The General Assault Badge (german: Allgemeines Sturmabzeichen) was a

military decoration Military awards and decorations are distinctions given as a mark of honor for military heroism, meritorious or outstanding service or achievement. DoD Manual 1348.33, 2010, Vol. 3 A decoration is often a medal consisting of a ribbon and a meda ...

awarded during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

to personnel of the

German Army The German Army (, "army") is the land component of the armed forces of Germany. The present-day German Army was founded in 1955 as part of the newly formed West German ''Bundeswehr'' together with the ''Marine'' (German Navy) and the ''Luftwaf ...

Waffen-SS The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...

and ''

Ordnungspolizei The ''Ordnungspolizei'' (), abbreviated ''Orpo'', meaning "Order Police", were the uniformed police force in Nazi Germany from 1936 to 1945. The Orpo organisation was absorbed into the Nazi monopoly on power after regional police jurisdiction ...

'' (order police) who supported an infantry attack but were not part of specific infantry units and therefore did not qualify for the

Infantry Assault Badge The Infantry Assault Badge () was a German military decoration awarded to Waffen-SS and ''Wehrmacht Heer'' soldiers during the Second World War. This decoration was instituted on 20 December 1939 by the Commander-in-Chief (''Oberbefehlshaber'') ...

. It was instituted by General

Walther von Brauchitsch Walther Heinrich Alfred Hermann von Brauchitsch (4 October 1881 – 18 October 1948) was a German field marshal and the Commander-in-Chief (''Oberbefehlshaber'') of the German Army during World War II. Born into an aristocratic military family, ...

on 1 June 1940.

Design

The decoration, designed by the Berlin-based firm of Wilhelm Ernst Peekhaus, was an oval disk that measured by , with a depth of . A wreath of five oak leaves runs around the circumference on each side of the medal with a pair of acorns at the base. Inside the wreath is a large Wehrmacht-style eagle with folded wings grasping a swastika which itself surmounts a crossed bayonet and

stick grenade A grenade is an explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A modern hand grenade genera ...

. The medal was held in place on the uniform with a pin and catch, and was worn on the left chest pocket. From 22 June 1943, further classes were created, these bearing a small plate at the base with either 25, 50, 75 or 100 to recognise those soldiers who had taken part in numerous attacks. These were known as grades II through V, accordingly. On the Class IV and Class V badges the oak leaves which run around the circumference on each side of the medal, along with the bayonet and hand grenade, were larger in size – by . Further the wreath was gold in color. Only one badge, the highest level received, was worn. Nazi-era awards were initially banned by the post-war

Federal Republic of Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between ...

. In 1957 many World War II military decorations, including the General Assault Badge, were reauthorised for wear by qualifying veterans. With display of Nazi symbols banned, the badge was re-designed by removing the swastika, with members of the

Bundeswehr The ''Bundeswehr'' (, meaning literally: ''Federal Defence'') is the armed forces of the Federal Republic of Germany. The ''Bundeswehr'' is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part con ...

wearing the badge on the ribbon bar, represented by a small replica of the award on a field grey ribbon.

Criteria for award

The medal was originally designed for presentation to combat engineers, as well as members of the artillery, anti-aircraft and anti-tank who supported infantry units in combat. It could also be awarded to medical personnel attending to battlefield casualties in "close combat conditions". Prior to the introduction of the

Tank Destruction Badge The Tank Destruction Badge () was a World War II German military decoration awarded to individuals of the Wehrmacht who had single-handedly destroyed an enemy tank or an armored combat vehicle using a hand-held weapon. Anti-tank units were inelig ...

in March 1942, the General Assault Badge could be conferred for the single-handed destruction of tanks or armoured vehicles. Other determining factors for award: * Ineligibility for the

* Participation in three infantry or armored attacks on three different days; or * Participation in three infantry or armored indirect assaults on three different days.

Notes

References

* * {{Subject bar , portal1=Military of Germany , portal2=World War II 1940 establishments in Germany Awards established in 1940 Military awards and decorations of Nazi Germany