Editing Iron Cross (section)

==Black Cross emblem==
{{Further|Reichskriegsflagge|Flag of Prussia|Flag of Germany|Black Cross (Teutonic Order)}}
[[File:War Ensign of Prussia (1816).svg|thumb|[[Flag of Prussia|War flag of Prussia]] (1816)]]
The Black Cross (''Schwarzes Kreuz'') is the emblem used by the [[Prussian Army]] and Germany's army from 1871 to the present. It was designed on the occasion of the [[German Campaign of 1813]], when [[Friedrich Wilhelm III of Prussia]] commissioned the Iron Cross as the first military decoration open to all ranks, including enlisted men. From this time, the Black Cross was featured on the [[Flag of Prussia|Prussian war flag]] alongside the Black Eagle. It was designed by neoclassical architect [[Karl Friedrich Schinkel]], based on Friedrich Wilhelm III.{{citation needed|date=April 2022}} The design is ultimately derivative of the [[Black Cross (Teutonic Order)|black cross]] used by the [[Teutonic Order]].{{citation needed|date=April 2022}} This heraldic cross took various forms throughout the order's history, including a [[Latin cross]], a [[cross potent]], [[cross fleury]], and occasionally also a [[cross pattée]].

When the [[Quadriga]] of the Goddess of Peace was retrieved from Paris at Napoleon's fall, it was re-established atop Berlin's [[Brandenburg Gate]]. An Iron Cross was inserted into Peace's [[bay laurel|laurel]] [[wreath]], making her into a [[Victoria (mythology)|Goddess of Victory]]. In 1821 Schinkel crowned the top of his design of the [[Prussian National Monument for the Liberation Wars|National Monument for the Liberation Wars]] with an Iron Cross, becoming name-giving as [[Kreuzberg (Tempelhofer Berge)|Kreuzberg]] (cross mountain) for the hill it stands on and, 100 years later, for the [[Kreuzberg|homonymous quarter]] adjacent to it.<ref name="Wille 1986 21">Klaus-Dieter Wille, ''Spaziergänge in Kreuzberg'', Berlin: Haude & Spener, 1986, (=Berliner Kaleidoskop: Schriften zur Berliner Kunst- und Kulturgeschichte; vol. 32), p.&nbsp;21. {{ISBN|3-7759-0287-2}}.</ref>

The Black Cross was used on the naval and combat flags of the [[German Empire]]. The Black Cross was used as the German Army symbol until 1915 when a simpler Balkenkreuz replaced it. The {{lang|de|[[Reichswehr]]}} of the [[Weimar Republic]] (1921–35), the ''[[Wehrmacht]]'' of [[Nazi Germany]] (1935–45), and the {{lang|de|[[Bundeswehr]]}} (1 October 1956 to present) also inherited the use of the emblem in various forms. The traditional design in black is used on armored vehicles and aircraft, while after [[German reunification]], a new creation in blue and silver was introduced for use in other contexts.