BACKGROUND: The Demjansk Campaign shield was instituted by Adolf Hitler on April 25TH 1943 as the fourth, officially sanctioned, campaign shield and was intended for award to personnel who participated in the defence and the eventual break out of the besieged Russian village of Demjansk between February 8TH 1941 and April 21ST 1942. The shield was awarded to roughly 100,00 personnel of the 2ND Army Corps, Organization Todt, Russian volunteers, Waffen-SS and Luftwaffe personnel who served in the area for sixty or more days, were wounded, or flew fifty flights over the area during the engagement. The shields were bestowed to eligible personnel by the Commander of Army Group North, General of Infantry Graf Brockdorf-Ahlefeldt and were to be worn on the upper left sleeve of the uniform with the color of the backing material to match that of the uniform it was to be worn on.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: Die stamped magnetic sheet metal construction, scalloped sided, shield with a silver wash. The shield features an embossed, stylized national eagle with down-swept wings, clutching a wreathed, canted, swastika in it’s talons to the top center, positioned above an embossed, defensive bulwark with the embossed script, "Demjansk" which in turn is situated above a face-on, likeness of an aircraft, flanked by crossed swords with the embossed date "1942" to the bottom. Original wool and backing material complete. Two holes punched at the bottom of the shield for securing it to the backing material (period done). Uniform removed. Known as the "Missing log type".