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George Medal

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George Medal
Obverse and reverse of the original medal, reflecting the then reigning monarch King George VI
TypeCivil decoration
Awarded for"... acts of great bravery"
DescriptionSilver disc, 36 mm diameter
Presented byUnited Kingdomof Great Britain and Northern Ireland andCommonwealth
EligibilityThose performing acts of bravery in, or meriting recognition by, the United Kingdom
Post-nominalsGM
StatusCurrently awarded
Established24 September 1940(1940-09-24)
TotalApprox 2,122
About half awarded to civilians[1]
27 bars for second award

Ribbon bar of the George Medal

Ribbon of the GM and bar
Order of Wear
Next (higher)Conspicuous Gallantry Medal (Flying)[2]
Next (lower)King's Police Medal, for Gallantry
RelatedGeorge Cross

TheGeorge Medal(GM), instituted on 24 September 1940 by KingGeorge VI,[3]is a decoration of theUnited KingdomandCommonwealth,awarded for gallantry, typically by civilians, or in circumstances where military honours are not appropriate.

History

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In 1940, at the height ofthe Blitz,there was a strong desire to reward many acts of civilian courage. Existing awards open to civilians were not considered suitable to meet the new situation, so theGeorge Crossand the George Medal were instituted to recognise civilian gallantry in the face of enemy bombing, and brave deeds more generally.[1]

Announcing the new awards, the King said

In order that they should be worthily and promptly recognised, I have decided to create, at once, a new mark of honour for men and women in all walks of civilian life. I propose to give my name to this new distinction, which will consist of theGeorge Cross,which will rank next to theVictoria Cross,and the George Medal for wider distribution.[4]

The warrant for the GM (along with that of the GC), dated 24 January 1941, was published inThe London Gazetteon 31 January 1941.[5]

Criteria

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The medal is granted in recognition of "acts of great bravery".[6]The original warrant for the George Medal did not explicitly permit it to be awarded posthumously. The position was clarified in December 1977 expressly to allow posthumous awards, several of which have subsequently been made.[7]

The medal is primarily a civilian award, but it may be awarded to military personnel for gallant conduct that is not in the face of the enemy.[8]As the warrant states:

The Medal is intended primarily for civilians and award in Our military services is to be confined to actions for which purely military Honours are not normally granted.[9]

Recipients are entitled to the post-nominal lettersGM.[10]

Barsto the GM may be awarded in recognition of further acts of bravery meriting the award. In undress uniform or on occasions when the medal ribbon alone is worn, a silver rosette is worn on the ribbon to indicate each bar.[11]

Details of all awards to British and Commonwealth recipients are published inThe London Gazette.Approximately 2,122 medals have been awarded since inception in 1940, with 27 second-award bars.[1]

Description

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The GM is a circular silver medal 36 mm (1.4 in) in diameter, with the ribbon suspended from a ring. It has the following design.[12]

Theobversedepicts the crowned effigy of the reigning monarch. To date, there have been four types:

  • George VI, 1940 to 1948. Inscribed GEORGIVS VI D: G: BR: OMN: REX ET INDIAE IMP:
    George VI, 1940 to 1948. InscribedGEORGIVS VI D: G: BR: OMN: REX ET INDIAE IMP:
  • George VI, 1948 to 1952. Inscribed GEORGIVS VI DEI: GRA: BRITT: OMN: REX FID: DEF:
    George VI, 1948 to 1952. InscribedGEORGIVS VI DEI: GRA: BRITT: OMN: REX FID: DEF:
  • Elizabeth II, 1952 to late 1950s. Inscribed ELIZABETH II D: G: BR: OMN: REGINA F.D.
    Elizabeth II, 1952 to late 1950s. InscribedELIZABETH II D: G: BR: OMN: REGINA F.D.
  • Elizabeth II, late 1950s to date. Inscribed ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA F.D.
    Elizabeth II, late 1950s to date. InscribedELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA F.D.

The reverse showsSaint Georgeon horseback slaying thedragonon the coast ofEngland,with the legendTHE GEORGE MEDALaround the top edge of the medal.

The medal was designed byGeorge Kruger Graybased on a bookplate designed byStephen Goodenfor the Royal Library at Windsor Castle.[13]

The ribbon is 31.7 mm (1.25 in) wide, crimson with five narrow blue stripes. The blue colour is taken from theGeorge Crossribbon.[14]The medal is worn on the left chest by men; women not in uniform wear the medal on the left shoulder, with the ribbon fashioned into a bow.[11][15]

The name of the recipient is engraved on the rim of the medal, although some Army awards have impressed naming.[12]

Recipients

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Posthumous armorial achievement ofIgnacio Echeverríaembellished with hisGrand Cross of theOrder of Civil Merit(Spain),Silver Medal of the Order of Police Merit(Spain) andGeorge Medal
Further information:List of recipients of the George Medal

The first recipients, listed inThe London Gazetteof 30 September 1940, were Chief Officer Ernest Herbert Harmer and Second Officer Cyril William Arthur Brown of the Dover Fire Brigade, and Section Officer Alexander Edmund Campbell of the DoverAuxiliary Fire Service,who on 29 July had volunteered to return to a ship loaded with explosives inDover Harbourto fight fires aboard while an air raid was in progress.[16][17]Seven other people were also awarded the medal, including the first women; Ambulance Driver Dorothy Clarke and Ambulance Attendant Bessie Jane Hepburn ofAldeburgh,Suffolk, for rescuing a man badly injured in an explosion.[16]

The first recipient chronologically was Coxswain Robert Cross, commander of theRNLIlifeboatCity of Bradford,based atSpurn Point,whose award was gazetted on 7 February 1941. It was awarded for an incident on 2 February 1940 when Cross took the lifeboat out ingale forcewinds,snow squalls,and very rough seas to rescue the crew of a steam trawler.[18][14]

The youngest recipient wasCharity Anne Bick,who lied about her age to join theARP serviceat 14 years old, and who delivered several messages by bicycle during a heavy air raid inWest Bromwichin late 1940.[19]The youngest male was 14 year old schoolboy Brian Gibbons who saved his infant nephew when his house caught fire following the1958 Independent Air Travel Vickers Viking crashinSouthallin 1959.[20]

The first person to receive a second award wasGeorge Samuel Sewell,an engineer working forShell-Mex and BP Ltd.,based at the oil terminal atSalt End,near Hull, for his actions during an air raid. Having been one of the first recipients (in September 1940)[16]his bar to the George Medal was gazetted on 4 July 1941.[14][21]

The year 2015 included the 75th anniversary of the creation of the award, and was marked by a ceremony in London.[22]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^abcMedal Yearbook2015, page 93
  2. ^"No. 56878".The London Gazette(Supplement). 17 March 2003. p. 3352.
  3. ^British Gallantry Medals(Abbott and Tamplin), p. 138
  4. ^"George Cross Database".Archived fromthe originalon 14 May 2011.
  5. ^"No. 35060".The London Gazette.31 January 1941. pp. 623–624.
  6. ^The London Gazette,31 January 1941 – Warrant, Fifth clause
  7. ^"No. 47397".The London Gazette(Supplement). 5 December 1977. p. 15235.
  8. ^Which could not therefore be recognised by a military decoration; such awards typically require gallantry in the face of the enemy.
  9. ^The London Gazette,31 January 1941 – Warrant, Second clause
  10. ^The London Gazette,31 January 1941 – Warrant, Ninth clause
  11. ^abThe London Gazette,31 January 1941 – Warrant, Seventh clause
  12. ^abBritish Gallantry Medals(Abbott and Tamplin), p.146
  13. ^Daily Mirror, 22 November 1940, p 12
  14. ^abc"British Military & Criminal History, 1900–99".Stephen's Study Room. Archived fromthe originalon 31 May 2007.
  15. ^"George Medal awarded to Lance-Corporal Margaret Emma Richards, Auxiliary Territorial Service, 1948".National Army Museum.Retrieved18 May2020.
  16. ^abc"No. 34956".The London Gazette(Supplement). 27 September 1940. p. 5768.
  17. ^Sencicle, Lorraine (27 July 2013)."Dover Fire Service – Part II from 1939".The Dover Historian.Retrieved4 November2015.
  18. ^"No. 35066".The London Gazette(Supplement). 4 February 1941. p. 742.
  19. ^"No. 35074".The London Gazette(Supplement). 14 February 1941. p. 870.
  20. ^"No. 41688".The London Gazette.17 April 1959. p. 2617.
  21. ^"No. 35210".The London Gazette(Supplement). 4 July 1941. pp. 3893–3894.
  22. ^"75th anniversary of the George Cross and George Medal".BBC News.24 September 2015.Retrieved14 September2021.

Bibliography

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  • Abbott, P.E.; Tamplin, J.M.A. (1981).British Gallantry Awards.London: Nimrod Dix and Co.ISBN9780902633742.
  • Dorling, H. Taprell, (1956),Ribbons and Medals,A. H. Baldwin & Son
  • Duckers, Peter (2001).British Gallantry Awards 1855–2000.Princes Risborough, Buckinghamshire, UK: Shire Publications.ISBN9780747805168.
  • Henderson, P. (1984).Dragons Can be Defeated: A Complete Record of the George Medal's Progress, 1940-83.London: Spink & Son Ltd.ISBN978-0907605140.
  • Mussell, John W., ed. (2015).The Medal Yearbook 2015.Devon, UK: Token Publishing.ISBN9781908828248.
  • McDermott, P. (2016).Acts of Courage, Register of The George Medal 1940-2015.Bromsgrove, UK: Worcestershire Medal Service Ltd.ISBN9780995553101.
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