King Albert Medal

King Albert Medal
	King Albert Medal (obverse)
Type	War medal
Awarded for	Humanitarian assistance to Belgians during World War 1
Presented by	Kingdom of Belgium
Eligibility	Belgian citizens and foreign nationals
Status	No longer awarded
Established	7 April 1919
	Reverse of the medal

The King Albert Medal (Dutch: Koning Albert Medaille, French: Médaille du Roi Albert) was a Belgian medal established by royal decree on 7 April 1919 and awarded to both Belgians and foreigners who were exceptionally meritorious in promoting, organising or administering humanitarian and charitable work that assisted Belgians in need during the First World War.[1]

Major General Doctor Antoine Depage, a recipient of the King Albert medal

Description

The King Albert Medal is a 35mm in diameter circular bronze medal. Its obverse bears a 25mm in diameter central medallion bearing the left profile of King Albert I with the inscription in French or in Dutch "ALBERT KING OF THE BELGIANS" (French: "ALBERT ROI DES BELGES", Dutch: "ALBERT KONING DER BELGEN") surrounded by a 5mm wide laurel wreath along the entire medal circumference. On the reverse of the central medallion, the relief inscription on four lines in French or in Dutch "IN TESTIMONY OF NATIONAL RECOGNITION" (French: "EN TEMOIGNAGE DE RECONNAISSANCE NATIONALE", Dutch: "ALS BLIJK VAN'S LANDS ERKENTELIJKHEID") with the years "1914-1918" at the bottom.[1]

The medal is suspended by a ring through a suspension loop from a 38mm wide dark red silk moiré ribbon bearing a single 3mm wide longitudinal central stripe in the national colours of Belgium (1mm red, 1mm yellow and 1mm black). The ribbon bore two such stripes if the recipients distinguished themselves in the covert resupply of occupied Belgium.[1]

Notable recipients (partial list)

The individuals listed below were awarded the King Albert Medal:[2]

Major General Doctor Antoine Depage
Major General Baron Edouard Empain
Cavalry Major General Baron Louis de Moor
Lieutenant General Doctor Paul Derache
Louis Dewis
Lieutenant General Doctor Edmond François Durré
Count Gaston Errembault de Dudzeele
Count Edmond Carton de Wiart
Edmond Rubbens
René Gérard
Edmond Ronse
Vicount Paul van Iseghem
Count Pierre de Liedekerke

References

"Royal Decree of 7 April 1919 creating the King Albert Medal". Belgian Defence Ministry. 1919-04-07. Missing or empty |url= (help)
"Recipients of the King Albert Medal compiled from the ARS MORIENDI web site" (in French). ARS MORIENDI. 2012-07-06. Retrieved 2012-09-09.

Other sources

Quinot H., 1950, Recueil illustré des décorations belges et congolaises, 4e Edition. (Hasselt)
Cornet R., 1982, Recueil des dispositions légales et réglementaires régissant les ordres nationaux belges. 2e Ed. N.pl., (Brussels)
Borné A.C., 1985, Distinctions honorifiques de la Belgique, 1830-1985 (Brussels)

External links

Bibliothèque royale de Belgique (In French)
Les Ordres Nationaux Belges (In French)
ARS MORIENDI Notables from Belgian history (In French and Dutch)

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[decree-1] "Royal Decree of 7 April 1919 creating the King Albert Medal". Belgian Defence Ministry. 1919-04-07. Missing or empty |url= (help)

[ARS-2] "Recipients of the King Albert Medal compiled from the ARS MORIENDI web site" (in French). ARS MORIENDI. 2012-07-06. Retrieved 2012-09-09.

Orders, decorations, and medals of Belgium
Current orders	Order of Leopold Order of the Crown Order of Leopold II
Former orders	Order of the African Star Service Star Royal Order of the Lion
Pre–1914	Civic Guard Merit Medal 1830 Star of Honour Iron Cross 1830 Volunteers' Commemorative Cross 1870–71 Commemorative Medal
1914–1918	Croix de guerre 1914–18 Fire Cross 1914–1918 Yser Medal Yser Cross Volunteer Combatant's Medal 1914–1918 Commemorative Medal of the 1914–1918 War Commemorative Medal of the 1914–1917 African Campaigns Liège Medal Maritime Decoration 1914–1918 Political Prisoner's Medal 1914–1918 Deportees' Cross 1914–1918 1914–1918 Medal for National Restoration King Albert Medal Queen Elisabeth Medal Inter-Allied Victory Medal 1914–1918 Civic Decoration 1914–1918 Commemorative Medal of the National Committee for Aid and Food
1940–1945	Croix de guerre 1940–45 Maritime Medal 1940–1945 1940–1945 Military Combatant's Medal Volunteer's Medal 1940–1945 1940–1945 African War Medal 1940–1945 Colonial War Effort Medal Abyssinian Campaigns Commemorative Medal Resistance Medal 1940–1945 Civilian Resistance Medal Civilian Disobedience Medal Political Prisoner's Cross 1940–1945 Prisoner of War Medal 1940–1945 Escapees' Cross 1940–1945 Medal for Resistance against Nazism in the Annexed Territories Medal of the Recruiting Centers 1940 Medal of Belgian Gratitude 1940–1945 Commemorative Medal of the 1940–1945 War Civic Decoration 1940–1945
Post–1945	Foreign Operational Theatres Commemorative Medal War Volunteer's Medal Medal of Military Merit
Current military awards	Military Cross Military Decoration Croix de guerre (post–1954) Cross of Honour for Military Service Abroad Commemorative Medal for Armed Humanitarian Operations Medal for Services Rendered Commemorative Medal for Foreign Operations or Missions Meritorious Service Medal Commemorative Medal for the "European March of Memory and Friendship" "Four Days of the Yser" Commemorative Medal
Current civilian awards	Civic Decoration Honour Badge of Labour Labour Decoration Decoration for Mutuality
Commemorative medals	Commemorative Decoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Creation of the Railroads Commemorative Medal of the Reign of King Leopold II Commemorative Medal for the 75th Anniversary of the Belgian Postal Service Centenary of National Independence Commemorative Medal Commemorative Medal for the Centenary of the Telegraphic Service Commemorative Medal for the 100th Anniversary of the Belgian Postal Service Commemorative Medal of the Reign of King Albert I
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