The World War II Victory Medal is a
service medal
A service medal is an award to individuals who participated in designated wars, campaigns, or expeditions, or who have fulfilled specific service requirements in a creditable manner. Service medals are sometimes also Campaign medals.
Examples of s ...
of the
United States military
The United States Armed Forces are the military forces of the United States. The armed forces consists of six service branches: the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, Space Force, and Coast Guard. The president of the United States is the ...
which was established by an Act of
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945.
The
World War I Victory Medal is the corresponding medal from
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
.
History
The World War II Victory Medal was established by an Act of Congress on 6 July 1945 (Public Law 135, 79th Congress) and promulgated by Section V, War Department Bulletin 12, 1945. The medal was designed by
Thomas H. Jones
Rev. Thomas H. Jones (b. 1806) was born a slave Wilmington, North Carolina and was a prominent African-American abolitionist in antebellum America. Jones escaped slavery, traveled to Canada and subsequently relocated to Worcester, Massachusett ...
and approved by the Secretary of War on 5 February 1946. Consequently, it did not transition from a ribbon to a full medal until after
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
had ended. The World War II Victory Medal was first issued as a
service ribbon
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 ...
, referred to as the “Victory Ribbon.”
The Congressional authorization for the medal specified that it was to be awarded to any member of the United States military, including members of the armed forces of the
Government of the Philippine Islands, who served on active duty, or as a reservist, between 7 December 1941 and 31 December 1946.
On 8 August 1946, the separate
Merchant Marine World War II Victory Medal
The Merchant Marine World War II Victory Medal is a decoration of the United States Merchant Marine
United States Merchant Marines are United States civilian mariners and U.S. civilian and federally owned merchant vessels. Both the civilian m ...
was established for members of the
United States Merchant Marine
United States Merchant Marines are United States civilian mariners and U.S. civilian and federally owned merchant vessels. Both the civilian mariners and the merchant vessels are managed by a combination of the government and private sectors, an ...
who served during World War II.
Criteria
The World War II Victory Medal was awarded for service between 7 December 1941 and 31 December 1946, both dates inclusive, with no minimum time in service requirement.
The
National Personnel Records Center
The National Personnel Records Center(s) (NPRC) is an agency of the National Archives and Records Administration, created in 1966. It is part of the United States National Archives federal records center system and is divided into two large Federa ...
has reported some cases of service members receiving the award for only a few days of service. As hostilities during the Second World War ended on 2 September 1945, there may be cases of service members who had enlisted, entered officer candidate school, or had been a cadet or midshipman at the
U.S. Military Academy
The United States Military Academy (USMA), also known metonymically as West Point or simply as Army, is a United States service academy in West Point, New York. It was originally established as a fort, since it sits on strategic high groun ...
, the
U.S. Naval Academy
The United States Naval Academy (US Naval Academy, USNA, or Navy) is a United States Service academies, federal service academy in Annapolis, Maryland. It was established on 10 October 1845 during the tenure of George Bancroft as Secretary of ...
or the
U.S. Coast Guard Academy
The United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) is a service academy of the United States Coast Guard in New London, Connecticut. Founded in 1876, it is the smallest of the five U.S. service academies and provides education to future Coast G ...
between 3 September 1945 and any date in 1946, receiving the medal without having been a veteran of the period of active hostilities during the war; the reason for this late date is that President
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman (May 8, 1884December 26, 1972) was the 33rd president of the United States, serving from 1945 to 1953. A leader of the Democratic Party, he previously served as the 34th vice president from January to April 1945 under Franklin ...
did not declare an official end to hostilities until the last day of 1946.
As every member of the United States Armed Forces who served from 7 December 1941 to 31 December 1946 was eligible for the medal, there were over twelve million eligible recipients, making the World War II Victory Medal the second most widely awarded military award of the United States, after the
National Defense Service Medal
The National Defense Service Medal (NDSM) is a service award of the United States Armed Forces established by President Dwight D. Eisenhower in 1953. It is awarded to every member of the US Armed Forces who has served during any one of four sp ...
.
Appearance
The bronze medal is 1 inches in width. 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 figure of Liberation standing full length with head turned to dexter looking to the dawn of a new day, right foot resting on a war god's helmet with the hilt of a broken sword in the right hand and the broken blade in the left hand, the inscription ''WORLD WAR II'' placed immediately below the center. On the
reverse
Reverse or reversing may refer to:
Arts and media
* ''Reverse'' (Eldritch album), 2001
* ''Reverse'' (2009 film), a Polish comedy-drama film
* ''Reverse'' (2019 film), an Iranian crime-drama film
* ''Reverse'' (Morandi album), 2005
* ''Reverse'' ...
are inscriptions for the
Four Freedoms
The Four Freedoms were goals articulated by U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt on Monday, January 6, 1941. In an address known as the Four Freedoms speech (technically the 1941 State of the Union address), he proposed four fundamental freed ...
: ''FREEDOM FROM FEAR AND WANT'' and ''FREEDOM OF SPEECH AND RELIGION'' separated by a palm branch, all within a circle composed of the words ''UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 1941 1945''.
The suspension and
service ribbon
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 ...
of the medal is 1 inches wide and consists of the following stripes: inch double rainbow in juxtaposition (blues, greens, yellows, reds (center), yellows greens and blues); inch White 67101; center inch Old Glory Red 67156; inch White; and inch double rainbow in juxtaposition. The rainbow on each side of the ribbon is a miniature of the pattern used in the
World War I Victory Medal.
Although the World War I Victory Medal included
clasps, the World War II Victory Medal did not. This was because
campaign medal
A campaign medal is a military decoration which is awarded to a member of an armed force who serves in a designated military operation or performs duty in a geographical theater. Campaign medals are very similar to service medals but carry a high ...
s were awarded instead.
File:WorldWarIIVictoryMedal rev.jpg, Reverse
File:WWII Seal.JPG, The National World War II Memorial
The World War II Memorial is a List of national memorials of the United States, national memorial in the United States dedicated to Veteran#United States, Americans who served in the United States Armed Forces, armed forces and as civilians du ...
has an engraving of it in one of the two pavilions
See also
*
Awards and decorations of the United States military
The United States Armed Forces awards and decorations are primarily the medals, service ribbons, and specific badges which recognize military service and personal accomplishments while a member of the U.S. Armed Forces. Such awards are a means t ...
*
Merchant Marine World War II Victory Medal
The Merchant Marine World War II Victory Medal is a decoration of the United States Merchant Marine
United States Merchant Marines are United States civilian mariners and U.S. civilian and federally owned merchant vessels. Both the civilian m ...
References
External links
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{{Authority control
Awards established in 1945
Military awards and decorations of World War II
United States service medals
Sun in art
Liberty symbols