Cross of honor for survivors of German Spanish fighters

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Appendix from the Reichsgesetzblatt No. 139 with an illustration of the Cross of Honor for surviving dependents of German Spanish fighters

The Cross of Honor for the surviving dependents of German fighters in Spain was donated by decree on April 14, 1939 by Adolf Hitler and awarded to the next of kin of German volunteers of the Condor Legion in the Spanish Civil War .

The opening sentence to the foundation began with the words: In memory of the heroic achievements in the overthrow of Bolshevism in the Spanish fight for freedom, I am donating a cross of honor for the surviving dependents of German fighters in Spain. The statutes determine the details. Berchtesgaden, April 14, 1939.

Articles of Association

The statutes issued for this purpose, also dated April 14, 1939, had the following content. The Cross of Honor is intended for the closest relatives of German volunteers who

  • a) please,
  • b) died in captivity,
  • c) missing,
  • d) had a fatal accident,
  • e) died as a result of injuries, accidents and illnesses recognized as damage to military service due to the special mission.

Authorization to carry

The relatives were entitled to wear in the following order:

  • a) the widow,
  • b) the oldest son of full age, then the daughter,
  • c) the father, then the mother,
  • d) the brother, then the sister.

Appearance and texture

The medal is a scaled-down Spanish cross and is made of bronze . Like the Spanish cross, it bears the national emblem of the Luftwaffe between the bars and was worn on a black, white-red-yellow-red ribbon on the left chest of the borrower.

Applications and award practice

The applications for the award of the Cross of Honor had to be submitted to the High Command of the Wehrmacht, whereby these applications had to be accompanied by a police certification. These proposals were then drawn up by the Chief of the High Command of the Wehrmacht and submitted to Hitler for approval by the Chief of the Presidential Chancellery of the Ordenskanzlei. The cross of honor was then given to the bereaved by a document signed with Hitler's signature, whereby the cross of honor remained as a memento of the family after the death of the bereaved .

Award numbers

A total of 315 honorary crosses were awarded.

Others

The Cross of Honor for the surviving dependents of German fighters in Spain is one of the National Socialist awards that are not permitted in any form in Germany under the law on titles, medals and decorations of July 26, 1957.

See also

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Reichsgesetzblatt No. 139 of August 10, 1939 p. 1362, Ordinance on the Foundation of the Cross of Honor for surviving dependents of German fighters in Spain
  2. ↑ Reichsgesetzblatt No. 139 of August 10, 1939 p. 1362, Statute of the Cross of Honor for Survivors of German Spanish Fighters, Article 1
  3. ↑ Reichsgesetzblatt No. 139 of August 10, 1939 p. 1363, Statute of the Cross of Honor for Survivors of German Spanish Fighters, Article 2
  4. ↑ Reichsgesetzblatt No. 139 of August 10, 1939 p. 1363, Statute of the Cross of Honor for Survivors of German Spanish Fighters, Articles 3 and 4
  5. ↑ Reichsgesetzblatt No. 139 of August 10, 1939 p. 1363, Statute of the Cross of Honor for Survivors of German Spanish Fighters, Article 5
  6. ↑ Reichsgesetzblatt No. 139 of August 10, 1939, p. 1363, Statute of the Cross of Honor for surviving dependents of German fighters in Spain, Articles 6 and 7
  7. ↑ Heinrich Doehle, The Awards of the Greater German Reich, reprint of the 1944 edition, p. 18.