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An excellent certificate grouping to Hauptmann Hans Karpenkiel serving with Kampfgeschwader 30. Knight's Cross winner on 1. December 1944. Hptm. Karpenkiel is not listed as a Knight's Cross recipient. However, the award is listed in his Soldbuch, and there is a photo showing him with the Knight's Cross.
Certificates
Certificate to Luftwaffe Pilot's Badge. It was issued on 5.6.1937. Signed by Chief of the Luftwaffe General Staff Hans-Jürgen Stumpff, Knight's Cross winner. Two holes.
Certificate to Luftwaffe Long Service Award IV. Class. It was issued on 9.6.1938. Signed by Generalmajor Ludwig Wolff, Knight's Cross of the War Merit Cross with Swords winner. Two holes.
Certificate to Anschluss Austria Medal. It was issued on 16.12.1938. Facsimile signature by Meissner. Two holes.
Certificate to Sudetenland Medal with Clasp "Prager Burg". It was issued on 1.10.1939. Signed by Generalmajor Wolf von Stutterheim, Knight's Cross winner. Two holes.
Certificate to 1939 Iron Cross 2nd Class. It was issued on 9.10.1939. Signed by Generalmajor Wolfram von Richthofen, Knight's Cross with Oak Leaves winner. Two holes.
Certificate to 1939 Iron Cross 1st Class. It was issued on 25.5.1940. Signed by Generalleutnant Gustav Kastner-Kirdorf, German Cross in Silver winner. Two holes.
Three rare certificates for successful hits to foreign ships. Issued on 7.11.1940 to Feldwebel Karpenkiel and his crew. Signed by Hauptmann Hielscher? Each certificate has two holes.
Certificate to Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class. It was issued in 1941. Facsimile signature. Four holes. Including the German type of the certificate (blank). Two holes.
Certificate to Luftwaffe Honor Goblet. It was issued on 10.9.1941. Facsimile signature by Hermann Göring. Two holes.
Certificate to Wound Badge in Black. It was issued on 1.5.1942. Signed by Hauptmann Konrad Kahl, Knight's Cross winner. Two holes.
Two POW documents. Issued by the US Army. Dated "24.8.1946". Signs of use and each certificate have two holes.
A photocopy of his resume. He wrote it on 3.10.1945.
Identity cards
Luftwaffe Solduch. It was issued on 12.4.1944. Original applied photo. His units are listed on page 4. Awards: 1939 Iron Cross 1st and 2nd Class, Luftwaffe Pilot's Badge, Anschluss Austria Medal, Sudetenland Medal with Clasp "Prager Burg", Squadron Clasp for Kampfflieger in Silver and Gold, Luftwaffe Honor Goblet on 15.4.1941, Finnish Order of the Cross of Liberty 1st Class, Wound Badge in Black, German Cross in Gold on 6.5.1944, and Knight's Cross on 1.12.1944. Noted on page 22. Each page has four holes.
Wehrmacht driver's license. It was issued on 2.8.1943. Original applied photo. Four holes.
Luftwaffe ID card. It was issued on 1.9.1943. Original applied photo. Four holes.
Photos
29 very nice Luftwaffe photos. Among them is a beautiful portrait photo in which he wears the Knight's Cross as well as three photos with the German Cross in Gold. Also, a nice photo taken after the award of the Knight's Cross. In this photo, Karpenkiel wears a large Knight's Cross around his neck. Nice shots of his plane. You can see the squadron emblem on it. Two photos of other Luftwaffe Knight's Cross winners.
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Overall condition 2.
NAME
Knights Cross of the Order of the Iron Cross
DATE OF INSTITUTION
1. September 1939 as the third and new grade of the re-instituted Order of the Iron Cross
AWARD CRITERIA
The Knights Cross of the Iron Cross was awarded for exceptional bravery in the face of the enemy and for outstanding merit in troop leadership. The awarding required the previous awarding of the two lower grades. The Knights Cross was solely awarded by the Führer upon the proposal of the soldiers unit and issued by the Heerespersonalamt. The Knights Crosses were stored at the Ordenskanzlei in Berlin, to be sent to the awardee after approval. There were no Knights Crosses stored at any level of the Wehrmacht before the end of April 1945.
MANUFACTURERS
The Knights Cross of the Iron Cross was produced by seven manufacturers, not including variations amongst the individual companies. The Knights Crosses can be found either unmarked (early Juncker and 3/4 Ring), with a silver content mark, with an LDO number (L/12 and L/52), and later on with the company’s Präsidialkanzlei number (2, 20, 65, and 4). Private sales were forbidden after October 1941.
AWARD NUMBERS
Accurate numbers are not known but the closest estimation is around 7,200, and most likely another couple of hundred on stock at the Präsidialkanzlei.
AWARD DOCUMENTS
The awardee received a preliminary document in A5 format and issued in the name of the Führer by the responsible personnel offices of the three branches of the Wehrmacht. The formal document (Große Mappe) was issued later and only until date of late 1942 / early 1943 due to the huge backlog.
WEARING METHOD
The Knights Cross was worn around the neck on a wider red white and black ribbon which came within the black award case of the Knights Cross.