Military Awards Of World War II

Military awards of World War II were presented by most of the combatants.

United States

Main article: Awards and decorations of the United States military

• Medal of Honor
• Navy Cross
• Distinguished Service Cross
• Distinguished Service Medal
• Legion of Merit
• Silver Star
• Bronze Star
• Purple Heart
• Distinguished Flying Cross
• Air Medal
• World War II Victory Medal
• Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal
• European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal
• American Campaign Medal

Soviet Union

• Hero of the Soviet Union
• Order of Lenin
• Order of Victory
• Order of the Red Banner
• Order of Suvorov
• Order of Kutuzov
• Order of Ushakov
• Order of Nakhimov
• Order of Glory
• Order of Alexander Nevsky
• Order of the Patriotic War
• Order of the Red Star
• Medal “For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945”
• Medal “For the Victory over Japan”
• Medal “For the Defence of Leningrad”
• Medal “For the Defence of Odessa”
• Medal “For the Defence of Sevastopol”
• Medal “For the Defence of Stalingrad”
• Medal “For the Defence of Moscow”
• Medal “For the Defence of the Caucasus”
• Medal “For the Defence of the Soviet Transarctic”
• Medal “For the Defence of Kiev”
• Medal “For the Capture of Berlin”
• Medal “For the Capture of Vienna”
• Medal “For the Capture of Königsberg”
• Medal “For the Capture of Budapest”
• Medal “For the Liberation of Prague”
• Medal “For the Liberation of Warsaw”
• Medal “For the Liberation of Belgrade”

In Soviet Union orders and medals were also awarded to cities and military divisions.

United Kingdom

• Victoria Cross
• George Cross
• Order of the Bath
• Order of the British Empire
• Distinguished Service Order
• Distinguished Service Cross
• Military Cross
• Distinguished Flying Cross
• Air Force Cross
• Distinguished Conduct Medal
• Conspicuous Gallantry Medal
• Distinguished Service Medal
• Military Medal
• Distinguished Flying Medal
• Air Force Medal
• Burma Gallantry Medal
• George Medal
• Mention in Despatches
• 1939-1945 Star
• Atlantic Star
• Air Crew Europe Star
• Africa Star
• Pacific Star
• Burma Star
• Italy Star
• France and Germany Star
• Defence Medal
• War Medal 1939–1945

France and Belgium

• Croix de guerre 1939–1945 (France)
• War Cross (Belgium)

Poland

• Virtuti Militari
• Order Krzyża Grunwaldu
• Krzyż Walecznych (Cross of the Valorous)
• Krzyż Partyzancki (Partisan Cross)
• Monte Cassino campaign cross

Yugoslavia

• Order of the National Hero (Orden narodnog heroja)
• Order of the National Liberation
• Order of Bravery (Yugoslavia)
• Order of the Partisan Star (Yugoslavia)
• Order of Brotherhood and Unity (Yugoslavia)
• The Medal of Bravery (Yugoslavia)

Axis Powers and Allies

Nazi Germany

Main article: Orders, decorations, and medals of Nazi Germany

• Iron Cross
• Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross
• German Cross

Romania

• Order of Michael the Brave
• Order of the Star of Romania
• Cruciada împotriva comunismului

Finland

• Order of the Cross of Liberty
  • Mannerheim cross (awarded 1941-1945)
• Order of the White Rose of Finland
• Order of the Lion of Finland

66-50-D Italy Knight Grand Cross of the Military Order of Italy

The insignia of a Military Knight of Italy (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Accession: 66-50-D
Medal, Badge, Italy, Knight Grand Cross of the Military Order of Italy.

Medal awarded to FADM C. Nimitz

Collection of Curator Branch, Naval History and Heritage Command.

[Medal of Honor] (LOC) (Photo credit: The Library of Congress)

Grand Cross of the Iron Cross

Grand Cross of the Iron Cross – From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The Grand Cross of the Iron Cross was a decoration intended for victorious generals of the Prussian Army and its allies. It was the highest class of the Iron Cross. Along with the Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class, the Grand Cross was founded on March 10, 1813, during the Napoleonic Wars. It was renewed in 1870 for the Franco-Prussian War and again in 1914 for World War I. In 1939, when Adolf Hitler renewed the Iron Cross as a German, rather than Prussian, decoration, the Grand Cross was again renewed.

The Grand Cross of the Iron Cross was twice the size of the Iron Cross and was worn from a ribbon around the neck. The later Knight’s Cross of the Iron Cross, instituted in 1939, was also worn from the neck; it was smaller than the Grand Cross but larger than the Iron Cross

Crown Prince Friedrich Wilhelm of Prussia (later to reign briefly as Kaiser Friedrich III)
wearing the 1870 Grand Cross of the Iron Cross.

Five men received the 1813 Grand Cross of the Iron Cross for actions during the Napoleonic Wars:

• Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, commander of Prussian forces at the Battle of Waterloo, later elevated to the Star of the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross
• Friedrich Wilhelm von Bülow
• Crown Prince Charles John of Sweden (Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte) – earlier a Marshal under Napoleon, after becoming regent and crown prince of Sweden, he joined the Sixth Coalition against Napoleon.
• Bogislav Friedrich Emanuel von Tauentzien
• Ludwig Yorck von Wartenburg.

1870 Grand Cross of the Iron Cross

1914 Grand Cross of the Iron Cross.

The Iron Cross was renewed again on August 5, 1914. There were five recipients of the 1914 Grand Cross in the First World War:

• Kaiser Wilhelm II
• Paul von Hindenburg, later elevated to the Star of the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross
• Erich Ludendorff
• Prince Leopold of Bavaria
• August von Mackensen

1939 Grand Cross

Adolf Hitler reinstituted the Iron Cross as a German decoration in September 1939, with the Grand Cross again as the highest grade (above the various classes of the Knight’s Cross). Hermann Göring became the only recipient of the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross during World War II when it was awarded to him on July 19, 1940. The Grand Cross – when Hitler originally re-instituted it – was supposed to have been outlined in gold, but this was changed to silver before Göring was awarded his. Göring – who loved amassing medals – felt that the Grand Cross he received from Hitler was not really grand enough, so he had copies made – one with platinum edges – which he wore. The original awarded Grand Cross was destroyed in an air raid in 1943. Göring was wearing his platinum-edged one at the time of his surrender in 1945. Shortly before his suicide, Hitler deprived Göring of the Grand Cross because he felt betrayed by him. Also, Göring had the curious habit of not wearing the Grand Cross at times (generally whenever the Luftwaffe was not performing well).^{[citation needed]}

The award case for the 1939 Grand Cross had a red leather exterior, which was embossed with a gold Reich Eagle. The bottom interior of the case was lined in black velvet.

An even higher decoration, the Star of the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross, was intended to be presented to the most successful German general of World War II once Germany achieved victory. Awarded only twice (to Field Marshals Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher and Paul von Hindenburg), a prototype 1939 Star was discovered by the Allies in 1945. It is currently on display with Göring’s Reichsmarschall baton in the West Point Military Collection.

                                                    

Various iterations from 1813 to 1870