Bavarian rescue medal
The Bavarian Rescue Medal was donated on November 1, 1952 by the then Prime Minister Hans Ehard of the Free State of Bavaria and the Bavarian State Parliament and has since served as a state award for people who have saved people from mortal danger at the risk of their own lives.
prehistory
The Free State of Bavaria has created an exception nationwide with regard to its honors in the field of life saving. While in the other federal states the "usual" rescue medal on ribbon and / or a commemorative medal for rescue from danger along with a public commendation is awarded or carried out, Bavaria only rudimentarily follows these historical guidelines. In addition to:
- a) the Bavarian Rescue Medal (on the ribbon) too
- b) the public commendation in the form of the Christopherus Medal (on the ribbon) since January 1st, 1984 for acts of rescue without immediate danger to the life of the rescuer
With this regulation, Bavaria, in contrast to most other federal states, in which a non-wearable commemorative medal is awarded or a public commendation is only "verbal", created two ribbon orders. Since in practice the public commendation takes the form of the award of the Christopherus Medal, this is also dealt with in this article, since it takes place in the field of life saving.
Bavarian Lifesaving Medal
Award requirements and procedure
The person to be lent does not necessarily have to have German citizenship in order to receive the rescue medal, but has his place of residence in the territory of the Free State of Bavaria. In addition, it was adequately regulated that the rescue medal can be awarded several times to one and the same person. The award is also possible posthumously if the rescuer has lost his life in the underlying rescue act. In this case, the rescue medal and the certificate will be given to the bereaved. The rescue medal is awarded by the Bavarian Minister-President with a certificate of award, it becomes the property of the borrower, in the event of the death of the borrower, the rescue medal remains as a memento to the bereaved. All awards are also published in the Bavarian State Gazette .
Condition and wearing style
The Bavarian Rescue Medal is made of silver and shows the large Bavarian state coat of arms on its front with the above inscription: FREISTAAT and BAYERN below . Both the coat of arms and the lettering are embossed. The reverse of the medal shows a branch of laurel and the five-line inscription: FOR / SACRIFICATION / USE OF / OWN / LIFE . The rescue medal is worn on a white-blue ribbon on the left side of the chest.
Public Commendation (Christophorus Medal)
The Christophorus Medal is awarded if there were particularly difficult circumstances during the rescue act, but there was no immediate danger for the rescuer. In addition, the same conditions apply with regard to the awarding practice and wearing style as for the rescue medal. The person to be lent also receives a letter of commendation with the handing over of the medal.
nature
The silver Christophorus medal shows, as the name already shows, on its front the Saint Christopher carrying a child on his shoulders. and the inscription: PUBLIC COMMENT FOR RESCUE FROM DANGER OF LIFE . Both the graphics and the inscription are embossed. The reverse shows the small state coat of arms of Bavaria and the inscription: THE BAVARIAN MINISTERPRESIDENT . As with the rescue medal, the public commendation is announced in the Bavarian State Gazette.
Common rules
Monetary rewards and benefits
In addition to the two state awards mentioned, the Prime Minister can grant a monetary reward if the rescuer is in economic need. This also applies in the event that the rescuer had to make unavoidable expenses for the rescue act. In addition to the rescue medal, young people under 18 also receive a wristwatch with a dedication as a gift.
Disclaimer
The rescue medal is not awarded to persons who, for official or professional reasons, are entrusted with protecting the lives of others for these reasons. The award therefore only comes into question if the person has significantly exceeded the limits of their duties during the rescue act .
Recognition of previous rescue acts
Rescue acts carried out between May 8, 1945 and November 1, 1952 on the territory of the Free State can be retrospectively recognized by the Bavarian State Chancellery, even if they were recognized at the time.
Authorization to propose
The districts in whose district the rescue act was carried out submit the proposals that lead to the award of the rescue medal or the public commendation. The Bavarian State Chancellery is responsible for rescue operations carried out outside the state territory. The competent local authority has to investigate ex officio about every rescue act and forward the result of its examination to the government.
Implementing regulation
The implementation ordinance issued on October 17, 1975 then regulates the further proposal procedure and various legal issues, these are:
Definition of "rescue act" and report investigation
A rescue act according to the law exists if the rescue act was carried out or attempted at own risk, regardless of its success. The rescue of several people from danger to their lives is to be seen as a single act of rescue. In the subsequent assessment of the rescue act, all circumstances of the course of the incident, in particular the physical condition, the state of health and the age of the rescuer and the rescued person, must be taken into account. A rescue that leads to public praise is to be accepted if the rescue was carried out under difficult conditions (darkness, cold, lack of knowledge of the location, etc.) or special care was shown. The same applies if the rescuer accepted a temporary risk to his health.
Inevitable Expenses
Inevitable expenses of the rescuer are to be understood as those expenses that served in the execution of the rescue act or to eliminate the immediate consequences of the danger situation and which the rescuer cannot be reimbursed by the rescued person.
Excluded group of people
As already mentioned, the rescue medal is not awarded in such cases if the person is entrusted with protecting the life of other people for official or professional reasons. Exceptions are possible, however, if the obligations have been significantly exceeded; they are exceeded if, according to the situation of the individual case and considering all circumstances, the rescuer with the rescue act shows an extraordinary level of willingness to make sacrifices, even if a strict standard is applied, which is unreasonable in itself has proven. This group of people includes:
- People who have to act because of or out of a law (e.g. police, fire brigade, emergency medical services)
- Members of the mountain rescue service,
- Lifeguard
- Ship crews in the event of an accident
See also
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Article 1.
- ↑ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Article 1 Paragraph 3.
- ↑ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Article 1 Paragraph 4.
- ↑ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Articles 3 and 4.
- ↑ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Article 4.
- ^ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Article 6.
- ↑ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Article 7.
- ↑ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Article 8.
- ↑ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Article 9.
- ↑ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Article 10.
- ↑ Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Mortal Danger, Version of December 20, 1983, Article 11.
- ↑ Bavarian Ordinance on the Implementation of the Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Dangerous Life, Version of October 17, 1975, Section 1.
- ↑ Bavarian Ordinance on the Implementation of the Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Dangerous Life, version of October 17, 1975, Section 2.
- ↑ Bavarian Ordinance for the Implementation of the Law on State Awards for Rescuing People from Dangerous Life, Version of October 17, 1975, Section 3.