Ehrenkreuz der deutschen Mutter [Cross of Honor of the German Mother] bronze medal acquired by a US soldier
Overview
- Brief Narrative
- 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.
- Date
-
commemoration:
approximately 1938 December 16
found: 1945 May
- Geography
-
issue:
Germany
- Credit Line
- United States Holocaust Memorial Museum Collection, Gift of Annmarie Ekey
- Markings
- front, center band, embossed : DER DEUTSCHEN MUTTER [THE GERMAN MOTHER]
reverse, engraved : 16. / Dezember / 1938 / Adolf Hitler [in cursive, illegible] - Contributor
-
Subject:
Norman K. Holloway
- Biography
-
Norman Keith Holloway was born on April 10, 1926, to Harry George and Mary Barrie Holloway in Heasley Mill, England. Harry was a blacksmith, born in 1894 in North Molton. Mary was born in Lanark, Scotland. The family lived with their children in North Molton. Norman was one of seven children: George Robert, Victor Ian, Douglas Roy, Jean, Beryl, and Hector. When he was six years old, Norman immigrated to the United States with his mother and siblings on June 23, 1932, joining his father and grandmother, Agnes Barrie, in New York.
On December 11, 1941, the US declared war on Germany. Norman enlisted in the US Army and was assigned to the 6th Armored Division. By March 1945, the unit, which had landed in Normandy in July 1944, was advancing into central Germany. Norman, with his division, had reached Weimar, Germany by April 9, 1945. On April 11th, the Super Sixth liberated Buchenwald concentration camp and Norman was with the troops that entered the camp that day. The SS guards had fled and the prisoners were in charge of the camp, which held 21,000 survivors. Germany surrendered on May 7, 1945. The 6th Armored Division was placed on occupational duty in Germany. The division was inactivated and the troops returned home on September 18, 1945.
Norman married Jean Marie Ferris. The couple had two sons and two daughters. Norman continued his military career, serving in the Korean and Vietnam wars. After his retirement, Norman joined the Mahopac Volunteer Fire Department in 1979, serving as the department’s president and commissioner. Norman, age 85, died on April 16, 2011.
Physical Details
- Language
- German
- Classification
-
Awards
- Category
-
Medals
- Object Type
-
Medals, German (lcsh)
- Genre/Form
- Medals
- Physical Description
- Bronze, cross pattee styled medal with an elongated lower arm. The arms are blue enamel with a white enamel border, with each section edged in bronze. In the center is a black enamel swastika with a bronze border on a circular, white enamel mound surrounded by a bronze band with raised, German text. A bronze, 5 rayed sunburst fills the space between the cross arms. There is German text engraved on the reverse. A frayed, discolored 12 inch ribbon with a central wide blue stripe flanked by a set of narrow stripes: white, blue, white, is threaded through a rectangular loop on the top of the cross and tied in a knot. There is missing enamel and red residue on the sunbursts.
- Dimensions
- overall: Height: 1.875 inches (4.763 cm) | Width: 1.375 inches (3.493 cm) | Depth: 0.125 inches (0.318 cm)
- Materials
- overall : metal, ribbon, enamel paint
Rights & Restrictions
- Conditions on Access
- No restrictions on access
- Conditions on Use
- No restrictions on use
Keywords & Subjects
- Topical Term
- Mothers--Germany--History--20th century. National socialism and women--Awards. Population policy--Political aspects--Germany--Awards. Soldiers--United States--Biography. World War, 1939-1945--Personal narratives, American. World War, 1939-1945--Concentration camps--Liberation--Germany--Personal narratives, American.
- Geographic Name
- Germany--Population policy--Medals.
- Corporate Name
- Nazi Party
Administrative Notes
- Legal Status
- Permanent Collection
- Provenance
- The collection was donated to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in 2012 and 2013, by Annmarie Ekey, the daughter of Norman K. Holloway.
- Record last modified:
- 2023-06-06 10:18:07
- This page:
- https://collections.ushmm.org/search/catalog/irn73566
Also in Norman K. Holloway collection
The collection consists of a Cross of Honor of the German Mother medal and a photograph relating to the experiences of Norman K. Holloway as a soldier in the United States Army 6th Armored Division in Germany during World War II and an oral history compact disc recorded in 2004.
Date: 1945 May-2004
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.
