The Militia Long Service Medal was a long service medal awarded by 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 ...

between 1904 and 1930. Militia Long Service Medal, obverse, King George V

Eligibility

Established 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 a ...

by Army Order No. 211 of 1904, the medal was awarded to privates and non-commissioned officers for 18 years efficient and irreproachable service in 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 ...

and attending 15 annual camps. Any previous full-time service in the Regular Army did not count, although service in other volunteer, territorial or auxiliary forces could be counted, provided that five years immediately preceding the award were served with the Militia. Breaks of service of under one year were allowed. In 1906 eligibility was extended by Royal Warrant to certain militia forces overseas, including Bermuda and Malta. The medal ceased to be awarded when, as part of the Haldane Reforms, the Militia was abolished and replaced by 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 ...

on 1 April 1908. The Special Reserve Long Service and Good Conduct Medal was then introduced for service in the new force. The Militia Long Service Medal was again awarded from 1921 when, as part of the reform of part-time forces, the Special Reserve again became the Militia, being restructured in 1924 as a Supplementary Reserve providing specialist technical support to the Regular Army. The Militia Long Service Medal was finally superseded by the

Efficiency Medal The Efficiency Medal was instituted in 1930 for award to part-time warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and men after twelve years of efficient service on the active list of the Militia or the Territorial Army of the United Kingdom, or ...

with bar "Militia" in 1930. Awards were published in Army Orders, with a total of 1,587 medals awarded: 1,446 bearing the effigy of King Edward VII, (awarded 1904–1908); and 141 with that of

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Qu ...

, (awarded 1921–1930). In terms of unit, the following were conferred:

Royal Garrison Artillery The Royal Garrison Artillery (RGA) was formed in 1899 as a distinct arm of the British Army's Royal Regiment of Artillery serving alongside the other two arms of the Regiment, the Royal Field Artillery (RFA) and the Royal Horse Artillery (RHA) ...

: 341; Royal Engineers: 15; Royal Engineer Submarine Miners: 8;

Infantry Infantry is a military specialization which engages in ground combat on foot. Infantry generally consists of light infantry, mountain infantry, motorized infantry & mechanized infantry, airborne infantry, air assault infantry, and mar ...

: 988; Channel Islands (

Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...

and Guernsey): 89;

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

: 131;

Bermuda ) , anthem = "God Save the King" , song_type = National song , song = "Hail to Bermuda" , image_map = , map_caption = , image_map2 = , mapsize2 = , map_caption2 = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = , es ...

:15.

Appearance

The Militia Long Service and Good Conduct Medal is an oval shaped silver medal with a fixed ring suspender at the top, of the following design:
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, ...

depicts the bust of the King in uniform facing left. Originally Edward VII was shown, with the legend, ''EDWARDVS VII REX IMPERATOR''. In 1911 the image was changed to that of George V, the legend reading ''GEORGIVS V BRITT: OMN: REX ET IND: IMP:''.
The reverse bears the words ''MILITIA FOR LONG SERVICE AND GOOD CONDUCT''.
The medal hangs from a 32 mm light blue ribbon threaded through the top ring suspender.
The recipient's service number, rank, name, and unit were impressed on the edge of the medal.

References

External links

Militia Long Service Medalimage
Royal Dublin Fusiliers online museum
Militia Long Service Medal
Online Medals, Medal Encyclopaedia {{Efficiency and long service decorations and medals Long and Meritorious Service Medals of Britain and the Commonwealth