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Luftwaffe grouping to Hauptmann Eberhard Bock serving as a Staffelkapitän with 5./JG 27 and 3./JG 3 as well as other fighter squadrons. German Cross in Gold winner on 21. August 1942. Hauptmann Bock was credited with 28 victories. After the death of his brother, he served on the "Heimatfront" and was involved in the "Reichsverteidigung" (Defense of the Reich). He was killed in aerial combat with a P-51 on 28. May 1944 near Helmstedt, Germany. At that time he held the rank of Hauptmann. Staffelkapitän Bock was buried at the cemetery in Fürth (Plot: R. Grave: 50). The book "Reichsverteidigung - Die Geschichte des Jagdgeschwaders 1" by Eric Mombeek reports on Bock's service in the "Reichsverteidigung".
Certificate to German Cross in Gold. Issued on 21.8.1942. Facsimile by Hermann Göring and hand-signed by General der Flieger Gustav Kastner-Kirdorf, German Cross in Silver winner. Folded.
Certificate to Luftwaffe Pilot's Badge. Issued on 3.5.1939. Hand-signed by Generalmajor Gustav Kastner-Kirdorf, German Cross in Silver winner.
Certificate to 1939 Iron Cross 2nd Class. Issued on 26.5.1940. Hand-signed by Oberstleutnant Eitel-Friedrich Roediger Freiherr von Manteuffel.
Certificate to 1939 Iron Cross 1st Class. Issued on 20.6.1940. Hand-signed by General der Flieger (GFM) Albert Kesselring, Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords, and Diamonds winner.
Certificate to Squadron Clasp for Jäger in Gold. Issued on 5.5.1941. Hand-signed by Major Günther Lützow, Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords winner. Including the application for the award. Hand-signed by Hauptmann Hans von Hahn? Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves winner.
"Hero's Death" certificate. Killed in action on 28.5.1944. Issued on 30.5.1944. Hand-signed by a Hauptmann.
A handwritten letter to his mother. Dated 13.3.1943.
Furthermore five period time documents.
Memorabilia
An impressive wooden stick "Abschußstock" represents the so-called "Tatzelwurm" (squadron emblem of JG 3). Issued to Staffelkapitän Bock for his victories. The eyes and mouth are made of metal. Around the stick are 23 "Tatzelwurm" miniature badges, three small aluminum plaques showing the squadron emblem of JG 104, and two small enamel squadron emblems of JG 27. Each of the 28 badges represents a victory with that unit. Length: 92 cm. Please note that each of these badges today has a market price of 400-600 euros.
Luftwaffe Jagdgeschwader 27 wall plaque. Size: 19x15 cm.
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Signs of use. Good condition.
A list of his aerial victories is available on the Internet or will be included upon request.
Condition
2
Historical information
NAME
German Cross in Gold
DATE OF INSTITUTION
28. September 1941 as a military order in two grades. A special grade, the German Cross in Gold with Diamonds was planned and prototypes were made.
AWARD CRITERIA
The golden grade was awarded for multiple exceptional deeds of bravery or leadership and the silver grade for exceptional deeds in troop leadership. The award of the Iron Cross 1. Class, the Spange 1. Class , or the War Merit Cross 1. Class was a pre-requisite for the awarding of the German Cross. The German Cross was located above the Iron Cross 1. Class and War Merit Cross 1. Class but below the Knights Cross of the Iron Cross, respectively the Knights Cross of the War Merit Cross.
MANUFACTURERS
The German Cross was awarded by the decision of the supreme commanders of the three army branches.
The German Cross was produced by five known manufacturers and maybe one or two not yet known companies. The known manufacturers are Deschler & Sohn, who designed the cross, Gebrüder Godet, C.E. Juncker, C.F. Zimmermann, and Otto Klein.
Early crosses are unmarked and from the end of 1942/early 1943 onwards, the crosses were marked with the Präsidialkanzlei numbers of the companies.
Due to the heavy and slightly bulky nature of the award, a cloth version was authorized in June 1942. The cloth version can be found with eight different cloth backing colors: field gray (army), dark blue (navy), blue-gray (LW), black (tank forces), stone gray (assault gun), olive (Africa Heer), light khaki (Africa LW), and white (summer uniform).
AWARD NUMBERS
Accurate numbers are not known but the closest estimation based on surviving documents are 25,964 for the gold grade and 2,471 for the silver grade. A known total of eleven soldiers were awarded both grades.
The crosses were mainly stored and registered at the Präsidalkanzlei and were given out by this office. It is possible that smaller numbers were stored at the personnel offices of the three army branches.
AWARD DOCUMENTS
The Heer issued preliminary award documents in the format A5, followed by a larger (356 mm x 254 mm) formal document. The Luftwaffe and the Kriegsmarine never issued any preliminary documents, only the formal ones in the same size as the formal document of the Heer.
WEARING METHOD
The German Cross was worn at the right side of the uniform on the breast pocket.
