- Time Period: Pre-WW1
- Year of Institution: 1847
- Country: Great Britain
The Naval General Service Medal (or NGSM) was a campaign medal issued to officers and men of the Royal Navy and awarded retrospectively for various naval actions during the period 1793–1840. Admiral Thomas Bladen Capel was one of the members of the board that authorized the medal.
The period for the NGSM included the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars and the Anglo-American War of 1812. Each battle or campaign was represented by a clasp on the ribbon (the medal was never issued without a clasp, and there were 231 of them). These clasps covered a variety of actions from boat service, ship to ship skirmishes, to major fleet actions such as the Battle of Trafalgar.
This medal and its army counterpart, the Military General Service Medal, were amongst the first real British campaign medals, issued to all ranks for serving in combat actions.
The Naval General Service Medal Design
The medal was designed by William Wyon, and is made of silver. It measures 1.4 inches (36 mm) in diameter.
The obverse shows a left facing effigy of Queen Victoria with the inscription “VICTORIA REGINA” and the date “1848”. The reverse shows the figure of Britannia, holding a trident, seated on a seahorse.
The name of the recipient is impressed on the rim in block Roman capitals, while medals to officers and warrant officers also include the recipient’s rank. The ribbon measures 1.25 inches (32 mm) and is white with dark blue edges.
