Physical Description

Constructed of silver. The decoration is in the form of two swords crossed at a 90 degree angle, held together by a crossed ribbon featuring the dates ‘1814’ and ‘1815’. The reverse centre features a clasp with the monograms ‘FL’ and ‘L’ to the sides. On a loop for suspension, on a ribbon with five broader red stripes and five narrower white stripes.
A variant in silver gilt on a blue ribbon is known to exist.

History

The Sword Cross was instituted by Landgraf (Landgrave) Friedrich V and was conferred upon citizens of Hesse-Homburg who participated in the military campaigns from 1813-1815 against France. The statutes of the medal stated that only citizens of Hessen-Homburg who fought against France were eligible to receive the medal. However, at the time, Hesse-Homburg was not a sovereign state and many of its citizens fought in Hesse-Darmstadt’s army, which was allied with the French. Therefore, there were relatively few veterans upon whom the medal could be conferred.

There are only five documented conferrals of the Silver Cross. Although, it is known that 159 examples of the Cross were produced.