Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939, a classic production by the firm C.E. Juncker, Berlin. Blackened iron core with silver frame. Reverse stamped "800 L/12". Lightly worn, in good condition. Complete with the worn original neck ribbon. Together with the preliminary award certificate for the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross issued to "Hauptmann Köster, III./I.R. (mot) 156", dated "HQ u OKH, 31 October 1941". With original ink signature of the Commander-in-Chief of the Army "von Brauchitsch" Generalfeldmarschall.3500
Transmission letter for the certificate from Gen. Kdo. XXXXVIII. Pz. Korps to the 16. Inf.-Division (mot) and from Inf.-Rgt. (mot) 156. Extract from Div. daily order No. 85 and 87: 1. Award of the Knight's Cross by the Führer and Supreme Commander of the Wehrmacht and 2. Recognition by the Führer for the outstanding achievements on 28.9.41 on the battlefield at Belozerkowka. Field post letter to the wife with congratulations on the Knight's Cross award from the Commandant of the Staff Headquarters of the deputy Generalkommando VI. A.K. Together with 3 newspaper clippings "The Gelsenkirchen Knight's Cross recipient Walter Köster...", a cover letter from the Gelsenkirchener Allgemeinen Zeitung dated 13.11.41.
23 original photographs of Major Köster with Knight's Cross, very fine photographs of the award ceremony, portrait photos and as Major during home leave 1942.
Iron Cross 1939 1st Class, maker "65". Worn piece. Together with the preliminary award certificate and the award certificate for the Iron Cross 1st Class, issued 23 June 1940, both certificates with original signature "Eberhardt" Generalmajor and Commander of the 60. Infanterie-Division. Together with a very fine portrait photograph circa 1940 with the freshly awarded EK 1. Together with the Iron Cross 1939 2nd Class on ribbon, condition 2. Furthermore the ribbon for the EK which was worn in the buttonhole.
Infantry Assault Badge in Bronze, without maker. Worn. Together with the award certificate, issued in the field 15.10.1941. Together with the copy of the award certificate.
Transmission letter from Gen. Kdo. XXXXVIII. Pz. Korps to the 16. Inf.-Division (mot) for the "Certificate of Recognition from the Commander-in-Chief of the Army for Hauptmann Köster, Cdr. III./I.R. 156 (mot).
Eastern Front Medal, fine zinc, on ribbon, unworn. Together with the award certificate, issued posthumously to "Major Köster, Commander III./Gren. Rgt. (mot) 156", dated 25.8.1943. Together with the cover letter to the widow for the transmission of the Eastern Front Medal, dated 23.9.1943.
Medal bar with Wehrmacht Long Service Award for 12 and 4 years. Together with both award certificates, issued 1936 and 1939.
Large "Düsseldorfer Kunstmappe 1941", inside with handwritten gift dedication from Gauleiter Florian "To Herr Major Köster as a memento of his leave days in Düsseldorf with best soldiers' wishes. 12 May 1942".
Military leave pass for home leave to Düsseldorf April 1942, together with an authorization certificate as Eastern Front combatant "to receive 2 eggs weekly"... both issued Feldpost-Nr. 4912 A.
Wehrmacht identification tag "No. 1 13/I.R. 243", aluminum, on neck cord. Pair of shoulder boards as Hauptmann and Major of the Infantry, both worn.
Overseas cap for Infantry officers, early version circa 1940. Much worn, with moth damage, condition 2-3.
Wehrmacht miniature Army officer's dagger. Large version, length 23.5 cm, without maker. Light signs of age, condition 2.
Appointment certificate to Polizeileutnant, issued Berlin, 13 November 1933.
Appointment certificate to Polizeileutnant 1933 as well as to Oberleutnant of the Landespolizei, 1935, with original signature "Daluege".
Transfer certificate from Oberleutnant of the Landespolizei to Oberleutnant in the Wehrmacht, dated 11 March 1936, with original signature "Der Reichskriegsminister Blomberg". Appointment certificate to Hauptmann, dated Berlin, 28 February 1938 with original signature "Der Oberbefehlshaber des Heeres von Brauchitsch". Copy of the posthumous promotion to Oberstleutnant, dated 11 October 1943.
Large certificate "Honor Target Shooting of the NCO Corps of the 123./39 on 1 October 1938 with rifle 98 k" as best marksman 150 meters prone freehand to Hauptmann Köster. Furthermore 11 inscribed shooting targets, shot at Inf.-Regt. 11 in Wesel, 1936.

8 newspaper clippings "Knight's Cross recipient Major Walter Köster killed in action". Letter of condolence from Major Köster, Commander Feldpost Nr. 04912A (Infanterie-Rgt. 1, III. Btl.) to the widow with envelope. Letter of condolence from Oberst v. T., Commander Feldpost Nr. 00332 (Jäger Regiment 56) to the widow with envelope. Letter of condolence from the Lord Mayor of Düsseldorf to the widow, dated 6 August 1942. Copy of the letter of condolence from the Commander of the 16. Inf. Div. (mot), dated 6.8.1942.
Together with the personal wallet of Major Köster with military driver's license, field hymnal, photograph of his commanding general and other documents - perforated by shrapnel fragments.
2 pre-printed letters of thanks from the widow "Düsseldorf, December 1942".
Transmission letter from the Wehrbezirkskommando Düsseldorf with the transfer of the military service record to the widow, dated 8 October 1943.
Reichssportabzeichen identification book from 1935, Aryan certificate from Inf.Rgt. 79 for the wedding 1936, passport of the Free City of Danzig 1939, passport German Reich 1939, Reich clothing card of the City of Düsseldorf. Order of the Commander of the 16. Inf. Div. "Secret" dated 17.7.1941: Transfer of command of Feld.Ers. Btl. 66 to Hauptmann Köster. Army garrison administration Düsseldorf: 3 explanations of peacetime fees to be paid, dated 1940 and 1941. Furthermore 30 photographs from 1933 to 1942, French campaign, Russia, etc.
Furthermore 4 non-wearable sports awards in track and field and soccer from the years 1930, 1934, ribbon for the Danzig Honor Cross.

Major Köster was killed in action on 31.7.1942 during the offensive battles at the lower Don. A truly extensive estate of a brave front officer, rarely to be found in such completeness.

381992

Wehrmacht: Large Estate of Knight's Cross Recipient Major Walter Köster, Commander III./Infantry Regiment (mot) 156

The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross 1939 (Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes 1939) represents the highest military award in Nazi Germany during World War II, instituted on September 1, 1939 by Adolf Hitler through the Ordinance re-establishing the Iron Cross. This decoration continued the Prussian tradition of the Iron Cross, first introduced in 1813 during the Wars of Liberation against Napoleon. Its first presentation was made on September 30, 1939, following the German Invasion of Poland, which marked the beginning of World War II in Europe.

The present Knight's Cross was produced by C.E. Juncker, Berlin, a firm with a distinguished history founded in 1851 by Carl Eduard Juncker. The company was located at Alte Jakobstrasse 13, Berlin SW 68, and became an official supplier to the Presidential Chancellery after 1939. Juncker crosses were marked with the stamp “L/12” (Presidential Chancellery code) or later with “2”, alongside the silver hallmark “800”. The firm's headquarters was almost completely destroyed by Allied air raids in 1944.

The physical form of the Knight's Cross follows a cross pattée shape – a cross with arms that are narrow at the center and broader at the perimeter. Typical dimensions are approximately 48.19 mm wide and 54.12 mm high, with a weight of approximately 28.79 grams without the band clip. The material consists of a blackened iron core (magnetic) with a silver frame, where the silver content is 800/1000. The obverse features a centrally placed embossed mobile swastika and the embossed date “1939” on the lower arm. The reverse shows the embossed date “1813” on the lower arm and is stamped with “800” (silver content) and “L/12” (manufacturer code). Worn examples show characteristic lacquer wear on the iron core, particularly on raised areas of the swastika. The Knight's Cross was worn around the neck on a black-white-red ribbon (Prussian colors), 30 millimeters wide.

The award criteria were extraordinarily strict. The Knight's Cross was awarded to recognize extreme battlefield bravery or outstanding military leadership during World War II. To qualify, a soldier had to already hold the 1939 Iron Cross First Class, though the Iron Cross First Class was awarded concurrently with the Knight's Cross in some cases. The award was conferred for outstanding individual acts or successful leadership achievements that far exceeded the requirements for the Iron Cross 1st Class. It was awarded across all ranks, from a senior commander for skilled leadership to a low-ranking soldier for a single act of military valor. Specific criteria included sinking 100,000 gross register tons of enemy shipping for U-boat commanders or achieving 20 aerial victories for fighter pilots, with criteria relaxed late in the war.

The Knight's Cross was the highest military award in Nazi Germany during World War II, with the Grand Cross awarded only once to Hermann Göring. Higher grades were instituted progressively: Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves (1940), Oak Leaves and Swords (1941), Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds (1941), and Golden Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds (1944). The most common Knight's Crosses were produced by Steinhauer & Lück in Lüdenscheid, marked “800” on the reverse. Juncker produced several variants; the last variant featured a “lying 2” or “lazy 2” mark and was awarded from late 1944 until May 1945.

According to the Association of Knight's Cross Recipients (Ordensgemeinschaft der Ritterkreuzträger des Eisernen Kreuzes), a total of 7,318 Knight's Crosses were awarded, as well as 882 Oak Leaves, 159 Swords, 27 Diamonds, 1 Golden Oak Leaves, and 1 Grand Cross. The last legal presentation had to be made before 23:01 Central European Time on May 8, 1945, when the German surrender became effective; presentations made after this date, the last on June 17, 1945, are considered de facto but not de jure awards. Recipients came from all branches: Wehrmacht (Army), Luftwaffe (Air Force), and Kriegsmarine (Navy), as well as the Waffen-SS.

This specific Knight's Cross was awarded to Hauptmann Walter Köster, commander of the III./Infanterie-Regiment (mot) 156 of the 16th Motorized Infantry Division. The 16th Motorized Infantry Division, nicknamed “Windhund” (Greyhound), participated in the Balkans campaign in 1941 and took part in Operation Barbarossa with Army Group South. It advanced on the Caucasus with elements coming to within 20 miles of Astrakhan on September 14, 1942—the most easterly point reached by any German unit during the war—and also participated in the Battle of Stalingrad. Hauptmann Köster was awarded the Knight's Cross on October 30, 1941 for leading an assault against the heavily defended Soviet village of Belozerkowka despite heavy defensive fire, catching the Soviets by surprise and capturing the village in close combat. Major Köster was killed in action on July 31, 1942 during offensive operations on the lower Don River.

In post-World War II Germany, the Federal Republic of Germany prohibited the wearing of Nazi insignia. In 1957 the German government authorized a replacement Knight's Cross, with an oak leaf cluster in place of the swastika, which could be worn by World War II Knight's Cross recipients. The Association of Knight's Cross Recipients is an association of highly decorated soldiers from both world wars, founded in 1955 in Cologne by Alfred Keller. In 1999, German SPD Minister of Defence Rudolf Scharping banned any contacts between the Bundeswehr and the association, stating that it and many of its members shared neo-Nazi and revanchist ideas. Today, such decorations are significant military-historical documents that bear witness to a dark chapter of German history and the individual fate of their bearers.