Uncategorised Was the WW1 Iron Cross "Cheaper" than the 1870 one ?

[Chris Boonzaier]

many books are of the opinion that the WW1 EK suffered a huge loss of prestige and was "Cheaper" to earn than an 1870 one.

It is a subject i want to deal with in a section in the book, and would be curious as to what opinions you guys have on it.

Thanks

Chris

[gregM]

I would say that just by looking at the total number of awarded crosses---Yes, the ww1

iron cross was "cheaper" There were just under 50,000 awarded in the war of 1870.

Compare that to over 3 1/2 million awarded in ww1.

[Chris Boonzaier]

I have seen numbers between 3.5 million to 5 Million for WW1... what is the accepted figure nowdays?

Best

Chris

[hagahr]

the reason ww1 where More ek's awarded was because the whole character off warfare was changed .

lets start at the numbers off soldiers involved fore one .

second the value's off how to award the cross changed also as the war cruelty involved demanded it .

(a soldier doing its duty at 1914 was a whole different story as it was in 1870)

but dont worry ,,in the beginning the judgment off who would get the cross was just as strictly as it was in 1870.

and the prestige off the cross never changed

those things are documented in period Books off the Iron cross .

regards kay

Edited February 20, 2012 by hagahr

[dond]

I think you are comparing apples to oranges here. The type of fighting and the duration of it along with the amount of time units spent under fire was totally different. I think the acts that earned one a cross were the same, just that in 14-18 the german soldier had more opportunity to earn one thru repeated combat exposure.

[Chris Boonzaier]

I think you are comparing apples to oranges here. The type of fighting and the duration of it along with the amount of time units spent under fire was totally different. I think the acts that earned one a cross were the same, just that in 14-18 the german soldier had more opportunity to earn one thru repeated combat exposure.

Bingo,

Thats the thrust of the chapter I am working on.... those figures mean nothing without a bunch of other figures added.

It is something that IMHO needs more than the stats published so far.

best

Chris

[Ulsterman]

Yes and no- the iron cross was also awarded for merit and its award as a "upper class signifier" to staff/support men was deeply resented by front soldiers. This is one of the reasons Hitler wore his EK1 and his wound badge. As an award to a Gefreiter, his EK1 was as statistically rare as a PLM to an officer. It said "been there, done that".

Secondly, as the war went on the EK was awarded more and more frequently. In 1914-15 the EK had enormous prestige and officers hungered for it. By the end of the war, if an officer did not have an EK, he was viewed as a boob.

Of the 12 million Germans who served in uniform in one capacity of another, the EK2 was awarded to @ 40% at least. If one subtracts rear echelon Landwehr, clerks, nurses, signalers, drivers etc. who had no chance to receive what was ostensibly a combat decoration -and the dead who were KIA before they got a chance to earn an EK2- then the statistic is probably closer to 65%. That's a LOT of iron crosses.

[dond]

Bingo,

Thats the thrust of the chapter I am working on.... those figures mean nothing without a bunch of other figures added.

It is something that IMHO needs more than the stats published so far.

best

Chris

I think you could compare the Battle of the Somme to the whole of the Franco Prussian War and might come out statistically equal.

[hagahr]

lets see what the Germans themselves had to say about it

1941

[Ulsterman]

und au'http://books.google.com/books?id=RoAyAQAAIAAJ&pg=PA41&dq=eiserne+kreuz&hl=en&sa=X&ei=PxhDT_LyI8Ls0gGA-KjzBw&ved=0CFkQ6AEwBzigAQ#v=onepage&q=eiserne%20kreuz&f=false

[hagahr]

so ! ,is your question answered ,?

if you want ?,,, I can send you a good picture off the book commenting about it ,

got some Moore interesting Books about tradition and word in the German army if you're interested .!

( not fore sale ,just in case someone gets the wrong impressions )

gladly helping out .

regards kay

Edited February 22, 2012 by hagahr

[Chris Boonzaier]

so ! ,is your question answered ,?

if you want ?,,, I can send you a good picture off the book commenting about it ,

got some Moore interesting Books about tradition and word in the German army if you're interested .!

( not fore sale ,just in case someone gets the wrong impressions )

gladly helping out .

regards kay

Hi Kay,

where is the text from?

Best

Chris

[hagahr]

from a book I am selling ...on the sale section .