WW1 VICTORY MEDAL WITH RIBBON AND ESCORT BAR--SEE STORE WW1-WW2 MEDALS -PATCHES

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World War I Victory Medal (United States)
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For other uses, see
Victory Medal
.
World War I Victory Medal
Type
Medal
Awarded for
"service between April 6, 1917, and November 11, 1918, or with either of the following
expeditions
:
American Expeditionary Forces in European Russia
between November 12, 1918, and August 5, 1919.
American Expeditionary Forces Siberia
between November 23, 1918, and April 1, 1920."
Description
A
medal
of
bronze
36 millimeters in diameter. On the
obverse
is a winged
Victory
standing full length and full face. On the reverse is the inscription
The Great War for Civilization
and the
coat of arms for the United States
surmounted by a
fasces
, and on either side the names of the
Allied and Associated Nations
. The medal is suspended by a
ring
from a
silk
moire
ribbon
1 3/8 inches in length and 36 millimeters in width, composed of two
rainbows
placed in
juxtaposition
and having the red in the middle, with a white thread along each edge.
Presented by
Department of War
and
Department of the Navy
Eligibility
Military personnel only
Motto
The Great War for Civilization
Status
Obsolete
Established
1919
; 102 years ago
Service ribbon
and
campaign streamer
Precedence
Next (higher)
Mexican Border Service Medal
Next (lower)
Army of Occupation of Germany Medal
The
World War I Victory Medal
(originally known as the
Victory Medal
) was a
United States
World War I
service medal
designed by
James Earle Fraser
.
[1]
Award of a common
allied
service medal was recommended by an inter-allied committee in March 1919.
[2]
Each allied nation would design a 'Victory Medal' for award to their military personnel, all issues having certain common features, including a winged figure of
victory
on the obverse and the same ribbon.
[3]
The Victory Medal was originally intended to be established by an
act of Congress
. The
bill
authorizing the medal never passed, however, thus leaving the military departments to establish it through
general orders
. The
War Department
published orders in April 1919, and the
Navy
in June of the same year.
[4]
Criteria
[
edit
]
The Victory Medal was awarded to military personnel for service between April 6, 1917, and November 11, 1918, or with either of the following
expeditions
:
American Expeditionary Forces in European Russia
between November 12, 1918, and August 5, 1919.
American Expeditionary Forces Siberia
between November 23, 1918, and April 1, 1920.
[5]
Design
[
edit
]
The front of the bronze medal features a
winged Victory
holding a shield and sword on the front. The back of the bronze medal features "The Great War For Civilization" in all capital letters curved along the top of the medal. Curved along the bottom of the back of the medal are six stars, three on either side of the center column of seven staffs wrapped in a cord. The top of the staff has a round ball on top and is winged on the side. The staff is on top of a shield that says "U" on the left side of the staff and "S" on the right side of the staff. On left side of the staff it lists one
World War I Allied
country per line:
France
,
Italy
,
Serbia
,
Japan
,
Montenegro
,
Russia
, and
Greece
. On the right side of the staff the Allied country names read:
Great Britain
,
Belgium
,
Brazil
,
Portugal
,
Rumania
(spelled with a U instead of an O as it is spelled now), and
China
.
Devices
[
edit
]
To denote battle participation and campaign credit, the World War I Victory Medal was authorized with a large variety of devices to denote specific accomplishments. In order of seniority, the devices authorized to the World War I Victory Medal were as follows:
Citation Star
[
edit
]
The
Citation Star
to the World War I Victory Medal was authorized by the United States Congress on February 4, 1919.
[6]
A
3
⁄
16
inch silver star was authorized to be worn on the ribbon of the Victory Medal for any member of the U.S. Army who had been cited for gallantry in action between 1917 and 1920. In 1932, the Citation Star ("Silver Star") was redesigned and renamed the
Silver Star Medal
and, upon application to the
United States War Department
, any holder of the Silver Star Citation could have it converted to a Silver Star medal.
Navy Commendation Star
[
edit
]
The
Navy Commendation Star
to the World War I Victory Medal was authorized to any person who had been commended by the Secretary of the Navy for performance of duty during the First World War. A
3
⁄
16
inch silver star was worn on the World War I Victory Medal, identical in appearance to the Army's Citation Star. Unlike the Army's version, however, the Navy Commendation Star could not be upgraded to the Silver Star medal.
[4]
[7]
Army Battle Clasps
[
edit
]
The following
battle clasps
, inscribed with a battle's name, were worn on the medal to denote participation in major ground conflicts.
[1]
Army Battle Clasps
Major Ground Conflict
Start Date
End Date
Aisne
May 27, 1918
June 5, 1918
Aisne-Marne
July 18, 1918
August 6, 1918
Cambrai
May 12, 1917
December 4, 1917
Champagne-Marne
July 15, 1918
July 18, 1918
Lys
April 9, 1918
April 27, 1918
Meuse-Argonne
September 26, 1918
November 11, 1918
Montdidier-Noyon
June 9, 1918
June 13, 1918
Oise-Aisne
August 18, 1918
November 11, 1918
St. Mihiel
September 12, 1918
September 16, 1918
Somme-Defensive
March 21, 1918
April 6, 1918
Somme-Offensive
August 8, 1918
November 11, 1918
Vittorio-Veneto
October 24, 1918
November 4, 1918
Ypres-Lys
August 19, 1918
November 11, 1918
For general defense service, not involving a specific battle, the "Defensive Sector" Battle Clasp was authorized. The clasp was also awarded for any battle which was not already recognized by its own battle clasp.
The World War I Victory Medal bears the clasps of the battles the U.S. Army participated in across the ribbon. Not all battles are shown on the bar clasps. Only the battles designated as battles that would have bars issued were shown on the medal. The famous
Battle of Chateau Thierry
to hold the Chateau and the bridge as a joint effort between the US Army and the US Marines against the German machine gunners did not get awarded clasps.
Navy Battle Clasps
[
edit
]
Navy battle clasps were issued for naval service in support of Army operations and had identical names to the Army battle clasps. There was a slight variation of the criteria dates for the Navy battle clasps, as listed below.
[4]
Navy Battle Clasps
Major Ground Conflict
Start Date
End Date
Aisne
June 1, 1918
June 5, 1918
Aisne-Marne
July 18, 1918
July 20, 1918
Meuse-Argonne
September 29, 1918
October 10, 1918
Meuse-Argonne
October 25, 1918
November 11, 1918
St. Mihiel
September 12, 1918
September 16, 1918
Ypres-Lys (Service in support of the Northern Bombing Group)
The Defensive Sector Clasp was also authorized for Navy personnel who had participated in naval combat but were not authorized a particular battle clasp.
Defensive Sector Clasp on Ribbon
Navy Operational Clasps
[
edit
]
For sea-related war duty, the Navy issued the following
operational clasps
, which were worn on the World War I Victory Medal and inscribed with the name of the duty type which had been performed:
[4]
Navy Operational Clasps
Operation
Start Date
End Date
Armed Guard: Merchant personnel(freighters, tankers, and troop ship)
April 6, 1917
November 11, 1918
Asiatic: Service on any vessel that visited a Siberian port
April 6, 1917
November 11, 1918
Asiatic: Port visit must have exceeded ten days in length
November 12, 1918
March 30, 1920
Atlantic Fleet
: Service in the Atlantic Fleet
May 25, 1918
November 11, 1918
Aviation
: Service involving flying over the Atlantic Ocean
May 25, 1918
November 11, 1918
Destroyer
: Service on destroyers on the Atlantic Ocean
May 25, 1918
November 11, 1918
Escort
: Personnel regularly attached to escort vessels on the North Atlantic
April 6, 1917
November 11, 1918
Grand Fleet: Personnel assigned to any ship of the “United States Grand Fleet”
December 9, 1917
November 11, 1918
Mine
Laying: Service in mine laying sea duty
May 26, 1918
November 11, 1918
Mine Sweeping: Service in mine sweeping sea duty
April 6, 1917
November 11, 1918
Mobile Base: Service on tenders and repair vessels
April 6, 1917
November 11, 1918
Naval Battery: Service as a member of a naval battery detachment
July 10, 1918
November 11, 1918
Overseas: Service on shore in allied or enemy countries of Europe
April 6, 1917
November 11, 1918
Patrol
: War patrol service on the Atlantic Ocean
May 25, 1918
November 11, 1918
Salvage
: Salvage duty performed on the seas
April 6, 1917
November 11, 1918
Submarine
: Submarine duty performed on the Atlantic Ocean
May 25,1918
November 11, 1918
Submarine Chaser: Anti-submarine duty performed on the Atlantic Ocean
May 18, 1918
November 11, 1918
Transport
: Personnel regularly attached to a transport or cargo vessel
April 6, 1917
November 11, 1918
White Sea
: Service on any vessel which visited a Russian port or war patrols in the White Sea not less than ten days
November 12, 1918
July 31, 1919
Unlike the army, the navy only allowed one clasp of any type to be worn on the ribbon. Members of the marine or medical corps who served in France but was not eligible for a battle clasp would receive a bronze
Maltese cross
on their ribbons.
[4]