Kholm Pocket the third one was successful, with the German forces in the pocket reduced in number to 1,200 by then. In July 1942, the Cholm Shield was awarded to the German defenders of the pocket, upon the suggestion of Generalmajor Theodor Scherer, similar to the Demyansk Shield. Scherer was personally awarded the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves by Adolf Hitler for the command of the defense of Kholm. Kholm was eventually liberated by the Red Army on 21 February 1944. Members of the Reserve-Polizei-Bataillon 65, a police unit from Gelsenkirchen, were questioned after the war by the
Cholm Shield Cholm Shield The Cholm Shield () was a World War II German military decoration awarded to those who fought in the Cholm Pocket between 21 January and 5 May 1942. It was instituted on 1 July 1942 and is the rarest of the German combat shields with approximately 5,500 recipients. Bestowing of the award ceased as of 1 April 1943. In January 1942, the Soviet Red Army began a series of counteroffensives against the German Army. In the course of these operations, the German occupied city of Cholm was attacked on 18 January 1942. By the 21 January the city