The
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (German: ''Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes'') and its variants were the highest military award in
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
. Recipients are grouped by grades of the Knight's Cross. During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, 23 German sailors and officers of the ''
Schnellboot
E-boat was the Western Allies' designation for the fast attack craft (German: ''Schnellboot'', or ''S-Boot'', meaning "fast boat") of the Kriegsmarine during World War II; ''E-boat'' could refer to a patrol craft from an armed motorboat to a lar ...
'' (
Fast Attack Craft) service, which was a part of the ''
Kriegsmarine'', received the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. Of these, 8 officers received the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II.
The Knight' ...
(''Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes mit Eichenlaub'').
Background
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grades were based on four separate
enactments. The first enactment, of 1 September 1939 instituted the
Iron Cross
The Iron Cross (german: link=no, Eisernes Kreuz, , abbreviated EK) was a military decoration in the Kingdom of Prussia, and later in the German Empire (1871–1918) and Nazi Germany (1933–1945). King Frederick William III of Prussia es ...
(), the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and the
Grand Cross of the Iron Cross
The Grand Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Großkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) was a decoration intended for victorious generals of the Prussian Army and its allies. It was the second highest class of the Iron Cross, following the Star of the Gran ...
(). Article 2 of the enactment mandated that the award of a higher class be preceded by the award of all preceding classes.
[
] As the war progressed, some of the recipients of the Knight's Cross distinguished themselves further and a higher grade, the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II.
The Knight' ...
(), was instituted. The Oak Leaves, as they were commonly referred to, were based on the enactment of 3 June 1940.
In 1941, two higher grades of the Knight's Cross were instituted. The enactment of 28 September 1941 introduced the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (german: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes), or simply the Knight's Cross (), and its variants, were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II.
The Knight ...
() and the
().
At the end of 1944 the final grade, the
(), based on the enactment of 29 December 1944, became the final variant of the Knight's Cross authorized.
Recipients
The ''
Oberkommando der Wehrmacht'' kept separate Knight's Cross lists, one for each of the three military branches, ''
Heer'' (
Army
An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...
), ''
Kriegsmarine'' (
Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It in ...
), ''
Luftwaffe
The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...
'' (
Air force
An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ...
) and for the ''
Waffen-SS
The (, "Armed SS") was the combat branch of the Nazi Party's ''Schutzstaffel'' (SS) organisation. Its formations included men from Nazi Germany, along with Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts, volunteers and conscripts from both occup ...
''. Within each of these lists a unique sequential number was assigned to each recipient. The same numbering
paradigm was applied to the higher grades of the Knight's Cross, one list per grade.
Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves
The Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves was based on the enactment ''Reichsgesetzblatt I S. 849'' of 3 June 1940. The last officially announced number for the Oak Leaves was 843.
[Fellgiebel 2000, p. 102.]
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
The
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross is based on the enactment ''Reichsgesetzblatt I S. 1573'' of 1 September 1939 ''Verordnung über die Erneuerung des Eisernen Kreuzes'' (Regulation of the renewing of the Iron Cross).
Notes
References
;Specific
;General
*
*
Kurowski, Franz (2007). ''Korvettenkapitän Werner Töniges Der erste Eichenlaubträger der Schnellbootwaffe''. Flechsig Verlag. .
*
*
External links
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Schnell
Lists of Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross recipients
Schnellboote