Content - Richard Lundström
Layout - Sebastian Bianchi 

Rules & Regulations

1945 Final Regulations ( actually applied from 1942 on)

1) Iron Cross 2nd Class 1914 or 1914 with Spange or 1939
2) 1939 War Merit Cross 2nd Class With or Without Swords
3) 1942+ Volkspflege Decoration with Swords on the Ribbon (have never seen an original)
4) 1942+ Volkspflege Medal with Swords on the Ribbon (have never seen an original bar)
5) Medal for the Winter Battles in the East 1941-42 aka East Medal
6) 1940 War Merit Medal
7) 1942+ Bravery Decorations for the “Eastern Peoples” (have never seen an original bar)
8) Prussian Hohenzollern House Order 3rd Class with Swords
9) Prussian Red Eagle Orders 3rd or 4th Classes with Swords
10) Prussian Crown Orders 3rd or 4th Classes with Swords
11) Austro-Hungarian Maria Theresa Order
12) Austro-Hungarian Leopold Order with War Decoration
13) Bavarian Military Max Joseph Order-Knight
14) Bavarian Military Medical Order 2nd Class
15) Saxon Saint Henry Order-Knight
16) Württemberg Military Merit Order-Knight
17) Baden Military Karl Friedrich Merit Order-Knight
18) Prussian Gold Military Merit Cross
19) Prussian Military Decorations 1st and 2nd Classes
20) Austro-Hungarian Gold Bravery Medals
21) Bavarian Gold and Silver Bravery Medals
22) Saxon Saint Henry Order-Gold Medal 
23) Württemberg Gold Military Merit Medal
24) Baden Military Karl Friedrich Order-Silver Medal
25) Other German WWI decorations in class and bestowal date seniority
26) WWI Honor Cross aka Hindenburg Cross
27) Austrian WWI Commemorative Medal of 1933
28) 1864 War Medal, 1866 War Cross, 1870-71 War Medal (no one, of course, under 90 here)
29) Austro-Hungarian War Medal of 1873
30) Southwest Africa, Colonial, and China Medals
31) Silesian Eagle 2nd Class, Carinthian Cross 2nd Class, Tyrol WWI Commemorative Medal
32) Lifesaving Awards
33) Wehrmacht Long Service Awards (worn as 25 & 12, 18 & 4, 12 & 4, 4 alone)
34) Other National Awards and Decorations of the NSDAP by class and award date seniority
35) 1936 Olympics Decoration 2nd Class
36) 1938 Austrian Anschluss Medal
37) 1938 Sudeten Medal 
38) 1939 Memel Medal
39) 1939 Westwall Medal (revived in 1944)
40) 1936 Olympics Medal
41) Decorations of the German Red Cross 1922-39 (Volkspflege from 1939-45)
42) Orders and decorations of former German states by class and award date seniority

East Medal in #5 place was often worn in #25, immediately before the Hindenburg Cross. It never made any sense to place that medal ahead of valor awards.  As in the case of the KVK2 in position #2, this was a political choice, and one much resented and resisted by recipients.  Having never seen a verifiably original Volkspflege award with swords, or a verifiably original WW2 rib-bon bar with an Ostvolk ribbon, I cannot judge whether the official precedence would have been obeyed in such cases.  To imagine that an officer holding German WW1 valor Orders would place an “Ostvolk” Silver 2nd Class star for war merit ahead of his own German decorations is bizarre to contemplate.