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The India General Service Medal (1936)

The Indian General Service Medal is a British campaign medal issued to officers and men of the British and Indian armies.

The Indian General Service Medal (also known as 1936 IGSM) is a British campaign medal issued to officers and men of the British and Indian armies, and of the Royal Air Force approved on 3 August 1938.

The 1936 IGSM was awarded for minor military campaigns on the North-West Frontier of India between 1936 to 1939. Two campaigns / clasps were sanctioned, both relating to operations in Waziristan:

  • The North West Frontier 1936–37 Clasp
  • The North West Frontier 1937–39 Clasp

The Indian General Service Medal 1937-1939 clasp was only struck and distributed after the Second World War. Recipients of a Mention in Dispatches were entitled to wear an oak leaf emblem on the ribbon.

The Indian General Service Medal Design

The medal was struck at the Calcutta mint for Indian forces and London mint for British forces. The claw mount attaching the medal disc to the suspension is different in the two medals, the Calcutta Mint version has a plain curved style, and the London made medals are of a more elaborate raised scroll type.

The ribbon is 32mm, grey flanked by narrow red stripes, with broad green stripes at the edges.

Following the grant of Indian Independence in 1947 the medal became obsolete, although it could still to be worn in uniform by British, Indian and Pakistani servicemen.

The General Service Medal (1918)

The General Service Medal recognizes service in minor Army and Royal Air Force operations for which no separate medal was possible.

The General Service Medal (also known as 1918 GSM) recognizes service in minor Army and Royal Air Force operations for which no separate medal was possible. Local forces such as police qualified for many of the clasps, as could units of the Indian Army prior to 1947.

The General Service Medal was equivalent to the 1915 Naval General Service Medal. Both these medals were replaced by the GSM in 1962.

The General Service Medal 1918 Design

The 1918 General Service Medal is a circular silver medal. The obverse bears the crowned effigy of the reigning monarch. The reverse shows a standing winged figure of Victory in a Corinthian helmet and carrying a trident, also bestowing a wreath on the emblems of the Army (the sword) and the RAF (the wings).

A bronze oak leaf emblem is worn on the ribbon of the medal to signify a mention in dispatches for a campaign for which the General Service Medal was awarded.

Eighteen clasps were approved for the 1918 General Service Medal. They consist of small metal bars into which the name of the relevant campaign or theatre of operations was molded. The clasps were: South Persia, Kurdistan, Iraq, NW Persia, Southern Desert Iraq, North Kurdistan, Palestine, S.E. Asia 1945–46, Bomb and Mine Clearance 1945–49 and 1949-56, Palestine 1945–48, Berlin Airlift, Malaya, Canal Zone, Cyprus, Near East, Arabian Peninsula and Bruinei.

The 1918 General Service Medal was never awarded without a clasp.

The Naval General Service Medal (1915)

The Naval General Service Medal is a British military medal instituted in 1915 to recognize service by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines.

The Naval General Service Medal (also known as 1915 NGSM) is a British military medal instituted in 1915 to recognize service by the Royal Navy and Royal Marines in minor campaigns that would not otherwise earn a specific campaign medal. The Army/Air Force equivalent was the General Service Medal (1918). Both these medals were replaced by the General Service Medal in 1962.

The Naval General Service Medal Design

The medal is made of silver and measures 36 millimeters (1.4 in) in diameter. The obverse bears the image of one of three successive Sovereigns, King George V, King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II. The reverse shows a mounted figure of Britannia in a chariot pulled by two sea-horses, her left hand resting on a union shield.

The 32 millimeters (1.3 in) wide ribbon is crimson-colored with three white stripes. From 1920 a bronze oak leaf emblem was also worn on the ribbon of the medal to signify a mention in dispatches for a campaign for which the NGSM was awarded.

The 1915 NGSM was never awarded without a clasp. These are the seventeen clasps that were authorized: Persian Gulf 1909–1914, Iraq 1919–1920, N.W. Persia 1920, Palestine 1936–39, S.E. Asia 1945-46, Minesweeping 1945–51, Palestine 1945–48, Malaya, Yangtze 1949, Bomb and Mine Clearance 1945–46, Bomb and Mine Clearance 1945–53, B & M Clearance Mediterranean, Canal Zone, Cyprus, Near East, Arabian Peninsula and Brunei.

The Transport Medal

The Transport Medal was a campaign medal awarded by the Lord Commissioners of the Admiralty to masters and officers of merchant ships.

Time Period: Pre-WW1
Year of Institution: 8 November 1903
Country: Great Britain

The Transport Medal was a British campaign medal awarded by the Lord Commissioners of the Admiralty to masters and officers of merchant ships employed by the Transport Service to move troops to either South Africa during the South African War or to China during the Boxer Rebellion.  The Transport Medal was created on 8 November 1903 and officers of hospital ships used in the campaigns also qualified.

It was intended that the medal would be awarded for future conflicts, but was not awarded again after the South Africa and China wars.

The Transport Medal Design

The obverse of the medal bears the head of King Edward VII in Royal Navy uniform, with the inscription EDWARDVS VII REX IMPERATOR. The reverse depicts HMS Ophir beneath a map of the world with, below, the words in Latin OB PATRIAM MILITIBUS PER MARE TRANSVECTIS ADJUTAM which translates as for services rendered in transporting troops by sea.

Two clasps were awarded: S.AFRICA 1899–1902 (for services related to the South African War) and CHINA 1900 (for services related to the Boxer Rebellion).

A total of 1,719 medals were awarded, 1,219 with the ‘S. Africa 1899-1902’ clasp, 322 with the ‘China 1900’ clasp and 178 with both clasps.

The Tibet Medal

The Tibet Medal is a British military medal awarded to members of the Tibet Mission and accompanying troops who served at or beyond Siliguri.

The Tibet Medal is a British military medal awarded to all members of the Tibet Mission and accompanying troops who served at or beyond Siliguri from 13 December 1903 to 23 September 1904 and authorized in February 1905.

Approximately 3,350 silver Tibet Medals were awarded, including about 600 to the first battalion the Royal Fusiliers and about 2,600 to members of the Indian Army, in addition to staff and support personnel. More than 2,500 bronze medals were awarded, mainly to those employed in transporting supplies, including to the Peshawar Camel Corps and locally recruited coolies.

The Tibet Medal Design

The obverse of the medal, designed by G. W. de Saulles, a British medallist that worked under Queen Victoria and Edward VII) shows the bust of Edward VII in Field Marshal’s uniform and the legend ‘EDWARDVS VII KAISAR-I-HIND’.
The reverse, designed by E. G. Gillick, a British sculptor, depicts the Potala (winter palace of the Dalai Lamas) in Lhasa on top of the red hill with the words ‘TIBET 1903-04’ below.

The medal was awarded in silver to combatant troops and in bronze to camp followers, with both eligible for the ‘Gyantse’ clasp. The clasp ‘GYANTSE’ was given to those present in operations between 3 May and 6 July 1904 in or near Gyantse Fortress. The suspender is of the swiveling ornate scroll type.

The India General Service Medal (1909)

The Indian General Service Medal is a British campaign medal issued to officers and men of the British and Indian armies and approved in 1909.

The Indian General Service Medal (also known as 1909 IGSM) is a British campaign medal issued to officers and men of the British and Indian armies and approved on 1 January 1909. From 1919 it was also awarded to officers and men of the Royal Air Force (the Waziristan 1925 clasp was awarded solely to the RAF).

The 1909 Indian General Service Medal was awarded for various minor military campaigns in India from 1908 to 1935, and each campaign is represented by a clasp, of which 12 were sanctioned.

The Indian General Service Medal Design

The medal measures 36 millimeters (1.4 in) in diameter. For early campaigns it was awarded in silver to combatants and in bronze to native bearers and servants. From 1919 on. all awards were in silver.

There are three versions of the Indian General Service Medal obverse (King Edward VII 1908-10, King George V 1911-25 and King George V 1930-35). The reverse depicts Jamrud Fort at the Khyber Pass with the word ‘India’ below between a wreath of oak and olive branches.

The Medal with the Waziristan 1925 bar was awarded to only 46 officers and 214 men of the Royal Air Force. It is by far the rarest bar given with an India General Service Medal.

From 1920, those mentioned in dispatches in a campaign for which the medal was awarded could wear a bronze oakleaf on the medal ribbon.

The Hohenzollern Commemorative Medal for Combatants 1848-1849

The Hohenzollern Commemorative Medal for 1848-1849 Campaign was instituted by the King of Prussia Friedrich Wilhelm IV on August 23, 1851.

The Hohenzollern Commemorative Medal for 1848-1849 Campaign was instituted by the King of Prussia Friedrich Wilhelm IV on August 23, 1851  in association with the House Order of Hohenzollern. It was awarded to those officers and soldiers who remained loyal during the rebellions of 1848 and 1849.

A Hohenzollernsche Denkmünze für 1848-1849 was also awarded to Prussian troops for battles in Denmark in 1849 during the First Schleswig War.

The Prussian army played a crucial role in suppressing not only the rebellions in Prussia but also in Baden and Saxony. Nonetheless, Prussia became a constitutional state in 1849.

The Hohenzollern Commemorative Medal Design

The Hohenzollern Commemorative Medal is made of circular gilt bronze with a laterally-pierced ribbed loop for ribbon suspension. The obverse shows the face with the image of the cross pattée alisée of the Royal House Order of Hohenzollern and in the reverse is inscribed ‘FRIEDRICH WILHELM IV’ with the dates ‘1848’ and ‘1849’ above and below parallel lines and a circumscribed ‘SEINEN BIS IN DEN TOD GETREUEN KRIEGERN’ (His warrior loyal unto death).

The Alsen Cross

The Alsen Cross (Alsenkreuz) is a military medal of the Kingdom of Prussia established in 1864 to commemorate the victorious Battle of Alsen.

The Alsen Cross (or Alsenkreuz, in German) is a military medal of the Kingdom of Prussia established 7 December 1864 and commemorating the Prussian victory on 29 June 1864 during the Battle of Alsen.

Alsen is an island near the German border to which Danish forces had retreated. On the night of 29 June 1864, 2,500 Prussian troops crossed the Alssund in small boats and took the Danish lines, enabling a pontoon bridge to be built to bring up reinforcements. On 1 August, the Danish king renounced his right to Schleswig-Holstein in favour of Prussia and Austria.

The medal was initially awarded with two different suspension ribbons, for combatants and noncombatants. It was subsequently extended to those troops held in reserve at the battle and members of the Johanniter Orden who participated in the battle.

The Alsen Cross Design

The Alsen Cross is made of bronze cross pattée with a laurel wreath between the arms and a loop for ribbon suspension.

The obverse shows a circular central medallion bearing the head of King Wilhelm I facing left, and the inscription ‘WILHELM KOENING VON PREUSSEN’. The reverse bears a circular central medallion with the crowned Prussian royal eagle in flight, a laurel wreath in its talons, above a small boat in the sea before a stone wall, a standard bearing the Iron Cross to the right on its stern, the upper, left, right and lower arms inscribed ‘ALSEN’, ‘29’, ‘JUN.’, ‘1864’ respectively.

The Duppel Storm Cross

The Düppel Storm Cross was a military medal of the Kingdom of Prussia awarded to Prussian participants in the Battle of Dybbøl.

The Düppel Storm Cross (or Düppeler-Sturmkreuz in German) was a military medal of the Kingdom of Prussia awarded to Prussian participants in the Battle of Dybbøl which took place on 18 April 1864, during the Second Schleswig War.

The Düppel Storm Cross was established by Wilhelm, King of Prussia on 18 October 1864. The medal was initially awarded to combatants and noncombatants who had participated in the battle directly. In 1865, versions were created for those troops held in reserve at the battle and members of the Johanniter Orden who participated in the battle.

The Düppel Storm Cross Design

The Düppel Storm Cross was designed by Friedrich Wilhelm Kullrich, a Prussian court medalist. It was the first of three commemorative crosses awarded during the 1860s with similar designs.

The medal has the shape of a cross pattée. Between the arms of the cross is a laurel wreath and superimposed in its center is a round medallion. On the obverse, the medallion bears the left-facing effigy of King Wilhelm I and has the words WILHELM KOENIG VON PREUSSEN (William King of Prussia) written on it. The reverse of the medallion depicts a crowned Prussian eagle perched upon a Danish cannon.

The top arm of the cross has the word DÜPPEL, the left arm of the cross has 18, the right arm has APR., and the bottom arm of the cross bears the year 1864.

The Commemorative Cross of the 11th Army

The Commemorative Cross of the 11th Army is an Italian medal recognized on 15 April 1943 and awarded to members of the 11th Army.

The Commemorative Cross of the 11th Army (or Croce Commemorativa dell’11a Armata in Italian) is an Italian medal recognized on 15 April 1943, and awarded during 1942 to members of the 11th Army who served in the campaign against Greece in 1940-1941.

It honored the efforts and contributions of those who participated in the military operations, reflecting their dedication and bravery in the conflict. The cross serves as a symbol of recognition for the sacrifices and achievements of the 11th Army in this challenging campaign.

The 11th Army

The 11th Army was a unit of the Royal Italian Army during World War II. It played a significant role in the Greco-Italian War, part of the larger Balkan Campaign.

The 11th Army was involved in the initial invasion of Greece in October 1940, which aimed to expand Italian influence in the Balkans. Despite initial setbacks and difficult terrain, the 11th Army’s efforts were part of Italy’s broader strategy in the region. The Commemorative Cross of the 11th Army was later awarded to recognize the service of its members during this campaign.

The Commemorative Cross of the 11th Army Design

The Commemorative Cross of the 11th Army medal is made of gilt-edged black enamel cross pattée with laterally-pierced cylinder suspension.

The obverse shows with a circular central medallion with the arms of Savoy of a white cross on a red shield imposed on the two-headed Albanian eagle, inscribed 11a ARMATA above and with a knot below. The reverse gilt with the black circular inscription ‘VEEMENZA E TENACIA’ (Vehemence and Tenacity) and dated ‘16 NOVEMBRE 1940 XIX’; on replaced correct ribbon.