Ribbons and ribbon bars

[hcliffe]

What determined whether an EM or officer would wear a ribbon through the 2nd button hole vs. wearing a ribbon bar? I've seen pictures with soldiers wearing both at the same time.

[Adrian Stevenson]

Hi Harry, I beleive it was just personal preference? But the wear of both a ribbon bar and a ribbon through the button hole was actually against regualtions.
Cheers, Ade.

[Mark S.]

Ade is correct, you werent supposed to be wearing the same ribbon in two different places.

I think this kind of explains why you see Wehrmacht officers wearing the EK2 spange on their ribbon bar. As per regulations, if they wore the fuill size spange on the buttonhole ribbon ,they were expected to remove the Imperial EK2 from the ribbon bar. So much easier to just add a spange to a ribbon bar than undo what was in existence.

[Rick Research]

Actually, it was permitted to wear the "plain" 1914 EK2 on a ribbon bar in first place, WITH the more flamboyant Spange correctly worn EITHER from the 2nd buttonhole (as if it was two completely separate awards) OR on the ribbon bar (as if it was only "one" ribbon). But neither the plain 1914 EK2 ribbon nor the SPANGE could be worn twice together. That does show up in photos, usually "overdressing" by military personnel who normally preferred the large Spange and no ribbgon bar at all. Such studio portraits are non-regulation.

The Germans had very strict regulations about what COULD be worn from the tunic buttonhole. This varied between the Imperial period and during the Third Reich.

In the latter period the ONLY ribbons for newly created awards that were allowed to be worn from the second buttonhole were:

1939 Iron Cross 2nd Class,
1939 War Merit Crosses 2nd Class,
Reichs Lifesaving Medal "On The Ribbon,"
and the
1941/42 "East Medal."

Retreads who had only received a 1914 Iron Cross 2nd Class in the First World War wore it on the ribbon bar in 99.999999999999999999999999% of cases. I can count on one hand the number of times I have seen a 1914 EK2 ribbon WITHOUT A SPANGE being worn from the buttonhole after 1939.

Here is correct wear of EK2s from both wars, but still only 1914 EK1:

[Mark S.]

ah-ha..Thanks Rick!

[hcliffe]

Okay, so if someone earned an EK2 and a eastern front medal, they could wear both in the button hole, correct?

Could they also wear one in the button hole and the other on a ribbon bar?

[Daniel Krause]

Yes, both were authorized for the buttonhole. They could also wear one in the buttonhole and one on the ribbon bar. If somebody had just both decorations he would have worn both in the buttonhole. ONE in the Buttonhole and ONE on a ribbon bar is quite unusual. That happened mostly if the 2nd decoration was not authorized for the buttonhole; for example a long service decoration or a flower war medal.

Best regards

Daniel

[Rick Research]

"Could they also wear one in the button hole and the other on a ribbon bar?"

One in buttonhole and one as ribbon bar: both as ribbon bar: both in buttonhole--

those were the personal within-regulations options fashion statement choices for each wearer.

Here's a "one of each," where this man is wearing his EK2 incorrectly from his THIRD parade dress uniform buttonhole--probably because that's where it looked "natural" to him from service tunic placement--and his East Medal as a single ribbon bar.