Kriegsmarine Admiral

So, Dönitz and Fricke got the Knight's Cross 1st Class on the same date? It's odd that my sources give somewhat different dates (12 April 1936 for Dönitz and 12 July 1930 for Fricke). Do you have the award dates for the Order of the White Rose of Finland and the Swedish Order of the Sword of these other admirals below? Generaladmiral Rolf Carls: -Grand Cross of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (1938) Admiral Max Bastian: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 2nd Class with Swords Awarded in 1918 I believe. Vizeadmiral Friedrich Götting: -Knight's Cross 1st Class of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword It's possible that he had the 2nd Class. The only source I have is photographic. Vizeadmiral z.V. Paul Wülfing von Ditten: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 2nd Class with Swords Awarded in 1918 I believe. Konteradmiral Hermann Baron von Salza: -Commander's Cross of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (1922) -Commander's Cross 1st Class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (1931) Konteradmiral z.V. Walter Isendahl: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (1918) Konteradmiral Werner Steffan: -Commander's Cross of the Order of the White Rose of Finland

Great! Thank you. For Kolbe I actually have the award document that says 5 August 1905, not 3 August. See below.

And what should we do with Schmundt? Since your date (4 June 1942) comes from a secondary source (book "Kunnian ruletti" by Antti Matikkala) and the one I have (25 March 1942) should be from the primary sources (if we are to believe the person who posted it on AHF), I think my date should be the correct one?

One question regarding the classes of the Order of the White Rose of Finland. Isn't the correct name for the Commander classes the Commander's Cross 1st Class and the Commander's Cross? And not Commander's Cross 1st Class and the Commander's Cross 2nd Class. Of course, the difference between the two classes was that the Commander 1st Class had a Breast Star.

Great! Thanks! Did he recieve it with Swords or without Swords? By the way, the correct date for Conrad Albrecht's Commander's Cross 1st Class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland is 19 October 1936, not 19 June 1936. The auction site got it wrong. See the award document below. Of course, I will trust your dates instead of the ones from the book. Primary sources are always more reliable.

I see. Sure, I will add your award dates to my first post. No problem.

The date 25 March 1942 can be found on the Axis History Forum posted by the member USAF1986. He said: "I received copies of the original Finnish documents detailing the German recipients of the Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty in all classes as well as the associated medals. These documents cover the period of 1941-1944. Here is the list of all German recipients of the 1st Class and higher that received their orders during this time frame. The award dates are those given in the Finnish documents. Presumably, this was the original date approved by the Finnish authorities and was probably not the date the recipient might actually have been awarded it." Here is the link: https://forum.axishistory.com/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=20711&p=340533&hilit=hubert+schmundt#p340533 The same date is also in the book "Die Ritterkreuzträger der Überwasserstreitkräfte der Kriegsmarine" by Manfred Dörr, although he has is "with Swords and Oak Leaves". The "Oak Leaves" part is wrong. So, I guess Schmundt was awarded this order on 25 March 1942, and your date (4 June 1942) could be the date he actually received the medal. For Lucht, the source is again the book "Die Ritterkreuzträger der Überwasserstreitkräfte der Kriegsmarine". I don't know if this is correct?

Thank you very much! Witzell's rank in 1906 was Leutnant zur See. I think this should be him. It's possible. But I'm not sure which date should be which (date of decision, conferral or reception)? The dates for Raeder and Schniewind come from the book "Die Ritterkreuzträger der Überwasserstreitkräfte der Kriegsmarine" by Manfred Dörr. Sorry, I don't quite understand. What do you mean "which dates are checked"? The dates for the Admirals that had the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross come from the above mentioned book. The dates for the Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty (Grand Cross and 1st Class) come from a thread on the Axis History Forum (apparently from period Finnish documents). The dates for Conrad Albrecht and Wilhelm Canaris are also from period documents.

Hello, I need help with the Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and Finnish orders/medals awarded to Kriegsmarine admirals. Please help me confirm the classes and award dates for these Kriegsmarine admirals. For some admirals I don't have the award dates. It would be great if anyone could help me with the award dates. All corrections/additions are welcome. I'm not sure if all the classes are correct, but they should be. Here is the list I compiled (edited with correct dates from JohanH and Great Dane): Großadmiral Erich Raeder: -Grand Cross of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (27 February 1936) -Grand Cross of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword (18 October 1940) -Grand Cross of the Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty with Swords (25 March 1942) Großadmiral Karl Dönitz: -Knight's Cross 1st Class of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword (12 April 1930) -Grand Cross of the Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty with Swords (11 April 1944) Generaladmiral Conrad Albrecht: -Knight's Cross 1st Class of the Norwegian Order of St. Olav (31 July 1913) -Commander's Cross 1st Class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (19 October 1936, Approved on 26 January 1937) Generaladmiral Karl Witzell: -Knight's Cross of the Danish Order of the Dannebrog (30 July 1906) Generaladmiral Otto Schniewind: -Commander's Cross 2nd Class of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword (26 June 1936) Generaladmiral Rolf Carls: -Grand Cross of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (1938) -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Star and Swords (25 March 1942) Admiral Conrad Patzig: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Oak Leaves and Swords (25 March 1942) Admiral Hubert Schmundt: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (25 March 1942) Admiral Kurt Fricke: -Knight's Cross 1st Class of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword (12 April 1930) -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Oak Leaves and Swords (25 March 1942) Admiral Max Bastian: -Commander's Cross 2nd Class of the Royal Swedish Order of Vasa (4 April 1924) -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 2nd Class with Swords -Finnish Silver Medal for Bravery (1918) -Finnish Commemorative Medal of the „War of Liberation“ (1918) Admiral Theodor Burchardi: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (7 June 1943) Admiral Wilhelm Canaris: -Commander's Cross 1st Class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (8 June 1936, Approved on 15 December 1936) -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Star and Swords (16 September 1941) Admiral Wilhelm Meisel: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 2nd Class with Swords (21 May 1942) Admiral z.V. Wilhelm Prentzel: -Knight's Cross 1st Class of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword (13 July 1909) Vizeadmiral Albrecht Freiherr von Freyberg-Eisenberg-Allmendingen: -Knight's Cross 1st Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav -Knight's Cross 1st Class of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword (6 August 1908) Vizeadmiral z.V. Alexander Werth: -Knight's Cross 1st Class of the the Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav Vizeadmiral Erich Schulte Mönting: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 2nd Class with Swords (25 March 1942) Vizeadmiral Friedrich Götting: -Knight's Cross 1st Class of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword Char. Vizeadmiral Hans Kolbe: -Knight's Cross 2nd Class of the Royal Swedish Order of Vasa (5 August 1905) Vizeadmiral Heinz Nordmann: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (15 April 1944) Vizeadmiral Joachim Lietzmann: -Knight's Cross of the Danish Order of the Dannebrog (19 September 1933) -Commander's Cross 2nd Class of the Royal Swedish Order of Vasa (1 November 1935) Vizeadmiral Leopold Bürkner: -Knight's Cross 1st Class of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword (30 April 1936) -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (10 December 1941) Vizeadmiral z.V. Paul Wülfing von Ditten: -Finnish Commemorative Medal of the „War of Liberation“ (1918) with Clasp -Finnish Silver Medal for Bravery (1918) -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 2nd Class with Swords Konteradmiral Erich Alfred Breuning: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 2nd Class with Swords (25 March 1942) Konteradmiral Ernst Lucht: -Commander's Cross 1st Class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland with Swords (11 August 1942) Konteradmiral Hans Bütow: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (12 October 1941) Konteradmiral Hans Küsel: -Knight's Cross 2nd Class of the Royal Swedish Order of Vasa (2 July 1890) Konteradmiral z.V. Heinrich Kehrhahn: -Knight's Cross 2nd Class of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword (6 August 1908) Konteradmiral z.V. Heinz-Eduard Menche: -Knight's Cross of the Danish Order of the Dannebrog (9 July 1908) Konteradmiral Hermann Baron von Salza: -Commander's Cross of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (1922) -Commander's Cross 1st Class of the Order of the White Rose of Finland (1931) Konteradmiral Karl-Jesko von Puttkamer: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 2nd Class with Oak Leaves and Swords (11 June 1942) Konteradmiral Kurt Böhmer: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (10 October 1942) Konteradmiral Otto Klüber: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (21 May 1942) Konteradmiral Reimar von Bonin: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (31 January 1942) Char. Konteradmiral Reinhold Knobloch: -Knight's Cross 2nd Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav Konteradmiral z.V. Walter Isendahl: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (1918) -Finnish Commemorative Medal of the „War of Liberation“ with Clasp (1918) Konteradmiral Werner Steffan: -Commander's Cross 1st Class of the Royal Swedish Order of the Sword (30 October 1936) -Commander's Cross of the Order of the White Rose of Finland Konteradmiral Werner Stichling: -Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class with Swords (15 April 1944) Many thanks for any help!

Unknown #13 Who are these admirals with Karl Dönitz? 1: ??? 2: ??? 3: ???

Unknown #12 Who is the admiral (2) during Hitler's visit to the Battleship "Bismarck", 1941. 1: Günther Lütjens 2: ???

Unknown #11 Who is this admiral?

The Bundesarchiv site linked by Deutschritter gives the date 17.09.1937 for Canaris' Grand Cross of the Order of Naval Merit.

No, 05.03.1938 is the correct date for von Fischel. Here is the reason: These two photos below, I'm pretty sure, show the award ceremony of the Order of Mehdauia for von Fischel and Otto Ciliax. On the first photo both of them already have the breast star. On the second photo Ciliax doesn't yet have it, because von Fischel got it first. Since we know that Otto Ciliax got his Comendador de número (Fajama) on 05.03.1938, then von Fischel got his Grand Cross on the same date. Do you agree?

I think the Großkomtur would fit better. What do you think?

So how would you translate Comendador de Número into German? The class between the Grand Cross and Commander in German could be either Großoffizierskreuz or Großkomturkreuz.

Hermann Boehm.

I think so. But Antonio can confirm/deny this.

Thank you! Sure, here are the photos I have of them wearing the Order of Mehdauia (from top to bottom: Otto Ciliax, Hermann von Fischel and Kurt Böhmer).

Thank you very much Antonio! Klüber, Plath, Schenk and Riedel were all later admirals. Can you please share the documents for these four officers? I also have a few questions. 4) Otto Ciliax: For him I have it written as Comendador (Saada). Are you sure he got the Comendador de número (Fajama) instead? Could you please share the document for Ciliax? 6) Hermann von Fischel: In the document you sent me before, Fischel is listed twice with the dates 5 March 1938 and 5 April 1938. Which one is the correct award date? I can see you wrote 5 April 1938 above. Why? 1) Wilhelm Canaris: Another document you sent me gives the date 17 November 1938 for Canaris. Why do you have the date 8 November 1938? Can you share the relevant document?

And here is the last topic I need help with. Any additions/corrections are welcome. If you know any more admirals that were awarded the Mehdauia Order, please write below. 1) Wilhelm Canaris: - Grand Cross of the Spanish-Moroccan Order of Mehdauia (17 November 1938) 2) Paul Wenneker: - Grand Officer's Cross of the Spanish-Moroccan Order of Mehdauia (5 November 1937) 3) Leopold Bürkner: - Grand Officer's Cross of the Spanish-Moroccan Order of Mehdauia (23 July 1939) 4) Otto Ciliax: - Commander's Cross of the Spanish-Moroccan Order of Mehdauia (5 March 1938) 5) Rolf Carls: - Grand Cross of the Spanish-Moroccan Order of Mehdauia (5 April 1938, Approved on 3 December 1938) 6) Hermann von Fischel: - Grand Cross of the Spanish-Moroccan Order of Mehdauia (5 March 1938 or 5 April 1938?) Why are there two award dates for Fischel? Antonio said "Repeated, with a month of difference, but they are not two concessions", what does this mean? 7) Wilhelm Marschall: - Grand Cross of the Spanish-Moroccan Order of Mehdauia (5 November 1937) 8 ) Hermann Boehm: - Grand Cross of the Spanish-Moroccan Order of Mehdauia (5 April 1938) 9) Wilhelm Meendsen-Bohlken: - Commander's Cross of the of the Spanish-Moroccan Order of Mehdauia (13 May 1938) 10) Kurt Böhmer: - Commander's Cross of the Spanish-Moroccan Order of Mehdauia (13 May 1938)

Unknown #10 Three unknown admirals in (possibly) Brest, 1940. 1: ??? 2: ??? 3: ???

Here are the Kriegsmarine admirals that were (to my knowledge) awarded the Spanish Order of Military Merit. Any additions/corrections are welcome, especially regarding the award dates. 1) Erich Raeder: - Grand Cross of the Spanish Order of Military Merit with White Decoration (1 January 1941) 2) Wilhelm Canaris: - Spanish Order of Military Merit 3rd Class with White Decoration (4 May 1939) 3) Joachim Lietzmann: - Spanish Order of Military Merit (Class unknown) (source: his ribbon bar) 4) Hermann Boehm: - Grand Cross of the Spanish Order of Military Merit with White Decoration It's also possible that some other admirals that received the Order of Naval Merit (see the other thread), also received this award.

Unknown #9 Who is this Konteradmiral?

I know, me too. Both the Personalakte and the Bundesarchiv page state that he was first awarded the 3rd Class in 1927 and then the 2nd Class in 1928. But this simply isn't possible, because, as you said, the 3rd Class is higher than the 2nd Class. We have the proof from the Spanish period document that says he was awarded the 2nd Class in 1928. Until we find the same kind of proof for the 3rd (or more likely 1st) Class, I think the best we can do is guess why there is a mistake present. For now, I would not include the 3rd Class on Canaris' list of awards.