List of Knight's Cross recipients 33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS Charlemagne (1st French)
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross | |
---|---|
Awarded by Nazi Germany | |
Type | Neck order |
Eligibility | Military personnel |
Awarded for | Awarded to holders of the Iron Cross to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or successful military leadership |
Campaign | World War II |
Status | Obsolete |
Statistics | |
Established | 1 September 1939 |
First awarded | 30 September 1939 |
Last awarded | 11 May 1945 / 17 June 1945[a] |
Precedence | |
Next (higher) | Grand Cross of the Iron Cross |
Next (lower) | Iron Cross 1st Class |
Insignia of 33rd Waffen Grenadier Division Charlemagne |
The 33rd Waffen Grenadier Division of the SS Charlemagne (1st French) and Charlemagne Regiment are collective names used for units of French volunteers in the Wehrmacht and later Waffen-SS during World War II. The Charlemagne division was formed in 1944 from an amalgam of troops serving in other French units of the German armed forces, as well as from the paramilitary Franc-Garde of the Milice.[1]
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its higher grades were based on four separate enactments. The first enactment Reichsgesetzblatt I S. 1573 [2] of September 1, 1939 instituted the Iron Cross and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. As the war progressed some of the recipients distinguished themselves further and a higher grade, the Oak Leaves to Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was instituted. The Oak Leaves, as they were commonly referred to, were based on the enactment Reichsgesetzblatt I S. 849 [3] of June 3, 1940. In 1941 two higher grades of the Knight's Cross were instituted. The enactment Reichsgesetzblatt I S. 613 [4] of September 28, 1941 introduced the Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords and the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. At the end of 1944 the last and final grade, the Knight's Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds, based on the enactment Reichsgesetzblatt 1945 I S. 11 [5] of December 29, 1944 concluded the variants of the Knight's Cross.
Prerequisites
To qualify for the Knight's Cross, a soldier had to already hold the 1939 Iron Cross First Class, though the Iron Cross I Class was awarded concurrently with the Knight's Cross in rare cases. Unit commanders could also be awarded the medal for exemplary conduct by the unit as a whole.
Grades
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was divided into five grades, excluding the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross:
- Knights Cross
- Knights Cross with Oak Leaves
- Knights Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords
- Knights Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds
- Knights Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds
Knight's Cross
Four members of the division were awarded the Knight's Cross, all during the Battle of Berlin:
- Robert Appolot, W-Oberscharführer (29 April 1945)
- Henri Joseph Fenet, SS-Frw.Hauptsturmführer (29 April 1945)
- Eugene Vaulot, W-Unterscharführer (29 April 1945)
- Wilhelm Weber, SS-Obersturmführer (29 April 1945) [6][7]
Footnotes
- ↑ Encyclopædia Britannica
- ↑ @ALEX Österreichische Nationalbibliothek Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I S. 1573; 1 September 1939
- ↑ @ALEX Österreichische Nationalbibliothek Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I S. 849; 3 June 1940
- ↑ @ALEX Österreichische Nationalbibliothek Reichsgesetzblatt Teil I S. 613; 28 September 1941
- ↑ @ALEX Österreichische Nationalbibliothek Reichsgesetzblatt 1945 I S. 11; 29 December 1944
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References
- BOUYSSE, Grégory: Waffen-SS Français volume 1 & 2. Lulu.com, 2011.
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