Original German mounted medal group. Class, Anhalt Friedrich Cross II. Class (non combatant ribbon) & Oldenburg FA Cross II. Class – WW1, NICE WORN CONDITION, GENUINE RIBBONS, PERFECT PIN DEVICE, the Iron Cross is a three piece construction example with magnetic core – the Anhalt Friedrich Cross II. Class on non combatant ribbon is very rare, only 800 were awarded. Iron Cross (German: Eisernes Kreuz) was a military decoration of the Kingdom of Prussia, and later of Germany, which was established by King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia and first awarded on 10 March 1813 in Breslau. In addition to during the Napoleonic Wars, the Iron Cross was awarded during the Franco-German War, the First World War, and the Second World War. The Iron Cross was normally a military decoration only, though there were instances of it being awarded to civilians for performing military functions. Two examples, the civilian pilot Hanna Reitsch was awarded the Iron Cross First Class for her bravery as a test pilot during the Second World War and Melitta Schenk Gräfin von Stauffenberg (also a German female test pilot) was awarded the Iron Cross Second Class. The Iron Cross was also used as the symbol of the German Army from 1871 to 1915, when it was replaced by a simpler Greek cross. In 1956, the Iron Cross became the symbol of the Bundeswehr, the German armed forces. The traditional design is black and this design is used on armored vehicles and aircraft. A newer design in blue and silver is used as the emblem in other contexts. The Iron Cross is a black four-pointed cross with white trim, with the arms widening towards the ends, similar to a cross pattée. It was designed by the neoclassical architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel and reflects the cross borne by the Teutonic Knights in the 14th century. The ribbon for the 1813, 1870 and 1914 Iron Cross (2nd Class) was black with two thin white bands, the colours of Prussia. The noncombatant version of this award had the same medal, but the black and white colours on the ribbon were reversed. Initially the Iron Cross was worn with the blank side out. This did not change until 1838 when the sprig facing could be presented. Since the Iron Cross was issued over several different periods of German history, it was annotated with the year indicating the era in which it was issued. For example, an Iron Cross from the First World War bears the year “1914″, while the same decoration from the Second World War is annotated “1939″. The reverse of the 1870, 1914 and 1939 series of Iron Crosses have the year “1813″ appearing on the lower arm, symbolizing the year the award was created. The 1813 decoration also has the initials “FW” for King Frederick William III, while the next two have a “W” for the respective kaisers, Wilhelm I and Wilhelm II. The final version shows a swastika. It was also possible for a holder of the 1914 Iron Cross to be awarded a second or higher grade of the 1939 Iron Cross. In such cases, a “1939 Clasp” (Spange) would be worn on the original 1914 Iron Cross. A similar award was made in 1914 but was quite rare, since there were few in service who held the 1870 Iron Cross. For the First Class award the Spange appears as an eagle with the date “1939″ that was pinned above the Cross. Although two separate awards, in some cases the holders soldered them together. A cross was the symbol of the Teutonic Knights (a heraldic cross pattée), and the cross design (but not the specific decoration) has been the symbol of Germany’s armed forces (now the Bundeswehr) since 1871. The Iron Cross was founded on 10 March 1813 in Breslau and awarded to soldiers during the Wars of Liberation against Napoleon. It was first awarded to Karl August Ferdinand von Borcke on 21 April 1813. King Wilhelm I of Prussia authorized further awards on 19 July 1870, during the Franco-German War. The Iron Cross was reauthorized by Emperor Wilhelm II on 5 August 1914, at the start of the First World War. During these three periods, the Iron Cross was an award of the Kingdom of Prussia, although given Prussia’s pre-eminent place in the German Empire formed in 1871, it tended to be treated as a generic German decoration. The 1813, 1870, and 1914 Iron Crosses had three grades: Iron Cross 2nd Class German: Eisernes Kreuz 2. Klasse, Iron Cross 1st Class German: Eisernes Kreuz 1. Klasse, Grand Cross of the Iron Cross (German: Großkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes, often simply Großkreuz). Although the medals of each class were identical, the manner in which each was worn differed. Employing a pin or screw posts on the back of the medal, the Iron Cross First Class was worn on the left side of the recipient’s uniform. The Grand Cross and the Iron Cross Second Class were suspended from different ribbons. The Grand Cross was intended for senior generals of the German Army. An even higher decoration, the Star of the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross, was awarded only twice, to Field Marshal Gebhard von Blücher in 1813 and to Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg in 1918. A third award was planned for the most successful German general during the Second World War, but was not made after the defeat of Germany in 1945. The Iron Cross 1st Class and the Iron Cross 2nd Class were awarded without regard to rank. One had to already possess the 2nd Class in order to receive the 1st Class (though in some cases both could be awarded simultaneously). The egalitarian nature of this award contrasted with those of most other German states (and indeed many other European monarchies), where military decorations were awarded based on the rank of the recipient. For example, Bavarian officers received various grades of that Kingdom’s Military Merit Order (Militär-Verdienstorden), while enlisted men received various grades of the Military Merit Cross (Militär-Verdienstkreuz). Prussia did have other orders and medals which were awarded on the basis of rank, and even though the Iron Cross was intended to be awarded without regard to rank, officers and NCOs were more likely to receive it than junior enlisted soldiers. In the First World War, approximately four million Iron Crosses of the lower grade (2nd Class) were issued, as well as around 145,000 of the higher grade (1st Class). Exact numbers of awards are not known, since the Prussian archives were destroyed during the Second World War. The multitude of awards reduced the status and reputation of the decoration. The Cross was created by Duke Friedrich II on 12 December 1914 for officers, military officials, non-commissioned officers and other ranks, as well as other persons, without regard for rank or status, who showed particular excellence in the theatre of war or exemplary conduct on the home front in support of the war (für Offiziere, Militärbeamte, Unteroffiziere und Mannschaften sowie für sonstige Personen ohne Unterscheid des Ranges und Standes, die sich auf dem Kriegsschauplatz besonders ausgezeichnet oder während des Krieges im Heimatsgebiet hervorragend betätigt haben). The Cross was suppressed at the end of 1918. The population of the Duchy of Anhalt was less than 350,000 at the time of World War I and its decorations are amongst those found less often. The cross has a magnetic core and is thus an early issue (later awards were in zinc alloy Kriegsmetall). The Cross was instituted on 24 September 1914 for all ranks and was the Grand Duchys equivalent of the Prussian Iron Cross for bravery in the field. The item “7294 German WW1 mounted medal group Iron Cross Anhalt Friedrich Oldenburg FA” is in sale since Friday, April 20, 2018. This item is in the category “Collectables\Militaria\World War I (1914-1918)\Medals/ Ribbons”. The seller is “a..anderson” and is located in Abbots Langley. This item can be shipped worldwide.
- Type: Medals & Ribbons
- Era: 1914-1945
- Conflict: World War I (1914-1918)
- Country/ Organization: Germany
