Medal of Honor
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The United States military inter-service awards and decorations are those medals and ribbons which may be awarded to all members of the six military branches of the U.S. Armed Forces. Each military department awards inter-service awards under the same criteria.
The World War I Victory Medal was the first inter-service award. This was followed by the Purple Heart, [1] [2] Silver Star Medal, [3] Legion of Merit, [4] Distinguished Flying Cross, and Air Medal decorations. Prior to this time, several older service medals had been issued both to the Army and Navy, but in different versions for each service. The World War I Victory Medal, Purple Heart, Silver Star, Legion of Merit, Distinguished Flying Cross, and Air Medal were thus the first medals which appeared identical, regardless of which service was bestowing the award.
By the end of World War II, several World War II service medals had also been established for issuance to both Army and Navy personnel. The United States Coast Guard also received such awards under the authority of the Department of the Navy. After World War II, The Korean Service Medal [5] was the first inter-service non-decoration award which was awarded by all five branches of the U.S. Armed Forces; in 1947, the United States Air Force had been established as a separate branch of service. Since 1956, and 2010, the Distinguished Flying Cross, and Silver Star Medal may also be awarded by the Coast Guard. [6]
In the 1960s and 1970s, the U.S. Armed Forces created the Meritorious Service Medal, and several campaign medals and service awards, all of which may be awarded by any service branch.
The United States Department of Defense in the 1960s and 1970s, also began creating a series of peacetime meritorious awards which were eligible for presentation to any military member working in a joint command or under the authority of the Secretary of Defense. The last such medal, the Joint Service Achievement Medal decoration, was created in 1983. The only inter-service unit award, the Joint Meritorious Unit Award was created in 1981. [7] [8]
On April 5, 2011, President Barack Obama amended Executive Order 12824 modifying the award eligibility of the Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal to "any member of the Armed Forces of the United States" making it an inter-service award of the U.S. military. Recently, this decoration has been given to Gen Craig R. McKinley (USAF) for his service as Chief of the National Guard Bureau. [9] [10]
The Medal of Honor, originally a Navy award, is now technically an inter-service award, is issued in different versions for each branch of military service. There are presently three versions of the decoration in existence for the Army, Navy, and Air Force. Marines receive the Navy version of the Medal of Honor while a Coast Guard version, which exists in theory, has never been bestowed (the one Coast Guard recipient of the Medal of Honor received the Navy version [11] ).
The following are the various military medals of the United States which are considered inter-service awards and decorations. Medals are shown in categories, not in order of precedence for uniform wear.
| Medal of Honor |
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Awarded for "extraordinary heroism in combat"
| Distinguished Service Cross (Army) | Navy Cross | Air Force Cross | Coast Guard Cross |
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| Joint Meritorious Unit Award |
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| Silver Star | Legion of Merit | Distinguished Flying Cross | Bronze Star Medal | Purple Heart | Meritorious Service Medal | Air Medal |
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| National Defense Service Medal | Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal | Humanitarian Service Medal | Military Outstanding Volunteer Service Medal | Armed Forces Service Medal |
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| Armed Forces Reserve Medal | Prisoner of War Medal | Antarctica Service Medal |
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| Korean Service Medal | Korea Defense Service Medal |
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| Vietnam Service Medal | Southwest Asia Service Medal | Kosovo Campaign Medal |
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| Afghanistan Campaign Medal | Iraq Campaign Medal | Inherent Resolve Campaign Medal | Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal | Global War on Terrorism Service Medal |
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The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone.
The Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) is a military decoration of the United States Army that is presented to soldiers who have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility. The performance must be such as to merit recognition for service that is clearly exceptional. The exceptional performance of normal duty will not alone justify an award of this decoration.
The Legion of Merit (LOM) is a military award of the United States Armed Forces that is given for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued to members of the eight uniformed services of the United States as well as to military and political figures of foreign governments.
The Commendation Medal is a mid-level United States military decoration presented for sustained acts of heroism or meritorious service. Each branch of the United States Armed Forces issues its own version of the Commendation Medal, with a fifth version existing for acts of joint military service performed under the Department of Defense.
The Defense Superior Service Medal (DSSM) is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members who perform superior meritorious service in a position of significant responsibility.
The Navy Unit Commendation (NUC) is a United States Navy and United States Coast Guard unit award that was established by order of the Secretary of the Navy James Forrestal on 18 December 1944.
The Meritorious Unit Commendation is a mid-level unit award of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Army awards units the Army MUC for exceptionally meritorious conduct in performance of outstanding achievement or service in combat or non-combat, the U.S. Navy and U.S. Marine Corps award units the Navy MUC for valorous or meritorious achievement or service in combat or non-combat, and the U.S. Coast Guard awards units the Coast Guard MUC for valorous or meritorious achievement or service not involving combat.
The Defense Meritorious Service Medal (DMSM) is an award bestowed upon members of the United States military by the United States Department of Defense. In the order of precedence of the United States Armed Forces, it is worn between the Purple Heart and the Meritorious Service Medal. The medal is awarded in the name of the Secretary of Defense to members of the Armed Forces who, while serving in a joint activity, distinguish themselves by non-combat outstanding achievement or meritorious service, but not of a degree to warrant award of the Defense Superior Service Medal.
The Achievement Medal is a military decoration of the United States Armed Forces. The Achievement Medal was first proposed as a means to recognize outstanding achievement or meritorious service of military personnel who were not eligible to receive the higher Commendation Medal or the Meritorious Service Medal.
The Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal (CGDSM) is a military decoration of the United States Coast Guard that was established 4 August 1949 and is presented to coast guardsmen for "Exceptionally meritorious service to the government in a duty of great responsibility." Prior to this date, members of the Coast Guard were eligible to receive the Navy Distinguished Service Medal. The Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal, which replaced the Transportation Distinguished Service Medal in 2002, is another higher precedence Distinguished Service Medal that may be awarded to Coast Guardsmen. The Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal is equivalent to the Army's Army Distinguished Service Medal, Naval Service's Navy Distinguished Service Medal, and the Air and Space Forces' Air Force Distinguished Service Medal.
The Good Conduct Medal is one of the oldest military awards of the United States Armed Forces. The U.S. Navy's variant of the Good Conduct Medal was established in 1869, the Marine Corps version in 1896, the Coast Guard version in 1923, the Army version in 1941, and the Air Force version in 1963; the Air Force Good Conduct Medal was temporarily discontinued from February 2006 to February 2009, followed by its subsequent reinstatement.
The Meritorious Service Medal (MSM) is a military award presented to members of the United States Armed Forces who distinguish themselves with outstanding meritorious achievement or service to the United States.
The Republic of Vietnam Civil Actions Medal also known as the Vietnam Civil Actions Medal or Civil Actions Medal, is a military decoration of the former South Vietnamese government (1955–75). The medal was created on May 12, 1964 during the Vietnam War. The Civil Actions Medal was awarded to the South Vietnamese military and its allies' military personnel or units that performed outstanding achievements in the field of civil affairs. The medal was awarded in two classes, with the first-class intended for commissioned officers and the second class for enlisted personnel. Individuals who were cited received the medal, ribbon, and a citation.
The orders and decorations conferred upon civilians and military personnel in the Republic of the Philippines are listed by orders of precedence. Philippine civilian orders and decorations are conferred by the President of the Philippines in his or her capacity as head of state. In certain instances, the conferment of certain orders and decorations requires the concurrence of the Congress of the Philippines, or of certain advisory bodies.
Authorized foreign decorations of the United States military are those military decorations which have been approved for wear by members of the United States armed forces but whose awarding authority is the government of a country other than the United States.
Awards and decorations of the United States Army are those military awards including decorations which are issued to members of the United States Army under the authority of the Secretary of the Army. Together with military badges such awards provide an outward display of a service member's accomplishments.
Awards and decorations of the United States government are civilian awards of the U.S. federal government which are typically issued for sustained meritorious service, in a civilian capacity, while serving in the U.S. federal government. Certain U.S. government awards may also be issued to military personnel of the United States Armed Forces and be worn in conjunction with awards and decorations of the United States military. In order of precedence, those U.S. non-military awards and decorations authorized for wear are worn after U.S. military personal decorations and unit awards and before U.S. military campaign and service awards.
The Conspicuous Service Cross is a decoration for military service awarded by the State of New York.
The Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the Department of Homeland Security, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members for exceptionally meritorious service. The current version of the medal was established in February 2003, retroactive to March 1, 2002.
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