The Canadian Forces' Decoration (

post-nominal letters Post-nominal letters, also called post-nominal initials, post-nominal titles, designatory letters, or simply post-nominals, are letters placed after a person's name to indicate that the individual holds a position, an academic degree, accreditation ...

"CD") is a Canadian award bestowed upon members of the

Canadian Armed Forces The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; , FAC) are the unified Military, military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air commands referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force. Under the ''National Defenc ...

who have completed twelve years of military service, with certain conditions. By convention, it is also given to the

governor general of Canada The governor general of Canada () is the federal representative of the . The monarch of Canada is also sovereign and head of state of 14 other Commonwealth realms and resides in the United Kingdom. The monarch, on the Advice (constitutional la ...

upon their appointment, which includes the title of Commander-in-Chief in and over Canada. The decoration is awarded to all ranks, who must have a good record of conduct during the final eight years of claimed service. The first governor general to receive the CD was Viscount Alexander of Tunis in 1951. The medal was initially awarded to all members of the Royal Family who served in the Canadian Forces, even without completion of twelve years of service; this has, however, not been automatic since 1953.

Criteria

The decoration is awarded to officers and non-commissioned members of the Regular and Reserve forces, including honorary appointments within the Canadian Armed Forces. However, time served while on the Supplementary Reserve List does not apply. The medal may be awarded to persons in possession of any long service, good conduct, or efficiency decoration or medal clasps, provided that the individual has completed the full qualifying periods of service for each award and that no service qualifying towards one award is permitted to count towards any other. Service in the regular and reserve or auxiliary forces of the

Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, often referred to as the British Commonwealth or simply the Commonwealth, is an International organization, international association of member states of the Commonwealth of Nations, 56 member states, the vast majo ...

is counted towards the decoration if the final five years have been served with the Canadian Armed Forces and no other long service, good conduct, or efficiency medal has been awarded for the same service.

Appearance

The medal is decagonal (ten-sided, representing the ten provinces), 36 millimetres across the flats, with raised busts. The King George VI medal is .800 fine silver and gilded. The Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III medal is tombac (a copper-zinc alloy). A gilded copper version was introduced in 2008. The King George VI medal has the uncrowned coinage head of

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of In ...

, facing left, with the inscription around the edge. The Queen Elizabeth II medal has the uncrowned coinage head of Queen Elizabeth II, facing right, with the inscription around the edge with the word ''Canada'' at the bottom. The King Charles III medal has the uncrowned head of King Charles III, facing right with the inscription around the edge with the word ''Canada'' at the bottom. The reverse of the medal has a naval crown, three maple leaves and an eagle representing the navy, army and air force from top to bottom. The word ''service'' is on a scroll at the base and a fleur-de-lis is on each side of the crown. The

royal cypher In modern heraldry, a royal cypher is a monogram or monogram-like device of a country's reigning Monarch, sovereign, typically consisting of the initials of the monarch's name and title, sometimes interwoven and often surmounted by a Crown (heral ...

is superimposed on the centre of the King George VI medal, but is omitted from later variants of the medal. The King George VI medal has the name and rank of the person to whom the medal was awarded engraved on the reverse of the solid bar while the Queen Elizabeth II and King Charles III medal has the name and rank engraved around the edge of the medal. Early Queen Elizabeth II medals have the letters stamped rather than engraved. A clasp, also known as a bar, is awarded for every 10 years of subsequent service. The clasp is tombac and is high, has the Canadian coat of arms in the centre surmounted by a crown, and is gold in colour. This is indicated on the undress ribbon by a rosette. Recipients of the Canadian Forces' Decoration are entitled to use the post nominal letters "CD". This post-nominal is not affected by the awarding of clasps.

Notable recipients

Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother Elizabeth Angela Marguerite Bowes-Lyon (4 August 1900 – 30 March 2002) was Queen of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 to 6 February 1952 as the wife of King George VI. She was al ...

, 5 clasps * Air Commodore Leonard Birchall, 5 clasps *

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

, no clasps worn by choice *

Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (born Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark, later Philip Mountbatten; 10 June 19219 April 2021), was the husband of Queen Elizabeth II. As such, he was the consort of the British monarch from h ...

, 5 clasps *

King Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and ...

, 3 clasps *

Queen Camilla Camilla (born Camilla Rosemary Shand, later Parker Bowles, 17 July 1947) is List of British royal consorts, Queen of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms as the wife of King Charles III. Camilla was raised in East ...

* Major-General James George Ross, 95; enrolled 1879, First World War veteran, honorary colonel of the Royal Canadian Army Pay Corps from 1948 to 1955, invested with the insignia in 1956 as the oldest member of the Canadian Forces to receive the CD * Ranger Abraham Metatawabin, 92, served as a Ranger from 1963 to 1971. He re-enrolled in 1995 and remained a member of the Fort Albany patrol. He is a former chief of Fort Albany. * Ranger Richard Newell, 5 clasps. The only person to be awarded a 5th clasp with a non-honourary position. He joined the CAF in 1957, retiring in 1986, when he joined the Canadian Rangers with whom he is currently serving. In June 2025 he was awarded his 5th clasp.16 June 2025 story accessed 16 June 2025, https://www.canada.ca/en/army/news-publications/2025/06/car-dedication.html

Notes and references

Explanatory notes

Citations

General and cited references

External links

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View Decoration
{{Canadian Honours System 1949 establishments in Canada Awards established in 1949 Long and Meritorious Service Medals of Britain and the Commonwealth Military awards and decorations of Canada