Description
Product Description: This Field Made Knights Cross with Oak Leaves belonged to Luftwaffe Major Franz Kieslich. The photographic provenance accompanying the award is about as good as it gets. The photo clearly shows the cross being worn during the period. The cross itself was fashioned from a simple iron cross 2nd class, where the original ribbon ring was removed and a set of field made Oak Leaves were added. The Oak Leaves of this Field Made Knights Cross are made of zinc, with a simple brass wire added for the ribbon. The ribbon is an original regulation Knights Cross ribbon. The ribbon ties have been lost to time. Major Franz Kieslich flew over 1,000 missions, and sank over 21,500 GRT of shipping in the Black Sea area of Russia. He was also awarded the German Cross in Gold, Luftwaffe Ehrenpokal (Honor Goblet), and the Gold Bomber Clasp with Pendant, among many others. He passed away in 2012 at the age of 98. This is a rare chance to own a unique award with solid photographic provenance for one of the Luftwaffe’s most decorated bomber pilots.
Historical Description: The German Knights Cross of the Iron Cross. Instituted on September 1st, 1939, the Knights Cross has come to be known as one of the most recognized awards of World War Two and Germany. Awarded for extreme individual acts of bravery during combat, or successful battlefield leadership resulting in extraordinary success, the Knights Cross and its subsequent grades were among the German Military’s most prestigious decorations. The Knights Cross, suspended by a black, red, and white ribbon, was worn around the neck. Prior to the Knights Cross, Germany’s highest military, the Pour Le Merit, was reserved for Officers. The highest bravery awards an enlisted man could obtain was the Iron Cross 1stClass. Keeping with the National Socialist idea, and the breaking of the old Prussian aristocratic ways, Adolf Hitler created an award which, for the first time in the history of the Iron Cross, every member of Germany’s armed forces was eligible to be awarded, provided the requirements of awarding had been met. The awarding process determining whether a soldier was worthy of the award, began as a recommendation at the company level. This recommendation was then reviewed and either approved or denied. Upon approval, it would continue through the appropriate chain of command. If approval continued through unopposed, the recommendation ultimately ended in the hands Adolf Hitler, with himself making the final judgment. Most recommendations did not reach Adolf Hitler, or were lost in the chaos of war. The Knights Cross was awarded 7,364 times during the war. It is estimated that approximately 20,000 Knights Crosses were produced between September 1939 to May 1945.
Keeping with the rich heroic history of the Iron Cross, the Knights Cross was also constructed of three separate pieces, a core and two outer frames. The obverse displaying a rotating swastika in the center with the date “1939” for the year of introduction during the present conflict, and the reverse featuring only the date “1813” for the first year of the institution of the Iron Cross. The core, made of iron, zinc, or brass, was placed between the two outer silver frames and delicately hand soldered together. The cross was then suspended by a large loop through the frames top eyelet. A ribbon of black, white, and red was then threaded through the suspension loop. The production of the Knights Cross was strictly regulated, and only after the company’s granted approval by the government, were they legally allowed to produce the Knights Cross. In 1941, the German Government restricted the sale of the Knights Cross only to those with proper documentation proving their eligibility.
Wartime manufacturers of Knights Crosses are Juncker, Steinhauer & Luck, Klein & Quenzer, Otto Schickle, C.F. Zimmermann, Gebruder Godet, Unknown “3/4 Ring”.
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