**SOLD** WW2 MADE GERMAN 1914 IRON CROSS 1st CLASS FOR BRAVERY IN COMBAT MEDAL

Offered is an original German Second World War made 1914 'convex' Iron Cross 1st Class. 44 mm wide white metal cross pattée with a blackened cross pattée (some service wear to face) within a hatched border imposed; the face with a central ‘W’ (for Wilhelm), a crown above, the date ‘1914’ below; the reverse with a pin for wear, maker’s marked L/11 (Wilhelm Deumer of Lüdenscheid) to base of hook. Cross is a good original piece, having the majority of the silver frosting remaining overall.

These Second World War made pieces were necessary for those veterans who had won the Iron Cross 1st Class and needed either a replacement or spare cross for wear, these being generally senior officer's of the Germany Army, Navy or Air Force or members of the Third Reich hierarchy who had need to wear their crosses as part of their uniform.

The Iron Cross was instituted on 10 March 1813 by King Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia during the War of Liberation against the Napoleonic French forces. It was reinstated in 1870-1871 for the Franco-Prussian War and again in 1914 for World War I. It is awarded for bravery. In spite of its iconic image and fame, it has always been made of modest materials and issued in relatively large numbers. It was designed by the neo-classical architect Karl Friedrich Schinkel and reflects the cross of the Teutonic Knights in the late Middle Ages which was also the emblem of Frederick the Great.