The Hans Beimler Medal ( German : Hans Beimler Medaille ) was a GDR decoration. The medal was instituted on 17 May 1956 and was awarded to East Germans who fought in the Spanish Civil War on the side of the republicans. The medal was named after Hans Beimler , the first commissar of the German Communist contingent and the XI International Brigade in Spain. The medal was presented in the name of the Chairman of the Council of Ministers.
6-512: The medal was displayed on the upper left chest when worn and was positioned between the Medal for Fighters against Fascism and the Clara Zetkin Medal in the order of precedence. The medal is round, on the front there is a depicting of Hans Beimler surrounded with its name and the dates of his birth and death (1895–1936). On the center of the reverse there is a three-pointed star, the emblem of
12-560: The International Brigades surrounded with the words "INTERNATIONALE BRIGADEN" (INTERNATIONAL BRIGADES) and "KAMPFER SPANIENS FREIHEIT 1936–1939" (FIGHTERS FOR SPANISH LIBERTY 1936–1939). The medal is suspended from rectangular ribbon bar (the ribbon is in full length in the version for army members) of red, yellow, and violet horizontal strips in equal proportion, these were the colors of the Spanish Republican Flag . On
18-480: The obverse profiles of Rudolf Breitscheid (rear) and Ernst Thälmann (front), looking to the left from the point of view of the observer and encircled in the upper half by the inscription KÄMPFER GEGEN FASCHISMUS (fighter against Fascism). On the reverse, the arms of the GDR are enclosed by the inscription VORWÄRTS UND NICHT VERGESSEN (forwards and forget not - top) and the years 1933 . 1945 (bottom). The medal
24-721: The case of Arno von Lenski (in 1940 made an honorary member of the Volksgerichtshof , later a Major General in the National People's Army of the GDR). The medal could be awarded only once and only to individuals. It was presented by the Chairman of the Council of Ministers and was accompanied by a certificate. Beginning in 1964, all holders of the award received an honorarium of 600 marks . The silver medal, 32 mm in diameter, depicts on
30-593: The outer edges of both sides are narrow vertical strips of black, red, and gold, the colors of the German Flag . Medal for Fighters against Fascism The Medal for Fighters Against Fascism ( German : Medaille für Kämpfer gegen den Faschismus 1933 bis 1945 ) was an award of the German Democratic Republic given to people who had been active in the German Resistance against Nazism. The award
36-567: Was instituted on 22 February 1958 by the Council of Ministers and honoured those who had been involved in the resistance against the Nazi regime ; for example, those confined to prisons or concentration camps or sentenced to hard labour , political émigrés , and also members of the International Brigades . Anti-Fascist activity in the National Committee for a Free Germany was also recognised, as in
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