The
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II.
The Knight' ...
(german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) and its variants were the highest award in the military and paramilitary forces of
Nazi Germany. During
World War II, 457 servicemen of the
Waffen-SS, including volunteers and conscripts from Belgium, Croatia, Denmark, Estonia, France, Hungary, Latvia, Netherlands and Norway, received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Of these, 411 presentations were formally made and evidence of the award is available in the German Federal Archives. One recipient,
Hermann Fegelein
Hans Otto Georg Hermann Fegelein (30 October 1906 – 28 April 1945) was a high-ranking commander in the Waffen-SS of Nazi Germany. He was a member of Adolf Hitler's entourage and brother-in-law to Eva Braun through his marriage to her si ...
, was court-martialed and executed on 29 April 1945. According to German law he was deprived of rank and all awards previously. Fegelein must therefore be considered a
de facto but not
de jure recipient. A further 46 Knight's Cross, 8 Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and 4 Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords recipients are either lacking the evidence to sustain their listings or received the award under questionable legal terms. All of them were accepted by the
Association of Knight's Cross Recipients () as legitimate recipients.
The ''
Oberkommando der Wehrmacht'' kept separate Knight's Cross lists, one for each of the three military branches, ''
Heer
Heer may refer to:
People
* Jeet Heer, Canadian author and journalist
* Jeffrey Heer (born 1979), American computer scientist and entrepreneur
* Kamal Heer (born 1973), Punjabi singer and musician
* Oswald Heer (1809–1883), Swiss botanist and ...
'' (Army), ''
Kriegsmarine
The (, ) was the navy of Germany from 1935 to 1945. It superseded the Imperial German Navy of the German Empire (1871–1918) and the inter-war (1919–1935) of the Weimar Republic. The was one of three official branches, along with the a ...
'' (Navy),
Luftwaffe (Air force) and for the
Waffen-SS. Within each of these lists, a unique sequential number was assigned to each recipient. The same numbering
paradigm
In science and philosophy, a paradigm () is a distinct set of concepts or thought patterns, including theories, research methods, postulates, and standards for what constitute legitimate contributions to a field.
Etymology
''Paradigm'' comes f ...
was applied to the higher grades of the Knight's Cross, one list per grade.
Background
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grades were based on four separate
enactments. The first enactment, of 1 September 1939 instituted the
Iron Cross (), the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and the
Grand Cross of the Iron Cross (). Article 2 of the enactment mandated that the award of a higher class be preceded by the award of all preceding classes.
[
] As the war progressed, some of the recipients of the Knight's Cross distinguished themselves further and a higher grade, the Oak Leaves to the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, was instituted. The Oak Leaves, as they were commonly referred to, were based on the enactment of 3 June 1940.
In 1941, two higher grades of the Knight's Cross were instituted. The enactment of 28 September 1941 introduced the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords and the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds.
At the end of 1944 the final grade, the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds, based on the enactment of 29 December 1944, became the final variant of the Knight's Cross authorized.
Recipients
The list is initially sorted alphabetically.
Notes
References
Citations
Bibliography
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External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Waffen
Waffen SS