Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct (Military)


The Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct is a medal awarded to regular members of the armed forces. It was instituted by King George V in 1930 and replaced the Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal as well as the Permanent Forces of the Empire Beyond the Seas Medal. The medal was originally awarded to Regular Army warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and men of the UK Armed Forces. It also had a number of territorial versions for the Permanent Forces of the British Dominions. The eligibility criteria were relaxed in 1947 to also allow the award of the medal to officers who had served a minimum period in the ranks before being commissioned. Since 2016, the eligibility was widened to include officers who had never served in the ranks, and so the medal can now be awarded to all regular members of the British Army who meet the required length of service.

Overview

In the complex British honours system, there were distinct awards for officers and men of the Navy, Army and Air Force, and separate awards for the Regular Force or Reserve components. Regular Force officers were not eligible for any long service awards since, as they held a commission, they were expected to serve honourably and for a long period of time. Reserve Force officers were eligible for various long service decorations that granted them the use of post-nominal letters, while Reserve Force other ranks were eligible for various long service and good conduct medals, but without post-nominals.

Predecessors

The United Kingdom's Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal was instituted by King William IV in 1830.
In 1895 Queen Victoria authorised Colonial governments to adopt, amongst others, this medal and to award it to other ranks of their own permanent military forces. Territories that took advantage of the authorisation include Canada, Cape of Good Hope, India, Natal, New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and, from 1902, the Commonwealth of Australia. Each territorial version of the medal had the name of the respective territory inscribed in a curved line above the inscription on the reverse.
In 1910 the Permanent Forces of the Empire Beyond the Seas Medal was instituted as a single common award to supersede these territorial versions of the Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal.

Institution

On 23 September 1930 the Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct was instituted by King George V as a single medal for the regular other ranks of the British Army and those of all Permanent Forces of the British Empire. The new medal, which replaced the Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal as well as the Permanent Forces of the Empire Beyond the Seas Medal, once again had various territorial versions, this time in the form of subsidiary titles inscribed on a bar attached to the suspender of the medal rather than on the medal's reverse.
These subsidiary titles were "Regular Army" on the bar of the medal for the British Army and the name of the dominion country on the bars of the medals for Australia, Canada, India and New Zealand. Apart from the bars, all but one of the medals were identical. The Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct, introduced in December 1939, was the exception since the inscriptions on its bar as well as on the reverse of the medal were bilingual, in Afrikaans and English on the bar and in English and Afrikaans on the medal reverse. Instead of the name of the country, the South African medal displayed the inscriptions "STAANDE MAG" and "PERMANENT FORCE" in two lines on the suspender bar.

Award criteria

When it was instituted, the medal could be awarded to Regular Force warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and men of the British Army after eighteen years of unblemished service. Qualifying service included service rendered by a soldier whilst under the age of eighteen, while service in West Africa and in certain parts of the Anglo-Egyptian Sudan was reckoned two-fold as qualifying service.
The medal and the clasp could initially only be awarded to men, but on 9 February 1955 the criteria were amended by Queen Elizabeth II to also apply to women members of the Armed Forces of the United Kingdom and of the Permanent Forces of member countries of the Commonwealth.
The qualifying period was reduced to fifteen years with effect from 1 December 1977. Possibly at the same time, the criteria in respect of reckonable service whilst under the age of eighteen was amended to be from date of attestation or age 17½, whichever is later.
;Eligibility
The Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct may be awarded to members of the UK Armed Forces who have completed eighteen years of reckonable service. However, there are a number of offences which would normally preclude award of the medal and awards are only made after a thorough check of a soldier's service record. The award of the medal required the recommendation of the individual's commanding officer and it could therefore only be awarded to serving personnel.
;Clasp
On 26 August 1944 a clasp to the medal was instituted by King George VI. The clasp could be awarded to holders of the Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct for additional periods of eighteen years of good service, reckoned from the date of the Army Order that announced their respective earlier awards. Holders of the earlier Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal were not awarded the clasp, but were instead awarded the Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct in addition to the discontinued earlier medal.
The reckoning method was amended by King George VI on 1 May 1947 to be from the qualifying date for the award of the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal or the Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal.
In October 2016, regulations were changed allowing the award of the clasp after an additional 10 years of service that meets conduct criteria.
;Officers
Regular Force officers were traditionally not eligible for any long service awards. From 1 May 1947 British Army officers also became eligible for the award of the medal, but only if at least twelve of their eighteen years of qualifying service had been in the ranks before being commissioned and provided that the conduct requirements for the award of the medal had been met.
Also from that date, an officer became eligible for the award of the clasp or, for holders of the discontinued Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal, the award of the Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct in addition to the earlier medal, if at least nine of the eighteen years of the second qualifying period of service had been in the ranks and provided that the conduct requirements had been met.
Effective October 2016, officers who were serving in the UK Armed Forces on or after 29 July 2014 are eligible for award of the Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. To be eligible for the medal officers must have had a clear disciplinary record during the time of service. Subsequent service of 10 years is recognized with a clasp, so long as the individual has continued to have a clear disciplinary record.

Order of wear

In the order of wear prescribed by the British Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood, the Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct and its territorial versions rank on par with the Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal and the Permanent Forces of the Empire Beyond the Seas Medal that it had replaced. It takes precedence after the Accumulated Campaign Service Medal and before the Naval Long Service and Good Conduct Medal.

Description

The medal was struck in silver and is a disk, in diameter.
;Obverse
The obverse of the medal shows the effigy of the reigning monarch. Two versions of the medal each were produced during the reigns of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth II. All versions of the medal have the same ornamented scroll pattern suspender, attached to the bottom of a bar inscribed "REGULAR ARMY" and affixed to the medal with a single-toe claw and a horizontal pin through the upper edge of the medal.
;Reverse
The reverse of the medal remained unchanged through all versions of the obverse. It is smooth, with a raised rim, and bears the inscription "FOR LONG SERVICE AND GOOD CONDUCT" in four lines. The reverse of the bar is smooth and undecorated on all versions.
;Clasp
The Clasp displays the image of the Army Crest. In undress uniform a silver rosette on the ribbon bar denotes the award of the clasp.
;Ribbon
The ribbon is identical to the one that was introduced for the Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal in June 1916. It is 32 millimetres wide and crimson or sometimes reddish violet, edged with 3 millimetres wide white bands.

Versions

;King George V
The first version of the medal, depicted at the head of the article, has a raised rim and the obverse shows the crowned effigy of King George V, in Coronation robes and facing left. It is inscribed "GEORGIVS•V•D•G•BRITT•OMN•REX•ET•INDIÆ•IMP•" around the perimeter.
;King George VI
The first King George VI version appeared after he succeeded to the throne on 11 December 1936. The medal also has a raised rim and shows the crowned effigy of the King, facing left. The medal is inscribed "GEORGIVS VI D: G: BR: OMN: REX ET INDIÆ: IMP:" around the perimeter, reading from the eight o'clock position.
A second King George VI version appeared in 1949 following the granting of independence to India, when the King's official title changed from "Monarch of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India" to "Monarch of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Monarch of India". This version is inscribed "GEORGIVS VI DEI: GRA: BRITT: OMN: REX FID: DEF:" around the perimeter, reading from a cross at the eight o'clock position.
;Queen Elizabeth II
The first Queen Elizabeth II version appeared after she succeeded to the throne on 6 February 1952. The medal shows a crowned effigy of the Queen, facing right, and is inscribed "ELIZABETH II D: G: BR: OMN: REGINA F: D:", reading around from the top. The effigy was designed by sculptor Cecil Thomas OBE and was used on a number of medals.
After her Coronation on 2 June 1953, a second Queen Elizabeth II version was introduced in 1954, with the same effigy as before but inscribed "ELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINA. F. D.", also reading around from the top. This version remained in use until 1980.

Notable recipients

In March 2015 the intention to introduce a single new long service medal for all three Service Arms was announced by the United Kingdom's Government, to replace the Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct, the Naval Long Service and Good Conduct Medal and the Royal Air Force Long Service and Good Conduct Medal. The proposed medal will be awarded after fifteen years of service, regardless of rank, and while the good conduct element of the award criteria will remain, it will only apply to the last five years of the fifteen-year aggregate time served requirement. With this medal officers, who have had no medallic recognition for long service unless they were commissioned after serving at least twelve years in the ranks, will also be rewarded for their dedication. Subject to agreement from Her Majesty The Queen, a new medal design will be commissioned and the first presentations should take place in 2016.
In October 2016, it was announced that the Long Service and Good Conduct Medals of the respective services would be extended to all personnel, including officers, who meet the requirements of award. This change is retroactive to those officers still on active service from 29 July 2014. Additionally, clasps will be awarded for an additional 10 years of eligible service with a back date to 29 July 2014 for officers and to 1 October 2016 for other ranks.