World War II German Battle Insignia by Gordon Williamson

Author:Gordon Williamson
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: World War II German Battle Insignia
ISBN: 9781780965697
Publisher: Osprey Publishing
Published: 2012-02-03T05:00:00+00:00

The Lapland Shield

Another area where German forces held out until the last day of the war was Lapland, the Arctic region of northern Norway occupied by XX Gebirgs Armee under Gen. Boehme, including mountain troops, infantry, Panzer and Luftwaffe ground troops. No exact date of institution or award criteria are known; but it is believed that approval for the shield was requested some time in late February 1945, and finally given on 1 May 1945.

Given the late date of the final approval it is unlikely that any actual awards were formally bestowed before the German surrender. However, an entry for the Lapplandschild may be found in numerous original paybooks – some of these being made as late as August 1945. The British troops who eventually took control of the area seem to have had a relatively decent working relationship with the German commanders whose surrender they had received. For some time after their disarmament the Germans were left largely to their own devices, under control of their own officers and with a functioning military bureaucracy. In deference to their captors Boehme’s officers removed the swastika from most of the rubber stamps used for officially endorsing documents. Most original awards documents for the Lapland shield (of which there are a large number of variants) will therefore be found with dates after the end of hostilities, and devoid of any swastika.

The shield itself (see Plate D4c) also exists in several variant styles, mostly hand made or crudely cast; aluminium or zinc seem to be the most common materials used. The shield, rounded at the bottom, shows a map of the Lapland region with the legend ‘LAPPLAND’ on the ‘sea’ at the top. Surmounting this sits a rather crudely executed and scrawny-looking eagle, lacking the usual swastika and of a more French Napoleonic than a Germanic outline. These pieces seem to have been intended more as commemorative souvenirs, as no evidence has yet emerged of any actually being worn on uniform – although some examples have holes punched in the edges suggesting at least the intent that they be worn.

This award was not officially approved during the Ordens-Gesetz in 1957, presumably as no actual issues (as opposed to authorisation on paper) can be proven to have taken place prior to the end of hostilities.

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