GERMANY (Reich) – Cross of Honour of the German Mother, II Class in Silver

Description

GERMANY (Reich) – Cross of Honour of the German Mother, Second Class in Silver
(Ehrenkreuz der Deutschen Mutter, 2. Stufe in Silber – “Mutterkreuz”)

Instituted on 16 December 1938 by Adolf Hitler, the Cross of Honour of the German Mother was created to recognize and encourage large families in accordance with National Socialist population policy. The decoration was awarded in three classes based on the number of children a mother had borne and raised: Bronze for four or five children, Silver for six or seven children, and Gold for eight or more children. The first awards were presented on Mother’s Day, 21 May 1939, and continued until the collapse of the Third Reich in 1945.

The Second Class Cross in Silver consists of a blue-enamelled cross pattée with white enamel borders, superimposed upon a radiating silvered starburst. At the centre is a circular white enamel medallion bearing a black swastika surrounded by the inscription “DER DEUTSCHEN MUTTER” (“To the German Mother”). The reverse of later examples, including the present specimen, is engraved with the date “16 Dezember 1938”, commemorating the institution of the award, together with the facsimile signature of Adolf Hitler. Earlier examples carried the inscription “Das Kind adelt die Mutter” (“The Child Ennobles the Mother”).

The decoration was worn suspended from a distinctive blue-and-white ribbon and was awarded only after extensive official screening. Eligibility was restricted to women who met the racial, hereditary, and social criteria established by the National Socialist regime. Mothers awarded the Silver Cross were recognized for having successfully borne and raised six or seven children.

The example illustrated is a later-pattern Second Class Cross in Silver, retaining its original ribbon. The blue translucent enamel remains well preserved, while the reverse displays the institution date and facsimile signature characteristic of wartime production. The suspension ribbon exhibits light age wear consistent with period use and storage.

Today, the Mother’s Cross remains one of the most recognizable civil decorations of the Third Reich. As a historical artefact, it reflects the regime’s demographic policies and ideological emphasis on motherhood and family life within National Socialist Germany.

Condition: Very Fine; enamel largely intact with minor edge wear; silvered finish preserved; reverse inscription and signature clear; original ribbon present with light age-related wear and slight creasing.