Medals and Medals of the United States Armed Forces

General Peter Pace ( USMC ) in the
A-Class Dress Uniform with a variety of medals

The medals and decorations of the United States Armed Forces are the military awards that the US president or the department heads of the armed services in the US Department of Defense (. Eg the Secretary of the Navy ) are given to the soldiers.

Emergence

During the First World War , medals for combat operations, such as the Medal of Honor for bravery in fighting the enemy, were awarded for the first time on a large scale. In addition to the “Distinguished Service Cross” and the “World War I Victory Medal” , it was the only one of the three medals that were awarded at the time. The US Air Force abolished its “Good Conduct Medals” in 2002 and introduced a “Combat Action Medal” in April 2007.

particularities

Many U.S. Army medals and decorations are worn with bronze, silver, or gold oak leaves to indicate multiple awards of the same medal , but not the Air Medal , which uses small Arabic gold numbers. A bronze oak leaf stands for another order of the same kind. Furthermore, five bronze oak leaves are replaced by a silver one and five silver ones by a golden oak leaf, whereby the golden oak leaves only exist theoretically. So was z. B. General Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr. et al. a. Bearer of the Silver Star with double oak leaves. So he received this medal three times.

Medals can also be awarded with stars, whereby there are two types: Award Stars and Service Stars .

Award Stars are awarded for multiple awards of the same combat or valor award, but here the rule is that one silver star replaces five gold stars. They are used in place of oak leaves by the US Navy, US Marine Corps, and US Coast Guard.

Service Stars are awarded for service or campaign awards, with five bronze stars being replaced by one silver and then by gold stars.

In addition, there is another award for highlighting the award of an order for bravery in the fight against an armed enemy, the so-called V device (German for "bravery emblem"). It has been awarded since December 22, 1945 with medals awarded for heroic deeds during a conflict against an armed enemy. Originally, this badge was only awarded together with the Bronze Star . Since February 29, 1964, it has also been allowed to award the V badge with the Air Medal and the Army Commendation Medal if the deeds are not sufficient for the award of the Distinguished Flying Cross or the Bronze Star . On June 25, 1963, the V badge was allowed to be awarded along with the Joint Service Commendation Medal , awarded for bravery during combat. If the V badge is awarded several times with the same distinction, only a V is worn on the medal. The criteria of the various branches of the armed forces are different.

From January 2016, the C device (C badge stands for Combat, German for "combat emblem") and the R device (R badge for remote, German for "remote control emblem") were introduced. The C badge is earned for service or performance under combat conditions in a war zone, whereby the soldier does not have to have fought himself. The intent of the C badge is to mark a particular award as deserved in the battlefield, as not all military medals are exclusively battle-related awards. The R device is awarded when a soldier is remotely operated by remote control e.g. B. a drone was involved in a combat operation. The C and R badges are the same color, size, and font as the V badge. The C-Badge is awarded to the medals for the various Service Medals, the Distinguished Flying Cross, the Air Medal and the various Achievement Medals. The R badge for the various Service Medals and the various Achievement Medals. In the event of an award, only one of the badges is awarded. The V has the highest priority, followed by the C and then the R. V badges may no longer be awarded to the Legion of Merit and Achievement Medals of the armed forces.

bronze oak leaves
silver oak leaves
Award Star (gold)
Award Star (silver)
Service Star (bronze)
Service Star (silver)
V valor award

The United States National Guard soldiers have their own medals in the 50 states, the District of Columbia , Puerto Rico , Guam, and the US Virgin Islands .

Awards from the entire US armed forces

Department of Defense and Congress awards

Award of the Congress
Medal of Honor


US Department of Defense Awards
Defense Distinguished Service Medal	Defense Superior Service Medal	Defense Meritorious Service Medal	Joint Service Commendation Medal	Joint Service Achievement Medal


Joint Meritorious Unit Award

Medals of Merit

Awards for special merits
Silver Star


Legion of Merit	Distinguished Flying Cross	Bronze star	Purple heart	Meritorious Service Medal	Air Medal

Service awards

Service medals
National Defense Service Medal	Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal	Humanitarian Service Medal	Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal	Armed Forces Service Medal

Reserve and special service medals
Armed Forces Reserve Medal	Prisoner of War Medal	Antarctica Service Medal

Vietnam, Gulf War and Kosovo Service Medals
Vietnam Service Medal	Southwest Asia Service Medal	Kosovo Campaign Medal

Service Medals for Service in the War on Terror and Iraq
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal	Afghanistan Campaign Medal	Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal	Iraq Campaign Medal	Inherent Resolve Campaign Medal

US Army Awards

Medals of Merit

US Army Medals of Merit
Distinguished Service Cross	Distinguished Service Medal	Soldier's Medal	Army Commendation Medal	Army Achievement Medal

Awards for good leadership

Awards for good leadership
Army Good Conduct Medal	Army Reserve Components Achievement Medal

Unit awards

Unit awards
Presidential Unit Citation	Valorous Unit Award	Meritorious Unit Commendation	Superior Unit Award

In the US Army (and only there) it is mandatory that the unit markings be worn separately from the other markings on the right side of the uniform.

Service awards

Service awards as a ribbon
Army Sea Duty Ribbon	NCO Professional Development Ribbon	Army Service Ribbon	Army Overseas Service Ribbon	Army Reserve Components Overseas Training Ribbon

US Navy and US Marine Corps awards

Medals of Merit

Awards of Merit from the US Navy and US Marine Corps
Navy Cross	Navy Distinguished Service Medal	Navy and Marine Corps Medal	Navy & Marine Corps Commendation Medal	Navy & Marine Corps Achievement Medal

Mission Medals

Mission Medals
Navy Expeditionary Medal	Marine Corps Expeditionary Medal

Awards for good leadership

Awards for good leadership
Navy Good Conduct Medal	Marine Corps Good Conduct Medal	Naval Reserve Meritorious Service Medal	Selected Marine Corps Reserve Medal

Awards for marksmanship

Awards for marksmanship
Navy Expert Pistol Medal	Navy Expert Rifle Medal

Unit labeling

Unit awards as a ribbon
Navy and Marine Corps Presidential Unit Citation	Navy Unit Commendation	Navy Meritorious Unit Commendation	Navy "E" ribbon

Service awards

Service awards as a ribbon
Combat Action Ribbon	Fleet Marine Force Ribbon	Sea Service Deployment Ribbon	Arctic Service Ribbon	Navy Ceremonial Guard Ribbon	Naval Reserve Sea Service Ribbon	Navy and Marine Corps Overseas Service Ribbon

Navy Recruiting Service Ribbon	Marine Corps Recruiting Ribbon	Navy Recruit Training Service Ribbon	Marine Corps Drill Instructor Ribbon	Marine Corps Security Guard Ribbon	Navy Rifle Marksmanship Ribbon	Navy Pistol Marksmanship Ribbon

US Air Force Awards

Medals of Merit

U.S. Air Force Merit Awards
Air Force Cross	Air Force Distinguished Service Medal	Airman's Medal	Aerial Achievement Medal	Air Force Commendation Medal	Air Force Achievement Medal

Service medals

Service medals
Air Force Combat Action Medal	Combat Readiness Medal	Air and Space Campaign Medal

Awards for good leadership

Awards for good leadership
Air Force Good Conduct Medal	Air Reserve Forces Meritorious Service Medal

Unit awards

Awards for good leadership
Presidential Unit Citation	Gallant Unit Citation	Air Force Meritorious Unit Award	Outstanding Unit Award	Organizational Excellence Award

Service awards

Awards for good leadership
Outstanding Airman of the Year Ribbon	Air Force Recognition Ribbon	Air Force Overseas Short Tour Service Ribbon	Air Force Overseas Long Tour Service Ribbon	Air Force Expeditionary Service Ribbon	Air Force Longevity Service Ribbon

Military Training Instructor Ribbon	Air Force Recruiter Ribbon	NCO Professional Military Education Graduate Ribbon	Air Force Basic Military Training Honor Graduate Ribbon	Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon	Air Force Training Ribbon