Infantry Assault Badge in Bronze – FLL

Product Description: This Infantry Assault Badge in Bronze comes directly from the estate of US veteran John J Lawson, who served in the 80th Infantry Division during World War 2. It’s an untouched, all-original piece, that has never been in a collection before. It’s made of zinc, and still retains nearly all of the original, beautiful bronze finish, with eye-catching gold tones. The obverse shows a few areas with light patina, but no evident wear, and all of the original detail is intact. The reverse is flat and smooth, and is maker marked behind the swastika with the stylized “F.L.L.” maker mark of the firm of Friedrich Linden in Lüdenscheid. The hardware is typical for this maker, with a soldered hinge and catch, and a functional round wire attachment pin. This Infantry Assault Badge in Bronze is complete and sound, with no repairs. It’s hard to find these with such nice original finish. This one is in excellent condition.

Historical Description: The Infantry Assault Badge (Infanterie-Sturmabzeichen) was instituted on December 20, 1939, by German Army commander Generalfeldmarschall Walther von Brauchitsch. The design of the badge featured the iconic K98 rifle, the standard German Infantry weapon of WWII, surrounded by oak leaves and surmounted by a German Army eagle and swastika emblem. The creation of this design has been attributed to the C.E. Juncker firm in Berlin. The badge could be awarded to members of the Heer and SS-VT (later the Waffen-SS) who participate in ground combat as infantry. To earn this award, soldiers had to participate in three or more assaults, counterattacks, or reconnaissance missions, or to have participated in hand to hand combat in an assault, or to have participated in three days of reestablishing combat positions. These actions had to take place on separate days to meet the award criteria. On June 1, 1940, a Bronze grade of this award was instituted, for motorized infantry. The criteria for the award were the same, only for motorized units. The earliest versions of the Infantry Assault Badge were made of Tombak or other high-quality alloys, with a plated finish. Later production awards were generally zinc alloy, with a bronze or silver wash that often faded with wear and time.

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