__NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

awarded for long service in the

Territorial Force The Territorial Force was a part-time volunteer component of the British Army, created in 1908 to augment British land forces without resorting to conscription. The new organisation consolidated the 19th-century Volunteer Force and yeomanry ...

and its successor, the Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer Officer's Decoration when the

was formed on 1 April 1908, following the enactment of the Territorial and Reserve Forces Act 1907, (7 Edw.7, c.9) which was a large reorganisation of the old

Volunteer Army The Volunteer Army (russian: Добровольческая армия, translit=Dobrovolcheskaya armiya, abbreviated to russian: Добрармия, translit=Dobrarmiya) was a White Army active in South Russia during the Russian Civil War from ...

and the remaining units of

militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

and

Yeomanry Yeomanry is a designation used by a number of units or sub-units of the British Army Reserve, descended from volunteer cavalry regiments. Today, Yeomanry units serve in a variety of different military roles. History Origins In the 1790s, f ...

. However, the

Militia A militia () is generally an army or some other fighting organization of non-professional soldiers, citizens of a country, or subjects of a state, who may perform military service during a time of need, as opposed to a professional force of r ...

were transferred to the

Special Reserve The Special Reserve was established on 1 April 1908 with the function of maintaining a reservoir of manpower for the British Army and training replacement drafts in times of war. Its formation was part of the military reforms implemented by Ri ...

rather than becoming part of the

. A recipient of this award is entitled to use the letters "TD" after their name (post-nominal).''The London Gazette'' no. 28181, Tuesday, September 29, 1908
(Accessed on 25 July 2015)

Criteria

The original criterion was for a minimum of 20 years service (subsequently reduced to 12 years service) in the Territorial Force and Territorial Army, with war service counting double and service in the ranks counting half. In 1930 the new

Efficiency Decoration The Efficiency Decoration, post-nominal letters TD for recipients serving in the Territorial Army of the United Kingdom or ED for those serving in the Auxiliary Military Forces, was instituted in 1930 for award to part-time officers after twe ...

or ‘ED’ was introduced to be awarded to all three services. When the ED was awarded to a Territorial Army officer it was officially known as Efficiency Decoration (Territorial), but it continued to be known informally as the Territorial Decoration and the recipient officially used the letters TD after their name. The Efficiency Decoration was itself replaced in 1999 by the Volunteer Reserves Service Medal, awarded to all ranks in all services.

Honourable Artillery Company

For members of the

Honourable Artillery Company The Honourable Artillery Company (HAC) is a reserve regiment in the British Army. Incorporated by royal charter in 1537 by King Henry VIII, it is the oldest regiment in the British Army and is considered the second-oldest military unit in the w ...

the ribbon differed, being a half blue, half scarlet ribbon, with yellow edges. This distinction was bestowed by King

Edward VII Edward VII (Albert Edward; 9 November 1841 – 6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910. The second child and eldest son of Queen Victoria and ...

for the Volunteer Long Service And Good Conduct Medal and the honour extended to the same medals under the Territorial designations. The HAC ribbon colours were the household colours of King

Other details

Note that this medal is separate from the Territorial Force Imperial Service Badge. The equivalent award for the ranks was the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal (1908–1921), the Territorial Efficiency Medal (1921–1930), and the Efficiency Medal (1930–1999).

References

External links

Queens Royal Surrey regiment - Territorial Decorations and Medals

On Churchill being awarded a TD
{{Efficiency and long service decorations and medals Decorations of the British Army Long and Meritorious Service Medals of Britain and the Commonwealth

Criteria

Honourable Artillery Company

Other details

References

Further reading

External links