Two Sides of Military Honor

Military medals can tell you two very different stories. Some represent the peak of courage and service within a nation’s honors system, while others survive today only as historical relics. Today, we’re here to explore both the highest military decorations and a handful of obsolete medals that now belong entirely to the past.

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1. Medal of Honor

In the United States, there’s literally no greater honor than the Medal of Honor when it comes to combat valor. It’s specially reserved for service members whose actions go above and beyond the call of duty under the most extreme conditions. 

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2. Victoria Cross

Britain’s Victoria Cross remains one of the most revered awards in military history. It’s granted for the most conspicuous bravery in the presence of the enemy, and its reputation is so strong that you don’t even need much background in military history to recognize it.

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3. Victoria Cross For Australia

Australia’s Victoria Cross is the highest military honor in the Australian honors system. Now, while it preserves the spirit and design of the older imperial award, it actually stands as a distinctly Australian decoration. It’s a rare combination of continuity and national identity, which is part of what makes it so notable.

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4. Param Vir Chakra

India’s Param Vir Chakra is the country’s highest military decoration for wartime gallantry. It’s awarded only for the most conspicuous bravery or daring act of valor in the presence of the enemy. Interestingly, because it’s so rarely bestowed, every recipient is remembered with pretty heavy intensity.

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5. Nishan-E-Haider

Pakistan’s Nishan-e-Haider is the highest military gallantry award in the country. It’s saved for the greatest acts of heroism in the face of the enemy, and every recipient so far has received it posthumously.

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6. Victoria Cross For New Zealand

New Zealand established its own Victoria Cross after reforming its national honors system. It’s now the country’s highest award for gallantry in the face of the enemy, and it has been awarded only once. Don’t let that fool you, though; its rarity sharpens its prestige rather than diminishes it.

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7. Virtuti Militari

Poland’s Virtuti Militari is one of the oldest and most distinguished military decorations still recognized in Europe. It’s considered Poland’s highest military decoration for heroism and courage in war. To add to its reputation, the medal’s long history gives it a weight that goes well beyond ceremony.

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8. Hero of Ukraine

Ukraine’s Hero of Ukraine is awarded with the Order of the Gold Star for military heroism, and it stands at the highest level of the country’s state award system. In wartime, it has become one of the clearest symbols of exceptional military sacrifice and courage. 

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9. Victoria Cross For Canada

That’s right, we have another Victoria Cross! This time in Canada, it’s the highest award in the Canadian system for military valor. Unlike some high decorations that exist mostly in theory, this one was created to stand at the top of a modern national honors framework modeled on a famous predecessor. 

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10. Taegeuk Order Of Military Merit

South Korea’s Taegeuk Order of Military Merit is recognized as the highest class within the country’s Order of Military Merit system. Official Korean government sources describe it as the nation’s highest military honor. 

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Now that we’ve taken a look at some of the higher honors, it’s time to focus on which ones quietly faded into history. Let’s take a look at which ones now belong in archives, museum cases, and collectors’ books.

1. Empire Gallantry Medal

The Empire Gallantry Medal was introduced in Britain to recognize acts of exceptional courage, but its lifespan didn’t stretch as far as you’d think. In 1940, it was ended when the George Cross was created, and existing holders were brought into the new system instead. 

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2. Albert Medal

The Albert Medal honored lifesaving bravery, and for many years, it carried a distinct place in the British honors system. However, that separate existence ended in 1971, when surviving recipients were required to exchange it for the George Cross. 

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3. Edward Medal

The Edward Medal was designed to reward bravery in industrial accidents, which, as you can imagine, gave it a very specific and unusual role. That said, it was discontinued in 1971, when surviving holders were transferred into the George Cross structure. 

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4. Distinguished Conduct Medal

The Distinguished Conduct Medal was one of Britain’s major awards for gallantry in the field by non-commissioned soldiers—and it was for a long time. However, the 1993 review of military gallantry awards removed rank-based distinctions, and the medal was discontinued as part of that reform. The discontinuation was two-fold: its long service made it famous, but its end also marked a big cultural shift in how bravery was officially recognized.

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5. Military Medal

The Military Medal became one of the best-known British decorations for bravery under fire among other ranks. When the honors system was reworked in 1993, the old rank divide was dismantled, and it too disappeared.

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6. Distinguished Flying Medal

The Distinguished Flying Medal recognized courage in aerial operations by non-commissioned personnel. Once again, when the 1993 reforms opened gallantry awards across ranks, the medal was no longer needed as a separate category, leading to its discontinuation.

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7. Air Force Medal

The Air Force Medal was awarded for valor, courage, or devotion to duty while flying on non-operational service. You wouldn’t expect it to fall by the wayside, but it was also discontinued in 1993 during the same overhaul. 

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8. Conspicuous Gallantry Medal

For those unfamiliar with it, the Conspicuous Gallantry Medal had an impressive history, awarded to non-commissioned personnel for conspicuous gallantry in operations against the enemy. As you can guess, that status ended in 1993, when the British system moved away from rank-based gallantry decorations and created newer cross-based awards for all ranks. 

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9. Distinguished Service Medal

The Distinguished Service Medal served as a naval gallantry award for ratings and senior non-commissioned ranks, especially for bravery. Once the UK removed rank distinctions from operational gallantry awards in 1993, the medal was discontinued. 

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10. Naval General Service Medal 1915–1962

This one’s a little different. The Naval General Service Medal 1915–1962 was tied to a closed period of naval campaigns rather than to a permanent system. Because it covered a defined range of operations and was later replaced by newer general service medal frameworks, it now stands as a finished historical issue, not a live decoration. 

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