| Since the American Civil War, the Armed Forces of the United States has sought to
recognize military accomplishment with personal awards and decorations bestowed upon service members. Prior to that, decorations,
particularly for officers, were rare, frequently seen as the trappings of royalty and empire, and considered
contrary to the republican spirit present among the Founding Fathers of the United States [1] (http://www.history.navy.mil/medals/).
The following is a list of the Awards and decorations of the United States military. Together with military badges, such decorations
recognize a service member's service and personal accomplishments while a member of the United States military.
Medal of Honor
The highest award of the U.S. military is the Medal of Honor.
Although a single award, each branch of service issues a version of the decoration with slight variations in design.
The original Medal of Honor was issued to members of the U.S. Army. In
1947, the U.S. Air Force began
issuing its own version of the Medal of Honor. The U.S. Navy issues the Medal of
Honor for members of the Navy and United States Marines.
The only U.S. Coast Guard recipient of the Medal of Honor, Douglas Munro, received the Navy Medal of Honor, although a Coast Guard version
of the Medal of Honor exists as a conjectural decoration.
The power to grant the Medal of Honor rests with the President upon approval from the Congress. The decoration is often referred to as the
Congressional Medal of Honor because of this approval, but the official term for the award is simply the "Medal of
Honor".
Department of Defense decorations
The following decorations are issued by the United States Department of Defense:
Federal military decorations
The following decorations are common to all branches of service and awarded by senior field commanders or other officials of
competent authority.
Navy and Marine Corps decorations
The following decorations are issued by the United States Department of the Navy.
Army decorations
The following decorations are issued by the United States Department of the Army
Air Force decorations
The following decorations are issued by the United States Department of the Air Force:
Coast Guard decorations
The following decorations were previously issued under the authority of the United States Department of Transportation. As of 2003, the Department of Homeland Security has award authority of Coast Guard decorations.
Good Conduct and Reserve Medals
The following decorations are authorized for honorable and faithful service in the active duty military, reserve enlisted
force, and military reserve as a whole.
Military Unit Awards
The following decorations are ribbon devices which are presented to a military member who is a member of a larger unit which
is cited for a specific action.
Joint service
Army service
The U.S. Army mandates that all unit awards will be worn separate from individual awards on the opposite side of a military
uniform. The Army is the only service to require this separation between unit and individual decorations. All Army unit awards
are worn enclosed in a gold frame.
Navy and Marine Corps service
Air Force service
Coast Guard service
World War service medals
The following service medals were issued to military service members for participation in the First World War, Second World War, and the
occupation duty that followed both conflicts.
Victory medals
Campaign medals
Occupation medals
Korean service medals
The following decorations are awarded for service during the Korean War and
subsequent armistice.
Modern service medals
The following decorations are issued for participation in military activites from the Vietnam War to the present. Such service decorations can be found on the uniforms of active duty military
personnel.
General service
Air Defense service
Sea service
Special service
Balkans peacekeeping service
Marksmanship medals
The Navy and Coast Guard are the only two services to issue medals for weapons marksmanship. Medals are issued for Expert
qualification only.
Service ribbons
The following is a list of awards and decorations for which no medal is authorized. In such cases, a recepiant is awarded a
Service Ribbon.
Army service
Navy and Marine Corps service
Coast Guard service
Air Force service
National Guard decorations
Awards and
decorations of the National Guard are issued under the authority of State governments by the State Adjutant Generals. Such awards are considered military
decorations, but only on a state level when a service member is performing duty through the United States National Guard.
In the modern age, the United States Army Reserve and Air Force Reserve permit National Guard members to retain and display
National Guard decorations when activated to a regular status in the United States Armed Forces. Such National Guard decorations
are also entered in permanent service records.
The United States Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard do not permit service members, who have formerly served in the National
Guard, to display National Guard decorations on any uniform. This is since there is no National Guard equivalent for any of the
sea services.
Obsolete military decorations
The following decorations have been officially removed from U.S. military award precedence charts and are listed as
Obsolete Military Decorations in military award publications and instructions. Most of the following decorations indicate
service in military operations prior to 1935.
General service
- Philippine Campaign Medal
Army service
Navy and Marine Corps service
Coast Guard service
Unofficial military decorations
The following decorations were authorized under military regulations for wear on active uniforms, however did not appear on
official precedence charts. Such awards were thus listed as “unofficial” and were usually bestowed for a one time
action or authorized under the authority of a local commander.
General service
Army service
Navy and Marine Corps service
Coast Guard service
Special service
- Perry Polar Expeditionary Medal
- Byrd Antarctic Expedition Medal (1930)
- Byrd Antarctic Expedition Medal (1935)
Authorized civilian decorations
Certain civilian
decorations are authorized for wear on United States military uniforms based on the prestige and criteria involved in their
bestowal and the frequency of which they are awarded to both military and civilian personnel. Civilian decorations may be
authorized for wear on a uniform of the U.S. armed forces upon application of the service department to which the military member
belongs. With the exception of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, which is worn immediately following the Medal of Honor, such
decorations are worn after all U.S. military awards and before any foreign decorations.
The following decorations are recognized as international awards authorized for wear on a U.S. military uniform.
Foreign military decorations
The following is a listing of foreign decorations which were bestowed upon U.S. service members for participation in foreign
conflicts. This list is by no means comprehensive, but does indicate the most commonly bestowed foreign decorations to United
States personnel.
France
Prohibited decorations
The following awards and decorations are prohibited for wear on United States military uniforms:
- Unofficial Commemorative Medals not sponsored and approved by the Department of Defense
- Foreign military decorations which have not been authorized for United States military uniform display by the various service
departments
- Medals and awards of United States
military academies unless specifically serving as an Academy Cadet or Naval Midshipman
- Reserve Officer Training Corps awards unless specifically serving in a capacity as an ROTC Cadet or Naval ROTC
Midshipman
- Civilian Cadet Corps awards, such as decorations bestowed by the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets and the Texas A&M University Corps of Cadets.
- Pseudo-military awards such as decorations bestowed by the Sea Cadets and the Civil Air
Patrol
- Police and Law
Enforcement decorations
- Civilian government awards which have not been approved for display on military uniforms by the Department of Defense
- Private corporation and private sector awards which are not issued by a government or military source
Award devices
The following devices are authorized for wear on United States military decorations to denote upgrades, combat distinction, or
multiple bestowals of a given award
Official links
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