Oldenburg M1927 Lifesaving Medal

[Guest Rick Research]

Not having our new member Kapitular's book on German Lifesaving awards, still don't know exactly how rare this medal is-- I only know that it was awarded between 1927 and 1934.

What the seller did not mention--and I did not know-- is that the recipient's name and date of the deed are engraved on its rim!

This is PARTICULARLY good news, since he was "invisible" before 1935-- Beamten NOT being shown in Reichsheer and Reichsmarine Rank Lists.

Embossed British campaign medal-style on the lower rim:

"Alexander Stoll 8.9.20"

So awards were made RETROACTIVELY during the period when there no lifesaving awards, just as was done with the Prusian Weimar-era examples.

[Guest Rick Research]

Born 19 July 1881, Alexander Stoll entered the Imperial navy 1 April 1900.

He was commissioned as a

Feuerwerks Leutnant 27 April 1915 N

with his sole award according to the February 1918 Naval Rank List being an XV Years Service Cross earned before the war with double sea duty time in.

Subsequently promoted

charakterisiert Feuerwerks Oberleutnant 12 April 1920

before being transferred from this combatant corps of ordnance specialists to Beamten status for the duration of the Weimar period.

His Naval Honor Rank List entry shows that he never served outside Germany, as an ordnance depot officer.

This will surely gladden Chris Boonzaier's heart since it PROVES his theory that "combatant" officers Back Home got "black white" Iron Cross and NONcombatant Hindenburg Cross pairs. This is the first such documented, named, identifiable pairing I can recall for the 6,855 "black-white" NONcombatant Iron Crosses given for "war merit in the homeland."

[Guest Rick Research]

Back to combatant officer status under the Third Reich...

promoted Kapit?nleutnant (W) 1.7.34 as Leader of the Naval Acceptance Command in D?sseldorf-- here from the 1936 Kriegsmarine Rank List--

[Guest Rick Research]

Seniority section from 1936:

[Guest Rick Research]

Closeups of the Oldenburg M1927 Lifesaving Medal, which still retains traces of its original frosted silver finish. I could not get a scan of the rim naming.

Feast your eyes on this one, folks--because I very much doubt any of us are likley to ever see another one in our lifetimes!

[Guest Rick Research]

Have you noticed the weird thing?

Yup. yet ANOTHER award which used the generic "Oldenburg ribbon." By Third Reich precedence, downgrading lifesaving awards, this should have been mounted AFTER the Hindenburg Cross. The owner had more pride in it than that and left it where it belonged....

but if we saw a RIBBON bar for this group... it would look like just any other plain old Friedrich August Cross in this spot!

Promoted to

Korvettenkapit?n (W) 1 February 1937

here from the 1938 Kriegsmarine Rank List on Paul C's CD:

and he was still in the same job on 1 January 1939, per the Naval Birthdays Directory living at Vautierstra?e 69, D?sseldorf with his wife Olga (born 14.8.1XXX).

And oh wouldn't it be nice if the citation for his life-threatening heroic deed remains written up in the Oldenburg archives? Given his occupation, the most obvious surmise is a fire and explosion at the ammunition depot. But who knows....

And that is where my information runs out, since he is not listed in the 1944 Kriegsmarine Rank List (zV? aD? dead?)

[Glenn J]

Rick,

his entry in the Lohmann/Hildebrand.

Regards

Glenn

[Chris Boonzaier]

Nice, nice, nice......

Now if only the regulations would turn up !!!!!!

[Guest Rick Research]

Thanks Glenn!!!!!!!! I like to have death dates as well as birth data for a complete biography.

Here's his entry from the 1918 Navy Rank List (Paul C's CD)

[Paul R]

I was so close... Congrats to the new owner.

[Schießplatzmeister]

Hello Rick:

Congratulations on owning a super-nice and super-rare bar. I love the lifesaving medal!

You earlier mentioned "Not having our new member Kapitular's book on German Lifesaving awards, still don't know exactly how rare this medal is-- I only know that it was awarded between 1927 and 1934.".

Unfortunately, neither one of Kapitular's books cover this medal. I'm certain however if you PM him, he will probably almost instantly have an answer! If anyone knows, he certainly will.

Best regards,

"SPM"

[Stogieman]

You can count this into two distinct categories

A) EXtreme rarity (less than 100 awards)

B) Extreme obscurity (few people even knew about

OK, maybe a third category

C) Look before you sell. it's not the first time I've seen engraving of a recipient on a rim....

[Humberto Corado]

hello,

I am wondering why the lifesaving medals were diminished under Third Reich??

Thanks in advance!

[Guest Rick Research]

No idea. It made no sense at all.

[webr55]

Great find and research!

[Kapitular]

Alexander Stoll got this medal for his help at the great explosion in the ammunitiondepot in Marienhafe, a small village near Wilhelmshaven where he was stationed at that time. Three other persons got the same medal for the same event in 1920, September 9th.

The Medal was awarded from 1927 to 1934, only 87 pieces. The first ward tokk place in 1927, March 17th and the last in 1934, April 4th.

I suppose, it was delivered in a small box, but i am not sure. But there was a nice document, I have here in my archive, but it has too many bites, to present it here.

Kapitular

Great find and research!

[Ulsterman]

...a beautiful bar!

[Guest Rick Research]

Thanks for that information about WHY Stoll got his medal, and the exact numbers and dates it was awarded.

[drspeck]

On ‎9‎-‎10‎-‎2007 at 19:51, Kapitular said:

Alexander Stoll got this medal for his help at the great explosion in the ammunitiondepot in Marienhafe, a small village near Wilhelmshaven where he was stationed at that time. Three other persons got the same medal for the same event in 1920, September 9th.

The Medal was awarded from 1927 to 1934, only 87 pieces. The first ward tokk place in 1927, March 17th and the last in 1934, April 4th.

I suppose, it was delivered in a small box, but i am not sure. But there was a nice document, I have here in my archive, but it has too many bites, to present it here.

 

Kapitular

 

 

 

Could this guy have been one of the recipients of this livesaving medal (since there are no other ww1 medals on this bar)?

Regards. Peter

Edited April 29, 2017 by drspeck