Military decoration of

Prussian Army The Royal Prussian Army (1701–1919, german: Königlich Preußische Armee) served as the army of the Kingdom of Prussia. It became vital to the development of Brandenburg-Prussia as a European power. The Prussian Army had its roots in the co ...

The Warrior Merit Medal (german: Krieger-Verdienstmedaille) was a military decoration of

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...

. Established by

Friedrich Wilhelm III Frederick William III (german: Friedrich Wilhelm III.; 3 August 1770 – 7 June 1840) was King of Prussia from 16 November 1797 until his death in 1840. He was concurrently Elector of Brandenburg in the Holy Roman Empire until 6 August 1806, wh ...

, it was primarily awarded to

troops A troop is a military sub-subunit, originally a small formation of cavalry, subordinate to a squadron. In many armies a troop is the equivalent element to the infantry section or platoon. Exceptions are the US Cavalry and the King's Troop Ro ...

not in

military service. The first recipients were members of the

Imperial Guard An imperial guard or palace guard is a special group of troops (or a member thereof) of an empire, typically closely associated directly with the Emperor or Empress. Usually these troops embody a more elite status than other imperial forces, in ...

grenadier company guarding the

Russian imperial The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. The ...

residence during Friedrich Whilhelm's visit to

St. Petersburg Saint Petersburg ( rus, links=no, Санкт-Петербург, a=Ru-Sankt Peterburg Leningrad Petrograd Piter.ogg, r=Sankt-Peterburg, p=ˈsankt pʲɪtʲɪrˈburk), formerly known as Petrograd (1914–1924) and later Leningrad (1924–1991), i ...

in 1835.

Appearance

Both versions of the medal are circular and silver, 25 mm in diameter. The first version depicts the crowned cypher of Friedrich Wilhelm III on the obverse of the medal. The reverse bears the inscription ''KRIEGER VERDIENST'' (Warrior Merit) surrounded by a wreath of two laurel sprigs, tied at its base with a bow. The medal is suspended by a ring suspension and hangs from the ribbon of the

Order of the Red Eagle The Order of the Red Eagle (german: Roter Adlerorden) was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful se ...

. The later version of the medal depicts the crowned cipher of King

Wilhelm I William I or Wilhelm I (german: Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig; 22 March 1797 – 9 March 1888) was King of Prussia from 2 January 1861 and German Emperor from 18 January 1871 until his death in 1888. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he was the f ...

on the obverse. The reverse is also inscribed ''KRIEGER VERDIENST'' and surrounded by a thicker laurel wreath than the early version. The medal is suspended by a ring suspension and hangs from the black with white stripes ''kämpferband'' (combatants ribbon) or the white with black stripe ''nichtkämpferband'' (non-combatants ribbon).

References

External links

Friedrich Wilhelm III version of medal
Deutsches Historisches Museum. {{Orders and decorations of the Kingdom of Prussia Military awards and decorations of Prussia