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Victory Medal 1914-19
Obverse (top left) and reverse (top right) of the medal. Ribbon of medal (Bottom Center)
Type	Campaign medal
Eligibility	British and Imperial forces.
Awarded for	Campaign service.
Campaign	First World War 1914-20.
Description	Bronze disk, 36mm diameter.
Clasps	None
Statistics
Established	1 September 1919
Total awarded	Approximately 5,725,000
Related	1914 Star 1914-15 Star British War Medal Territorial Force War Medal

The Victory Medal (also called the Allied Victory Medal) is a campaign medal - of which the basic design and ribbon was adopted by Belgium, Brazil, Cuba, Czechoslovakia, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Portugal, Romania, Siam, Union of South Africa and the USA.

The medal was issued to all those who received the 1914 Star or the 1914-15 Star, and to most of those who were awarded the British War Medal - it was never awarded singly. These three medals were sometimes irreverently referred to as Pip, Squeak and Wilfred.^[1][2]

Eligibility

To qualify for the Victory medal one had to be mobilised in any service and have entered a theatre of war between 5 August 1914 and 11 November 1918. Women qualified for this and the earlier two medals, for service in nursing homes and other auxiliary forces.

It was also awarded to members of the British Naval mission to Russia 1919 - 1920 and for mine clearance in the North Sea between 11 November 1918 and 30 November 1919.

Description

• The Victory Medal is a 36mm diameter circular copper medal, lacquered in bronze. The obverse shows the winged, full-length, full-front, figure of Victory, with her left arm extended and holding a palm branch in her right hand.
• The reverse has the words ‘THE GREAT / WAR FOR / CIVILISATION / 1914-1919' in four lines, all surrounded by a laurel wreath.
• The 39mm wide ribbon has a ‘two rainbow' design, with the violet from each rainbow on the outside edges moving through to a central red stripe where both rainbows meet.
• Those personnel "Mentioned in Despatches" between 4 August 1914 and 10 August 1920 wear an oak leaf on the medal's ribbon.

An International Award

Not only did the United Kingdom issue a Victory Medal, but a significant number of allied and associated countries involved in the conflict against the Austro-German alliance. The proposition of such common award was first made by French marshal Ferdinand Foch who was supreme commander of the allied force during first world war. Each medal in bronze has the same diameter (36 mm) and ribbon (double rainbow) but with a national design representing a winged victory^[3].

(Main source : ‘’The interallied victory medals of world war I’’ by Alexander J. Laslo, Dorado Publishing, Albuquerque. 1986 Edition )

Notes

1. ^ "Pip, Squeak and Wilfred". First World War.com. http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/pipsqueakwilfred.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-26.  
2. ^ "Pip, Squeak and Wilfred". The Long, Long Trail. http://www.1914-1918.net/pipsqueak.htm. Retrieved 2008-06-26.  
3. ^ Except Japan and Siam where the concept of a winged victory was not culturally relevant.
4. ^ ^{a b} Unofficial type.
5. ^ Awarded not only to British combatants but as well to those from the dominions of Canada, Australia, New Zealand and those from the Empire of India.
6. ^ On the obverse the winged figure of Victory was replaced by a warrior holding a spear.
7. ^ For reasons still not known, Poland did not proceed with the manufacture of the medal at their mint. The medal shows a clearly visible “MK” (Mint Kremnica). The medal may possibly be an unofficial strike by a veterans’ group.
8. ^ The text on the reverse is in English and Dutch.

See also

• Victory Medal
• World War One - Medal Abbreviations
• Silver War Badge (SWB)
• British campaign medals
• Australian campaign medals
• New Zealand campaign medals

External links

• "Inter-Allied Victory Medal". www.firstworldwar.com. http://www.firstworldwar.com/atoz/victorymedal.htm. Retrieved 2008-10-10.  
• "Information relating to the Victory Medal". www.royaldublinfusiliers.com. http://www.royaldublinfusiliers.com/medals/victory.html. Retrieved 2008-10-10.  
• Search over 5 million campaign medal cards on The UK National Archives' website.
• "The King's Own Royal Regiment Museum, (Lancaster), Victory Medal". www.kingsownmuseum.plus.com. http://www.kingsownmuseum.plus.com/medalsk.htm. Retrieved 2008-10-10.  
• "Award Productions - Victory Full Size Medal". www.awardmedals.com. http://www.awardmedals.com/victory-full-size-medal-p-460.html?cPath=104_110. Retrieved 2008-01-29.  

British campaign medals 19th Century Waterloo Medal (1815) · Ghuznee Medal (1839) · Candahar, Ghunzee, Cabul Medal (1842) · Jellalabad Medals (1842) · Medal for the Defence of Kelat-I-Ghilzie (1842) · First China War Medal (1842) · Scinde Medal (1843) · Gwalior Star (1843) · Sutlej Medal (1846) · Naval General Service Medal (1847) · Military General Service Medal (1847) · Punjab Medal (1849) · Army of India Medal (1851) · India General Service Medal (1854) · South Africa Medal (1854) · Crimean War Medal (1854) · Baltic Medal (1856) · Indian Mutiny Medal (1858) · Second China War Medal (1861) · New Zealand Medal (1869) · Abyssinian War Medal (1869) · Canada General Service Medal (1866-70) · Ashantee Medal (1873-74) · South Africa Medal (1877-79) · Afghanistan Medal (1878-80) · Kabul to Kandahar Star (1880) · Egypt Medal 1882-89 · British South Africa Company Medal 1890-97 · East and West Africa Medal (1892) · India Medal (1896) · Ashanti Star (1896) · Queen's Sudan Medal (1899) · East and Central Africa Medal (1899) · Queen's South Africa Medal (1899) · Queen's Mediterranean Medal (1899)  · King's South Africa Medal (1902) Pre World War 1 China War Medal (1900) · Ashanti Medal (1901) · Africa General Service Medal (1902) · Transport Medal (1903) (for South Africa or China)  · Tibet Medal (1905) · India General Service Medal (1909) World War 1 1914 Star · 1914-15 Star · British War Medal · Victory Medal · Territorial Force War Medal · Mercantile Marine War Medal Inter War General Service Medal (1918) · Naval General Service Medal (1915) · India General Service Medal (1936) World War 2 1939-1945 Star · Atlantic Star · Air Crew Europe Star  · Africa Star  · Pacific Star  · Burma Star  · Italy Star  · France and Germany Star  · Defence Medal · War Medal 1939–1945 Post War Korea Medal (1951) · General Service Medal (1962) · Rhodesia Medal (1980)  · South Atlantic Medal (1982) · Gulf Medal (1992) 21st century OSM for Sierra Leone (2000) · OSM for Afghanistan (2002) · OSM for Democratic Republic of the Congo (2003) · Iraq Medal