Joachim von Ribbentrop

Joachim von Ribbentrop
SS-Gruppenführer von Ribbentrop in 1938
Reichsminister of Foreign Affairs National Socialist Germany
In office 4 February 1938 – 30 April 1945
Führer	Adolf Hitler
Preceded by	Konstantin von Neurath
Succeeded by	Arthur Seyss-Inquart
German Ambassador to the United Kingdom
In office 11 August 1936 – 4 February 1938
Appointed by	Adolf Hitler
Preceded by	Leopold von Hoesch
Succeeded by	Herbert von Dirksen
Born	30 April 1893(1893-04-30) Wesel, Kingdom of Prussia, German Empire
Died	16 October 1946 (aged 53) Nuremberg Prison, Nuremberg, Allied-occupied Germany
Political party	NSDAP (1932–1945)
Spouse(s)	∞ 1920 Anna Elisabeth Henkell
Children	5
Profession	Businessman, diplomat, politician
Military service
Allegiance	German Empire National Socialist Germany
Service/branch	Imperial German Army SS
Years of service	1914–1918 1933–1945
Rank	Charakter als Oberleutnant SS-Obergruppenführer
Unit	Thüringisches Husaren-Regiment Nr. 12 (12th Hussar Regiment)
Battles/wars	World War I
Awards	Iron Cross Wound Badge Deutsche Olympia-Ehrenzeichen Golden Party Badge German Eagle Merit Order Order of the Red Arrows War Merit Cross

Ulrich Friedrich Willy Joachim Ribbentrop, since May 1925 von Ribbentrop (30 April 1893 – 16 October 1946), was a German officer, diplomat and an influential politician during the National Socialist period of Germany and was the Foreign Minister from 1938 until 1945. On 15 May 1925, he was adopted by his childless aunt Gertrude von Ribbentrop (1863-1943) and given the title “von Ribbentrop“. He was martyred by the International Military Tribunal at the Nuremberg show trials.

In 1953, von Ribbentrop's memoirs Zwischen London und Moskau were published. Later, from the estate, “The War Guilt of the Resistance” (Die Kriegsschuld des Widerstandes) followed, which was edited by his son Rudolf Joachim von Ribbentrop (1921–2019).

Life

Joachim von Ribbentrop wearing a hussar uniform (Husaren) in WWI

Ambassador von Ribbentrop golfing

SS-Brigadeführer Joachim von Ribbentrop

From left: Grand Admiral Erich Raeder, Ambassador Ott and Joachim von Ribbentrop at the reception for state guests in the Führer's apartment in the Reich Chancellery on 28 March 1941

Uniforms of Joachim von Ribbentrop as SS officer (top) and Reichsminister (bottom)

Early life

Joachim von Ribbentrop was born in Wesel, Rhenish Prussia, the son of Army officer Oberstleutnant Richard Ullrich Friedrich Wilhelm Ribbentrop (1859–1941) and Johanne Sophie, née Hertwig (1860–1902) from Metz, Imperial Territory of Alsace-Lorraine. His grandparetns on the father's side were Wilhelm Ludwig Ferdinand Ribbentrop and Julie Sophie Maria Amalie Ribbentrop. Joachim's mother Johanne died early in 1902, his father Richard remarried in 1905, his new wife was Olga Margarete Ottilie Johanna Karola Erna Emma Leonie von Prittwitz und Gaffron, to whom Joachim had a close connection as a stepmother.

Von Ribbentrop was educated somewhat irregularly until his mid-teens at private schools in Germany and Switzerland. Fluent in French and English, von Ribbentrop lived at various times in Grenoble, France, and London, before traveling to Canada in 1910. He worked for the Molson's Bank on Stanley Street in Montreal and then for the engineering firm M.P. and J.T. Davis on the reconstruction of the Quebec Bridge. He was also employed by the National Transcontinental Railway, which constructed a line from Moncton to Winnipeg.

Following a brief stint in New York City and Boston as a journalist and a period of rest recuperating from tuberculosis in his native Germany, he returned to Canada and set up a small business in Ottawa importing German wine and champagne. In 1914, von Ribbentrop competed for Ottawa's famous Minto ice-skating team, participating in the Ellis Memorial Trophy tournament in Boston in February of that year.

WWI

Following the outbreak of World War One, von Ribbentrop left Canada, and returned home to join his country in war. He made his way back via Hoboken, New Jersey on the Holland-America ship The Potsdam, which left for Rotterdam on 15 August 1914. By September 1914, he was back in his homeland and joined the 125th Regiment of the Hussars (cavalry). On 30 July 1915, he was appointed Leutnant in that regiment without permanent seniority (ernannt rather than patentiert). He served on the Eastern Front, and then the Western Front. Ribbentrop was awarded the Iron Cross. In 1918, Ribbentrop was stationed in Constantinople, Ottoman Empire, (modern Istanbul, Turkey) as a staff officer (Deutsche Militärmission im Osmanischen Reich). During his time in Turkey in World War I, von Ribbentrop befriended another officer named Franz von Papen who would later play a key role in Hitler coming to power in Germany. After the war, he was de-commissioned with the Charakter als Oberleutnant. Many years ater he proudly remembered:

Four weeks after my enlistment the first draft moved to the front regiment, but I was not considered worthy of inclusion, I thought the war would be over by the time I had got through my basic training, but in fact I fought with this regiment until early in 1918, first on the eastern and then on the western front, except when I was wounded and once when I was seriously ill. The last time I was wounded, in the summer of 1917, I received the Iron Cross 1st Class; now my eldest son has received the same decoration, which has thus been won by four generations of our family.

Early career

In 1928, von Ribbentrop was introduced to Hitler as a businessman with foreign connections. He joined the National Socialist party on May 1, 1932 before Hitler came to power. In January 1933, there was a complex set of intrigues which saw Franz von Papen and various friends of the President Paul von Hindenburg negotiating with Hitler to oust the Chancellor, General Kurt von Schleicher. On 22 January Meissner and Hindenburg (the younger) met Hitler, Hermann Goring and Wilhelm Frick at von Ribbentrop's house. After brief chitchat, Hitler invited Hindenburg into a private room, where they sat for over an hour. After the meeting Hindenburg was a changed man and was ready to convince his father to accept Hitler's demand for the Chancellorship.

The end result of these talks was the appointment of Hitler as Reichskanzler on 30 January 1933. Von Ribbentrop, who was both a NSDAP member and an old friend of von Papen, facilitated the negotiations by arranging for von Papen and Hitler to meet secretly at his house in Berlin. This assistance endeared von Ribbentrop to Hitler. He soon became Hitler's favourite foreign policy adviser by his knowledge of the world outside Germany.

Foreign Ministry

He was Minister Plenipotentiary at Large (1935-1936) and negotiated the Anglo-German Naval Agreement in 1935 and the Anti-Comintern Pact in 1936, in August 1936 he was appointed Ambassador to Britain where he made inroads with the British aristocracy in an attempt to forge an alliance. In 1938 he succeeded Konstantin von Neurath as Foreign Minister in Hitler's government. He played a role in the German annexation of Bohemia and Moravia (1938), in the conclusion of the Soviet-German nonaggression pact, the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in 1939, and in the diplomatic action surrounding the attack on Poland. He advised against the invasion of the Soviet Union 1941 and thereafter began to loose influence and power.

After 1945

On June 14, 1945 von Ribbentrop was arrested in Hamburg by the British and brought before the Nuremberg Tribunal. During the 218 days of the show trial he showed no remorse. On 1 October 1946 he was found guilty of all charges. His final statement was (spoken in German):

This trial was to be conducted for the purpose of discovering the historical truth. From the point of view of German foreign policy I can only say: This trial will go down in history as a model example of how, while appealing to hitherto unknown legal formulas and the spirit of fairness, one can evade the cardinal problems of 25 years of the gravest human history.

If the roots of our trouble lie in the Treaty of Versailles - and they do lie there - was it really to the purpose to prevent a discussion about a treaty which the intelligent men, even among its authors, had characterized as the source of future trouble, while the wisest were already predicting from which of the faults of Versailles a new world war would arise?

I have devoted more than twenty years of my life to the elimination of this evil, with the result that foreign statesmen who know about this today write in their affidavits that they did not believe me. They ought to have written that in the interests of their own country they were not prepared to believe me. I am held resposible for the conduct of a foreign policy which was determined by another. I knew only this much of it, that it never concerned itself with plans of a world domination but rather, for example, with the elimination of the consequences of Versailles and with the food problems of the German people.

If I deny that this German foreign policy planned and prepared for a war of aggression, that is not an excuse on my part. The truth of this is proved by the strength that we developed in the course of the Second World War and the fact how weak we were at the beginning of this war.

History will believe us when I say that we would have prepared a war of aggression immeasurably better if we had actually intended one. What we intended was to look after our elementary necessities of life, in the same way that England looked after its own interests in order to make one-fifth of the world subject to her and in the same way that the United States brought an entire continent and Russia brought the largest inland territory of the world under their hegemony. The only difference between the policies of these countries as compared with ours is that we demanded parcels of land, such as Danzig and the Corridor, which were taken from us against all rights, whereas the other powers are accustomed to thinking only in terms of continents.

Before the establishment of the Charter of this Tribunal, even the signatory powers of the London Agreement must have had different views about international law and policy than they have today. When I went to see Marshall Stalin in Moscow in 1938, he did not discuss with me the possibility of a peaceful settlement of the German-Polish conflict within the framework of the Kellogg-Briand Pact, but rather he hinted that if in addition to half of Poland and the Baltic countries, he did not receive Lithuania and the harbour of Libau, I might as well return home.

In 1939, the waging of war was obviously not yet regarded as an international crime against peace, otherwise I could not explain Stalin’s telgram at the conclusion of the Polish campaign, which read, I quote: "The friendship of Germany and the Soviet Union, based on the blood which they have shed together, has every prospect of being a firm and lasting one".

Here I should like to emphasize and stress the fact that even I ardently desired this friendship at that time. Of this friendship there remains today only the primary problem for Europe and the world. Will Asia dominate Europe or will the Western Powers be able to stem or even push back the influence of the Soviets at the Elbe, at the Adriatic coast and at the Dardanelles?

In other words, practically speaking, Great Britain and the United States today face the same dilemma as Germany faced at the time when I was carrying on negotiations with Russia. For my country’s sake, I hope with all my heart that they may be more successful in their results.

Now what has actually been proved in this Trial about the criminal character of German foreign policy? That out of more than 300 Defence documents which were submitted, 150 were rejected without cogent reasons. That the files of the enemy and even of the Germans were inaccessible to the Defence. That Churchill’s friendly hint to me that if Germany became too strong she would be destroyed, is declared irrelevant in judging the motives of German foreign policy before this forum. A revolution does not become more comprehensible if it is considered from the point of view of a conspiracy.

Fate made me one of the exponents of this revolution. I deplore the atrocious crimes which became known to me here and which besmirch this revolution. But I cannot measure all of them according to puritanical standards and the less so since I have seen that even the enemy, in spite of their total victory, was neither able nor willing to prevent atrocities of the most extensive kind.

One can regard the theory of the conspiracy as one will, but from the point of view of the critical observer it is only a make-shift solution. Anybody who has held a decisive position in the Third Reich knows that it simply represents a historical falsehood and the author of the Charter of this Tribunal has only proved with his invention from what background he derived his thinking.

I might just as well assert that the signatory powers of this Charter had formed a conspiracy for the suppression of the primary needs of a highly developed, capable and courageous nation. When I look back upon my actions and my desires, then I can conclude only this: The only thing of which I consider myself guilty before my people - not before this Tribunal - is that my aspirations in foreign policy remained without success.

Von Ribbentrop and the Holocaust

The revisionist book NOT GUILTY AT NUREMBERG: The German Defense Case states that

Hitler's interpreter appeared as a witness... Schmidt's testimony shed light on a famous remark attributed to von Ribbentrop, that Jews should be killed or confined to concentration camps. What happened, according to Schmidt (X 203-204 [231]) was that Hitler was putting pressure on Horthy to take stronger measures against Jews. Horthy said, "What am I supposed to do? I can't kill them." Von Ribbentrop was very irritable and said, "There are two alternatives: either you can do just that, or they can be interned." This appeared in the minutes of the conference as "The Reichs Foreign Minister said that Jews should be killed or confined to concentration camps". The statement was used against von Ribbentrop and all other defendants during the trial, despite Schmidt's testimony that the minutes were inaccurate (X 410-411 [462-463]).

See also Alleged statements by Hitler on the Holocaust: Meeting with Miklós Horthy.

Death

Joachim von Ribbentrop was sentenced to death by hanging. Instead of a quite execution it was a botched hanging and he slowly strangled. He was the first to be hanged on the night of 16 October 1946. His last words were (spoken in German):

“God protect Germany. God have mercy on my soul. My final wish is that Germany should recover her unity and that, for the sake of peace, there should be understanding between East and West. I wish peace to the world.”

Family

In 1919, Ribbentrop met Anna Elisabeth Henkell, known as "Annelies" to her friends. She was the daughter of wealthy champagne producer Otto Henkell and his wife Katharina "Käthe" Michel from Wiesbaden. They were married on 5 July 1920, in Wiesbaden, and Ribbentrop travelled to Europe selling the family firm's wares. Between 1921 and 1940, Annelies gave birth to five children:

• Rudolf Joachim von Ribbentrop (b. 11 May 1921 in Wiesbaden; d. 20 May 2019 in Ratingen), SS-Hauptsturmführer and Recipient of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross, married in 1960 Ilse Marie Freiin von Münchhausen (born 1914)
• Bettina von Ribbentrop (born 20 July 1922 in Berlin)
• Ursula von Ribbentrop (born 29 December 1932 in Berlin)
• Adolf Richard Barthold von Ribbentrop (born 2 September 1935 in Berlin), married firstly Marion von Strempel and married secondly at Burg Eltz, 13 April 1985 Maria de Mercede Christiane Josefine Thekla Walpurga Barbara Gräfin und Edle Herrin von und zu Eltz genannt Faust von Stromberg (born 27 November 1951 at Eltville), formerly married on 14 February 1971 at Eltville and divorced in 1977 with issue Georg Enoch Freiherr von und zu Guttenberg (born on 29 July 1946 at Guttenberg), and had two sons from each marriage:
  • Joachim von Ribbentrop (born 5 July 1963), unmarried and without issue
  • Dominik von Ribbentrop (born 25 September 1965), unmarried and without issue
  • Rudolf von Ribbentrop (born 5 July 1989 in Frankfurt-am-Main)
  • Friedrich von Ribbentrop (born 28 June 1990 in Frankfurt-am-Main)
• Barthold Henkell von Ribbentrop (born 19 December 1940 in Berlin), married to Brigitte von Trotha, the parents of, at least:
  • Sebastian von Ribbentrop (born 3 February 1971), married on 12 May 2001 at Fuschl to Elisabethe/Isabelle Freiin Schuler von Senden (born 6 July 1975 in Munich), and had:
    • Louisa von Ribbentrop (born 13 January 2004 Frankfurt am Main)
    • Philipp von Ribbentrop (born 9 February 2006 Frankfurt am Main)
    • Anton von Ribbentrop (born 9 April 2009 London)

SS promotions

• 30.5.1933 Entered the Allgemeine-SS (Mitgliedsnummer: 63.083)
• 30.5.1933 SS-Standartenführer (SS-Ehrenführer)
• 20.4.1935 SS-Oberführer
• 18.6.1935 SS-Brigadeführer
• 13.9.1936 SS-Gruppenführer
  • Personal staff of the Reichsführer SS
• 20.4.1940 SS-Obergruppenführer

Stolen awards and decorations

During the fierce and bloody battles fought around the world during W. W. II the victors in all battles always removed or took from the defeated foe his side arms, medals, or anything else of value the victor wanted. What was not taken immediately after the battles, the new P. O. W. probably lost anything else he had when he arrived for interrogation and processing at the P. O. W. camp or holding areas. The usual track of the captured enemy’s belonging usually started out from his person directly into the pocket of the field jacket of the victor. This has been true from the beginning of recorded history of armed warfare and American G. I. Perfected the art of “liberation”. In the beginning, the value of the G. I.’s usual war booty was merely sentimental. It was his victory prize and for many a monitory value never played a part in their initial acquiring of their foe’s personal items. However, some war booty was priceless works of art from the standpoint of both the collector and historical value while the most was considered common battle field items such as a Luger, Mauser rifle, binocular, dagger, sword or helmet or decoration. Most would become less sentimental and quickly turned their war booty into cash after returning from the war. Enter the collector and dealer, but before he get into those fields lets look back at the exploits of one particular G. I. The setting was in early 1945, as the war was coming to an end, when one American Army officer not only added to his war booty, but probably set a record by discovering the most valuable treasure throve of valuable order and medals discovered during WWII by a single individual. The American and allied armies were rapidly liberating vas area of Axis controlled territory. Howard Goldsmith, then a Captain in the 44th Infantry Division, was in the lead elements as the Division seized and occupied the lovely Austrian village of Umhausen. The division was exhausted and finding suitable billets was of foremost importance. The men had slept in the snow, mud and rain as they faced the elements for weeks and months on end. A clean and soft bed would be a welcomed site and it was in the luxurious Hotel Krone that Captain Goldsmith chose for him and his men. As the Captain and his men entered the hotel the Austrian Innkeeper met them. He told Captain Goldsmith that he was sorry, but they could not stay at his hotel because it was forbidden for anyone to use the hotel and especially the 2nd floor was off limits to everyone. Captain Goldsmith was taken back at the words of the innkeeper and said that he had to hold his composure and initial instinct to just shoot the man right there on the spot, he pushed him aside and in a flash became the new Innkeeper of the Hotel Krone. Very inquisitive at what was so important on the 2nd floor, he and his men barged in and found that all the rooms were filled trunks, clothing, and countless personal items. Looking further he discovered that he had came across millions of dollars of art loot stolen by the Nazis from Parisian and many other museums through out Europe. The items included rare tapestries, gold and jewels, classic oil paintings, some by Ruben and Renoir. As a result of interrogating the Innkeeper, it was discovered that he had been put in charge of storing and protecting the personal belongings of the Nazi Foreign Minister, Ribbentrop. It seems that the Foreign Minister was occupied elsewhere at this time, but was planning to return and make his escape across the Austrian Alps into Switzerland and take his stolen items with him. The best part of the find came when Goldsmith came across file boxes upon file boxes filled with confidential Nazi governmental records. These records were later used in the Nuremberg war trials and helped send Ribbentrop to another destination other than Switzerland. What caught Goldsmith eye came during the examination of the contents of the treasure hoard. He found a large custom-made leather box with the letters “G S M” (State Foreign Ministry) engraved into the top of the box. Upon opening the box he found it filled will every order, decoration and medal that had ever been bestowed upon the Foreign Minister. Over 100 items were in the box and padded felt partitions kept the expensive and exquisite items protected from being damaged in shipping. Since these items were of no intelligence interest to the higher headquarters, and upon completing his inventory, he merely requested that he be allowed to keep them as war souvenirs. Ecstatic over obtaining so much valuable intelligence evidence and recovering the vast stolen art treasures he was granted official permission to keep the uniforms and medals as legitimate war souvenirs. Captain Goldsmith wasted no time in getting the items shipped back home. He, being an officer and with official clearance to keep the items, simply boxed everything up and shipped it back to the states to his home in College Station, Texas. Upon arriving back home he had the items appraised and found that the value at that time was around $40,000.00. Many of the decorations were made of fine gold, silver, and some inlaid with diamonds and other precious stones. They had been awarded to von Ribbentrop by many foreign governments to include Hungary, Spain, Japan, Finland, Denmark, Italy, and Egypt to name a few. As per the uniforms and medals, Col. Goldsmith said, “Ribbentrop had no further use for the gala dress uniforms or decorative medals where he went”. For many years after the war, Colonel Goldsmith proudly displayed the medals at various VFW and Veterans of Foreign War meetings. By the late 60’s American had moved on, the Cold War was the biggest worry, and the Colonel put is treasures away. Not until my big mouth and the quick action of my late friend Jim Atwood did they become once again war booty par excellent and a young Kentucky hillbilly become the last owner of the orders and medals of [...] Joachim von Ribbentrop. [...] When the collection was examined and researched, it was found to include the following:

Awards and decorations (small excerpt in German)

* Order of the German Eagle, the “Sonderstufe” or Golden Grand Cross set. Badge, Star and Sash; badge and star in gold. (3 pieces)

* Italy - Order of the Most Sacred Annunciation “Annumnziata”, small collar set of the premier order of the Italian Monarchy, Badge, Collar and Star. (3 pieces) The collar and badge are in 18 CT. gold, Hallmarked by “Gardino/Roma”, the star is in silver and gold and is hallmarked. This was awarded in Berlin on May 22 CT. gold and was awarded in 1943. (3 pieces)

* SAXONY DUCAL - The Ernestine House-Order, a special Grand Cross set with “swords on the ring”, so awarded only during the Nazi by the pro-Nazi Duke of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha. Badge, Star and Sash. (3 pieces)

* BULGARIA - Order SS, Kyril (cyril) & Methodius, the Grand Cross with small Badge, Star and Sash, and all in silver-gilt and enamel. Representations of the saints on the two badges were all hand-painted. Awarded in 1940. (5 pieces)

* BULGARIA - Order of St. Alexander, complete Grand Cross. Badge, Collar, Sash Badge, Star and Sash. (5 pieces).

* JAPAN - Order of Pawlonia or Rising Sun w/Pawlonia Leaves, Grand Cross Set of the highest honor for non-royal chiefs-of-state or officials of the highest rank either high military or civil personnel. Badge, Star and Sash (3 pieces). in silver-gilt and enamel and manufactured at the Osaka Mint. Awarded in 1940.

* EGYPT - Order of Ismail, Grand Cross set. Badge, Star, and Sash. (3 pieces) Badge is gold and enamel and the heavy star is gold, silver and enamel and both pieces were Hallmarked.

* ROUMANIA - Order of Carol I, Grand Cross Collar set, premier decoration of Romania. Badge, Collar, Sash Badge, Star and sash. (5 pieces) All in silver-gilt and enamel with gold centers. This set was awarded in 1942.

* ROMANIA - Order of the Star of Romania, Grand Cross set of the order usually given to foreign recipients. Badge, star and sash (3 pieces). Silver-gilt and enamel and hallmarked.

* DENMARK - Order of Danebrog, the special Grand Cross for Chiefs-of-State or high officials, wherein the star is set with diamonds. The badge is in gold and enamel, the star is silver with a gold and enamel cross all set with 14 diamonds totaling 3 carats, and full dress sash. (3 pieces). The star is marked “13”, hallmarked and awarded in 1941.

* SLOVAKIA - Order of Prince Pribina Grand Cross set the premier order of this state. Badge, star and sash. (3 pieces.) Badge in gilt and enamel, star is silver, gilt and enamel, and hallmarked. Awarded in 1941.

* CROATIA - Order of King Zvonimir, Grand Cross set as was the premier order of this Nazi puppet state. Set consists of badge, star and sash. (3 pieces.) Badge in gilt and enamel, star is in silver, gilt and enamel and is hallmarked. Awarded in 1942.

* SPAIN - Order of the Yoke and Arrows (These were the symbols of the Falangist Party.) Grand Cross Collar and Badge, all in gold hallmarked and proof marked. Badge if numbered “7” on the reverse. This was the highest Falangist award of the Franco Regency. (2 pieces.)

* HUNGARY - Order of St. Stephen, Grand Cross set, the highest award of the Admiral Horthy Regency government. Badge, sash and star. (3 pieces.) The badge is in gold and enamel, the star is in silver, gold and enamel, and hallmarked. The order continued the Austro-Hungarian (pre-1918) order of the same name and design. It was awarded in 1940.

* HUNGARY - The Merit Order, Special Grand Cross with added distinction of the Holy Crown Order of St. Stephen (added to the pension). Badge, star and sash. (3 pieces.) The badge is in gold as is the suspension; the star is in gold, silver and enamel with the crown added to the center with golden rays. Awarded in 1938.

* HUNGARY - Order of Crown of St. Stephens or Order of Holy Crown of Hungary, the Grand Cross with swords. Badge, Star and sash. (3 pieces.) This order was founded in 1942 in gilt and enamel. It was awarded in 1944.

* FINLAND - Order of White Rose, grand Collar set with the old form of the collar having the Finish Swastika links. Badge, Collar, Star and sash. (4 pieces.) In silver-gilt and enamel. Awarded in 1942.

* GERMAN THIRD REICH - the Order of Red Cross, type of 1937 - 1939. The Grand Star as the highest grade, in silver, gilt and enamel.

* GERMANY - A large mounted group of 1914/1938 awards: Iron Cross 1914 on Combatant’s ribbon, 4th class of the Order of White Falcon of Saxe-Weimar, Oldenburg war Cross 2nd class, Hamburg 1914/18 War Merit Cross, 1914/18 Honor Cross for Combatants (founded in 1934), the 1938 Austrian Anchluss Annexation medal and the 1938 Sudetenland Annexation medal. (7 pieces on bar.)

* GERMANY - A large mounted group of 1914-1918 awards: Iron Cross 1914 on Combatants ribbon, 4th Class Order of the White Falcon of Saxe-Weimar, Oldenburg War Cross 2nd class, Hamburg 1914/18 War Merit Cross, Saxe-Coburg-Gotha Ernestine * GERMAN THIRD REICH - The Olympic Cross of Honor 1st Class neck badge in its original gold-stamped white presentation case.

* GERMAN THIRD REICH - Cased silvered medallion for 1938 “Art Day”. The design is a larger scale representation of the small badge produced for this event.

* GERMAN THIRD REICH - A special set of “S. S.” presentation cuff links. Dated 21-12-29 by engraving, “S. S.” proof marked and the designed “SS” was in a wreath on links facing medallion. Came in a special fitted presentation case of black leather.

* TURKISH EMPIRE - The Turkish War Medal, commonly known as the “Gallipoli Star” by the British and the “Eiserne Halbmond” (“Iron half-moon”) by the Germans. Actually a 5-pointed star, lacquered red (as are the original Turkish issue pieces.) Later custom models made in Germany were red enamel.

* ITALY - A very large heavy bronze cased medallion in deep relief for the Italian-German Alliance of the “Pact of Steel” in 1938.

* DANZIG - The Honor Cross 1st Class, highest award of the City-State. A pinback in gold and enamel, hallmarked and in original presentation case.

See also

• Revisionist views on the causes of the World Wars

External links

• NOT GUILTY AT NUREMBERG: The German Defense Case - detailed descriptions and criticisms of the alleged evidence against each of the accused and witnesses at the IMT
• Geneall.net about children and grandchildren