European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal

European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal. The European–African–Middle Eastern Campaign Medal is a military award of the United States Armed Forces created to recognize service members who performed military duty within the European–African–Middle Eastern Theater during World War II. Established by an Executive order from President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1942, the medal was not issued until after the war's conclusion. It commemorates the vast Allied campaign against the Axis powers across continents, from the landings in Normandy to the advance into Germany.

Background and establishment

The need for a distinct service medal for the European Theater was recognized as U.S. forces began large-scale deployments following the Attack on Pearl Harbor. On November 6, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Executive Order 9265, which established both this medal and the Asiatic–Pacific Campaign Medal. The order was implemented by War Department Bulletin 56, dated December 1942, and later amended by Executive Order 9706 signed by President Harry S. Truman in March 1946. The medal's creation formalized the recognition of service in a theater that included pivotal operations like the invasion of Sicily and the Battle of the Bulge.

Criteria for award

The medal was awarded to any member of the United States Armed Forces who served within the European–African–Middle Eastern Theater for at least 30 consecutive days or 60 non-consecutive days between December 7, 1941, and March 2, 1946. The theater's boundaries were defined as encompassing all of Europe (excluding the Soviet Eastern Front), the entirety of Africa, the Middle East (west of Iran), and the waters of the Atlantic Ocean west of a line from the North Pole to the Equator. Personnel who engaged in combat with the enemy, were wounded, or killed received the award regardless of time served.

Description and appearance

Designed by the Institute of Heraldry, the medal's obverse features a landing craft and troops wading ashore beneath a B-17 bomber, symbolizing the amphibious and air assaults characteristic of the theater. In the background, a naval task force is depicted. The reverse displays an American bald eagle perched on a rocky outcrop, derived from the Treasury Department seal. The ribbon's central stripe of green, flanked by broad bands of brown (representing the sands of Africa) and blue (for the waters of the Atlantic Ocean and Mediterranean Sea), is edged in white and red.

Campaigns and service stars

The Department of Defense authorized 45 designated campaigns, from the Egypt-Libya Campaign starting in 1942 to the Central Europe Campaign ending in 1945. Participation in a designated campaign, such as the Air Offensive over Europe or the Normandy landings, is denoted by a bronze service star attached to the medal's ribbon. A silver service star represents five bronze stars. One notable campaign star is for the Ardennes-Alsace campaign, better known as the Battle of the Bulge.

Order of precedence and wearing

In the order of precedence of U.S. military awards, the European–African–Middle Eastern Campaign Medal is worn after the Asiatic–Pacific Campaign Medal and before the World War II Victory Medal. When worn as a ribbon on a uniform, it follows the same sequence. Only one medal was awarded per individual, with subsequent campaign participation indicated by the addition of service stars. The medal was often presented alongside other World War II awards like the American Campaign Medal in formal ceremonies following the war's end.

Category:Military awards and decorations of the United States in World War II Category:1942 establishments in the United States