Ritterkreuzträger with Ehrenblattspange (Honor Roll Clasp)

EHRENBLATTSPANGE DES HEERES UND WAFFEN-SS

The Ehrenblattspange des Heeres und Waffen-SS, known in English as the Honour Roll Clasp of the Army and Waffen-SS, was a prestigious German military decoration instituted during the Second World War to recognize exceptional bravery on the battlefield. Introduced by Adolf Hitler on 30 January 1944, the golden clasp featuring a swastika encircled by an oak leaf wreath was designed to be worn on the ribbon of the Iron Cross 2nd Class as a visible mark of honor for soldiers whose names had already been published in the Ehrenblatt des Deutschen Heeres, the Army's Honour Roll. This Honour Roll had been established in July 1941 shortly after the invasion of the Soviet Union to publicly acknowledge acts of extraordinary personal courage by members of the German Army and Waffen-SS that went beyond the criteria for the Knight's Cross but demonstrated outstanding valor in combat. Approximately 4,556 clasps were awarded in total, with around 4,107 going to Heer personnel and 167 to the Waffen-SS, serving as both a high distinction for frontline troops and, in some cases, a pathway to promotion for non-commissioned officers and enlisted men. The last official publications of awards occurred in February 1945, though some unlisted conferrals took place in the final chaotic months of the war.

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HEER

Oberstleutnant Franz Pöschl (1917-2011) was born on 2 November 1917 in Munich and entered the Wehrmacht in 1936 as an Offiziersanwärter with Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 100 in Bad Reichenhall. He served throughout the Second World War with mountain troops, taking part in the campaigns in Poland, Greece, Crete, Russia and Italy, rising from Zugführer to Kompaniechef and later Bataillonskommandeur. As Oberleutnant and Chef of the 3./Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 100 he received the Deutsches Kreuz in Gold on 30 July 1942. On 23 February 1944, while serving as Hauptmann and Kommandeur of the I. Bataillon of Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 100 in the 5. Gebirgs-Division, he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes for preventing a critical outflanking of German positions by French forces near Monte Cassino. Later transferred to Finland, he assumed command of Gebirgsjäger-Regiment 143 of the 6. Gebirgs-Division. For a decisive act of bravery at Liinakamari on 13 October 1944 during the difficult withdrawal battles in the Arctic, he was named in the Ehrenblatt des Heeres and received the Ehrenblattspange des Heeres und Waffen-SS on 15 February 1945 while holding the rank of Major. Promoted Oberstleutnant, he surrendered with his regiment north of Narvik in May 1945. After the war he joined the Bundeswehr, rising to Generalleutnant and commanding the III. Korps before his death in Hamburg on 25 January 2011.

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WAFFEN-SS

SS-Hauptsturmführer Willi Hein (1917-2000) was born on 26 April 1917 in Hohenwestedt, Schleswig-Holstein, and joined the Hitlerjugend in 1930 before entering the NSDAP and SS in 1936. He volunteered for the Waffen-SS at the outbreak of war and served initially with SS-Standarte “Germania” and later “Nordland” before transferring to the Eastern Front with the 5. SS-Panzer-Division “Wiking”. As SS-Untersturmführer der Reserve he commanded a Kradschützen-Zug in SS-Panzer-Abteilung 5 and later the 4. (StuG.) Kompanie of SS-Panzer-Regiment 5. For outstanding defensive performance during the fighting around Kharkov in the autumn of 1943 he was personally complimented by Adolf Hitler and named in the Ehrenblatt des Heeres, receiving the Ehrenblattspange des Heeres und Waffen-SS on 5 November 1943. Promoted SS-Obersturmführer der Reserve, he took command of the 2./SS-Panzer-Regiment 5 and distinguished himself further in the Cherkassy Pocket near Olschana in January 1944, where with two hastily repaired Sturmgeschütze and a handful of Grenadiere he destroyed three T-34 tanks and fifteen anti-tank guns while capturing some 200 prisoners, holding the line until reinforcements arrived. For this action he was awarded the Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes on 4 May 1944. He later commanded the I. Abteilung of SS-Panzer-Regiment 5, was severely wounded near Budapest in January 1945, and was promoted SS-Hauptsturmführer der Reserve on 30 January 1945. Hein survived the war and died on 25 October 2000 in Lauenburg.

Source :
https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ehrenblattspange