The Commemorative Medals for Army Marches are two distinct medals awarded for participating in the two marches organised yearly by the Belgian Army. They are not decorations, but they may be worn by members of the

Belgian Armed Forces The Belgian Defense Forces ( nl, Defensie; french: La Défense) is the national military of Belgium. The King of the Belgians is the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces. The Belgian Armed Forces was established after Belgium became indepen ...

on their uniform during the year following the participation if they request it. For members of the Belgian Army, participating in the marches counts as operational training.

Marche Européenne du Souvenir et de l'Amitié (MESA)

The ''European March of Remembrance and Friendship'' is a four-day international march originally organised in 1967 by the 3rd Battalion of the Ardennes Chasseur Regiment in remembrance of the operations performed by the unit at the beginning of

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 ...

in the

Ardennes The Ardennes (french: Ardenne ; nl, Ardennen ; german: Ardennen; wa, Årdene ; lb, Ardennen ), also known as the Ardennes Forest or Forest of Ardennes, is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in Be ...

region. The march is now organised on a yearly basis and also focusses on honouring the towns in the region regularly changing its course to do so. The march is divided into four legs of thirty-two kilometers each in the

region of Belgium as well as the

Grand Duchy of Luxemburg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small land ...

. The circular silver medal bears on its obverse the relief left profile of a wild boar's head surrounded by a 3mm wide ring along the entire medal's circumference and bearing the relief inscription "3 CHASSEURS ARDENNAIS" in the upper half and "125 km" at the bottom. The reverse bears the relief inscription on four lines "MARCHE" "DU SOUVENIR" "ET DE L'AMITIE" "ARLON-VIELSALM". The medal hangs from a ribbon secured by a hook through a suspension loop at its top. The medal is secured to clothing with a safety pin backed metal clasp displaying in relief the year of the event, or in the case of older medals, the inscription M.S.A. or M.S.E.A.. The ribbon is dark green with the

national colours National colours are frequently part of a country's set of national symbols. Many states and nations have formally adopted a set of colours as their official "national colours" while others have ''de facto'' national colours that have become well ...

of Belgium in three narrow 1mm edge stripes and two narrow 1mm wide red stripes centered 1 cm apart on the green field.

Vierdaagse van de IJzer

The ''Four Days of the Yser'' is a four-day international march organised since 1967 by the Order of the Horse Fishermen of Oostduinkerke, in order to honour the tradition of shrimping on horseback on the one hand and to emphasize the scenic attractions of the Westhoek, the western part of the Belgian coast. Since 1972 it is organised by the

to strengthen the bond between the

and society, to commemorate the casualties of both World Wars, particularly those who fell on the battlefields of the Westhoek during the

First World War 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 ...

, and to introduce the hikers to the historical and touristic values of the Westhoek. The march was initially four times thirty-two kilometers long, but now currently has 8,16,24 and 32 km routes including detours for disabled access and pushchairs. https://4daagse.be/index.php/nl/huidige-editie/aandenkens The medal is round or triangular, made in silver or bronze, and showing the imprint of a World War I Belgian soldier, but the shape of the medal can change every five years. The ribbon is dark blue with a large vertical scarlet stripe. Small metal bars are added to the ribbon when the bearer has completed the march more than one time.

External links

Marche Européenne du Souvenir et de l'Amitié

Vierdaagse van de IJzer
{{Belgium honours Military awards and decorations of Belgium Awards established in 1967

Marche Européenne du Souvenir et de l'Amitié (MESA)

Vierdaagse van de IJzer

See also

External links