26 January 1945. All entries appear to be signed by the same SS-Untersturmführer and company commander (‘SS Ustuf.u.Kpfhr.’).
When these awards were issued, an entry was made in the soldier’s personal records, including his Soldbuch (paybook) and Wehrpass (military pass). Occasionally, soldiers would fold the award document up and keep it in the small pocket at the back of the Soldbuch. Using such evidence of entitlement to the award, soldiers would be able to purchase additional examples of the insignia at their own expense through retail outlets controlled by the above-mentioned LDO. Small stick-pin miniature versions of most of these awards were available for wear on the lapel of civilian clothing. The full-size versions of most (with the obvious exceptions of the campaign shields, cuffbands, etc) were worn on the left breast of the uniform tunic just below the Iron Cross if one was worn, such combat awards ranking lower than gallantry or other orders.
In the case of metal badges, early pieces tended to be manufactured from high-quality metals such as Tombakbronze, a bronze alloy, with an appropriate coloured plating. As the war drew on economy measures saw the use of zinc as a replacement for expensive Tombak, and the quality of the finish declined to the point where many were simple lacquers which quickly wore off, leaving a plain dull grey finish. Other late manufacture insignia had an anodised finish which was chemically absorbed by the base metal, again leaving a dull grey finish.
Most early pieces were die struck, either in thin hollow strikings (i.e. hollow-backed or ‘dished’), or sometimes in solid metal. Later zinc pieces were sometimes die struck, but were often die cast to allow the pin hinge fittings to be manufactured integrally with the body of the badge, thus saving on assembly costs.
This award was instituted on 20 December 1939 by the Commander-in-Chief of the Army, Generaloberst von Brauchitsch.
The qualification criteria for the badge were:
(i) That the recipient had to be a member of an Infantry Regiment, Grenadier Regiment, Fusilier Regiment, Rifle Regiment, or Mountain Rifle Regiment; and
(ii) That he had participated in infantry assault actions, in the front line, armed only with infantry small arms,
(iii) On at least three different days.
The term ‘assaults’ included infantry attacks, counter-attacks, armed reconnaissance patrols, and hand-to-hand combat actions. Award of the Infantry Assault Badge was usually authorised at regimental commander level or above. The first awards were made on 28 May 1940, when Gen. von Brauchitsch presented the badge to two soldiers; one officer and one enlisted man were chosen for this symbolic ceremony.
An unidentified SS-Oberscharführer of anti-tank troops within a mountain unit; note the ‘P’ for Panzerjäger on his shoulder straps, and the Edelweiss badge on the side of his interesting mountain cap, which has an unusual buckled flap. He wears the Infantry Assault Badge in bright silver finish high on his left pocket, above a sports badge and other insignia which are hidden here. The bar appears to bear ribbons for the Eastern Winter Campaign 1941/42 Medal, a Wehrmacht Long Service Medal, and the West Wall and Czechoslovakian Occupation medals.
A number of designs were suggested, and that proposed by the firm of C.E.Juncker of Berlin was chosen for large-scale production. It shows a vertical oval wreath of oak leaves, at the top of which is a Wehrmacht-style emblem showing the national eagle with wings folded, clasping a swastika. Lying diagonally across the centre of the wreath from upper left to lower right is a fairly accurate rendition of the Mauser Kar98k rifle with fixed bayonet – the standard weapon of the German infantryman. The badge typically measures 6.3cm in height x 4.9cm in width, is finished in a silver colour, and has a vertical pin-back attachment on the reverse face to allow it to be worn on the left breast of the uniform tunic. The badge was produced in huge numbers during the war and by a wide range of firms. There were no significant variations in design, but the materials used and the style of pin fitting might vary between manufacturers. On 1 June 1940 a further version of the badge was instituted, this time with a bronzed finish. This version was for award to motorised or armoured infantry.
Both the silver and bronze versions of the Infantry Assault Badge were re-authorised in ‘deNazified’ form under the terms of the Ordens-Gesetz of 1957. In this case both the eagle and swastika are removed, leaving only the wreath with its rifle and bayonet.
An unidentified SS-Unterscharführer wearing the Infantry Assault Badge in silver and the black basic grade of the Wound Badge. Interestingly, he has chosen to display the full size ribbon of the War Merit Cross – not a prestigious combat award – in his buttonhole, and has relegated his Iron Cross 2nd Class and Eastern Winter Campaign Medal to the small ribbon bar above his pocket.
The Infantry Assault Badge – the basic badge in silver finish (above), and the dull bronze version introduced on 1 June 1940 for motorised infantry (opposite far right). The slight differences in detail between the two strikings are simply the result of manufacturers’ variations; a large number of firms were contracted to produce these badges.
The Close Combat Clasp was instituted by Adolf Hitler on 25 November 1942, to reward those who had taken part in fierce hand-to-hand combat. Though most of those who would qualify would be infantry soldiers, it was by no means restricted to them. Any soldier from whatever branch of the armed services who fulfilled the qualifying criteria was eligible for the award. The insignia was instituted in three grades: Bronze (I Stufe) for 15 days of close combat fighting; Silver (II Stufe) for 30 days; and Gold (III Stufe) for 50 days. The total of days could be accumulated over a period of time, and were usually logged in the soldier’s records until such time as he had amassed enough for the appropriate grade.
At the time of the award’s institution a ‘credit’ system was introduced to allow for those who had already accumulated a great deal of time on active service, as follows:
8 months of active service | = | 5 combat days credit |
12 months | = | 10 combat days credit |
18 months | = | 15 combat days credit. |
Thus some soldiers who had been on active service since 1940 would have qualified immediately for the Bronze grade as soon as it was instituted. Authorisation for the award usually came from regimental commander level or above.
It cannot be over-emphasised just how importantly this badge was regarded. Hitler himself considered it the highest infantry award, and reserved the right to bestow the Gold grade personally. The award of the Bronze clasp would often bring with it the automatic award of the Iron Cross 2nd Class if this was not already possessed by the recipient. Likewise, the award of the Silver grade would normally be accompanied by the Iron Cross 1st Class where appropriate. The Gold grade usually (though not always) brought with it the award of the German Cross in Gold if this was not already held; and only around 600 awards of the Gold grade were made.
The Close Combat Clasp. The example shown is an early striking of the Silver grade (II Stufe