Orders, decorations, and medals of France

This is a list of some of the modern orders, decorations and medals of France. Some like the Legion of Honour are awarded to both the armed forces and civilians. Others are decorations of a pure civilian or military character. Only four of the 19 Ministerial orders have survived the reform of the French system of decorations in 1963. The others were replaced by the Ordre national du Mérite.

National orders

Legion of Honour	Order of Liberation	National Order of Merit

Order of Academic Palms	Order of Arts and Letters	Order of Agricultural Merit	Order of Maritime Merit

Civilian decorations

Insignia for wounded civilians	Honour medal of the National Police	Honour medal for firefighters	Honour medal for courage and devotion	Medal of the French Family	Honour medal of railroads

Honour medal for work	Regional, departmental and municipal honour medal	Honour medal for youth, sports and associative engagements	Honour medal for civilian personnel of the defense ministry	Honour medal of Foreign Affairs	Honour medal of Aeronautics

Military decorations

Military Medal	War Cross (1914–1918)	War Cross (1939–1945)	War Cross for foreign operational theaters	Cross for Military Valour	Medal of the Gendarmerie nationale

Resistance Medal	Escapees' Medal	Volunteer combatant's cross 1914–1918	Volunteer combatant's cross	Cross of the resistance volunteer combatant	Combatant's Cross

Aeronautical Medal	Overseas Medal	Medal for voluntary military service	National Defence Medal	Medal for the War Wounded	Military Health Service honour medal

Commemorative medals

19th century

Saint Helena Medal	Commemorative medal of the 1859 Italian Campaign	Commemorative medal of the 1860 China Expedition	Commemorative medal of the 1862 Mexico Expedition	Commemorative medal of the 1870–1871 War

First Madagascar campaign medal 1883	Tonkin Expedition commemorative medal 1883–1885	Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal 1892	Second Madagascar campaign medal 1894–1895	Colonial Medal

1900–1914

1901 China expedition commemorative medal	Morocco commemorative medal (1909)

1st World War (1914–1918)

1914–1918 Inter-Allied Victory medal	1914–1918 Commemorative war medal	Dardanelles campaign medal	Orient campaign medal

Medal of French Gratitude	Medal for civilian prisoners, deportees and hostages of the 1914-1918 Great War	Medal for victims of the invasion

Between the two wars (1918–1939)

Syria-Cilicia commemorative medal

Second World War (1939–1945)

1939–1945 Commemorative war medal	1943–1944 Italian campaign medal	Medal of a liberated France

Commemorative medal for voluntary service in Free France	Deported for acts of resistance medal	Interned for acts of resistance medal	Political deportee's medal	Political internee's medal	Defaulter's medal

After 1945

United Nations operations in Korea commemorative medal	Indochina Campaign commemorative medal	Middle East operations commemorative medal	North Africa Security and Order Operations Commemorative Medal	North Africa medal	French commemorative medal

United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon medal	Medal of the Nation's Gratitude	Medal for the Military Protection of the Territory

Abolished or dormant Orders

Ministerial Orders

Order of Combatant Merit	Order of Military Merit	Order of Civil Merit	Order of Social Merit	Order of Working Merit

Order of Touristic Merit	Order of the National Economy	Order of Commercial & Industrial Merit	Order of Artisanal Merit	Order of Public Health

Order of Postal Merit	Order of Sporting Merit

Colonial Orders

Indochinese Order of Merit	Saharan Order of Merit	Order of the Black Star	Order of the Star of Anjouan	Order of Nichan el Anouar

Order of the Dragon of Annam	Royal Order of Cambodia	Order of Tahiti Nui

See also

• Ribbons of the French military and civil awards

Orders, decorations and medals of France
Orders	National Legion of Honour Order of Liberation National Order of Merit Ministerial Ordre des Palmes Académiques Order of Agricultural Merit Ordre du Mérite Maritime Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Civilian decorations	Honour medal for courage and devotion Médaille d'honneur de l'Aéronautique Honour medal of Foreign Affairs Médaille d'honneur agricole Honour medal of railroads Regional, departmental and municipal honour medal Honour medal of customs Médaille d'honneur des Eaux et Forêts Médaille d'honneur de l'Enseignement du 1er degré Médaille d'honneur Pénitentiaire Honour medal for civilian personnel of the defense ministry Honour medal of the National Police Honour medal for firefighters Médaille d'honneur de Sociétés musicales et Chorales Médaille d'honneur de la protection judiciaire de la jeunesse Honour medal for work Médaille d'honneur des Travaux publics Insignia for wounded civilians Medal of the French Family Honour medal for youth, sports and associative engagements Médaille des Mines Médaille du Tourisme Ordre de Tahiti Nui
Military decorations	Military Medal 1914–1918 War Cross 1939–1945 War Cross War Cross for foreign operational theaters Cross for Military Valour Médaille de la Gendarmerie nationale Resistance Medal Escapees' Medal Volunteer combatant's cross 1914–1918 Volunteer combatant's cross* Cross of the resistance volunteer combatant Combatant's Cross Aeronautical Medal Overseas Medal National Defence Medal Medal for voluntary military service Medal of the Nation's Recognition Medal for the War Wounded
Other	Médaille d'honneur du service de santé des armées
Commemorative medals	19th century Saint Helena Medal Commemorative medal of the 1859 Italian Campaign Commemorative medal of the 1860 China Expedition Commemorative medal of the Mexico Expedition Commemorative medal of the 1870–1871 War Tonkin Expedition commemorative medal Dahomey Expedition commemorative medal 1892 Madagascar commemorative medal Colonial Medal 1900–1914 1901 China expedition commemorative medal Morocco commemorative medal (1909) First World War 1914–1918 1914–1918 Inter-Allied Victory medal Dardanelles campaign medal Orient campaign medal 1914–1918 Commemorative war medal Medal of French Gratitude Médaille de la Fidélité Française Médaille des victimes de l'invasion Medal for civilian prisoners, hostages and prisoners of the 1914-1918 Great War Interwar Period 1918–1939 Syria-Cilicia commemorative medal Second World War 1939–1945 Commemorative medal for voluntary service in Free France 1943-1944 Italian Campaign medal Medal for deportation and internment for acts of resistance Deportation and political internment medal Médaille commémorative de la guerre 1939–1945 Medal of a liberated France Defaulter's medal Since 1945 United Nations operations in Korea commemorative medal Indochina Campaign commemorative medal Middle East operations commemorative medal (1956) Médaille commémorative des opérations de sécurité et de maintien de l'ordre en Afrique du Nord North Africa medal United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon medal French commemorative medal Medal for the Military Protection of the Territory
Defunct orders	Ministry orders Ordre du Mérite combattant Ordre du Mérite militaire Ordre du Mérite civil Ordre du Mérite social Ordre du Mérite du Travail Ordre du Mérite touristique Ordre de l'Économie nationale Ordre du Mérite commercial et industriel Ordre du Mérite artisanal Ordre de la Santé publique Ordre du Mérite postal Ordre du Mérite sportif Colonial orders Ordre du Mérite indochinois Ordre du Mérite saharien Ordre de l'Étoile Noire Ordre de l'Étoile d'Anjouan Ordre du Nichan el Anouar Ordre impérial du Dragon d'Annam Ordre royal du Cambodge
No longer awarded. No longer awarded, no living recipient France portal