The Army of Occupation of Germany Medal is a

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

service medal A service medal is an award to individuals who participated in designated wars, campaigns, or expeditions, or who have fulfilled specific service requirements in a creditable manner. Service medals are sometimes also Campaign medals. Examples of s ...

established by an

Act of Congress An Act of Congress is a statute enacted by the United States Congress. Acts may apply only to individual entities (called private laws), or to the general public ( public laws). For a bill to become an act, the text must pass through both house ...

on November 21, 1941, (55 Stat 781). The military award recognized service in Germany or Austria-Hungary between November 12, 1918 and July 11, 1923.

Background

The Army of Occupation of Germany Medal was established by Public Law 322,

77th United States Congress The 77th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1941, ...

on November 21, 1941, and announced in War Department Bulletin 34, dated December 10, 1941, and War Department Circular 176 dated June 6, 1942.

Design

The Army of Occupation of Germany Medal was designed by Mr. T. A. Rovelstad, Heraldic Division, Office of the Quartermaster General, in June 1942, and was approved by the Secretary of War on July 8, 1942. The medal is Bronze and 1 1/4 inches in diameter. On the obverse is a profile of General John J. Pershing, encircled by four stars indicating his insignia of grade as Commanding General of the Field Forces. In the lower left is the inscription "GENERAL JOHN J. PERSHING" and on the right is a laurel wreath superimposed by a sword with the dates "1918" and "1923" enclosed by the wreath. The obverse of the medal includes the dates of the U.S. Occupation of Germany. The reverse depicts the American eagle perched with outspread wings standing on

Ehrenbreitstein Fortress Ehrenbreitstein Fortress (german: Festung Ehrenbreitstein, ) is a fortress in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, on the east bank of the Rhine where it is joined by the Moselle, overlooking the town of Koblenz. Occupying the position of an ...

, , which overlooks the

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , source ...

Coblenz Koblenz (; Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz''), spelled Coblenz before 1926, is a German city on the banks of the Rhine and the Moselle, a multi-nation tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman military post by Drusus around 8 B.C. Its nam ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

, encircled by the words "U.S. ARMY OF OCCUPATION OF GERMANY" and three stars at the bottom of the medal. The three stars on the reverse symbolize the Third Army, which comprised the occupation forces of Germany. The ribbon is 1 3/8 inches in width consisting of the following stripes: 1/16 inch Ultramarine Blue 67118; 1/16 inch Scarlet 67111; 3/16 inch White 67101; 3/4 inch Black 67138 (center); 3/16 inch White; 1/16 inch Scarlet; 1/16 inch Ultramarine Blue.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1941 establishments in the United States Aftermath of World War II in Germany Awards established in 1941 United States service medals