The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is a

military decoration Military awards and decorations are distinctions given as a mark of honor for military heroism, meritorious or outstanding service or achievement. DoD Manual 1348.33, 2010, Vol. 3 A decoration is often a medal consisting of a ribbon and a med ...

of the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national secur ...

, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members for exceptionally distinguished performance of duty contributing to the national security or defense of the United States. The medal was created on July 9, 1970, by President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was t ...

in . President Nixon awarded the first medal, on the day the Executive Order was signed, to General Earle Wheeler, who was retiring from the US Army after serving as

Chief of Staff of the United States Army The chief of staff of the Army (CSA) is a statutory position in the United States Army held by a general officer. As the highest-ranking officer assigned to serve in the Department of the Army, the chief is the principal military advisor and a ...

and then

Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff The chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (CJCS) is the presiding officer of the United States Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The chairman is the highest-ranking and most senior military officer in the United States Armed Forces Chairman: a ...

. It is equivalent to the

United States Department of Homeland Security The United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) is the Federal government of the United States, U.S. United States federal executive departments, federal executive department responsible for public security, roughly comparable to the I ...

Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal The Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the Department of Homeland Security, which is presented to United States Armed Forces servicemembers for exceptionally meritorious service. The current version of the me ...

Criteria

The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is the United States Department of Defense's highest non-combat related military award and it is the highest joint service decoration. The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is awarded only while assigned to a joint activity. Normally, such responsibilities deserving of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal are held by the most senior officers such as the Chairman and

Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff The vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (VJCS) is, by U.S. law, the second highest-ranking military officer in the United States Armed Forces, - Vice Chairman ranking just below the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The vice chairman ...

, the chiefs and vice chiefs of the military services, and commanders and deputy commanders of the

Combatant Command A unified combatant command (CCMD), also referred to as a combatant command, is a joint military command of the United States Department of Defense that is composed of units from two or more service branches of the United States Armed Forces, an ...

s, the

Director of the Joint Staff The director of the Joint Staff (DJS) is a three-star officer who assists the Joint Chiefs of Staff, a cabinet of senior military officers within the United States Armed Forces who advise the secretary of defense and the president on militar ...

, and others whose duties bring them frequently into direct contact with the Secretary of Defense, the Deputy Secretary of Defense, and other senior government officials. In addition, the medal may also be awarded to other service members whose direct and individual contributions to national security or national defense are recognized as being so exceptional in scope and value as to be equivalent to contributions normally associated with positions encompassing broader responsibilities. This decoration takes precedence over the Distinguished Service Medals of the services and is not to be awarded to any individual for a period of service for which an

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 ...

Navy A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...

Air Force An air force – in the broadest sense – is the national military branch that primarily conducts aerial warfare. More specifically, it is the branch of a nation's armed services that is responsible for aerial warfare as distinct from an ar ...

or Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal is awarded.

Appearance

DSM presented to Guy Phillipe, Haitian commander, 2004

The medal is gold in color and on the obverse it features a medium blue enameled pentagon (point up). Superimposed on this is an

American bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche ...

with wings outspread facing left grasping three crossed arrows in its talons and on its breast is a shield of the United States. The pentagon and eagle are enclosed within a gold pieced circle consisting, in the upper half of 13 five-pointed stars and in the lower half, a wreath of laurel on the left and

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

on the right. At the top is a suspender of five graduated gold rays. The reverse of the medal has the inscription "''For Distinguished Service''" at the top in raised letters, and within the pentagon the inscription "FROM THE SECRETARY OF DEFENSE TO", all in raised letters. Additional awards of the Defense Distinguished Service Medal are denoted by oak leaf clusters.

Notable recipients

* Jonathan Howe (six awards) *

Lloyd Austin Lloyd James Austin III (born August 8, 1953) is a retired United States Army four-star general who, since his appointment on January 22, 2021, has served as the 28th United States secretary of defense. He is the first African American to serv ...

(five awards) *

Wesley Clark Wesley Kanne Clark (born December 23, 1944) is a retired United States Army officer. He graduated as valedictorian of the class of 1966 at West Point and was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to the University of Oxford, where he obtained a degree ...

(five awards) * Raymond T. Odierno (five awards) *

Dennis C. Blair Dennis Cutler Blair (born February 4, 1947) is the former United States Director of National Intelligence and is a retired United States Navy admiral who was the commander of U.S. forces in the Pacific region., Aspen Security Forum, 2013 Blair ...

(four awards) *

James B. Busey IV James Buchanan Busey IV (born October 7, 1932) is a former American government official and retired four-star admiral of the United States Navy. He served as Vice Chief of Naval Operations, from 1985 to 1987 and as Commander in Chief, United Sta ...

(four awards) * George W. Casey Jr. (four awards) * William J. Crowe (four awards) * James L. Jones (four awards) *

Timothy J. Keating Timothy John Keating (born November 16, 1948) is a retired United States Navy admiral. During his career, he served as commander of Carrier Group Five, the United States 5th Fleet, the United States Northern Command and North American Aerospace D ...

(four awards) *

Michael Mullen Michael Glenn Mullen (born October 4, 1946) is a retired United States Navy admiral, who served as the 17th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from October 1, 2007, to September 30, 2011. Mullen previously served as the Navy's 28th chief of ...

(four awards) * Richard Myers (four awards) * Peter Pace (four awards) * David Petraeus (four awards) *

Colin Powell Colin Luther Powell ( ; April 5, 1937 – October 18, 2021) was an American politician, statesman, diplomat, and United States Army officer who served as the 65th United States Secretary of State from 2001 to 2005. He was the first African ...

(four awards) *

Victor E. Renuart Jr. Victor Eugene "Gene" Renuart Jr. (born November 26, 1949) is a retired United States Air Force four-star general. His last military assignment was as the commander of United States Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command fro ...

(four awards) * John Shalikashvili (four awards) * Hugh Shelton (four awards) * John Abizaid (three awards) *

John R. Allen John Rutherford Allen (born December 15, 1953) is a retired United States Marine Corps four-star general, and former commander of the NATO International Security Assistance Force and U.S. Forces – Afghanistan (USFOR-A). On September 13, 2014, ...

(three awards) * Peter W. Chiarelli (three awards) *

Vern Clark Vernon Eugene Clark (born September 7, 1944) is a retired admiral who served as the Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) of the United States Navy. He retired on July 22, 2005, making his tenure of five years the second-longest serving CNO behind Arlei ...

(three awards) * James T. Conway (three awards) *

Martin Dempsey Martin “Marty” Edward Dempsey (born March 14, 1952), is a retired United States Army general who served as the 18th chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from October 1, 2011 until September 25, 2015. He previously served as the 37th chief o ...

(three awards) *

Edmund P. Giambastiani Jr. Edmund Peter Giambastiani Jr. (born May 4, 1948) is a retired United States Navy admiral who served as the seventh vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from 2005 to 2007. He retired in 2007, after 37 years of service. Early life and educati ...

(three awards) * Gregory G. Johnson (three awards) *

George Joulwan George Alfred Joulwan (born November 16, 1939, Pottsville, Pennsylvania) is a retired United States Army general who served for 36 years. He finished his military career as the Commander-in-Chief of the United States European Command and NATO' ...

(three awards) *

William H. McRaven William Harry McRaven (born November 6, 1955) is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who served as the ninth commander of the United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) from August 8, 2011 to August 28, 2014. From 2015 to 2018 ...

(three awards) *

David M. Rodriguez David Mitchell "Rod" Rodriguez (born May 23, 1954) is a retired United States Army four-star general who served as the Commander of the United States Africa Command from April 2013 to July 2016. Rodriguez previously served as the Commanding G ...

(three awards) * Curtis Scaparrotti (three awards) * Peter Schoomaker (three awards) *

Kurt W. Tidd Kurt Walter Tidd (born March 26, 1956) is a retired United States Navy admiral. He last served as the Commander, United States Southern Command. Prior to that assignment, Tidd served as Assistant to the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. He a ...

(three awards) *

Thomas D. Waldhauser Thomas David "Tom" Waldhauser (born December 16, 1953) is a retired United States Marine Corps general who was the Commander of United States Africa Command. He previously served as Director for Joint Force Development, J7 on the Joint Chiefs of ...

(three awards) * William E. Ward (three awards) *

James A. Winnefeld Jr. Sandy Winnefeld (born James Alexander Winnefeld Jr.; April 24, 1956) is a retired United States Navy admiral who serves as the chair of the President's Intelligence Advisory Board since May 4, 2022. While on active duty, Winnefeld served as the ...

(three awards) * Creighton Abrams (two awards) * Jeremy M. Boorda (two awards) * William A. Brown (two awards) * Bantz J. Craddock (two awards) * Walter Doran (two awards) *

James O. Ellis Admiral James Oren Ellis Jr. (born July 20, 1947) is a retired 4-star admiral and former Commander, United States Strategic Command, Offutt Air Force Base, Nebraska. He was President and Chief Executive Officer, Institute of Nuclear Power Operatio ...

(two awards) *

William J. Fallon William Joseph Fallon (born December 30, 1944) is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who retired after serving for over 41 years. His last military assignment was as Commander, U.S. Central Command from March 2007 to March 2008. ADM ...

(two awards) * Noel Gayler (two awards) * Andrew Goodpaster (two awards) *

William E. Gortney William Evans "Bill" Gortney (born September 25, 1955) is a retired United States Navy admiral who served as the sixth commander of United States Northern Command and the 23rd commander of North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD). He previ ...

(two awards) *

Alexander Haig Alexander Meigs Haig Jr. (; December 2, 1924February 20, 2010) was United States Secretary of State under President Ronald Reagan and White House Chief of Staff under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford. Prior to and in between these cab ...

(two awards) *

Harry B. Harris Jr. Harry Binkley Harris Jr. (born August 4, 1956) is a retired American diplomat and retired U.S. Navy officer. He was the first Japanese Americans, American of Japanese descent to lead US Pacific Command in the U.S. Navy and was the highest-ranking ...

(two awards) * Thomas B. Hayward (two awards) * James L. Holloway III (two awards) * Jay L. Johnson (two awards) * Frank B. Kelso II (two awards) * Joseph D. Kernan (two awards) *

George E. R. Kinnear II George Espy Ridgeway "Gus" Kinnear II (January 12, 1928 – August 9, 2015) was a four star admiral in the United States Navy who served as U.S. Military Representative, NATO Military Committee from 1981 to 1982. He was born in Mounds, Oklahoma. ...

(two awards) * Samuel J. Locklear (two awards) * Deborah Loewer (two awards) * Jim Mattis (two awards) * Stanley A. McChrystal (two awards) * Mark Milley (two awards) * Thomas Hinman Moorer (two awards) * Donald L. Pilling (two awards) *

Joseph Ralston General Joseph Wood Ralston (born November 4, 1943) is currently the United States Special Envoy for countering the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) and holds senior positions in various defense related corporations. He was previously a career offic ...

(two awards) *

Bernard W. Rogers Bernard William Rogers (July 16, 1921 – October 27, 2008) was a United States Army general who served as the 28th Chief of Staff of the United States Army, and later as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, Europe and Commander in Chief, United Sta ...

(two awards) *

Eric Shinseki Eric Ken Shinseki (; born November 28, 1942) is a retired United States Army general who served as the seventh United States Secretary of Veterans Affairs (2009–2014). His final United States Army post was as the 34th Chief of Staff of the Arm ...

(two awards) * James G. Stavridis (two awards) * Patricia Ann Tracey (two awards) *

Carlisle A.H. Trost Carlisle Albert Herman Trost (April 24, 1930 – September 29, 2020) was a United States Navy officer who served as the 23rd Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) and a member of the Joint Chiefs of Staff from July 1, 1986 to June 29, 1990. He oversaw ...

(two awards) * James D. Watkins (two awards) * Maurice F. Weisner (two awards) * Anthony Zinni (two awards) * J. H. Binford Peay III * Philip M. Breedlove * Frank Bowman * Nancy Elizabeth Brown *

Ronald Burgess Lieutenant General Ronald Lee Burgess Jr., United States Army (born September 16, 1952) is a retired United States Army lieutenant general. His last military assignment was as the 17th director of the Defense Intelligence Agency and commander of ...

(two awards) *

Wendi B. Carpenter Rear Admiral Wendi Bryan Carpenter (born February 4, 1956) is a retired United States Navy flag officer and naval aviator. She is also a past president of the State University of New York Maritime College. Background Carpenter is the daughter ...

Bruce W. Clingan Bruce Waid Clingan (born c. 1955) is a retired United States Navy admiral who last served as Commander of United States Naval Forces Europe, United States Naval Forces Africa and Allied Joint Force Command Naples from February 24, 2012 to July 22, ...

* Robert H. Conn * Michael P. DeLong * Leon A. Edney * Craig S. Faller * Mark E. Ferguson III * James R. Fitzgerald *

Mark P. Fitzgerald Mark P. Fitzgerald (born 1951) is a retired United States Navy admiral. He is the former Commander, United States Naval Forces Europe – Commander, United States Naval Forces Africa and Commander, Allied Joint Force Command Naples. He previously ...

* William J. Flanagan Jr. * Michael Flynn *

Tommy Franks Tommy Ray Franks (born 17 June 1945) is a retired general in the United States Army. His last army post was as the Commander of the United States Central Command, overseeing United States military operations in a 25-country region, including the ...

* Douglas M. Fraser * John Galvin *

Harold W. Gehman Jr. Harold Webster Gehman Jr. (born October 15, 1942) is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who served as NATO's Supreme Allied Commander, Atlantic (SACLANT), Commander-in-Chief of the United States Joint Forces Command, one of the Unit ...

Jonathan W. Greenert Jonathan William Greenert (born May 15, 1953) is a former United States Navy Admiral (United States), admiral who served as the 30th Chief of Naval Operations from September 23, 2011, to September 18, 2015. He previously served as the 36th Vice C ...

Cecil D. Haney Cecil Eugene Diggs Haney (born December 1, 1955) is a retired United States Navy admiral who served as Commander, United States Strategic Command (STRATCOM) from November 15, 2013 to November 3, 2016. Prior to STRATCOM, he served as Commander, Unit ...

* Huntington Hardisty *

John C. Harvey Jr. John Collins Harvey Jr. (born December 17, 1951) is a former United States Navy four-star admiral who last served as the 31st Commander, United States Fleet Forces Command from July 24, 2009 to September 14, 2012. He previously served as Director, ...

* Michelle Howard * Grace Hopper * Rick Husband * Daniel James Jr. *

David E. Jeremiah David Elmer Jeremiah (February 25, 1934 – October 7, 2013) was a United States Navy admiral who served as the second vice chairman and also the acting chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. After his retirement from the Navy in February 19 ...

John F. Kelly John Francis Kelly (born May 11, 1950) is an American former political advisor and retired U.S. Marine Corps general who served as White House chief of staff for President Donald Trump from July 31, 2017, to January 2, 2019. He had previousl ...

* Isaac C. Kidd Jr. * Charles R. Larson *

Thomas J. Lopez Admiral Thomas Joseph Lopez (born January 29, 1940) is a retired United States Navy four-star admiral who served as Commander in Chief, United States Naval Forces Europe United States Naval Forces Europe-Africa (CNE-CNA), is the United States Nav ...

Richard C. Macke Richard Chester Macke (January 4, 1938 – December 7, 2022) was a naval aviator and a former four-star admiral in the United States Navy. He last served as Commander of United States Pacific Command (USPACOM) from July 19, 1994, until January 31 ...

* William C. McCool *

Wesley L. McDonald Wesley Lee McDonald (July 6, 1924February 8, 2009) was a United States Navy admiral and naval aviator. He led the first air strike against North Vietnam after the Gulf of Tonkin incident and was the commander in charge of Operation Urgent Fur ...

* Richard W. Mies * Michael H. Miller * Carl Epting Mundy Jr. * Eric T. Olson *

William A. Owens William A. Owens, (November 2, 1905 — December 9, 1990), was an American writer, folkloristics, folklorist and educator. Biography Owens was born in Pin Hook, Texas, Pin Hook, Lamar County, Texas. He was born to Charlie and Jessie Ann Chen ...

* Joseph Prueher * Dennis Reimer * Gary Roughead * Ricardo Sanchez * Norman Schwarzkopf Jr. *

Leighton W. Smith Jr. Leighton Warren Smith Jr. (born August 20, 1939) is a former United States Navy admiral. In 1994, he became the Commander in Chief of United States Naval Forces Europe and Allied Forces Southern Europe, holding the commands during the height of ...

* Vincent R. Stewart *

Harry D. Train II Harry Depue Train II (born November 5, 1927) is a retired United States Navy admiral and a Senior Fellow at the Joint Advanced Warfighting School at the Joint Forces Staff College in Norfolk, Virginia.Stephen J. Townsend * Carlisle Trost * Earle Wheeler *

Charles E. Wilhelm Charles Elliott Wilhelm (born August 26, 1941) is a decorated retired United States Marine Corps General who served two combat tours of duty in Vietnam. He later served as Commanding General of the 1st Marine Division; as a Deputy Assistant Secr ...

Alexander F. Krichevsky Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Ale ...

* Robert F. Willard *

Ronald J. Zlatoper Ronald Joseph Zlatoper (March 21, 1942 – April 21, 2022) was a United States Navy four star admiral who served as Commander in Chief, United States Pacific Fleet (CINCPACFLT) from 1994 to 1996. Zlatoper was born in Cleveland, Ohio. Zlatoper w ...

* Bradley A. Heithold - John Zirkelbach (two awards)

References

External links

* {{Authority control Awards and decorations of the United States Department of Defense Awards established in 1970