Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross

highest military award of Nazi Germany

The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross (German language: Ritterkreuz des Eisernen Kreuzes, often just Ritterkreuz) was a level of the Iron Cross. The Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross was the second highest military order of the Third Reich, second only to the Grand Cross of the Iron Cross. It was awarded for extreme battlefield bravery or military leadership during World War II.