The ''Croix de Guerre 1939–1945'' (

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ...

: War Cross 1939–1945) is a French military decoration, a version of the '' Croix de Guerre'' created on 26 September 1939 to honour people who fought with the

Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...

against the Axis forces at any time during

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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

. After Germany invaded and overran mainland France in the

Battle of France The Battle of France (french: bataille de France) (10 May – 25 June 1940), also known as the Western Campaign ('), the French Campaign (german: Frankreichfeldzug, ) and the Fall of France, was the German invasion of France during the Second Wor ...

in May and June 1940, this ''Croix de Guerre'' was replaced by the pro-Axis

Vichy French Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its ter ...

government with another ''Croix'' with a black-and-green ribbon, while the original was upheld by Free France. Since the triumph of the Free French side in World War II, this version is the only one officially recognized by the

French government The Government of France ( French: ''Gouvernement français''), officially the Government of the French Republic (''Gouvernement de la République française'' ), exercises executive power in France. It is composed of the Prime Minister, who ...

Award statute

Due to the large extent of the war zone, recipients included those who fought during, with, at, or in the following: *

* French Forces of the Interior * Free French Forces *

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers * Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a maj ...

* Middle East Theater * Mediterranean Theater * African campaigns

Award description

Medal

The ''Croix de Guerre'' was designed by the sculptor Paul-Albert Bartholomé. The medal is in size and is in the shape of a

Maltese cross The Maltese cross is a cross symbol, consisting of four " V" or arrowhead shaped concave quadrilaterals converging at a central vertex at right angles, two tips pointing outward symmetrically. It is a heraldic cross variant which develope ...

with two

sword A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed ti ...

s criss-crossed through the center. In the center of the front is the profile of the French Republic crested by a Phrygian cap. Around this portrait, are the words ''République française'' ("French Republic"). On the reverse of the medal are the dates of the conflict : 1939–1940, 1939–1945, or simply 1940.

Ribbon

The suspension and service ribbon of the medal has a red background crossed with four green lines in its center.

Devices

On every medal and ribbon, there is at least one ribbon device, either in the shape of a palm or of a star, and fashioned from either

bronze Bronze is an alloy consisting primarily of copper, commonly with about 12–12.5% tin and often with the addition of other metals (including aluminium, manganese, nickel, or zinc) and sometimes non-metals, such as phosphorus, or metalloids suc ...

silver Silver is a chemical element with the symbol Ag (from the Latin ', derived from the Proto-Indo-European ''h₂erǵ'': "shiny" or "white") and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it exhibits the highest electrical ...

, or silver-gilt (vermeil). The relative importance of the six possible combinations is detailed below. The total number of devices on a ''"Croix de Guerre"'' is not limited.

Award grades

Mentioned in Despatches

The lowest degree is represented by a bronze star while the highest degree is represented by a bronze palm: * Bronze star (''étoile en bronze'') for those who had been mentioned at the

regiment A regiment is a military unit. Its role and size varies markedly, depending on the country, service and/or a specialisation. In Medieval Europe, the term "regiment" denoted any large body of front-line soldiers, recruited or conscript ...

brigade A brigade is a major tactical military formation that typically comprises three to six battalions plus supporting elements. It is roughly equivalent to an enlarged or reinforced regiment. Two or more brigades may constitute a division. ...

level. * Silver star (''étoile en argent''), for those who had been mentioned at the division level. * Silver-gilt star (''étoile en vermeil''), for those who had been mentioned at the

corps Corps (; plural ''corps'' ; from French , from the Latin "body") is a term used for several different kinds of organization. A military innovation by Napoleon I, the formation was first named as such in 1805. The size of a corps varies great ...

level. *

Croix de guerre 1939-1945 with palm France - ribbon bar

Bronze palm (''palme en bronze''), for those who had been mentioned at the

army An army (from Old French ''armee'', itself derived from the Latin verb ''armāre'', meaning "to arm", and related to the Latin noun ''arma'', meaning "arms" or "weapons"), ground force or land force is a fighting force that fights primarily on ...

level. *

UK_Queen%27s_Commendation_for_Valuable_Service_device

Silver palm (''palme en argent''), represents five bronze ones. * Silver-gilt palm (''palme en vermeil''), for those who had been mentioned at the Free French Forces level (World War II only). The clasps are awarded for gallantry to any member of the French military or its allies and are, depending on the degree, roughly the equivalent to the U.S.

Bronze Star The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone. W ...

and Silver Star or UK

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 ...

and Military Medal.

Vichy France Vichy France (french: Régime de Vichy; 10 July 1940 – 9 August 1944), officially the French State ('), was the fascist French state headed by Marshal Philippe Pétain during World War II. Officially independent, but with half of its t ...
version

Following the German invasion and occupation of France in May 1940, the French

collaborationist Wartime collaboration is cooperation with the enemy against one's country of citizenship in wartime, and in the words of historian Gerhard Hirschfeld, "is as old as war and the occupation of foreign territory". The term ''collaborator'' dates to ...

government (officially called ''État français'', the "French State") created two ''croix'' during World War II, both utilizing a black-and-green ribbon pattern instead of the original red-and-green. These ''croix'' were both disavowed by the Free French government and the postwar French government, and wearing them is illegal in France. The Vichy Croix de Guerre employed the same tiered citations for the award as the officially-recognised version, excluding the added gilt palm.

Notable non-French recipients

* Omar Bradley * Joseph Collins *

Douglas Fairbanks, Jr. Douglas Elton Fairbanks Jr., (December 9, 1909 – May 7, 2000) was an American actor, producer and decorated naval officer of World War II. He is best known for starring in such films as ''The Prisoner of Zenda'' (1937), ''Gunga Din'' (1939) ...

* Frantz Fanon *

Virginia Hall Virginia Hall Goillot DSC, Croix de Guerre, (April 6, 1906 – July 8, 1982), code named Marie and Diane, was an American who worked with the United Kingdom's clandestine Special Operations Executive (SOE) and the American Office of Stra ...

Courtney Hodges General Courtney Hicks Hodges (January 5, 1887 – January 16, 1966) was a decorated senior officer in the United States Army who commanded First U.S. Army in the Western European Campaign of World War II. Hodges was a notable "mustang" office ...

* Lyman Lemnitzer * Audie Murphy *

George S. Patton, Jr. George Smith Patton Jr. (November 11, 1885 – December 21, 1945) was a General (United States), general in the United States Army who commanded the Seventh United States Army in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations, Mediterranean Theater ...

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 1921 – 9 April 2021) was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he served as the consort of the British monarch from E ...

* Rainier III, Prince of Monaco *

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American military leader who served as General of the Army for the United States, as well as a field marshal to the Philippine Army. He had served with distinction in World War I, was ...

* Matthew Ridgway *

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military pilot. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morality ...

* Maxwell Taylor *

Paul F. Warburg Paul Felix Warburg (October 6, 1904 – October 8, 1965) was a Jewish-American banker from New York. Life Warburg was born on October 6, 1904 in New York City, New York, the son of banker Felix M. Warburg and philanthropist Frieda Schiff. A mem ...

* William Westmoreland *

Earle Wheeler Earle Gilmore Wheeler (January 13, 1908 – December 18, 1975), nicknamed Bus, was a United States Army general who served as the chief of Staff of the United States Army from 1962 to 1964 and then as the sixth chairman of the Joint Chiefs ...

* Tommy Yeo-Thomas

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Croix de guerre 1939-1945 (France) Military awards and decorations of France Awards established in 1939 1939 establishments in France Courage awards