Hello everyone:
I have a question that some will probably think stupid but I'am just curious how all these Totenkopf honour rings and important medals ended up in the hands of the allies When the German surrendered or was captured did the allied solders just simply steal his medals and more importantly his Honour ring at gunpoint or what ever and was their not any orders given to stop doing this it just seems a pretty terrible thing to just steal their rings Iron Crosses etc which they earned for their bravery I know it happened but dose anyone know for sure if it was condoned by the higher ups in any of the victorious armies

Well yes - it did happen and probably will continue to do so in future. I have always felt it was not proper proceedure to take items that are not weapons from a captive. However, My father, when shot down over France, was promptly relieved of his watch and cigarettes & lighter by the Germans. Since US troops do not wear medals on their combat uniforms we never hear of our guys having their awards confiscated. The Germans did wear such and I suppose our guys thought of them as fair game. I have heard that the greatest "thefts" of such items generally took place by rear-echelon troops and guards. Apparently our higher ups looked the other way or did not care about this issue.

We forget we and our allies were the Victor's you don't let the loser walk around in full dress.It was my understanding that medals etc. with no pins on them were often ripped off the uniforms leaving the pin behind.I'm sure we have a very different outlook on this than the guys fighting for there life.