Awards and decorations of Nazi Germany were military, political, and civilian decorations that were bestowed between 1923 and 1945, first by the Nazi Party and later the state of Nazi Germany.
The first awards began in the 1920s, before the Nazis had come to national power in Germany, with the political decorations worn on Party uniforms, along with any awards they may have earned during the First World War or before.
After 1933, the state began issuing a variety of civilian decorations, which could be bestowed upon any citizen of Germany. Thus, some awards (such as Sports Badges) were bestowed on Nazi Party members, members of the German military, and regular civilians. Many standard awards of the German state, such as life-saving medals, were redesigned to incorporate the Nazi symbol, the swastika.
A number of military awards were established pre-war, including Wehrmacht long service decorations, followed by awards for participation in the Spanish Civil War and for the annexation of Austria and the Sudetenland, with the greatest number established after the start of World War II in 1939. Regulations of award also permitted the simultaneous wear of military, civilian, and political decorations on any military or paramilitary uniform of Nazi Germany.
Nazi awards and decorations were discontinued after the defeat of Nazi Germany in 1945, with display of the swastika banned. In 1957 the Federal Republic of Germany permitted qualifying veterans to wear many Nazi-era awards on the Bundeswehr uniform, including most World War II valor and campaign awards,[1] provided the swastika symbol was removed.[2] This led to the re-design of many awards with, for example, the swastika being replaced by a three-leafed oakleaf cluster on the Iron Cross and by the date 1939 on the War Merit Cross.[3]
| Badge and ribbon | Name (English/German) | Creation date – cessation date | Description | Number awarded |
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Order of the German Eagle Verdienstorden vom Deutschen Adler |
1 May 1937 – 8 May 1945 | Awarded with and without swords | The number of times the order was awarded is unknown. |
 |
Cross of Honour of the German Mother Ehrenkreuz der Deutschen Mutter |
1939 until 1945 | Awarded to exemplary mothers who furnished Germany with Aryan children. Instigated by Adolf Hitler and bears his signature on the reverse. Awarded in three levels: bronze, silver, and gold | The number of times the order was awarded is unknown. It is estimated that up until September 1941 there were a total of 4.7 million recipient mothers. |
| Badge and ribbon | Name (English/German) | Creation date – cessation date | Description | Number awarded |
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Spanish Cross Spanien-Kreuz |
14 April 1939 – 1940 | Awarded with and without swords. Issued in bronze, silver, gold, and gold with diamonds. For service with the Condor Legion in Spain | 26,116 total, for all classes |
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Condor Legion Tank Badge Panzertruppenabzeichen der Legion Condor |
September 1936 – autumn 1939 (official decoration 10 July 1939) |
For tank instructors and maintenance personnel who served with the Condor Legion in Spain, 1936–1939 | 415 |
These awards were bestowed by the Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS between 1939 and 1945, during World War II.
| Badge and ribbon | Name (English/German) | Creation date – cessation date | Description | Number awarded |
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Star of the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross Stern zum Großkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes |
1 September 1939 – 8 May 1945 | A higher class of the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross. A prototype was made, but the decoration was never formally instituted or awarded.[4] | 0 |
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Grand Cross of the Iron Cross Großkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes |
1 September 1939 – 8 May 1945 | Awarded to victorious generals/field marshals of German forces and her allies. Hermann Göring, received the Grand Cross on 19 July 1940, the only recipient of World War II. | 1 |
 |
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit goldenem Eichenlaub, Schwertern und Brillanten |
29 December 1944 – 8 May 1945 | To be awarded after World War II to Germany's 12 greatest war heroes. Actually awarded only once, to Hans-Ulrich Rudel for continuous outstanding achievements and heroism[5] | 1 |
 |
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub, Schwertern und Brillanten |
28 September 1941 – 8 May 1945 | For continuous bravery before the enemy or excellence in commanding troops after being awarded all preceding classes of the Knight's Cross/Iron Cross | 27 |
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Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub und Schwertern |
28 September 1941 – 8 May 1945 | For continuous bravery before the enemy or excellence in commanding troops after being awarded all preceding classes of the Knight's Cross/Iron Cross | 160 (159 German, 1 Japanese)[a] |
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Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub |
3 June 1940 – 8 May 1945 | For continuous bravery before the enemy or excellence in commanding troops after being awarded all preceding classes of the Knight's Cross/Iron Cross | 890 (882 German, 8 Axis allies) |
 |
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes |
1 September 1939 – 8 May 1945 | Awarded for outstanding bravery in the face of the enemy and for brilliant service in command of troops. A requirement was the possession of the 1st and 2nd class of the Iron Cross. | 7,318 |
 |
Golden Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross Goldenes Ritterkreuz des Kriegsverdienstkreuz |
13 October 1944 – 8 May 1945 | Awarded with and without swords. For outstanding contributions to the war effort | 2 (Further recommendations not approved by the end of the war) |
 |
Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross Ritterkreuz des Kriegsverdienstkreuz |
19 August 1940 – 8 May 1945 | Awarded with and without swords. For meritorious contributions to the war effort after being awarded all preceding classes of the War Merit Cross | c. 250 |
| German Cross in Gold with Diamonds Kriegsorden des Deutschen Kreuzes in Gold mit Brillanten |
October 1942 – 8 May 1945 | To be awarded for continuous bravery before the enemy or excellence in commanding troops (having already been awarded the German Cross in Gold). No awards were ever made. | 0 | |
 |
German Cross in Gold Kriegsorden des Deutschen Kreuzes in Gold |
28 September 1941 – 8 May 1945 | For continuous bravery before the enemy or excellence in commanding troops (not justifying the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross but having already been awarded the Iron Cross 1st Class) | 24,204 (24,190 German, 14 Axis allies) |
 |
German Cross in Silver Kriegsorden des Deutschen Kreuzes in Silber |
28 September 1941 – 8 May 1945 | For significant performances in aiding the military war effort (Not justifying the Knight's Cross of either the Iron Cross or the War Merit Cross but having already been awarded the Iron Cross 1st Class or War Merit Cross 1st Class) | 1,115 |
   |
Honour Roll Clasp Ehrenblattspange |
30 January 1944 – 8 May 1945 | Different designs for the army, navy and air force Awarded to those who appeared on the Honour Roll for distinction in combat |
4,556 (Army and Waffen-SS awards only)[7] |
 |
Iron Cross (1st Class) Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse |
1 September 1939 – 8 May 1945 | For continuous bravery before the enemy or excellence in commanding troops after being awarded the Iron Cross 2nd class | c. 300,000[8] |
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Iron Cross (2nd Class) Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse |
1 September 1939 – 8 May 1945 | For bravery before the enemy or excellence in commanding troops | c. 4,500,000[9] |
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1939 Clasp to the Iron Cross Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz |
1 September 1939 – 8 May 1945 | An award of the Iron Cross, 1st or 2nd class for those who had already received the decoration in World War I | 100,000+ |
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War Merit Cross (1st Class) Kriegsverdienstkreuz 1. Klasse |
18 October 1939 – 8 May 1945 | Awarded with and without swords. For meritorious contributions to the war effort after being awarded the War Merit Cross, 2nd class | c. 480,000 with swords c. 90,000 without swords[b] |
 |
War Merit Cross (2nd Class) Kriegsverdienstkreuz 2. Klasse |
18 October 1939 – 8 May 1945 | Awarded with and without swords. For meritorious contributions to the war effort | c. 6,100,000 with swords c. 1,500,000 without swords[b] |
 |
War Merit Medal Kriegsverdienstmedaille |
19 August 1940 – 8 May 1945 | For lower-level civilian contributions to the war effort | c. 4,900,000[b] |
| Cross of Honour (1914–1918) Ehrenkreuz des Weltkriegs |
Eastern Medal Medaille Winterschlacht im Osten |
West Wall Medal[c] Schutzwall-Ehrenzeichen 1944 bar authorised |
Anschluss Medal | Memel Medal | Sudetenland Medal Prague Castle Bar authorised |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Wehrmacht Long Service Award Wehrmacht-Dienstauszeichnung Awarded to army, navy, and air force Grades for 4, 8, 15, 25, and 40 Years of Service |
SS Long Service Award SS-Dienstauszeichnungen Grades for 4, 12, 18, and 25 Years of Service |
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| Narvik Shield, 1940 | Crimea Shield, 1941–1942 | Cholm Shield, 1942 | Demyansk Shield, 1942 | Kuban Shield, 1943 | Warsaw Shield, 1944 | Lapland Shield, 1944–1945 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Crete Cuff Title, 1942 | Africa Cuff Title, 1941-1943 | Metz 1944 Cuff Title, 1944 | Courland Cuff Title, 1944–1945 |
|---|---|---|---|
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The Luftwaffe maintained two non-portable awards, the "Honour Goblet of the Luftwaffe" (Ehrenpokal für besondere Leistung im Luftkrieg) and the "Luftwaffe Honour Plate" (Ehrenschale für hervorragende Kampfleistungen der Luftwaffe). Recipients of both awards automatically received the Luftwaffe Honour Roll Clasp in January 1944.[11]
| Honour Goblet of the Luftwaffe | ''Luftwaffe'' Honour Plate [de] | Honour Roll Clasp |
|---|---|---|
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| Blue Division Medal, Spain |
Medal for Gallantry and Merit for Members of the Eastern Peoples In various grades, with and without swords[12] |
Schalburg Cross, Denmark |
5th Don Cossack Regimental Cross[13][14] |
2nd Siberian Cossack Regimental Cross[15][14] |
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Within the Wehrmacht, wartime awards (German: Kriegsorden) took precedence over peacetime decorations.[16]
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Ranks, uniforms and insignia of Nazi Germany
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| Ranks and insignia |
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| Corps colours |
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| Decorations |
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| Flags |
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