Ritterkreuzträger with Cloth Version Awards

 DEUTSCHES KREUZ IN GOLD

The Deutsches Kreuz in Gold (German Cross in Gold) Cloth Version was a practical and highly regarded combat variant of Nazi Germany's prestigious military decoration, instituted by Adolf Hitler on September 28, 1941. Designed as a large eight-pointed star with a swastika center encircled by a laurel wreath, the award recognized exceptional bravery and leadership in combat for recipients who already held the Iron Cross 1st Class but had not yet earned the Knight's Cross. While the standard metal version was bulky and prone to damage or snagging during intense fighting, the official cloth version (Stoffausführung) featured a metal wreath and embroidered or woven details mounted on a fabric backing that matched the wearer's uniform branch—field-grey for the Heer and Waffen-SS, blue-grey for the Luftwaffe, dark blue for the Kriegsmarine, and black for Panzer units. This lightweight, sew-on design allowed soldiers to display their hard-earned honor continuously on field uniforms without risking the loss or destruction of the heavier metal badge, making it a valued alternative for frontline troops throughout the remainder of World War II. Today, original cloth examples are prized collector items due to their relative rarity and direct connection to combat wear.

Oberstleutnant Franz Pöschl (1917-2011), a highly decorated officer in the Wehrmacht during the Second World War, earned his Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes through exceptional leadership and bravery while serving with Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 100 of the 5. Gebirgs-Division. Born in Munich in 1917, Pöschl had already distinguished himself in earlier campaigns, including the invasions of Poland, Greece, and Crete, as well as intense fighting on the Eastern Front where he received the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold. His defining moment came during the Battle of Monte Cassino in January 1944, when, as Hauptmann and commander of I. Bataillon/Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 100, he personally led multiple counterattacks under heavy fire to repel assaults by Allied forces, including the French Expeditionary Corps, holding critical positions such as Monte Cifalco and preventing the outflanking of German lines despite sustaining serious wounds. For this extraordinary valor and decisive action that helped stabilize the Gustav Line defenses, he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 23 February 1944. Later commanding Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 143 in the Lapland War, Pöschl rose to the rank of Oberstleutnant before the war's end, his Ritterkreuz standing as a testament to his frontline heroism amid some of the conflict's most grueling mountain and defensive battles.

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FLUGZEUGFÜHRERABZEICHEN

The Flugzeugführerabzeichen cloth version, known as the Stoffausführung of the Luftwaffe Pilot’s Badge, was a textile qualification insignia introduced alongside the metal badge and specifically intended for wear on the Fliegerbluse and other flying garments to prevent the metal version from snagging on parachute harnesses, oxygen equipment or life vests. Originally authorized on 19 January 1935 for the Deutscher Luftsportverband and officially adopted by the Luftwaffe on 26 March 1936 under Hermann Göring, the cloth badge confirmed successful completion of pilot training rather than combat achievement. Early regulations restricted the cloth form to officers, but an order of 18 November 1937 extended its wear to enlisted men and non-commissioned officers. Two principal variants existed: the officer’s pattern executed in heavy silver bullion wire, often hand-embroidered, and the enlisted or NCO pattern machine-embroidered in cotton or linen thread, both applied to a cut-out oval of blue-grey or dark blue wool. The design featured a vertically oval wreath of oak leaves on the left and laurel leaves on the right enclosing a stylized, spread-winged eagle clutching a canted swastika in its talons. Typical dimensions measured approximately 70 mm in width by 55 mm in height, with some examples padded for a three-dimensional effect. Production of the cloth badges was officially discontinued by regulation of 8 May 1942, yet existing stocks continued to be worn until the end of the war. Because of their textile construction these badges suffered greater wear than their metal counterparts and survive today in far smaller numbers, making well-preserved original examples highly prized by collectors of Luftwaffe insignia.

Major Johann Zemsky (1909-1942) was born on 11 April 1909 in Vienna as the son of a civil servant and entered the Austrian Bundesheer in 1928 as a non-commissioned officer in the artillery, completing an officer course in 1932 and receiving promotion to Leutnant in 1936 before volunteering for the Luftwaffe after the Anschluss in 1938. By 1939 he served as an Oberleutnant and flying instructor at the Stukaschule in Insterburg, then flew combat missions with Sturzkampfgeschwader 3 against Britain in 1940, earning the Eisernes Kreuz II. Klasse on 24 February 1940. On 1 September 1940 he was promoted to Hauptmann and appointed Staffelkapitän of 6./Sturzkampfgeschwader 1, distinguishing himself in anti-shipping operations near Crete, Malta and the eastern Mediterranean that brought him the Eisernes Kreuz I. Klasse in May 1941. Transferred to the Eastern Front for Operation Barbarossa, he assumed command of II. Gruppe/Sturzkampfgeschwader 1 in September 1941 after the death of Hauptmann Anton Keil and led highly successful dive-bomber attacks against ground targets around Bialystok, Minsk, Vitebsk, Gomel, Kiev and Moscow. For completing more than 300 combat sorties he received the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 4 February 1942 as Hauptmann und Gruppenkommandeur of II./Sturzkampfgeschwader 1. Continuing operations on the southern sector through the battles for Kharkov and toward Stalingrad, where he marked his 500th sortie in July 1942, he was slightly wounded by anti-aircraft shrapnel in June yet remained in command. On 28 August 1942, during his 600th combat mission near Mal-Rosowka in the Battle of Stalingrad, his Ju 87 was shot down by Soviet anti-aircraft fire; although he managed to bail out, his parachute failed to open and he was killed. Posthumously promoted to Major with effect from 1 August 1942, he was awarded the 117th Eichenlaub to the Ritterkreuz on 3 September 1942 as Major und Gruppenkommandeur of II./Sturzkampfgeschwader 1 in recognition of his 600 operational sorties.

Source :
https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?t=20911