Hermann Wilhelm Göring (12 January 1893 - 15 October 1946)
Ritterkreuz on 30 September 1939 as Generalfeldmarschall and Oberbefehlshaber der Luftwaffe
Großkreuz on 19 July 1940 as Generalfeldmarschall and Oberbefehlshaber der Luftwaffe
Last rank: Reichsmarschall
Source :
https://web.archive.org/web/20091027052912fw_/http://geocities.com/orion47.geo/index2.html
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Hermann Wilhelm Göring rose from a World War I fighter ace and commander of the legendary Jagdgeschwader Richthofen to become the second most powerful man in the Third Reich and creator of the modern Luftwaffe. His bravery in the skies over Verdun and the Western Front earned him the Pour le Mérite for relentless combat missions and leadership that produced 22 victories. After the war he drifted through aviation jobs abroad before committing to the Nazi movement in 1922, surviving wounds in the Beer Hall Putsch and building key institutions including the Prussian police and air force. As Reichsmarschall his direction of air operations brought spectacular early successes in Poland and the West, rewarded by the unique Grosskreuz for the triumph in France. Later campaigns saw declining influence amid failures over Britain and the Reich, leading to his arrest in 1945. Convicted at Nuremberg he chose suicide rather than the gallows, ending one of the most dramatic careers of the era.
Source:
https://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/
https://en.wikipedia.org/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/
https://rk.balsi.de/index.php?action=list&cat=300
https://www.unithistories.com/units_index/index.php?file=/officers/personsx.html
https://web.archive.org/web/20091027052912fw_/http://geocities.com/orion47.geo/index2.html
https://forum.axishistory.com/
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/
https://www.bundesarchiv.de/en/
https://www.geni.com/
https://books.google.com/
http://de.metapedia.org/
https://www.tracesofwar.com/persons/207/G%C3%B6ring-Hermann-Wilhelm.htm
Manvell, Roger and Fraenkel, Heinrich: Hermann Göring, Heinemann, London 1962
Evans, Richard J.: The Third Reich in Power, Penguin Press, New York 2005
Franks, Norman and Van Wyngarden, Greg: Fokker Dr I Aces of World War I, Osprey Publishing, Oxford 2003
Here we have an official studio photograph of Reichsmarschall Herman Göring, showing field Marshall's baton, Pour le Mérite (World War I), and Ritterkreuz and Grosskreuz. Note the Grosskreuz (with clearly visible darker onyx swastika), Combined pilots observer badge with diamonds, and 1914 Eisernes Kreuz I.Klasse with 1939 medal bar in one piece jewellers construction.
The photo was produced by Röhr Verlag, you can see its logo on the right bottom part. The "Atelier" was managed by Robert Röhr and was located in Magdeburg. Röhr Verlag is well-known for producing an important postcards series of political personalities from end of 1930s onwards, which later turned into Ritterkreuzträger (Knight's Cross holder) postcard when the war broke out..They also produced posters in various bigger sizes than postcards in years 1940-1942.
The size of these photo posters come in several formats:
- 17.5cm x 13cm
- 24cm x 18cm (the most often seen)
- 40cm x 30cm
- 60cm x 45cm
- 100cm x 70cm
- 125cm x 100cm
- 150cm x 100cm
You will also notice that Röhr's logos changes a lot. The company has made it change 5-6 times in a short span of time and as postcards and posters were printed in small quantities, reprints were usual and bore the new logo.
Here are several Röhr postcards from Denis collection, one of them - numbered 3440 - being the mirror image of the picture above :
Source :
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/forum/wehrmacht-era-militaria/photos-and-paper-items-forum/12282427-hermann-g%C3%B6ring-studio-photograph
From the left, the Führer and German chancellor Adolf Hitler in a meeting with Reichsmarschall Hermann Göring and General der Flieger Karl-Heinrich Bodenschatz, liaison officer between the two leaders of the Nazi Party, in the forest of the German headquarter known as 'Wolfsschanze' (the wolf's lair). Rastenburg (Poland - occupied territories), July 1941. Note that Göring's breast eagle is taking a nosedive! Metal eagle pin has opened in this case...Source :
https://www.wehrmacht-awards.com/forums/forum/wehrmacht-era-militaria/photos-and-paper-items-forum/12278373-heavyweight-hermann-is-busting-out-all-over