Cross of Honour for Faithful Service
The Cross of Honour for Faithful Service was a decoration of the Tanoa Einsatzgruppen for long civilian employment. Its official names were Treudienst-Ehrenkreuz in German and Cruz de Honor por Servicios Leales in Spanish.[1] It was established under Eef Paap's honours reform of 6 November 1987, with public-service classes and a separate private-employment special class.[2][3]
Eligibility and classes
[edit | edit source]Eligible employees were Tanoan citizens and subjects. A civilian employed by an SS institution could qualify, but a formal SS member doing administrative work remained under the SS Long Service Award. Prison labour and enslavement did not qualify as employment.[3]
| Category | Qualifying employment | Insignia[3] |
|---|---|---|
| Second Class | 25 years in civilian public service | Silver-coloured cross |
| First Class | 40 years in civilian public service | Gilt cross |
| Private-employment special class | 50 years with the same private employer or continuing business | Silver-coloured cross with gilt wreath and 50 on the upper arm |
Service credit
[edit | edit source]Credit began at eighteen. Tanoan civilian public employment could count from 9 August 1944. Qualifying periods with different public employers could be combined, and transfers or the creation of successor ministries preserved credit. Earlier German or Argentine state employment did not count automatically.[3]
Private employment could predate annexation if records showed service with the same continuing business. Changes of ownership or legal form did not break that continuity. A transfer into public employment began a separate calculation, without converting earlier private years into Tanoan public service.[3]
A break in employment excluded the gap but preserved earlier qualifying periods. Ordinary leave and recognized regular part-time employment counted as elapsed service. Honorary appointments and occasional secondary work did not. Compulsory military call-up counted if followed by a return to the civilian employment, but an earlier military career did not.[3]
Nomination and award
[edit | edit source]Employers certified faithful service from their employment records. Public cases went through the Public Administration Ministry and private cases through the Labour Ministry. The chancellery checked the records and conferred every class in the Führer's name. Cases were considered throughout the year without an annual quota.[4] Serious unresolved disciplinary or political-security cases delayed consideration.[3]
The founding review covered current employees who had already completed the required years, allowing a direct award of First Class. Posthumous awards required the threshold to have been reached during life. Each class could be received once. Holders wore only their highest public-service class and kept earlier insignia, with every award retained in the roll. The private special class recorded a separate employment qualification.[3]
Insignia
[edit | edit source]The cross bore a palm wreath around a black-enamel swastika. Its reverse carried Por servicios leales and Für treue Dienste. Every form hung on the left breast from a cornflower-blue ribbon with narrow white edges. A miniature cross in the matching metal identified the public-service class on ribbon bars. The private special class used a two-tone miniature bearing 50.[3]
See also
[edit | edit source]References
[edit | edit source]- ↑ "List of honours". Orders, decorations, and medals of the Tanoa Einsatzgruppen. Vrienden Universe Wiki.
- ↑ "History and administration". Orders, decorations, and medals of the Tanoa Einsatzgruppen. Vrienden Universe Wiki.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 "Cross of Honour for Faithful Service". Orders, decorations, and medals of the Tanoa Einsatzgruppen. Vrienden Universe Wiki.
- ↑ "Specialized honours introduced in 1987". Orders, decorations, and medals of the Tanoa Einsatzgruppen. Vrienden Universe Wiki.