WWII GERMAN MEDAL - FIRE FIGHTER
This award was issue to firefighters who excelled in the line of duty.
There were approximately 100,000 of this medals produced. The award came
with a red and black ribbon. There were two types of medals, a silver and
a gold. The medal featured here is silver, which is the most common of the
two.
The design consisted of a cross in black and red enamel. The center of the
medal portrayed a black swastika. Each side of the cross had a red flame design
shooting upwards. The cross was set into a circular pattern that contained a
phrase in embossed letters. The back of the medal was flat and did not have any
markings. The medal featured on this page appears to have an ink mark, it is not
known why it is there or how it got there.
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This page is a recognition and identification guide for WWII German badges and awards. Multiple
detailed photos of a specific sample are provided. Descriptions point out clearly defined points
that should be noted.
One of the most commonly asked questions is "How much is my WWII German badge worth?". A price
guide is included here to address this question. The value of the badges and awards is reviewed
over a period of several years. A trend can be observed. The present worth of the German
badges in the collector's market is illustrated.
This service is provided free of charge to the visitor/enthusiast courtesy of
MilitaryItems.com,
a company dedicated to the preservation of military history and to providing quality military
antiques and collectibles to museums, institutions and the general public.
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WE BUY German German badges, pins and medals - All types of WWII German civilian awards. Whether it is for
fire department, police. civil defense, Red Cross, Organization Todt, Luftsxhutz or any other civilian organization.
The process gets started by you sending us an
Email .
We will respond to your inquiry normally within 24 hours and in many cases much faster.
We can tell you what you have, what it is worth and how much we can pay you.
One item or an entire collection -
Email Us .
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The medal was built with two different types of loops to attach the ribbon to
the medal; a ball type and a semi-circle type. This is an example of the ball type
which is a harder to find.
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Every 2nd class fire medal awarded was issued with an award document.
The design of the document is nicely done. It has a border made of swastikas which
covers the entire perimeter. A large eagle sitting atop a swastika inside a wreath
is found in the top section.
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The name of the recipient is printed. Large organge gothic letters spell out the name
of the award.
It is important to note that the award documents may not have been standardized. It is possible
to find award documents for the 2nd class fire fighting medal that do not look like the one
featured here.
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Collecting Third Civilian Organization items
Collecting Third Reich memorabilia is a field that has been growing since the days the GI's rummaged around Europe
bringing back military souvenirs. As the cities were occupied, the members of the various civilian groups wore their
pins and awards on their uniforms. Once the person was killed or captured, the American soldiers would often strip the
pins and awards from the uniform and take them as war trophies. Eventually all these pieces came back to the United States
where military history enthusiasts began to collect them.
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In trying to determine if you should collect WWII German Civilian Organization items there are certain factors that should be
considered.
Once Hitler assumed power in Germany he systematically started absorbing the different civilian organizations into the
Third Reich. One way to know when the organization was absorved was that their logo, pins and medals started showing the
Swastika.
A collector may decide what to collect based on the likes of the person. Some individuals collect all fire department
related items.
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This award is currently being
reproduced.
It is becoming more difficult to be able to tell the fake ones from the real ones because the quality
of the reproductions is improving. The collector must become familiarized with the construction style
and materials employed in the manufacturing of this badge. Attention to the details is critical in
order to be able to determine the authenticity of the badge.
If you have an interest is seeing other badges and awards of the Third Reich, you can do so by going
to our
WWII German Badges and Awards
identification guide. Where we cover Heer (Army), Navy (Kriegsmarine) and
Air Force (Luftwaffe) items.
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