List of military decorations of the Third Reich

Bodewin Claus Eduard Keitel (brother of Wilhelm Keitel) displaying several military awards of the Wehrmacht

Military decorations of the Third Reich were awards and medals bestowed by the Wehrmacht between 1935 and 1945 during the reign of Nazi Germany and the years of World War II.

Military Decorations

Senior military leadership decorations

Star of the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross
Grand Cross of the Iron Cross

Military valor decorations

Knights Cross of the Iron Cross with Golden Oakleaves Swords, and Diamonds	Knights Cross of the Iron Cross with Oakleaves, Swords, and Diamonds	Knights Cross of the Iron Cross with Oakleaves and Swords	Knights Cross of the Iron Cross with Oakleaves	Knights Cross of the Iron Cross

Meritorious military decorations

German Cross (Awarded in Gold and Silver)	Iron Cross First Class	Iron Cross Second Class	1939 Clasp to the Iron Cross	Military Honor Roll Clasp (Awarded for Army, Navy, and Air Force)

Golden Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross (Awarded with and without Swords)	Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross (Awarded with and without Swords)	War Merit Cross (First and Second Class) (Awarded with and without Swords)	War Merit Medal	Spanish Cross in Gold, Silver, and Bronze Awarded with and without Swords Special grade awarded in Gold with Diamonds Posthumous grade known as "Spanish Cross for Next of Kin of Fallen"

Military service decorations

Cross of Honor (1914-1918)	Eastern Front Medal	West Wall Medal[1] Upgradeable to include 1944 Bar	Anschluss Medal	Memel Medal	Sudetenland Medal Upgradeable to include Prague Castle Bar

Military service medals

Wehrmacht Long Service Award Awarded for Army, Navy, and Air Force Awarded in grades of 4, 12, 18, 25, and 40 Years of Service	Waffen-SS Long Service Award Awarded in grades of 4, 12, 18, and 25 Years of Service

Wound badges

1939 Wound Badge (Awarded in Gold, Silver, and Black)	Wound Badge of 20 July 1944

Spanish Wound Badge (Awarded in Gold, Silver, and Black)

Arm Shields and Cuffbands

Arm Shields

Narvik Shield	Crimea Shield	Demyansk Shield	Kuban Shield

Cholm Shield	Lappland Shield

Cuffbands

General Cuffbands

• Heeres Cuffbands
• Luftwaffe Cuffbands
• Waffen-SS Cuffbands

Campaign Cuffbands

• Condor Legion Cuffband
• Crete Cuffband
• Afrika Cuffband
• Kurland Cuffband

Military Service Badges

Army/Waffen-SS War Badges

Infantry Assault Badge (Silver and Bronze)	General Assault Badge	Close Combat Clasp (Gold, Silver, and Bronze)	Tank Battle Badge (Silver and Bronze)[2]	Tank Destruction Badge (Gold and Silver)

Anti-Partisan Guerrilla Warfare Badge	Balloon Observer's Badge	Sniper's Badge

• Army Paratrooper Badge
• Front Line Driver's Badge (Gold, Silver, and Bronze)
• Army Anti-Aircraft Badge
• Condor Legion Tank Badge
• Commemorative Tank Badge of the Great War

Naval War Badges

Main article: Awards and decorations of the Kriegsmarine

High Seas Fleet Badge	Destroyer War Badge	Minesweeper War Badge	Blockade Runner Badge

E-Boat War Badge	U-Boat War Badge	Auxiliary Cruiser Badge	Naval Artillery War Badge

U-Boat Combat Clasp (Gold and Silver)

Naval Combat Clasp	Small Battle Unit Combat Clasp

Luftwaffe War Badges

Combined Pilots-Observation Badge	Pilot's Badge	Luftwaffe Paratrooper Badge	Anti-Aircraft Flak Battle Badge

• Aircrew Badge
• Observer Badge
• Glider Pilot Badge
• Radio Operator Badge
• Air Gunner Badge
• Luftwaffe Ground Assault Badge
• Retired Aircrew Badge

Luftwaffe flying clasps

Luftwaffe Flying Clasps

Luftwaffe Flying Clasps were awarded in Bronze, Silver, and Gold with upgrade possible to include diamonds. Pennants suspended from the clasp indicated the number of missions obtained in a given type of aircraft. Flying Clasps were issued for missions completed in the following Luftwaffe aircraft

• Day Fighters
• Night Fighters
• Long Range Day Fighters
• Air to Ground Support Fighters
• Bombers
• Reconnaissance
• Transport and Glider

Foreign Division Awards

Foreign division awards were specially intended for non-German volunteers serving in specially formed divisions serving under the German military. The two primary foreign division awards were as follows:

Blue Division Medal

Ostvolk Medal Awarded in First and Second Classes with Gold, Silver, & Bronze designators Presented with and without swords for combat & non-combat meritorious service

External links

• Axis History Factbook - Awards & decorations of the Axis nations
• World War Militaria - Forum dedicated to militaria collecting

References

1. ^ The West Wall Medal was issued twice, once in 1939 and again in 1944. The 1944 version was commonly referred to as the "German Defense Medal". For those personnel who had already received the 1939 West Wall Medal, a "1944 Bar" was authorized to the decoration.
2. ^ Tank Battle Badges were also issued with engagement numbers affixed beneath the main badge. These "Numbered Tank Badges" were issued in degrees of 25, 50, 75, and 100 engagements.