MEDALS

SEQUENCE IN WHICH DECORATIONS AND MEDALS ARE WORN

War medals may only be worn on the left breast by the persons upon whom they were conferred. The honour afforded remains with the individual and does not pass to a widow, parent, son or relative when the recipient is dead. Similarly, the same rules apply in cases where a posthumous award is made

The policy as it stands is that on the death of a recipient, technically, any honours and awards revert to the commonwealth in the first instance. The reality of course is that family members have an ambient claim and the commonwealth would not seek to intervene in medals being passed on directly within the family.

Family members may wear their forebears medals on the right breast which indicates that they are not their own. There is no limitation or formal policy on what occasions they should be worn. In essence, the wearing of forebear's medals on the right breast is a convention passed down over the years that is largely dictated by the occasion and (ideally) a measure of decorum fitting the event. They should not be worn lightly or where it would be inappropriate to do so.

For uniformed personnel, on ANZAC and Remembrance days only, modification of normal service dress code is allowed whereby they wear their own medals on the left breast accompanied (if they wish) by their ancestor's on the right.

War Medals (with certain exceptions) are worn on the left breast of the coat, or in a corresponding place on the dress, as the case may be. They will be worn in a horizontal line, suspended from a single bar, of which no part is to be seen, or stitched to the garment. When worn on the coat, the coat should be buttoned up.

The ribbon should not exceed one inch in length, unless the number of clasps require it to be longer. The uppermost clasp should be one inch below the top of the ribbon. When two or more medals and decorations are worn, they will be so arranged that the lower edges (or lowest point of a Star) are in line.

War medals are worn to show the Sovereign's head.

War medals (or Campaign medals) are worn in the order of the dates of Campaigns for which they have been conferred, the first obtained being farthest from the left shoulder.

For the sake of brevity, only the more generally known are listed hereunder. Persons who are entitled to wear other decorations or medals not mentioned herein, should seek advice in regard to their order or priority.

GAZETTE No. S17, Friday 15 January 1993

THE AUSTRALIAN ORDER OF PRECEDENCE OF HONOURS AND AWARDS

His Excellency the Governor-General directs it to be notified, for general information, that Her Majesty The Queen has approved the variation of the positioning of the Bravery Medal and the Australian Active Service Medal within the order of precedence in which Orders, Decorations and Medals should be worn. The Schedule incorporates the new positioning of these awards and supersedes that notified in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette No S188 of 4 July 1991.

NOTE: Honours and Awards listed in the Schedule in Bold print are:

• those within the Australian System of Honours and Awards;
• those conferred by The Sovereign in the exercise of the Royal Prerogative;
• those within the Order of St John, having been conferred by The Sovereign on the recommendation of the Governor-General as Prior of the Order in Australia; and
• foreign honours and awards

The Australian Service Medal 1945 - 1975 would be worn first if someone held both this and the (current) Australian Service Medal, because it recognises prior service rendered.

THE SCHEDULE

MINIATURE MEDALS

The only time these should be worn are on occasions when evening dress or a dinner jacket is worn at a dinner or evening function.

WEARING OF NON-OFFICIAL MEDALS

The RSL actively discourages the wearing of non official medals at RSL and other ceremonial or commemorative functions.  If Commemorative Medals are worn, they should be positioned on the right breast and not mixed with Service Medals or Decorations.

The Awards and National Symbols Branch of the Department of Prime Minister & Cabinet further states:
“Over a number of years some ex-service organisations have created and distributed ‘commemorative’ medals to mark Particular periods of military service.  These medals have no official status.

You should be aware that the government has created a number of official medals that commemorate certain events, for example, the 80th Anniversary Armistice
Remembrance Medal, the Australian Sports Medal and the “Anniversary of National Service 1951-1972 Medal”.

Only those medals, decorations and honours, which have been created under the prerogative of the Crown, have official status.  Such medals should be worn in accordance with The Order of Wearing Australian Honours and Awards on the left breast either on an official uniform or civilian dress.

Official medals worn by relatives of a deceased veteran should be worn on the right breast.

Ideally, unofficial medals should not be worn.  However if they are worn as the occasion demands, they may be worn on the right breast.

This advice is based on official protocol and practice”.

FRAUDULENT WEARING OF MEDALS

No person, with the exception of a direct descendant of a deceased service man or woman, may wear medals which have not been awarded to him or her personally.  This also applies to the wearing of miniature medals and medal ribbons.

Fraudulent wearing of medals attracts penalties under Federal regulations and also attracts subsequent penalties under the RSL Constitution.

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