Original German WWI & WWII Medal & Accessory Grouping with Merenti Cross & KVKII – 4 Items Original Items

Original Items: Only One Set Available. This is a very nice collection of German WWI & WWII Insignia & Awards, which was brought back from the European theater by a USGI after the war was concluded. All of these items are relatively hard to find, especially the Belt Buckle and the original box for the Merenti Cross.

This lovely set includes:

– One Boxed Imperial German WWI Era Bavarian Merenti Cross of Military Merit with Swords, 3rd Class, 1905. It is attached to the correct ribbon, which is on a metal backing board with a pin. The box it is in is correctly marked Bayr. M. V. Kr. 3. Kl, for Bayerische Militär-Verdienstkreuz 3. Klasse.

– One German WWII War Merit Crosses 2nd Class with Swords (For Combat). It has lost most of the gold wash, but still has the correct ribbon. It also comes in the original Kriegs-Verdienstkreuz 2. Klasse mit Schwertern marked paper packet, which is partly missing.

– One Imperial German WWI Prussian Officer’s Brocade Wilhelm II Brocade Belt Buckle. These are quite rare, especially in this great condition, still having a lot of the gold wash present, and not much patination.

– One Imperial German WWI Prussian Iron Cross 1914 Good Luck Nickel Plated Steel Ring. It has a very small inscription around the band, and is marked on the interior as well.

A wonderful totally genuine grouping perfect for the German Medal and Insignia collector.

Bavarian Merenti Cross of Military Merit with Swords, 3rd Class 1905.
The Bavarian Order of Military Merit was instituted in 1866 in 5 Classes. In 1905 the Cross of Military Merit (Militär-Verdienstkreuz) was revised initially to 2 Classes and in 1913 to 3 classes. Each class was awarded according to the rank of the recipient and could be issued with or without swords (for peace or war time period) and crown (for a 2nd award). The old non-enameled 2nd Class became the 3rd Class and was changed from silver to bronze. The old 1st Class became the 2nd Class. The new 1st Class was identical to the 2nd Class except that it was gilt rather than silver.

This is the third class award, indicating it was received by a low rank soldier, and the swords indicate it was awarded during wartime.

War Merit Cross 2nd Class (Kriegsverdienstkreuz) with Swords (for Combat)
This was a decoration of NSDAP Germany during the Second World War, which could be awarded to military personnel and civilians alike. By the end of the war it was issued in four degrees, and had a related civil decoration. It was created by Adolf AH in October 1939 as a successor to the non-combatant Iron Cross which was used in earlier wars. The award was graded the same as the Iron Cross: War Merit Cross Second Class, War Merit Cross First Class, and Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross. The award had two variants: with swords given to soldiers for exceptional service “not in direct connection with combat”, and without swords for meritorious service to civilians in “furtherance of the war effort”. As with the Iron Cross, Recipients had to have the lower grade of the award before getting the next level.