A Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves, Swords and Diamonds awarded to Nazi commander Albert Kesselring (1885-1960) is coming to auction.
 Kesselring was awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross in 1939 |
The $30,000-40,000-valued lot, which features a signature from Hitler, will cross the block at Alexander Historical Auctions in Maryland on September 9.
The Knight's Cross was the highest honour under the Third Reich and was available in four grades, of which the present lot is the second highest.
Only 27 soldiers were awarded the medal at this grade.
Kesselring was a Luftwaffe generalfeldmarschall who commanded troops across western and eastern Europe, including the Battle of Britain.
He was found guilty of orchestrating a series of war crimes in Italy and was sentenced to death at Nuremburg.
A number of public figures, including Winston Churchill, argued that this punishment was too harsh and it was changed to a life sentence - although he was later released in 1952.
A D-Day map showing the location of the German gun emplacements along the Atlantic Wall is valued at $8,000-12,000.
The lot is marked "TOP SECRET BIGOT" (the codename for the operation) and was completed by a mapmaker for the British army.
You can take a look at our list of 10 of the most important D-Day artefacts ever auctioned here.
View our militaria range here.
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