Iron Cross 2nd Class Winners

The Iron Cross 2nd Class held a certain level of prestige in the waning days of 1939; in war's past, even this lowest grade had been stringently presented. However, as the conflict entered advanced years, and certainly as the German infrastructure crumbled in 1945, this grade was given out with liberalism and therefore its reputation eroded accordingly. In spite of this, the Iron Cross 2nd Class was a valued decoration.

Award Criteria[]

The official criteria for the award was a single act of bravery in the face of the enemy, or actions that were clearly above and beyond the call of duty.

Heer and SS personnel would receive the Cross for a successful action in which the soldier distinguished himself. It was not uncommon for an entire unit to receive the Iron Cross 2nd Class. The entire crew of U-29 was decorated on September 18th in recognition of their sinking of the 22,500 aircraft carrier HMS Courageous on the previous day.

Wear[]

The class of the award was worn in three different methods

• From the second button of the tunic.
• When in formal dress, the entire cross was worn mounted alone or as part of a medal bar.
• For everyday wear, only the ribbon was worn from the second hole in the tunic button.

Clasp to the Iron Cross[]

The Clasp to the Iron Cross (Spange zum Eisernen Kreuz) was a white metal medal clasp displayed on the uniforms of German Wehrmacht personnel who had been awarded the Iron Cross in World War I, and who again qualified for the decoration in World War II. During the war, over 100,000 clasps were awarded.