NSDAP Traditional Gau Badge Danzig-Westpreussen. Large pin-back badge, manufactured in toned silver, 47 x 38.8 mm, solid struck. Reverse with thin pin with roller hinge and safety catch. Lower left stamped "925" silver, right with maker mark "M. St. & S" (= M. Stumpf & Sohn, Danzig). With matching miniature, silver-plated base metal, height 20 mm, on long pin.
Free City of Danzig Danzig Cross 1st Class.

Large pin-back badge, gilt and enameled base metal, reverse marked "B.v.A. Hülse Berlin", on wide wearing pin.
Medal bar with 3 awards: War Merit Cross 1939 2nd Class. NSDAP Long Service Award in Bronze, heavy fine zinc construction. Danzig Cross 2nd Class, gilt and enameled base metal, reverse with maker "B.v.A. Hülse Berlin". With corrosion on the KVK and the NSDAP Long Service Award.
NSDAP Membership Badge, early enameled version pre-1933, reverse with marking "Ges. gesch.".
SA Sports Badge in Bronze 2nd Pattern 1934-1935, bronzed iron, reverse "Eigentum D.S.A. Sportabz. Hauptstelle", maker "E. Schneider Lüdenscheid", award number 865342. German Gymnastics and Sports Badge 1919-1934 DRA in Bronze, bronzed base metal, maker: "L. Chr. Lauer Nürnberg M. Sch. No 33918".
Together with 2 very fine small portrait photographs of Willi Freude as SA-Obersturmführer in brown shirt and as local group leader with all awards.
Furthermore 7 photocopies regarding Willi Freude concerning his appointment as District Commissioner Kreis Konitz, dated 1942 and 1944, as well as a photograph of his Kreisleiter, also wearing the Danzig Traditional Gau Badge.

Medal estates from NSDAP functionaries from Danzig are extremely rare, only very few pieces were brought west during the flight in 1945, most pieces were destroyed. In this completeness probably unique.

With only approximately 88 awards, the Danzig Cross 1st Class is one of the rarest decorations of the Third Reich.
The Danzig Cross was instituted on August 31, 1939 by the head of state of the Free City of Danzig, Gauleiter Albert Forster, and awarded for services to the establishment of the NSDAP in Gau Danzig and the National Socialist state of Danzig as well as for the establishment of the defense of Danzig before August 31, 1939. Awards were primarily made on the traditional day of the Danzig National Socialists, October 24, 1939. As a state decoration, the Danzig Cross was accorded equal status with the decorations of other German states since May 1, 1941.

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The Awards Estate of SA-Hauptsturmführer Willi Freude: The Danzig Cross First Class and Traditions-Gauabzeichen Danzig-Westpreussen

This remarkable awards estate brings together some of the rarest decorations of the Third Reich, documenting the political career of an NSDAP functionary in Gau Danzig-Westpreussen. At its center stand the Danzig Cross First Class and the NSDAP Traditions-Gauabzeichen Danzig-Westpreussen, supplemented by additional decorations and photographic documents from the possession of Willi Freude, who served as SA-Hauptsturmführer and Amtskommissar in Kreis Konitz.

The Danzig Cross: Institution and Historical Background

The Danzig Cross was instituted on 31 August 1939 by the head of state of the Free City of Danzig, Gauleiter Albert Forster, as a two-grade decoration. The timing was politically charged: on 23 August 1939, Forster had replaced Arthur Greiser as Danzig’s head of state. Just one day after the cross was instituted, on 1 September 1939, Danzig was annexed to Germany. Forster was subsequently appointed Gauleiter of the newly created Reichsgau Danzig-West Prussia on 21 October 1939.

The Danzig Cross was awarded for services in building up the NSDAP in Gau Danzig and the National Socialist state of Danzig, as well as for building up the defense of Danzig before 31 August 1939. It recognized individuals both in Danzig and in the wider Reich who had contributed to establishing the Nazi Party in the Free City prior to its incorporation into Germany. Awards were primarily made on the tradition day of the Danzig National Socialists, 24 October 1939. As a state decoration, the Danzig Cross was placed on equal footing with decorations of other German states from 1 May 1941.

Design and Manufacture

The Danzig Cross was designed by Benno von Arent. The First Class is a convex pattée cross, gilded and white enameled, crafted from bronze with double golden decorative lines on the cross arms. The decoration displays two small crosses positioned vertically, topped by a crown, corresponding to the coat of arms of the Free City of Danzig. The reverse is smooth and golden, fitted with a solid pin mounted on a roller hinge for wear on the left side of the jacket. The documented manufacturer marking reads “B.v.A. Hülse Berlin.” The Danzig Cross was always presented in a red case with the coat of arms of the City of Danzig embossed in gold on the lid.

Two variants of the decoration are known: the first featuring a double decorative line on the white enameled cross arms, and the second with a broad inner border.

Award Numbers

By December 1939, 88 First Class crosses had been awarded, with most presentations occurring during the ceremony on 24 October 1939. Among documented recipients was Hans Frank, who received the decoration on 19 May 1940, and SS-Oberführer and Oberst der Schutzpolizei Hans Griep, who received both classes. It should be noted that the figures commonly cited in the literature refer only to the count as of 11 December 1939, and the actual total number of awards was likely higher, as evidenced by subsequent presentations such as that to Hans Frank.

The Traditions-Gauabzeichen Danzig-Westpreussen

The NSDAP Traditions-Gauabzeichen Danzig-Westpreussen was instituted by Gauleiter Albert Forster and authorized for wear by Adolf Hitler. It honored the so-called “Alte Kämpfer” (Old Fighters) – early NSDAP members in the Danzig area. The inscriptions “ALTER” on the upper edge and “KÄMPFER” on the lower edge underscore this purpose. The badge also displays the Danzig coat of arms and a swastika.

The example in this estate measures 47 x 38.8 mm, is solid-struck in toned silver, and bears the reverse markings “925” for silver content along with the maker’s mark “M. St. & S” for M. Stumpf & Sohn, Danzig – a historic Danzig goldsmith and jeweler firm founded in 1804 and active through at least the 1940s. The number of personnel qualified for this badge did not exceed 100 and is estimated at approximately 50 to 60 individuals. Among documented wearers were Gauleiter Albert Maria Forster and SS-Obergruppenführer Arthur Greiser.

The Estate and Its Rarity

Beyond the Danzig Cross First Class and the Traditions-Gauabzeichen, this estate includes a medal bar with three decorations, an early enameled NSDAP membership badge from before 1933, an SA Sports Badge in bronze, and a German Gymnastics and Sports Badge. The estate is further complemented by two portrait photographs of Willi Freude – one as an SA-Obersturmführer in brown shirt, the other as an Ortsgruppenleiter wearing all of his decorations – as well as documentary copies relating to his appointment as Amtskommissar of Kreis Konitz, dated 1942 and 1944.

Award estates from NSDAP functionaries in Danzig are extraordinarily rare. During the westward flight in 1945, very few pieces were carried to safety; most were destroyed. A number of restrikes of the Danzig Cross First Class were produced in Germany during the early 1960s. All Nazi-era decorations were banned after Germany’s defeat in 1945, and the Danzig Cross was not among those re-authorized for wear by the Federal Republic of Germany in 1957.