BACKGROUND: On March 16TH 1936, one year after the reintroduction of military conscription, Adolf Hitler revived an Imperial German Army tradition, by instituting the Armed Forces Long Service Awards to reward military personnel, in all branches of service, for loyal long service. The awards were established in four classes for four, twelve, eighteen and twenty-five years service respectively. The Armed Forces Long Service Awards were designed by the renown graphic artist Professor Richard Klein of Munich and all four grades were worn suspended from a cornflower blue ribbon which was adorned with a national eagle cypher. Of Note: Luftwaffe, (Air-Force), awards utilized the Luftwaffe pattern eagle cypher. On March 10TH 1939 Hitler expanded the series of Armed Forces Long Service Awards with the introduction of a gilt oak-leave cypher device to be attached to the ribbon of the twenty-five year service award to indicate forty years service. Criteria for bestowal of an Armed Forces Long Service Award stated that the individual must be on active service as of the introductory date, (March 16TH 1936). An article in the introductory order indicated that two of the Armed Forces Long Service Awards could be worn at the same time in a prescribed manner. As with other armed forces awards the Long Service Awards were issued with a possession/award certificate and a notation was entered in the recipient’s official service record. Of Note: The series of Armed Forces Long Service Awards were one of the few awards that were generally produced in magnetic metal, as opposed to the majority of awards that were produced in non-magnetic alloys. This example is the fourth class medal awarded for four years of loyal service.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Silver washed, die struck, magnetic sheet metal construction, fourth class award for four years service, features an embossed Wehrmacht, (Armed Forces), style eagle with down swept wings, clutching a canted, swastika in it’s talons, encompassed by Gothic script, "Treue Dienste in der Wehrmacht" (Loyal Service in the Armed Forces), on a smooth background field to the obverse. The reverse has a large embossed numeral, "4" to the center encompassed by an embossed, circular, oak-leaf wreath. Single parade mount with original pin back device.