A Kriegsmarine Heavy Cruiser "Panzerschiff Deutschland" Sailor's Cap
(Matrosenmützen): Cap in white cotton, exterior of the reinforced sidewall in a black felt, a tally ribbon in black rayon wrapped around the edge and inscribed "Panzerschiff Deutschland" in gold-coloured threading, the tally ribbon held in place by three black vertical stands of twisted cord, one on either side and one at the rear, the two ends of the tally ribbon dangling from the rear, two reinforced holes sewn in place in a vertical pattern on the peak, the top hole designed for a kriegsmarine eagle that has since been lost to time, the bottom hole housing a tri-colour cockade with a painted black base incorporating a silvered ring and red felt centre, the rear with two holes initiated on either side of the seam, the wide sweatband with a very smooth black synthetic upper, the edge butting the opening trimmed in black and white rayon, the sweatband with a black rayon underside, while the undersides of the sidewall are lined in salmon-coloured cotton mesh, the cap measuring 245 mm x 260 mm x 50 mm in height, exhibiting soiling on top, along with slight separation of the stitching of the sweatband from the sidewall at the right rear. Very fine.
Footnote: Deutschland was the lead ship of her class of heavy cruisers (often termed a pocket battleship) which served with the Kriegsmarine of Nazi Germany during the Second World War. Ordered by the Weimar government for the Reichsmarine, she was laid down at the Deutsche Werke shipyard in Kiel in February 1929 and completed by April 1933. Originally classified as an armored ship (Panzerschiff) by the Reichsmarine, in February 1940, the Germans reclassified the remaining two ships of this class as heavy cruisers. In 1940, she was renamed Lützow, after the Admiral Hipper-class heavy cruiser Lützow was handed over to the Soviet Union. The ship saw significant action with the Kriegsmarine, including several non-intervention patrols in the Spanish Civil War, during which she was attacked by Republican bombers. At the outbreak of the Second World War, she was cruising the North Atlantic, prepared to attack Allied merchant traffic. Bad weather hampered her efforts, and she only sank or captured a handful of vessels before returning to Germany. She then participated in Operation Weserübung, the invasion of Norway. Damaged at the Battle of Drøbak Sound, she was recalled to Germany for repairs. While en route, she was torpedoed and seriously damaged by a British submarine. Repairs were completed by March 1941, Lützow returned to Norway to join the forces arrayed against Allied shipping to the Soviet Union. She ran aground during a planned attack on convoy PQ 17, which necessitated another return to Germany for repairs. She next saw action at the Battle of the Barents Sea with the heavy cruiser Admiral Hipper, which ended with a failure to destroy the convoy JW 51B. Engine problems forced a series of repairs culminating in a complete overhaul at the end of 1943, after which the ship remained in the Baltic. Sunk in shallow waters in the Kaiserfahrt in April 1945 by Royal Air Force (RAF) bombers, Lützow was used as a gun battery to support German troops fighting the Soviet Army until May 4, 1945, when she was disabled by her crew. Raised by the Soviet Navy in 1947, she was subsequently sunk as a target in the Baltic.