The Return of Memel Commemorative Medal (''Medaille zur Erinnerung an die Heimkehr des Memellandes''; 22. März 1939) was a decoration of

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

awarded during the

interwar period In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period, also known as the interbellum (), lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days) – from the end of World War I (WWI) to the beginning of World War II ( ...

, the last in a series of Occupation Medals.

Description

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

annexed the

Klaipėda Region The Klaipėda Region () or Memel Territory ( or ''Memelgebiet'') was defined by the 1919 Treaty of Versailles in 1920 and refers to the northernmost part of the German province of East Prussia, when, as Memelland, it was put under the administr ...

(Memel Territory) from

Lithuania Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea, bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, P ...

on 22 March 1939 after an

ultimatum An ; ; : ultimata or ultimatums) is a demand whose fulfillment is requested in a specified period of time and which is backed up by a coercion, threat to be followed through in case of noncompliance (open loop). An ultimatum is generally the ...

. On 23 March the occupation of the city and district was carried out by German Army troops. This area of East Prussia, with 160,000 inhabitants, had been turned over to Lithuania in the aftermath of World War I. To commemorate the occupation, the "Memel Medal" was authorized on 1 May 1939. It was awarded until 31 December 1940. In all 31,322 medals were awarded. The wearing of Nazi era awards was banned in 1945. The Memel Medal was not among those awards reauthorized for official wear by the

Federal Republic of Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen constituent states have a total population of over 84 ...

in 1957.

Design

The medal was designed by Professor Richard Klein. While the obverse was the same as the previous two occupation medals, the reverse was inscribed "Zur Erinnerung an die Heimkehr des Memellandes 22. März 1939" (To commemorate the return of the Memel District. 22 March 1939), surrounded by an oak leaf wreath. The award was presented to all military, political and civil personnel who had taken part in the entry into Memel on 22 March 1939, and to local Nazis who had worked for union with Germany. The medal was die-struck in bronze and worn above the left tunic pocket suspended from a white ribbon with a green strip in the middle and two red strips on each side, the historic colors of

Lithuania Minor Lithuania Minor (; ; ) or Prussian Lithuania (; ; ) is one of five ethnographic regions of Lithuania. It is a historical region of Prussia, where Prussian Lithuanians (or Lietuvininkai) lived, now located in Lithuania and the Kaliningrad Obla ...

References

Bibliography

* * * {{refend Orders, decorations, and medals of Nazi Germany Klaipėda Region German campaign medals German occupation of Lithuania during World War II Awards established in 1939

Description

Design

See also

References

Bibliography