The Nicaraguan Campaign Medal is a
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 h ...
of the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
which was authorized by Presidential Order of
Woodrow Wilson
Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was an American politician and academic who served as the 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921. A member of the Democratic Party, Wilson served as the president of ...
on September 22, 1913. A later medal, the
Second Nicaraguan Campaign Medal was authorized by an act of the
United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is Bicameralism, bicameral, composed of a lower body, the United States House of Representatives, House of Representatives, and an upper body, ...
on November 8, 1929. The two medals were considered two separate awards, with the original medal being commonly referred to as the First Nicaraguan Campaign Medal.
First Nicaraguan Campaign Medal
The First Nicaraguan Campaign Medal was created to recognize those U.S. Navy personnel and
U.S. Marines who had participated in
amphibious actions in Nicaragua between 29 July and 14 November 1912. The following naval commands, and all embarked U.S. Marines, were eligible for the First Nicaraguan Campaign Medal:
* (
gunboat
A gunboat is a naval watercraft designed for the express purpose of carrying one or more guns to bombard coastal targets, as opposed to those military craft designed for naval warfare, or for ferrying troops or supplies.
History Pre-ste ...
)
* (
armored cruiser
The armored cruiser was a type of warship of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. It was designed like other types of cruisers to operate as a long-range, independent warship, capable of defeating any ship apart from a battleship and fast eno ...
)
* (
protected cruiser
Protected cruisers, a type of naval cruiser of the late-19th century, gained their description because an armoured deck offered protection for vital machine-spaces from fragments caused by shells exploding above them. Protected cruisers re ...
)
* (armored cruiser)
* (protected cruiser)
* (
stores ship
Store may refer to:
Enterprises
* Retail store, a shop where merchandise is sold, usually products and usually on a retail basis, and where wares are often kept
** App store, an online retail store where apps are sold, included in many mobile op ...
)
* (armored cruiser)
* (protected cruiser)
The medal for the First Nicaraguan Campaign Medal displayed a
volcano
A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface.
On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates ...
, rising from a
lake
A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...
, with the words “Nicaraguan Campaign” and the date 1912 on the edges of the medal. The medal itself was suspended from a red ribbon with two thick blue stripes. On the reverse of each medal was a Navy or Marine Corps crest, depending on the recipients branch of service.
The First Nicaraguan Campaign Medal was a one-time-only decoration and there were no devices or attachments authorized.
External links
*
*http://www.history.navy.mil/medals/2nic.htm
References
{{Authority control
United States campaign medals
Nicaragua–United States relations