Medalje vir Troue Diens


The Medalje vir Troue Diens - Medal for Loyal Service was instituted by the President of the Republic of South Africa on 16 April 2003 and came into effect on 27 April 2003. It can be awarded to all ranks whose character and conduct have been irreproachable and who have completed ten years of qualifying service.

The South African military

The Union Defence Forces were established in 1912 and renamed the South African Defence Force in 1958. On 27 April 1994, it was integrated with six other independent forces into the South African National Defence Force.

Institution

The Medalje vir Troue Diens - Medal for Loyal Service was instituted by the President on 16 April 2003 and came into effect on 27 April 2003. The bilingual title of the medal is in Afrikaans and English.

Award criteria

The medal can be awarded to all ranks of the South African National Defence Force and of any Auxiliary Service of the South African National Defence Force, whose character and conduct have been irreproachable and who, on or after 27 April 2003, have completed ten years of qualifying service, not necessarily continuous. The medal and the Bars to the medal may be awarded posthumously. Qualifying service include service in the former constituent permanent or part-time forces of the SANDF as well as other former uniformed establishments, such as the Police forces and Prisons services of South Africa, the Republics of Transkei, Bophuthatswana, Venda and Ciskei and the Self-Governing Territories.
Upon completion of further periods of ten years of qualifying service, the Medalje vir Troue Diens - Medal for Loyal Service and the appropriate bar may be awarded in addition to previous medals for long service which had been awarded for service in these former forces.
Guidelines, consisting of appropriate words or phrases which may be useful when writing a citation for the award of the Medalje vir Troue Diens - Medal for Loyal Service, have been published by the South African Defence Department.

Orders of wear

Only one medal is conferred and, for each additional period of ten years of qualifying service to a maximum of another forty years, altogether four bars may be awarded to denote subsequent conferments of the medal. The position of the Medalje vir Troue Diens - Medal for Loyal Service in the official military and national orders of precedence depends on which bars for further periods of service beyond ten years, if any, had been awarded to the recipient.

Medalje vir Troue Diens - Medal for Loyal Service

In respect of the Medalje vir Troue Diens without a bar, for ten years service, the official order of precedence is as follows:

;Official military order of precedence:
;Official national order of precedence:
In respect of the Medalje vir Troue Diens and Bar for twenty years service, the official order of precedence is as follows:

;Official military order of precedence:
;Official national order of precedence:
In respect of the Medalje vir Troue Diens and Bar for thirty years service, the official order of precedence is as follows:

;Official military order of precedence:
;Official national order of precedence:
In respect of the Medalje vir Troue Diens and Bar for forty years service, the official order of precedence is as follows:

;Official military order of precedence:
;Official national order of precedence:
In respect of the Medalje vir Troue Diens and Bar for fifty years service, the official order of precedence is as follows:

;Official military order of precedence:
;Official national order of precedence:
The Emblem for Reserve Force Service, post-nominal letters RD, was instituted on 27 April 2003 and may be awarded to members in the part-time Reserves of the South African National Defence Force who have performed twenty years of loyal service, of which not less than five years were served in the Reserve Force, service in the former Citizen Force or Commandos included. The emblem is worn on the centre of the ribbon of the Medalje vir Troue Diens - Medal for Loyal Service, above any bars awarded for periods of extended service, and may be continued to be worn even if the recipient is later appointed in the Regular Force.
The conferring of the Emblem for Reserve Force Service entitles recipients to the use of the post-nominal letters RD, denoting "Reserve Distinction".

Description

;Obverse
The Medalje vir Troue Diens - Medal for Loyal Service was struck in nickel-silver, circular in shape with a diameter of 38 millimetres and a raised edge, with the edge evenly scalloped. The obverse of the medal bears the Coat of Arms of the Republic of South Africa in relief.
;Reverse
The reverse bears the emblem of the South African National Defence Force at the top and is inscribed, in relief, with the words "VIR TROUE DIENS" around the lower perimeter, with the medal number impressed between the emblem and the inscription. The medal is attached to a plain nickel-silver suspender affixed to the upper rim of the medal.
;Ribbon
The ribbon is 32 millimetres wide and national flag green, with a 3 millimetres wide national flag red band and a 3 millimetres wide white band on the left edge, and a 3 millimetres wide white band and a 3 millimetres wide national flag blue band on the right edge.
;Bars
The bars are 33 millimetres wide and 5 millimetres high, with the Arabic numerals "20", "30", "40" or "50" respectively in relief in the centre. When only a ribbon bar is worn, silhouette button replicas of the medal, 8 millimetres in diameter and with the Arabic numerals "20", "30", "40" or "50" respectively in relief, is affixed to the ribbon bar to denote each bar awarded, evenly spaced on the breadth of the ribbon. The bars and ribbon buttons are struck in the following metals:
;Emblem for Reserve Force Service
The Emblem for Reserve Force Service consists of the uppercase letters "RD", 8 millimetres high and struck in silver.