Ehrenkreuz der deutschen Mutter [Cross of Honor of the German Mother] bronze medal acquired by a US soldier
- Date
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commemoration:
approximately 1938 December 16
found: 1945 May
- Geography
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issue:
Germany
- Language
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German
- Classification
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Awards
- Category
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Medals
- Object Type
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Medals, German (lcsh)
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Annmarie Ekey
Cross of Honor of the German Mother bronze medal [Ehrenkreuz der deutschen Mutter] acquired by 19 year old Norman Holloway, while a soldier in the United States Army, 6th Armored Division, in Germany in 1945. A December 16, 1938, decree by Adolph Hitler instituted the award to encourage German women to bear more children. A recipient could be nominated by the Party or a government official and had to be of pure German origin and good character. The medal was issued in three levels: first class, gold, for eight or more children; second class, silver, for six to seven children; third class, bronze, for four to five children. Medals were awarded from 1939-1944 to over three million German women. Norman was with the 6th Armored Division when it liberated Buchenwald concentration camp near Weimar, Germany, on April 11, 1945. The SS guards had fled and the prisoners had control of the camp, which held 21,000 survivors. Germany surrendered on May 7, 1945, and the divsion returned home in September.
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Record last modified: 2022-08-02 15:48:12
This page: https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn73566
Also in This Collection
Norman Keith Holloway photograph
Document
The Norman Keith Holloway photograph is a photocopy of a photograph of Norman Holloway taken in Weimar, Germany on April 9, 1945. It was taken a day before he and the United States 6th Armored Division liberated Buchenwald concentration camp on April 10, 1945.
Oral history interview with Norman K. Holloway
Oral History
Norman K. Holloway discusses his experiences as a soldier in the United States Army 6th Armored Division in Germany during the liberation of Buchenwald concentration camp.