Military Awards and Decorations of The United Kingdom - British Military Medals and Ribbons - Military Campaign Medals

Military Campaign Medals

Emblem Description Established Eligibility Period Remarks
18th Century Campaign Medals
Yellow Cord Morighyr Mutiny Medal 1766 1766 HEIC Issue.
Yellow Cord Decan Medal 1784 1778–1784 HEIC Issue. Awarded in gold to Subadars, silver gilt to Jemadars and other native officers, and silver to 'native' non-commissioned officers and soldiers.
Yellow Cord Mysore Medal 1 Apr 1793 1790–1792 HEIC Issue. Awarded in gold to Subadars, silver gilt to Jemadars and Serrangs, and silver to 'native' non-commissioned officers and soldiers.
19th Century Campaign Medals
Siege of Seringapatam Medal 1801 March 1799 – 8 May 1799 HEIC Issue. Awarded in gold, silver gilt, silver, bronze and tin dependant upon rank and position to both British subjects and 'native' soldiers. Authorised for British Army wear on 29 Aug 1815. Several other ribbons were worn unofficially.
Yellow Cord Medal for Egypt 1801 31 Jul 1802 08 Mar 1801 – 31 Aug 1801 HEIC Issue. Awarded in gold to senior officers, and silver to all others eligible.
Army Gold Medal 1806 1808–1814 Issued with battle/action claps where appropriate.
Yellow Cord Capture of Ceylon Medal 15 May 1807 1795–1796 HEIC Issue. Awarded in gold to 'native' officers, and silver to 'native' non-commissioned officers and soldiers.
Army Gold Cross 1810 1808–1814 Issued with battle/action clasps where appropriate.
Waterloo Medal 1816 16 Jun 1815 – 18 Jun 1815
Ghuznee Medal 1839 21 Jul 1839 – 23 Jul 1839 HEIC Issue.
Candahar, Ghuznee, Cabul Medal 1842 1839–1842 HEIC Issue.
Jellalabad Medals 1842 HEIC Issue.
Medal for the Defence of Kelat-I-Ghilzie 1842 HEIC Issue.
China War Medal (1842) 1843 5 Jul 1840 – 29 Aug 1842 Issued with clasps for Second China War where appropriate.
Scinde Medal 22 Sep 1843 1842–1843 HEIC Issue. Issued in one of three types: "Meeanee 1943", "Hyderabad 1843" and "Meeanee/Hyderabad 1843".
See Below Gwalior Star 1843 HEIC Issue, issued for the Battle of Gwalior, which was fought at Maharajpur and Panihaar. Medals indicated in central disc of star the battleground for which it was issued
Maharajpoor Star 1843 29 Dec 1843 HEIC Issue.
Punniar Star 1843 29 Dec 1843 HEIC Issue.
Sutlej Medal 17 Apr 1846 7 Sep 1845 – 14 Mar 1849 HEIC Issue. Issued with battle/action clasps where appropriate.
Naval General Service Medal 1847 1793–1840 Always issued with battle/action clasps.
Military General Service Medal 1 Jun 1847 1793–1814 Always issued with battle/action clasps.
Punjab Medal 2 Apr 1849 7 Sep 1848 – 14 Mar 1849 HEIC Issue. Issued with battle/action clasps where appropriate.
Army of India Medal 21 Mar 1851 1803–1826 HEIC Issue. Always issued with battle/action clasps.
India General Service Medal (1854) 11 Mar 1854 1852–1895 Issued in silver. From 1885, issued in bronze to non-enlisted support personnel. Always issued with battle/action clasps.
South Africa Medal (1854) 1854 1834–1835
1846–1847
1850–1853
Crimean War Medal 15 Dec 1854 1854–1856 Issued with battle/action clasps where appropriate.
Baltic Medal 23 Apr 1856 1854–1855
Indian Mutiny Medal 1858 1857–1858 HEIC Issue. Issued with battle/action clasps where appropriate.
Second China War Medal 6 Mar 1861 1856–1860 Issued with battle/action clasps where appropriate.
New Zealand Medal 1869 1845–1848
1860–1866		 Issued in bronze and silver.
Abyssinian War Medal 1869
Canada General Service Medal 1866–1870
Ashantee Medal 1873–1874
South Africa Medal (1877) Aug 1880 1877–1879 Issued with campaign clasp where appropriate.
Afghanistan Medal 1881 1878–1880
Kabul to Kandahar Star 1880
Egypt Medal 1882–1889
East and West Africa Medal 1892 13 Nov 1887 – 8 May 1900 Issued in silver to officers and enlisted personnel and in bronze to non-enlisted support personnel. Issued with campaign and battle/action clasps where appropriate.
India General Service Medal (1895) 1 Apr 1896 3 Mar 1895 – 10 Mar 1902 Always issued with appropriate campaign clasps.
Ashanti Star 1896
Queen's Sudan Medal 1899
East and Central Africa Medal 1899 20 Jul 1897 – 2 May 1899 Always issued with appropriate campaign clasps.
Queen's South Africa Medal Apr 1901 11 Oct 1899 – 31 May 1902 Issued in silver to officers and enlisted personnel and in bronze to non-enlisted support personnel. Issued with appropriate battle or state clasps where appropriate.
Queen's Mediterranean Medal 1902 1899–1902
20th Century Campaign Medals
Pre–World War
Third China War Medal 1901 1900 Issued in silver to officers and enlisted personnel and in bronze to non-enlisted support personnel. Issued with battle/action clasps where appropriate.
Ashanti Medal 1901
King's South Africa Medal 1902 1 Jan 1902 – 1 Jun 1902 Issued with clasps South Africa 1901 and South Africa 1902 where appropriate.
Africa General Service Medal 1902 ? – 1962
Transport Medal 1903 For South Africa or China.
Tibet Medal 1 Feb 1905 13 Dec 1903 – 23 Sep 1904 Issued in silver to officers and enlisted personnel and in bronze to non-enlisted support personnel.
India General Service Medal (1909) 1 Jan 1909 1908–1935 Issued in silver to officers and enlisted personnel and, during 1908–1912, in bronze to non-enlisted support personnel. Always issued with appropriate campaign clasps.
World War I
1914 Star Apr 1917 5 Aug 1914 – 22 Nov 1914 Issued with clasp 5th Aug – 22nd Nov 1914 where appropriate.
1914-15 Star Dec 1918 5 Aug 1914 – 31 Dec 1915
British War Medal 26 Jul 1919 5 Aug 1914 – 11 Nov 1918 Issued in silver to officers and enlisted soldiers and in bronze to non-enlisted support personnel.
Victory Medal 1 Sep 1919 5 Aug 1914 – 11 Nov 1918
1919–1920
11 Nov 1918 – 30 Nov 1919		 World War 1. Issued with MID oak leaf cluster where appropriate.
British Naval Mission to Russia
North Sea mine clearance
Territorial Force War Medal Apr 1920 4 Aug 1914 – 11 Nov 1918
Mercantile Marine War Medal 01 Sep 1919 4 Aug 1914 – 11 Nov 1918
Inter-World War
Naval General Service Medal (1915) 6 Aug 1915 1909 – 23 Dec 1962 Always issued with appropriate campaign clasps.
General Service Medal (1918) 19 Jan 1923 12 Nov 1918 – 23 Dec 1962 Always issued with appropriate campaign clasps.
India General Service Medal (1936) 3 Aug 1938 1936–1939 Always issued with appropriate campaign clasps. Issued with MID oak leaf where appropriate.
World War II
1939-45 Star 1945 3 Sep 1939 – 2 Sep 1945 Issued with clasp Battle of Britain where appropriate.
Atlantic Star 3 Sep 1939 – 8 May 1945 Issued with clasps Air Crew Europe or France and Germany where appropriate.
Air Crew Europe Star 3 Sep 1939 – 5 Jun 1944 Issued with clasps Atlantic or France and Germany where appropriate.
Africa Star 10 Jun 1940 – 12 May 1943 Issued with clasps 8th Army or 1st Army or North Africa 1942 – 43 where appropriate.
Pacific Star 8 Dec 1941 – 2 Sep 1945 Issued with clasp Burma where appropriate.
Burma Star 11 Dec 1941 – 2 Sep 1945 Issued with clasp Pacific where appropriate.
Italy Star 11 Jun 1943 – 8 May 1945
France and Germany Star 6 Jun 1944 – 8 May 1945 Issued with clasp Atlantic where appropriate.
Defence Medal 16 Aug 1945 3 Sep 1939 – 2 Sep 1945 Issued with KCBC silver oak leaf where appropriate.
War Medal 1939–1945 16 Aug 1945 3 Sep 1939 – 2 Sep 1945 Issued with MID bronze oak leaf or KCBC silver oak leaf where appropriate.
India Service Medal 6 Jun 1946 3 Sep 1939 – 2 Sep 1945
Canadian Volunteer Service Medal 22 Oct 1943 3 Sep 1939 – 1 Mar 1947 Issued with Maple Leaf, Dieppe, or Hong Kong clasps where appropriate.
Africa Service Medal 23 Dec 1943 6 Sep 1939 – 2 Sep 1945 Issued with KCSA (1939–45) bronze protea where appropriate.
Australia Service Medal Nov 1949 3 Sep 1939 – 2 Sep 1945
New Zealand War Service Medal 30 Sep 1948 3 Sep 1939 – 2 Sep 1945
Southern Rhodesia Medal for War Service
Newfoundland Volunteer War Service Medal 17 Dec 1993 3 Sep 1939 – 2 Sep 1945
Post–World War
Korea Medal Jul 1951 1 Jul 1950 – 27 Jul 1953
General Service Medal (1962) 06 Oct 1964 24 Dec 1962 – 31 Jul 2007 Always issued with appropriate campaign clasps. Replaced 1918 GSM.
South Atlantic Medal 1982 2 Apr 1982 – 12 Jul 1982 Issued with Rosette for service south of 35th Parallel where appropriate.
Gulf Medal 1992 2 Aug 1990 – 7 Mar 1991 Issued with clasp August 1990 or 6 Jan to 28 Feb 1991 where appropriate.
21st Century Campaign Medals
See below Operational Service Medal 1 Jan 2000 See below Replaced GSM 1962. Issued with a separate ribbon for each campaign.
OSM Sierra Leone 2002 5 May 2000 – 31 Jul 2002 Issued with Rosette for Op BARRAS or Op MAIDENLY where appropriate.
OSM Afghanistan 2003 11 Sep 2001 – present Issued with clasp Afghanistan where appropriate.
OSM Democratic Republic of Congo 2005 14 Jun 2003 – 10 Sep 2003 Always issued with Clasp DROC.
Iraq Medal 23 Feb 2004 20 Jan 2003 – present Issued with clasp 19 Mar to 28 Apr 2003 where appropriate.
Iraq Reconstruction Service Medal 26 Jun 2004 19 Mar 2003 – present

Notes:

Read more about this topic:  Military Awards And Decorations Of The United Kingdom, British Military Medals and Ribbons

Famous quotes containing the words military and/or campaign:

    “There was somewhat military in his nature, not to be subdued, always manly and able, but rarely tender, as if he did not feel himself except in opposition. He wanted a fallacy to expose, a blunder to pillory, I may say required a little sense of victory, a roll of the drum, to call his powers into full exercise.”
    —Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)

    “Now, Mr. President, we don’t intend to trouble you during the campaign but after you are elected, then look out for us!”
    —Susan B. Anthony (1820–1906)