After the establishment of the German Democratic Republic

German Democratic Republic

The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...

 the new country prohibited the wearing of all pre-1945 German awards and created a new system of various decorations that was inspired by those of the USSR

Awards and decorations of the Soviet Union

Awards and decorations of the Soviet Union are decorations from the Former Soviet Union that recognised achievements and personal accomplishments, both military and civilian. Some of the awards, decorations and orders were discontinued after the dissolution of the Soviet Union, while others still...

.

After German reunification

German reunification

German reunification was the process in 1990 in which the German Democratic Republic joined the Federal Republic of Germany , and when Berlin reunited into a single city, as provided by its then Grundgesetz constitution Article 23. The start of this process is commonly referred by Germans as die...

, wearing of East German awards was forbidden.

Hero of the German Democratic Republic

"Hero of the German Democratic Republic" , the highest honorary title in East Germany, originated on 28 October 1975 and rewarded both soldiers and civilians. Those who received the title enjoyed many benefits, such as free public transport. A yearly ratio was intended that limited up to 10 title assignments. It was awarded for "extraordinary achievements and earnings/services the hero acts for the GDR, for their development and all-round stabilization, for which international acknowledgement and authority achieved as well as for its safe military protection".

Those who became Held der DDR also automatically qualified for the Karl Marx Order. The decoration was supposed to be returned to the state upon the recipient's death. In all 9 awards to 7 people were made:

• Heinz Hoffmann
  Heinz Hoffmann
  Heinz Hoffmann was Minister of National Defense in the Council of Ministers of the German Democratic Republic, and since October 2, 1973 Member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the Socialist Unity Party .-Youth:Hoffmann came from a working class family...
  
   - 28 November 1975 & 28 November 1980.
• Friedrich Dickel - 1 December 1975.
• Erich Mielke
  Erich Mielke
  Erich Fritz Emil Mielke was a German communist politician and Minister of State Security—and as such head of the Stasi —of the German Democratic Republic between 1957 and 1989. Mielke spent more than a decade as an operative of the NKVD during the rule of Joseph Stalin...
  
   - 1 December 1975 & 28 December 1983.
• Leonid Brezhnev
  Leonid Brezhnev
  Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev  – 10 November 1982) was the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , presiding over the country from 1964 until his death in 1982. His eighteen-year term as General Secretary was second only to that of Joseph Stalin in...
  
   - 13 December 1976.
• Sigmund Jähn
  Sigmund Jähn
  Sigmund Werner Paul Jähn is a German pilot who became the first German to fly in space as part of the Soviet Union's Interkosmos program.-Biography:Jähn was born in Morgenröthe-Rautenkranz, in the Vogtland district of Saxony, Germany...
  
   - 21 September 1978.
• Valery Bykovsky - 21 September 1978.
• Willi Stoph
  Willi Stoph
  Willi Stoph was an East German politician. He served as Prime Minister of the German Democratic Republic from 1964 to 1973, and again from 1976 until 1989.-Biography:...
  
   - 9 July 1984.
• Erich Honecker
  Erich Honecker
  Erich Honecker was a German communist politician who led the German Democratic Republic as General Secretary of the Socialist Unity Party from 1971 until 1989, serving as Head of State as well from Willi Stoph's relinquishment of that post in 1976....
  
   - 25 August 1987

Hero of Labour

The Hero of Labour was awarded for "particularly outstanding, innovative activity, in particular in the fields of industry and agriculture, which traffic or the trade rendered or by scientific discoveries or technical inventions special services around the structure and the victory of socialism and by this activity the national economy and thus growth and the reputation of the German Democratic Republic promoted". In addition, the recipient would get receive a 10,000 East German Mark

East German mark

The East German mark commonly called the eastern mark , in East Germany only Mark, was the currency of the German Democratic Republic . Its ISO 4217 currency code was DDM...

 award.

Order and Medals

Order/Medal	Name (English English language English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria... /German German language German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union.... )	Date of creation	Description
	Karl Marx Order Karl Marx Orden	1953-05-05
	Medal of Merit of the National People's Army Medal of Merit of the National People's Army The Medal of Merit of the National People's Army was a medal issued in the German Democratic Republic .Established on June 1, 1956 in three levels, Gold, Silver and Bronze... Verdienstmedaille der Nationalen Volksarmee	1956-06-01
	Order of Merit for the Fatherland Order of Merit for the Fatherland The Order of Merit for the Fatherland was instituted on 2 March 1994 by Presidential Decree. The statutes describe it as a decoration for merit, not an order of knights.... Vaterländischer Verdienstorden	1954-05-21	Awarded for special services to the state and to society
	Scharnhorst Order Scharnhorst Order The Scharnhorst Order was the highest medal awarded to the East German National People's Army. It was given for services to military or other strengthening of the German Democratic Republic... Scharnhorst-Orden	1966-02-17	Contributed in a major way to the betterment of the DDR Principles of Ideology
	Banner of Labour Banner of Labor The Banner of Labor was an order issued in the German Democratic Republic .It was given for "outstanding achievements of many years which stabilized and strengthened the country, and in particular for high results of working in the national economy".... Banner der Arbeit	1954-08-04
	National Prize of East Germany National Prize of East Germany The National Prize of the German Democratic Republic was an award of the German Democratic Republic given out in three different classes for scientific, artistic, and other meritorious achievement... Nationalpreis der DDR	1949
	Star of People's Friendship Stern der Völkerfreundschaft	1959-08-20
	Hans Beimler Medal Hans Beimler Medal The Hans Beimler Medal was a GDR decoration. The medal was instituted in 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... Hans Beimler Medaille	1956-05-17
	Medal For Faithful Service in the National People’s Army Medal For Faithful Service in the National People’s Army The Medal For Faithful Service in the National People’s Army was a medal issued in the German Democratic Republic .Day of Establishment: June 1, 1956 .Four Classes:... Medaille für treue Dienste in der Nationalen Volksarmee	1956-06-01
	Blücher Order Blücher Order The Blücher Order was an order of the German Democratic Republic . It was named after the Prussian Generalfeldmarschall Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, who was seen as a hero in the GDR for his part in defeating the invading army of Napoleon Bonaparte.... Blücher Orden	1965-10-13	Award for valor in time of war; never awarded.

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