The Polish Army Medal ( pl, Medal Wojska Polskiego) was established by
Poland
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
on 3 September 1999 to recognize service to the Polish Army by foreign civilians and military personnel.
The medal is presented in three grades Gold, Silver, and Bronze by the Polish
Minister of National Defence. Most awards are presented to members of allied armed forces, but the medal is also awarded to civilians who contribute to promoting the history and traditions of the Polish Army outside of Poland.
Appearance
The medal is either
gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile met ...
, silver, or bronze, depending on the grade, 36 mm in diameter. On the
obverse
Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags, seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, ''o ...
is a red enameled
cross pattée
A cross pattée, cross patty or cross paty, also known as a cross formy or cross formée (french: croix pattée, german: Tatzenkreuz), is a type of Christian cross with arms that are narrow at the centre, and often flared in a curve or straight ...
with concave arm bases. Between the arms of the cross are stylized rays. Under the arms of the cross is a laurel wreath. Superimposed on the cross is a silver crowned eagle for all grades. The reverse is plain aside for a two line inscription "WOJSKO POLSKIE" (Polish Army). The medal is suspended from a ribbon 38 mm wide. The colors are light brown with blue edges, separated by yellow pinstripes. In the center is a half white and half red stripe. On the
ribbon bar
A medal ribbon, service ribbon or ribbon bar is a small ribbon, mounted on a small metal bar equipped with an attaching device, which is generally issued for wear in place of a medal when it is not appropriate to wear the actual medal. Each cou ...
a gold vertical bar is worn in the center for the gold medal and a silver vertical bar is worn in the center for the silver medal. The ribbon bar of the bronze medal is unadorned.
Notable recipients
*
General
A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of highest military ranks, high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry.
In some usages the term "general officer" refers t ...
John R. Allen
* General
George W. Casey, Jr.
George William Casey Jr. (born July 22, 1948) is a retired four-star general who served as the 36th Chief of Staff of the United States Army from April 10, 2007, to April 10, 2011. He served as Commanding General, Multi-National Force – Iraq fr ...
* General
Carter Ham
Carter Frederick Ham (born February 16, 1952) is a retired United States Army general who served as the second commander of United States Africa Command. As commander of Africa Command, he led Operation Odyssey Dawn, the initial United States r ...
* General
James Mattis
James Norman Mattis (born September 8, 1950) is a retired United States Marine Corps four-star general who served as the 26th US secretary of defense from 2017 to 2019. During his 44 years in the Marine Corps, he commanded forces in the Persian ...
* General
David Petraeus
David Howell Petraeus (; born November 7, 1952) is a retired United States Army general and public official. He served as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency from September 6, 2011, until his resignation on November 9, 2012. Prior to h ...
*
Lieutenant General
Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...
Mark Hertling
Mark Phillip Hertling (born September 29, 1953) is a former United States Army officer. From March 2011 to November 2012, he served as the Commanding General of United States Army Europe and the Seventh Army. Hertling served in Armor, Cavalry, p ...
*
Major General
Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...
William L. Enyart''Generał William L. Enyart w Polsce''
{{webarchive, url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110927123746/http://www.army.mil.pl/index.php/aktualnosci/2100-genera-william-l-enyart-w-polsce , date=2011-09-27 }
(photo)
– army.mil.pl
References
Military awards and decorations of Poland