Honour Roll Clasp of the Army

The Honour Roll Clasp of the Army or Ehrenblatt des Heeres (German) was a Decoration of Nazi Germany during World War II. The total number awarded was 4,556.

History
The Honour Roll Clasp of the Army was instituted after the German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941. Until 30 January 1944, it was only a paper award. After this date, Adolf Hitler introduced the metallic version of the award for the decoration.

Qualification
There were a number of possible qualifications for the Honour Roll Clasp of the Army:


 * The award could only be bestowed after a recipient had been awarded the Iron Cross in both the First and Second Class.


 * An act of bravery above and beyond the call of duty, that did not justify an award of the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross and had not resulted in an awarding of German Cross in Gold could result in the bestowing of the Honour Roll Clasp of the Army.


 * A special appreciation record from the supreme commander of the Heer could result in this award.


 * Inclusion in the Honour Roll of the German Army (the Wehrmachtbericht, somewhat analogous to being Mentioned in Dispatches) could result in this award.

There were no specific qualifications to earn this award; its bestowing was at the discretion of the German High Command. It was, however, awarded very sparingly, and so did retain a high level of prestige and honor.

The awarding of the Honour Roll Clasp of the Army took place in three Steps:
 * 1. Naming of recipient in the Honour Roll of the German Army (Nennung im Ehrenblatt des deutschen Heeres - this is the date in the list),
 * 2. Awarding of the Honour Roll Clasp of the Army (Verleihung der Ehrenblattspange des Heeres),
 * 3. Receiving by recipient of the Honour Roll Clasp of the Army (Überreichung der Ehrenblattspange des Heeres).

The Waffen SS were not nominally part of the German Army, but were nevertheless eligible on the same conditions as the Army.

Description
The decoration contained a wreath measuring 24.5 mm across, formed of six bunches of Oak Leaves on each side. The width of the wreath was 5 mm at the widest point and tapered to the apex where two oak leaves meet tip-to-tip. The height of the badge from base to tip was 26 mm. The swastika was superimposed upon the separately-made wreath and was soldered onto the wreath assembly.

The reverse side had four pins for attachment to allow securing to a strip of Iron Cross Second Class ribbon. This ribbon was then looped through the second button hole on the tunic of the recipient.