The Military Merit Order (''Militärverdienstorden'') was a military
order
Order, ORDER or Orders may refer to:
* A socio-political or established or existing order, e.g. World order, Ancien Regime, Pax Britannica
* Categorization, the process in which ideas and objects are recognized, differentiated, and understood
...
of the
Kingdom of Württemberg
The Kingdom of Württemberg ( ) was a German state that existed from 1806 to 1918, located within the area that is now Baden-Württemberg. The kingdom was a continuation of the Electorate of Württemberg, which existed from 1803 to 1806.
Geogr ...
, which joined the
German Empire
The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...
in 1871. The order was one of the older military orders of the states of the German Empire. It was founded on 11 February 1759 by
Karl Eugen, Duke of Württemberg as the ''Militär-Carls-Orden'', and was renamed the ''Militärverdienstorden'' on 11 November 1806 by King
Friedrich I. The order underwent several more revisions over the course of the 19th and early 20th centuries. It became obsolete with the fall of the Württemberg monarchy in the wake of Germany's defeat in
World War I
World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
.
Classes
The order came in three classes:
* Grand Cross (''Großkreuz'')
* Commander's Cross (''Kommandeurkreuz'') and
* Knight's Cross (''Ritterkreuz'').
Generally, the rank of the recipient determined which grade he would receive. Between 1799 and 1919, there were an estimated 95 awards of the Grand Cross, 214 of the Commander's Cross, and 3,128 of the Knight's Cross, with the bulk of these awards made in World War I; the numbers may only cover native Württembergers.
Description
The ''badge'' of the order was a white-enameled gold
cross pattée
A cross pattée or cross patty (, ), also known as a cross formée or cross formy, or even a Templar cross, is a type of Christian cross with arms that are narrow at the centre and often flared in a curve or straight line shape to be broader at th ...
with curved arms and slightly
concave edges. Around the white-enameled center medallion was a blue-enameled gold ring bearing on both sides the motto "Furchtlos und trew" ("Fearless and loyal"). On the obverse, the medallion bore a green-enameled gold laurel wreath. On the reverse, the medallion bore the monogram of the king of Württemberg at the time of award. The cross was the same size for the Grand Cross and the Commander's Cross, and slightly smaller for the Knight's Cross. The Grand Cross and Commander's Cross, and from 1870 the Knight's Cross, were topped with a crown. On 25 September 1914, the crown was removed from all grades.
The ''star'' of the order, awarded with the Grand Cross only, was a gold-rimmed silver eight-pointed star featuring the ringed medallion of the obverse of the cross.
The ''ribbon'' of the order was, until 1818 and after 1914, yellow with broad black stripes near each edge. After November 1917, when the ribbon was worn without the medal, the ribbon bore a green-enameled wreath to distinguish it from other Württemberg decorations on the same ribbon. The ribbon from 1818 to 1914 was blue.
[O'Connor, p. 38.]
Notable recipients
Grand Crosses
*
Duke Adam of Württemberg
*
Albert of Saxony
*
Albrecht, Duke of Württemberg
*
Prince August of Württemberg
*
Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher
Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher (; 21 December 1742 – 12 September 1819), ''Graf'' (count), later elevated to ''Fürst'' (prince) von Wahlstatt, was a Kingdom of Prussia, Prussian ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal). He earned his greatest ...
*
Leonhard Graf von Blumenthal
*
Jérôme Bonaparte
Jérôme Bonaparte (born Girolamo Buonaparte; 15 November 1784 – 24 June 1860) was the youngest brother of Napoleon, Napoleon I and reigned as Jerome Napoleon I (formally Hieronymus Napoleon in German), Kingdom of Westphalia, King of Westphal ...
*
Julius von Bose
*
Carl, Duke of Württemberg
*
Prince Charles of Prussia
*
Archduke Eugen of Austria
Archduke Eugen Ferdinand Pius Bernhard Felix Maria of Austria-Teschen (21 May 1863 – 30 December 1954) was an Archduke of Austria-Hungary, Austria and a Prince of Kingdom of Hungary, Hungary and Kingdom of Bohemia, Bohemia. He was the last Gra ...
*
Duke Eugen of Württemberg (1758–1822)
*
Ferdinand I of Bulgaria
*
Frederic von Franquemont
*
Eduard von Fransecky
Eduard Model Accessories is a Czech Republic, Czech manufacturer of plastic models and finescale model accessories.
History
Formed in 1989 in the city of Most (city), Most, Eduard began in a rented cellar as a manufacturer of photoetching, ...
*
Frederick Francis II, Grand Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin
*
Frederick III, German Emperor
Frederick III (Friedrich Wilhelm Nikolaus Karl; 18 October 183115 June 1888), or Friedrich III, was German Emperor and King of Prussia for 99 days between March and his death in June 1888, during the Year of the Three Emperors.
Known informal ...
*
Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia (1828–1885)
*
Prince Friedrich Leopold of Prussia
*
Archduke Friedrich, Duke of Teschen
*
George, King of Saxony
*
Paul von Hindenburg
Paul Ludwig Hans Anton von Beneckendorff und von Hindenburg (2 October 1847 – 2 August 1934) was a German military and political leader who led the Imperial German Army during the First World War and later became President of Germany (1919 ...
*
Archduke John of Austria
Archduke John of Austria (, ; (or simply ''Nadvojvoda Janez''); 20 January 1782 – 11 May 1859), a member of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, was an Austrian field marshal and imperial regent (''Reichsverweser'') of the short-lived German Emp ...
*
Georg von Kameke
*
Hugo von Kirchbach
*
Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich of Russia
*
Duke Louis of Württemberg
Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobility, they a ...
*
Ludwig III of Bavaria
Ludwig III (Ludwig Luitpold Josef Maria Aloys Alfred; 7 January 1845 – 18 October 1921) was the last King of Bavaria, reigning from 1913 to 1918. Initially, he served in the Bavarian Army, Bavarian military as a lieutenant and went on to hold ...
*
Edwin Freiherr von Manteuffel
*
Jean Gabriel Marchand
*
Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia
Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia (25 October 1832 – 18 December 1909) was a Russian Empire Field Marshal, the fourth son and seventh child of Emperor Nicholas I of Russia and Charlotte of Prussia. He was the first owner of the New Michae ...
*
Helmuth von Moltke the Elder
Helmuth Karl Bernhard Graf von Moltke (; 26 October 180024 April 1891) was a Kingdom of Prussia, Prussian Generalfeldmarschall, field marshal. The chief of staff of the Prussian Army for thirty years, he is regarded as the creator of a new, more ...
*
Nicholas I of Russia
Nicholas I, group=pron (Russian language, Russian: Николай I Павлович; – ) was Emperor of Russia, List of rulers of Partitioned Poland#Kings of the Kingdom of Poland, King of Congress Poland, and Grand Duke of Finland from 18 ...
*
Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (1831–1891)
Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (; 8 August 1831 – 25 April 1891) was the third son and sixth child of Nicholas I of Russia, Tsar Nicholas I of Russia and Charlotte of Prussia, Alexandra Feodorovna. He may also be referred to as Nic ...
*
Ivan Paskevich
*
Philipp Albrecht, Duke of Württemberg
*
Joseph Radetzky von Radetz
*
Albrecht von Roon
Albrecht Theodor Emil Graf von Roon (; 30 April 1803 – 23 February 1879) was a Prussian soldier and statesman. As Minister of War from 1859 to 1873, Roon, along with Otto von Bismarck and Helmuth von Moltke, was a dominating figure in Pruss ...
*
Rupprecht, Crown Prince of Bavaria
*
Alfred von Schlieffen
*
Albrecht von Stosch
*
Wilhelm von Tümpling
*
Nikita Volkonsky
*
Alfred von Waldersee
*
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington
Field marshal (United Kingdom), Field Marshal Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (; 1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was a British Army officer and statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures in Britain during t ...
*
August von Werder
*
Wilhelm II, German Emperor
Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor and King of Prussia from 1888 until his abdication in 1918, which marked the end of the German Empire as well as the Hohenzollern dynasty ...
*
William I of Württemberg
*
William I, German Emperor
Wilhelm I (Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig; 22 March 1797 – 9 March 1888) was King of Prussia from 1861 and German Emperor from 1871 until his death in 1888. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he was the first head of state of a united Germany. ...
*
William II of the Netherlands
*
Duke William Frederick Philip of Württemberg
Duke William Frederick Philip of Württemberg (27 December 1761, in Stettin – 10 August 1830, in Schloss von Stetten im Remstal) was a prince of the House of Württemberg and a minister for war.
Early life
William was the fourth son of Frederi ...
*
Duke William of Württemberg
*
Duke Eugen of Württemberg (1788–1857)
*
Duke Ferdinand Frederick Augustus of Württemberg
*
Ferdinand von Zeppelin
Graf, Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin (; 8 July 1838 – 8 March 1917) was a General (Germany), German general and later inventor of the Zeppelin rigid airships. His name became synonymous with airships and dominated long-distance flight until the ...
*
Otto von Marchtaler
Commanders
*
Duke Alexander of Württemberg (1771–1833)
*
Paul Bronsart von Schellendorff
*
Max von Fabeck
*
Friedrich Wilhelm von Bismarck
*
Franz von Hipper
*
Julius von Verdy du Vernois
*
Wilhelm Karl, Duke of Urach
Knights
*
Alexander II of Russia
Alexander II ( rus, Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, Aleksándr II Nikoláyevich, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ; 29 April 181813 March 1881) was Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Poland and Grand Du ...
*
Gottlob Berger
*
Oswald Boelcke
Oswald Boelcke PlM (; 19 May 1891 – 28 October 1916) was a World War I German professional soldier and pioneering flying ace credited with 40 aerial victories. Boelcke is honored as the father of the German fighter air force, and of air ...
*
Walter Braemer
*
Wladyslaw Grzegorz Branicki
*
Nikolaus zu Dohna-Schlodien
*
Ernst I, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
*
Friedrich Ehmann
*
Gottfried Ehmann
*
Otto Esswein
*
Leo Geyr von Schweppenburg
Leo Dietrich Franz Reichsfreiherr Geyr von Schweppenburg (2 March 1886 – 27 January 1974) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II, noted for his pioneering stance and expertise in the field of armoured warfare.
He commanded th ...
*
Wilhelm Groener
Karl Eduard Wilhelm Groener (; 22 November 1867 – 3 May 1939) was a Würtemberg–German general and politician, who served as the final Chief of the Great General Staff and Reich Ministry of Transport, Reich Minister of Transport, Ministry ...
*
Philip, Landgrave of Hesse-Homburg
*
Paul Hocheisen
*
Erich Ludendorff
*
Max Ritter von Müller
*
Karl August Nerger
*
Grand Duke Nicholas Konstantinovich of Russia
*
Prince Paul of Württemberg
*
Manfred von Richthofen
Manfred Albrecht Freiherr von Richthofen (; 2 May 1892 – 21 April 1918), known in English as Baron von Richthofen or the Red Baron, was a fighter pilot with the German Air Force during World War I. He is considered the ace-of-aces of th ...
*
Erwin Rommel
Johannes Erwin Eugen Rommel (; 15 November 1891 – 14 October 1944), popularly known as The Desert Fox (, ), was a German '' Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal) during World War II. He served in the ''Wehrmacht'' (armed forces) of ...
*
Reinhard Scheer
*
Hugo Sperrle
*
Jona von Ustinov
*
Otto Weddigen
*
William II of Württemberg
*
Franz Graf von Wimpffen
Franz Emil Lorenz Heeremann Graf von Wimpffen (2 April 1797 – 26 November 1870) was an Austrian General and Admiral who served as Administrative Head of the Austro-Hungarian Navy from 1851 to 1854.
Military career
Franz von Wimpffen was born ...
*
Duke Eugen of Württemberg (1846–1877)
References
* Königlich Statistischer Landesamt,''Hof und Staatshandbuch des Königreichs Württemberg'', 1908.
* Neal O'Connor, ''Aviation Awards of Imperial Germany in World War I and the Men Who Earned Them: Volume IV - The Aviation Awards of the Kingdom of Württemberg'', Flying Machines Press 1995
* Dr. Kurt-Gerhard Klietmann, ''Pour le Mérite und Tapferkeitsmedaille'', 1966.
* Website on th
Decorations of the Kingdom of Württemberg
Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Military Merit Order (Wurttemberg)
Orders, decorations, and medals of Württemberg
Military awards and decorations of Imperial Germany
1759 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire
1919 disestablishments in Germany
Awards established in 1759
Awards disestablished in 1919