Awards and decorations of the Kriegsmarine consisted of a series of war badges as well as a series of naval combat clasps; these awards were considered part of a larger array of Third Reich military decorations.
The following were the primary naval war badges awarded for service in various branches of the Kriegsmarine.
High Seas Fleet Badge | Destroyer War Badge | Minesweeper War Badge | Blockade Runner Badge |
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E-Boat War Badge | U-Boat War Badge | Auxiliary Cruiser Badge | Naval Artillery War Badge |
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In addition to war badges, naval personnel could also qualify for follow-on combat clasps. Such clasps were smaller in design and always awarded after receipt of a primary war badge (thus, it was not possible to gain a combat clasp without having a war badge first). The combat clasps were the:
U-Boat Combat Clasp (Gold, Silver, Bronze) |
Naval Front Clasp | Small Battle Unit Combat Clasp (1st to 7th Grade) |
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Naval badges could further be upgraded to include an award with diamonds, although this stipulation was only for the primary war badges with combat clasps issued in a single degree only. On paper, every naval war badge could receive a diamonds upgrade, but in reality because of the strain of the war and the German High Commands disregard for the navy only the U-Boat Badge, E-Boat Badge, Minesweeper Badge and Auxiliary Cruiser Badge were awarded in diamonds. The breakdown was as follows: