The Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 Das Ehrenkreuz des Weltkrieges 

By an order dated July 13, 1934, Field Marshal Paul von Hindenburg, President of the German Weimar Republic, established the Honour Cross of the World War 1914/1918 (German: Das Ehrenkreuz des Weltkrieges 1914/1918), also known as the Hindenburg Cross or the German WWI Service Cross, to honour the German people's service during the First World War. For Imperial German soldiers who had fought in the conflict, this was Germany's first official service medal. It was also given to their surviving relatives in cases where they had since passed away. The Nazi German government quickly proclaimed the award to be the sole official service decoration of the First World War and prohibited the wearing of the majority of German Free Corps awards on any state or Nazi Party paramilitary uniform. 

The Honour Cross was awarded in three forms:

Eugene Godet designed the Honour Cross, which was based on the reverse side of the War Commemorative Medal of 1870/71 (Preußen Kriegsdenkmünze 1870-1871). Combatants were given the Frontkämpferkreuz, a medallion with the dates "1914 1918" surrounded by a laurel wreath and crossed swords between the arms. Other than the manufacturer's logo, the reverse side was plain. There were no swords and an oak leaf wreath on the non-combatants' honour cross. The two crosses were made of bronze. The Widows Cross, also referred to as the Honour Cross for Next of Kin, was completed in black. 

The Honour Cross was worn hanging from a ribbon that had two white stripes, two black stripes, a red stripe in the centre, and black edge stripes. These colours were used in a different order on the next-of-kin Honour Cross ribbon, which featured white edge stripes, two black stripes, and white stripes on either side of a red stripe in the centre. The mother or widow in question would often wear them with the ribbon fashioned into a bow and a pin on the back that she would attach to her garments. There was a deadline for applying for this award, and it ended at the end of 1942. An Urkunde, or certificate, identifying the form the award took, was included with every award. There were two different kinds of certificates for the next-of-kin crosses: Ehrenkreuz für Witwen (Honour Cross for Widows) for widows and Ehrenkreuz für Eltern (Honour Cross for Parents) for parents. It was ranked lower than other combat medals, but higher than other service and occupation medals. 

The number of awards given was:

for combatants 6,202,883
for non-combatants 1,120,449 

for widows 345,132 

for parents 372,950 

total 8,041,414

The State Minister of the Interior instituted these awards into the Ostmark (the name of Austria following its annexation by Nazi Germany) by decree dated November 30, 1938. People of German descent from seized territories in the Sudetenland, Czechoslovakia, Danzig, Saar, and Memel were also granted permission by 1940. Awarding of the cross-to-war participants of German heritage continued after the deadline for applications had closed within the previous boundaries of Germany. Such Honour Crosses were still being awarded as late as 1944. For all attached military personnel outside these regions, the Führer, through the ordinance of 30 June 1942, had already ordered approval of these awards. 

SKU Number: MMCM-DE-HCW-1914-01*