Puzzling little ribbon bar!

[M Hunter]

Gents,

Acquired this ribbon bar very recently but the last ribbon has me wondering what sort of uniformed chap would have worn it!

The last ribbon (though very faded) is GREEN. So i am thinking it could be:

-Italian Order of St's Maurice & Lazarus?

-Swedish Order of Vasa?

-Hungarian Order of Merit?

-???

Could this be the bar of a Party member/Diplomat who was drafted to the Eastern Front?

Or a regular Soldier, who received the foreign decoration before WW2 in some capacity?

My thanks

Matt

Edited October 17, 2009 by M Hunter

[Guest Rick Research]

Very odd indeed. I'd say its a WW2 Ostvölker medal in bronze. Didn't think Germans were awarded that grade "for war merit" but there is nothing else to suggest anything else plausible with the minimal German awards there.

[Ulsterman]

For what it's worth-that would be my guess too, esp. with the noncom HK.

[M Hunter]

Thank you Gents! The WW2 Ostvölker medal did cross my mind, but like Rick i thought it was not awarded to Germans.....anywhere where i can look/read to clarify this?

Thanks

Matt

[M Hunter]

If it was an Ostvölker medal would it not be represented with SWORDS?

Found this picture (courtesy of Weitze.net)

Thanks

Matt

[James Clark]

The pairing of a Merit Award for the Eastern People (i.e. the award without swords) with the KVKII would be correct for a non-German. However, I think for this bar I'd tend more towards the Hungarian Merit award which isn't that uncommon for Germans with few other awards. I can think of examples I've seen on medal bars for a Luftwaffe Officer and another for a member of the Polizei who had also served in the Wehrmacht. Neither had particluarly long service (or long medal bars).

[M Hunter]

The pairing of a Merit Award for the Eastern People (i.e. the award without swords) with the KVKII would be correct for a non-German. However, I think for this bar I'd tend more towards the Hungarian Merit award which isn't that uncommon for Germans with few other awards. I can think of examples I've seen on medal bars for a Luftwaffe Officer and another for a member of the Polizei who had also served in the Wehrmacht. Neither had particluarly long service (or long medal bars).

James,

From the 3 foreign awards i listed above the Hungarian one makes the most sense to me...i too have seen bars with the Hungarian Ribbon.....to SS Officers and others.

Matt

[James Clark]

Just for interest, here are the three that I have. On the first bar, the green ribbon was said to be for the Italian 1908 Messina Earthquake Medal, which is wrong as the ribbon for this is white with green stripes. If it really is Italian then it would likely be for the Order of Sts Maurice & Lazarus as Matt suggested. I don't have any information to help identify the other two.

[Guest Rick Research]

Hmmm... I detect a "theme" there!

Some things ribbon bars can simply NOT tell us...

but those are GROTESQUE Frankenstein horrors on Weitze.