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Recipients are grouped by grades of the Knight's Cross. Within each grade the recipients are ordered chronologically. An exception is the lowest grade, here the recipients are ordered alphabetically by last name. The rank listed is the recipient's rank at the time the Knight's Cross was awarded.
Listed here are the 368 Knight's Cross recipients of the Wehrmacht and Waffen-SS whose last name is in the range "Ba–Bm". Scherzer has challenged the validity of 13 of these listings. This is the first of two lists of all 725 Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross recipients whose last name starts with "B".
NameServiceRankRole And Unit [note 2]Karl Baacke +Chief of the 2./ Infanterie-Regiment 124 ...Commander of Schützen-Regiment 115 [14]Heinz BaaderIn the Nahaufklärungsgruppe 5 [14]Pilot in the 5./ Zerstörergeschwader 26 ...The recipients whose last name is in the range "Ka–Km" are listed at List of Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross recipients (Ka–Km). The recipients are initially ordered alphabetically by last name. The rank listed is the recipient's rank at the time the Knight's Cross was awarded.
NameServiceRankRole And Unit [note 2]Kurt Knaack13-H Oberleutnant of the Reserves [15]Leader of the 2./Infanterie-Regiment 410 ...Chief of the 8./Lehr-Regiment z.b.V. 800 ...Commander of Kradschützen-Bataillon 15 ...Konrad KnabeLeader of a Kette ("chain" or flight of ...- Overview
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The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (German language: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes) and its variants were the highest awards in the military of the Third Reich during World War II. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded for a wide range of reasons and across all ranks, from a senior commander for skilled leadership of his troops in battle to a low-ranking soldier for a single act of extreme gallantry.[1] A total of 7,322 awards were made between its first presentation on 30 September 1939 and its last bestowal on 17 June 1945.[Note 1] This number is based on the analysis and acceptance of the order commission of the Association of Knight's Cross Recipients (AKCR). Presentations were made to members of the three military branches of the Wehrmacht—the Heer (Army), Kriegsmarine (Navy) and Luftwaffe (Air force)—as well as the Waffen-SS, the Reichsarbeitsdienst (RAD) and the Volkssturm. There were also 43 recipients in the military forces of allies of the Third Reich.[3]
These 7,322 recipients are listed in the 1986 edition of Walther-Peer Fellgiebel's book, Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 – Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtsteile — The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War. In 1996 a second edition of this book was published with an addendum delisting 11 of these original 7,322 recipients. Author and historian Veit Scherzer has cast doubt on a further 193 of these listings. The majority of the disputed recipients had received the award in 1945, when the deteriorating situation of the Third Reich during the final days of World War II left a number of nominations incomplete and pending in various stages of the approval process.[4] Listed here are the 238 Knight's Cross recipients whose last name starts with "D".[5] Author and historian Veit Scherzer has challenged the validity of six of these listings.[6] The recipients are initially ordered alphabetically by last name. The rank listed is the recipient's rank at the time the Knight's Cross was awarded.
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 of 1 September 1939 instituted the Iron Cross (Eisernes Kreuz), the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross (Großkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes). Article 2 of the enactment ma...
The Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (Supreme Command of the Armed Forces) kept separate Knight's Cross lists, one for each of the three military branches, Heer (Army), Kriegsmarine (Navy), Luftwaffe (Air force) and Waffen-SS. 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.[11] Of the 238 awards made to servicemen whose last name starts with "D", 20 were later awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, six the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords and one, Joseph Dietrich, the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds; 20 presentations were made posthumously. One hundred and forty-nine Heer members received the medal, seven went to the Kriegsmarine, 57 to the Luftwaffe, and 25 to the Waffen-SS.[5] The sequential numbers greater than 843 for the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and 143 for the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords are unofficial and were assigned by the Association of Knight's Cross Recipients (AKCR) and are therefore denoted in parentheses.[12]
This along with the + (plus) indicates that a higher grade of Knight's Cross was awarded as well.
This along with the * (asterisk) indicates that the Knight's Cross was awarded posthumously.
This along with the ? (question mark) indicates that historian Veit Scherzer has expressed doubt regarding the veracity and formal correctness of the listing.
Citations
Bibliography
•Fellgiebel, Walther-Peer (2000) (in German). Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939–1945 – Die Inhaber der höchsten Auszeichnung des Zweiten Weltkrieges aller Wehrmachtsteile [The Bearers of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939–1945 — The Owners of the Highest Award of the Second World War of all Wehrmacht Branches]. Friedberg, Germany: Podzun-Pallas. ISBN 978-3-7909-0284-6.
•Scherzer, Veit (2007) (in German). Die Ritterkreuzträger 1939–1945 Die Inhaber des Ritterkreuzes des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939 von Heer, Luftwaffe, Kriegsmarine, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm sowie mit Deutschland verbündeter Streitkräfte nach den Unterlagen des Bundesarchives [The Knight's Cross Bearers 1939–1945 The Holders of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 by Army, Air Force, Navy, Waffen-SS, Volkssturm and Allied Forces with Germany According to the Documents of the Federal Archives]. Jena, Germany: Scherzers Miltaer-Verlag. ISBN 978-3-938845-17-2.
•Williamson, Gordon; Bujeiro, Ramiro (2004). Knight's Cross and Oak Leaves Recipients 1939–40. Oxford, UK: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84176-641-6.
Further reading
•"Die Träger des Ritterkreuzes" (in German). Lexikon der Wehrmacht. http://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Orden/Ritterkreuz/IndexRK.htm. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
•"Das Bundesarchiv". Military Archive – Freiburg im Breisgau. http://www.bundesarchiv.de/bundesarchiv/dienstorte/freiburg/index.html.en. Retrieved 2 January 2011.
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross
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Jul 6, 2015 · The sole recipient was Generalfeldmarschall Hermann Göring, who at the same time was promoted to Reichsmarschall. [5] Knight's Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds. The "Knight's Cross with Golden Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds" is based on the enactment Reichsgesetzblatt 1945 I S. 11 of 29 December 1944.
A total of 7 awards were made in 1940; 50 in 1941; 111 in 1942; 192 in 1943; 328 in 1944, and 194 in 1945, giving a total of 882 recipients—excluding the 8 foreign recipients of the award. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and its variants were the highest awards in the military and paramilitary forces of Nazi Germany during World War II.
The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded for a wide range of reasons and across all ranks, from a senior commander for skilled leadership of his troops in battle to a low-ranking soldier for a single act of extreme gallantry.