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The Prussian Rote-Kreuz-Medaille of 1898
I thought a thread on the Prussian Rote-Kreuz-Medaille [Red Cross Medal] of 1898 could be of interest.
The Prussian Rote-Kreuz-Medaille was instituted on 1 Oct. 1898 by Wilhelm II, King of Prussia and Emperor of Germany. Its institution was suggested by his wife Queen Auguste Victoria, who, in her role as the royal protector of the Red Cross associations, saw the need for a decoration that could be specifically awarded for peacetime Red Cross work.
The medal was in 3 classes:
The First Class was a silver pinback cross in the shape of a Red Cross emblem, with the arms of the red-enamelled cross each ending in a Prussian royal crown.
The Second Class was a round silver (later silver-plated) medal whose obverse showed the same cross-and-crowns device with the cross in red enamel. Between the arms of the cross were the letters W / R / A / V for Wilhelm Rex / Auguste Victoria. The reverse bore the inscription "FUER VERDIENSTE UM DAS ROTHE KREUZ" [= For merit in the interest of the Red Cross] with a decorative oak branch. The medal was worn on a ribbon in red, white and black. The national colors of the German Empire, this also combined the colors of Prussia (black and white) with those of the Red Cross (red and white).
The Third Class was a bronze medal without enamel work; otherwise its design was identical to that of the Second Class. During World War I, the medal was manufactured in steel (starting ca. 1916) and then zinc/war metal (starting ca. 1917).
Now for the examples of the medal I have in my collection. So far, I have focused on the humble III. Class.
(Note that a few of the following items - namely those that combine the Rote-Kreuz-Medaille with a 1914/18 Honor Cross - also appear on my ongoing Ehrenkreuz thread in the 3rd Reich awards section, see: https://www.warrelics.eu/forum/order...enkreuz-72201/ )
Last edited by HPL2008; 03-09-2013 at 11:21 PM.
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03-09-2013 06:18 PM
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