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    The Spanish Cross.


    J Temple-West

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    The Spanish Cross.

    Numbers awarded.

    Spanish Cross in Bronze with swords ??. 8,462

    Spanish Cross in Bronze without swords?.. 7,869

    Spanish Cross in Silver with swords ???. 8,304

    Spanish Cross in Silver without swords??. 327

    Spanish Cross in Gold with swords ???. 1,126

    Spanish Cross in Gold with swords and Brilliants ? 27

    Recipients of the Spanish Cross in Gold with Brilliants.

    Oberleutnant Wilhelm Balthasar

    Oberleutnant Otto Bertram

    Leutnant Wilhelm Boddem

    Oberleutant Kraft Eberhardt

    Oberleutnant Wilhelm Ensslen

    Leutnant Paul Fehlhaber

    Oberleutnant Adolf Galland

    Hauptmann Harro Harder

    Major Martin Harlinghausen

    Leutnant Oskar Henrici

    Oberleutnant Max Graf Hoyos

    Oberleutnant Hans Detlev von Kassel

    Hauptmann G?nther L?tzow

    Oberstleutnant Karl Mehnert

    Hauptmann Werner M?lders

    Hauptmann Rudolf Frhr. von Moreau

    Hauptmann Wolfgang Neud?rffer

    Oberleutnant Walter Oesau

    Generalmajor Wolfram Frhr. von Richthofen

    Leutnant Heinz Runze

    Hauptmann Joachim Schlichting

    Hauptmann Wolfgang Schellmann

    Oberleutnant Reinhard Seiler

    Oberleutnant Bernhard St?rcke

    Major Karl-Heinz Wolf

    General der Flieger Hugo Sperrle

    General der Flieger Helmut Volkmann.

    Having named the recipients of the SC with brilliants, let?s see how many photographs we can post of these Guys..

    I'll start off with Walter Oesau.

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    This photo was taken during the award ceremonie in Hamburg on 31th May, 1939. These guys are in LW uniform because they returned home early, the other recipients are wearing the Legion Condor brown uniform.

    Could you identify all of these guys ?

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    No opinion for the line of recipients of the spanish cross with diamonds ? :o

    Well, I give you mine, from left to right:

    Bertram, Schlichting, Harder, M?lders, Schellmann, Oesau, ? , Harlinghausen, Wolff ? .

    These name have to be confirmed with the dates of return to germany.

    Here is another pics showing the same guys, during the same ceremony but to a different place.

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    jacques,

    There's always been the question about von Thoma, did he receive the SC wih B, or not?

    Ah, Ah ! I was waiting for such a question. Some books, among them early one, gives 28 recipients, other 27 . But none of them give the name of von Thoma. In my opinion he didn't received the spanish cross with diamonds but only the gold one. Bill Stump (RIP) shown us a controversial document which in my opinion is a fake.

    During the ceremony in Hamburg, von Thoma is closed to von Funck who received the gold cross. In my opinion, according to my experience in the Army, if he had been awarded the diamonds one, he should have been placed at the beginning of the line, close to von Richthofen and not at the end, even though he was not from the LW. During an award ceremony, the decorations are awarded in the order of the decoration and of the recipients rank. what's bother is that von Funck has nothing to do at the end of the line :speechless:

    May be some of you have more information about that. I'm still looking for a clear pic showing von Thoma wearing his spanish cross ;)

    jacques

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    Wilhelm BALTHASAR

    He received the spanish cross with diamonds later, around 20 June, together with Galland. He gave back his gold one.

    Note that he is wearing the ribbon for the "Medalla Militar".

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    J Temple is at the origin of this thread, thanks to him !

    unfortunatly I do not have a pic of all the recipients, but I hope that somebody do !

    Here is Haro HARDER, blurry pic from a period book. May be here is a better one somewhere smile.gif

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    Re von Thoma, all veterans stories have to be taken with a "pich of salt" of course but I remember back around the early 1970s a friend of mine had an antique shop. A vet came in and sold him some stuff which if I recall correctly was reputedly taken from von Thoma when he surrendered . Amongst the items ( again I am working from a 30+ year old memory,) were a Generals shoulder strap, collar patch and a beautiful CEJ Spanish Cross in Gold. All the items were 100% original, no doubt of that. Whether the story can be believed is another matter, but the old guy would have no reason to make the story up especially as the price he asked for them was, I recall, very cheap.

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    Re von Thoma, all veterans stories have to be taken with a "pich of salt" of course but I remember back around the early 1970s a friend of mine had an antique shop. A vet came in and sold him some stuff which if I recall correctly was reputedly taken from von Thoma when he surrendered . Amongst the items ( again I am working from a 30+ year old memory,) were a Generals shoulder strap, collar patch and a beautiful CEJ Spanish Cross in Gold. All the items were 100% original, no doubt of that. Whether the story can be believed is another matter, but the old guy would have no reason to make the story up especially as the price he asked for them was, I recall, very cheap.

    Thanks Gordon for this information. I do think that some good portraits of von Thoma do exist, showing his SC, we have just to find them biggrin.gif

    here is Oskar HENRICI

    jacques

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