The Silver Medal of Military Valor ( it, Medaglia d'argento al valor militare) is an Italian medal for gallantry. Italian medals for valor were first instituted by

Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia Victor Amadeus III (Vittorio Amadeo Maria; 26 June 1726 – 16 October 1796) was King of Sardinia from 1773 to his death. Although he was politically conservative, he carried out numerous administrative reforms until he declared war on Revolu ...

on 21 May 1793, with a gold medal, and, below it, a silver medal. These were intended for junior officers or common soldiers who had distinguished themselves in combat. These medals fell into disuse during the period of Napoleonic domination. They were reinstated on 1 April 1815, by

Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia Victor Emmanuel I (Vittorio Emanuele; 24 July 1759 – 10 January 1824) was the Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia (1802–1821). Biography Victor Emmanuel was the second son of King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia and Maria Antonia Ferdinand ...

, who, however, abolished them only a few months later, on 4 August 1815, replacing them with the Military Order of Savoy (l'Ordine militare di Savoia), now known as the

Military Order of Italy The Military Order of Italy ( it, Ordine Militare d'Italia) is the highest military order of the Italian Republic and the former Kingdom of Italy. It was founded as the Military Order of Savoy, a national order by the King of Sardinia, Vittor ...

. However, in 1833, Charles Albert of Sardinia, recognizing that the Military Order was too exclusive in that it could only be awarded to persons of high rank, re-instituted the medals for valor (gold and silver) as awards for noble acts performed by soldiers in both war and peace. According to royal decree no. 753 of 24 May 1915, the number of times one individual could receive a medal for valor (both silver and gold) was limited to three, after which a promotion was foreseen. This limit was abolished with royal decree no. 975 of 15 June 1922. During

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 ...

, the medal was awarded to military personnel, units above the level of company and civilians for exceptional

valor Valor, valour, or valorous may mean: * Courage, a similar meaning * Virtue ethics, roughly "courage in defense of a noble cause" Entertainment * Valor (band), a Christian gospel music group * Valor Kand, a member of the band Christian Death * ' ...

in the face of the enemy. During World War I, the medal was given out some 38,614 times for individual acts of heroism (compared to 368 Gold Medals and 60,244 Bronze medals). Thus, the Italian Silver Medal for Military Valor is equivalent in frequency and prestige to the British

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC ...

, which was awarded some 40,253 times during World War I. The Silver Medal for Military Valor is still awarded by the Italian state, and it, along with the Gold and Bronze medals for Military Valor as well as the "Croce di Guerra al Valor Militare" (War Cross of Military Valor - which can only be awarded in time of war) is established by the Royal Decree of 4 November 1932, in which the purpose of these medals is defined as "To distinguish and publicly honor the authors of heroic military acts, even ones performed in time of peace, provided that the exploit is closely connected with the purposes for which the Armed Forces are constituted, whatever may be the condition or quality of the author."official website of the Italian Presidency http://www.quirinale.it/qrnw/statico/onorificenze/cennistorici/medagliacrocevm.htm

Notable recipients

Ernest Hemingway in Milan 1918 retouched 3

Italo Balbo Italo Balbo (6 June 1896 – 28 June 1940) was an Italian fascist politician and Blackshirts' leader who served as Italy's Marshal of the Air Force, Governor-General of Libya and Commander-in-Chief of Italian North Africa. Due to his young a ...

* William George Barker VC *

Nicola Bellomo Nicola may refer to: People * Nicola (name), including a list of people with the given name or, less commonly, the surname ** Nicola (artist) or Nicoleta Alexandru, singer who represented Romania at the 2003 Eurovision Song Contest * Nicola peopl ...

(twice) *

Alfred-Ingemar Berndt Alfred-Ingemar Berndt (22 April 1905 – 28 March 1945) was a German Nazi journalist, writer and close collaborator of Reich Minister of Public Enlightenment and Propaganda Joseph Goebbels. Berndt joined the Nazi Party at the age of 18 and becam ...

* Aaron Bradshaw Jr. * Carlo Emanuele Buscaglia *

Federico Cafiero Federico Cafiero (24 May 1914 – 7 May 1980) was an Italian mathematician known for his contributions in real analysis, measure and integration theory, and in the theory of ordinary differential equations. In particular, generalizing the Vitali ...

Mark W. Clark Mark Wayne Clark (May 1, 1896 – April 17, 1984) was a United States Army officer who saw service during World War I, World War II, and the Korean War. He was the youngest four-star general in the US Army during World War II. During World War I ...

* Gino De Giorgi (twice) * Ludovico De Filippi *

George Dey George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Preside ...

Arturo Ferrarin Arturo Ferrarin (13 February 1895 – 18 July 1941) was an Italian pioneer aviator. His exploits included winning the "Rome-Tokyo Raid" air race in 1920 and a non-stop flight from Italy to Brazil in 1928 with fellow aviator Carlo Del Prete. The la ...

Alfred Gause Alfred Gause (14 February 1896 – 30 September 1967) was a German general during World War II. Gause took part in World War I, and was awarded both the Iron Cross, both Second and First Class. In the interwar years he was among the 4,000 office ...

Joachim Helbig Joachim Helbig (10 September 1915 – 5 October 1985) was a German bomber pilot during World War II. He joined the Luftwaffe in 1936 and served almost all of his career with Demonstration Wing 1 (''Lehrgeschwader'' 1 (LG 1)). With his unit, he ...

Ernest Hemingway Ernest Miller Hemingway (July 21, 1899 – July 2, 1961) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and journalist. His economical and understated style—which he termed the iceberg theory—had a strong influence on 20th-century f ...

* Sir William Holmes * Hans Kroh * * Hans-Joachim Marseille *

Mario Masciulli Mario Elbano Masciulli Manelli, Baron Miglianico (Livorno, Italy September 15, 1909 – Caracas, Venezuela October 16, 1991) was a prominent military engineer of the Italian Regia Marina, Major of Genio Navale and belonging to the recognized Decim ...

Walther Nehring Walther Nehring (15 August 1892 – 20 April 1983) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded the Afrika Korps. Early life Nehring was born on 15 August 1892 in Stretzin, West Prussia. Nehring was the descendant of a ...

* Erwin Rommel *

Hans-Ulrich Rudel Hans-Ulrich Rudel (2 July 1916 – 18 December 1982) was a German ground-attack pilot during World War II and a post-war neo-Nazi activist. The most decorated German pilot of the war and the only recipient of the Knight's Cross with G ...

* Hippolyte De La Rue * Emanuele Ruspoli * Nazario Sauro *

Achille Starace Achille Starace (; 18 August 1889 – 29 April 1945) was a prominent leader of Fascist Italy before and during World War II. Early life and career Starace was born in Sannicola, province of Lecce, in southern Apulia. His father was a wine and o ...

Johannes Streich Johannes Streich (16 April 1891 – 20 August 1977) was a German general in the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded the 5th Light Division during the early stages of the North African Campaign. Sacked for his poor performance during the ...

* Walkiria Terradura *

Attilio Teruzzi Attilio Teruzzi (5 May 1882 – 26 April 1950) was an Italian soldier, Italian Empire, colonial administrator, and Fascist politician. Born in Milan, Teruzzi completed military studies and was promoted colonel in the Italian Army at the unusual ...

Edmond Thieffry Edmond Thieffry (28 September 1892 – 11 April 1929) was a Belgian First World War air ace and aviation pioneer. He made, with Léopold Roger and Jef de Bruycker, the first successful flight between Belgium and Congo (then the Belgian Congo ...

* Cervi Brothers * Hans von Luck *

Guido Jung Guido Jung (2 February 1876 – 25 December 1949) was a successful Jewish-born Italian banker and merchant from Sicily. He was a member of the Grand Council of Fascism and served as Italian Minister of Finance from 1932-35 under Benito Mussoli ...

* Vincenzo Maturo *

Ada Gobetti Ada Gobetti (1902 – 1968) was an Italian teacher, journalist and anti-fascist leader. She was born Ada Prospero and later remarried to become Ada Marchesini. Biography With her husband Piero Gobetti she contributed to several antifascist ma ...

Armando Diaz Armando Diaz, 1st Duke della Vittoria, (5 December 1861 – 28 February 1928) was an Italian general and a Marshal of Italy. He is mostly known for his role as Chief of Staff of the Regio Esercito during World War I from November 1917. He ...

* Alfonso Dato

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Silver Medal Of Military Valor Military awards and decorations of Italy Courage awards * ca:Medalla al Valor Militar (Itàlia) fr:Médaille de la valeur militaire (Italie) it:Valor militare zh:银制勇敢勋章

Notable recipients

See also

References