Orders, decorations, and medals of South Vietnam

The system of Orders, decorations, and medals of South Vietnam came into being with the establishment of the National Order of Vietnam in 1950. Established by Bảo Đại, the head of state of the State of Vietnam, the order was the highest award of the state for both civilians and military personnel. This level of precedence continued under the government of South Vietnam. Lower ranking awards for both the military and civilians were subsequently established. The systems of civilian and military awards had their own order of precedence.

National Order

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  Grand Cross
  Grand Officer
  Commander
  Officer
  Knight

Military awards and decorations

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Military awards are worn in the following order:[2]

  Army First Class
  Army Second Class
  Air Force First Class
  Air Force Second Class
  Navy First Class
  Navy Second Class
  Army Meritorious Service Medal
  Air Force Meritorious Service Medal
  Navy Meritorious Service Medal
  Gallantry Cross with Palm (cited at the Armed Forces level)
   Gallantry Cross with Gold Star (cited at the Corps level)
   Gallantry Cross with Silver Star (cited at the Division level)
   Gallantry Cross with Bronze Star (cited at the Regiment or Brigade level)
  Gallantry Cross Unit Award
  Gold Wing Ribbon
  Silver Wing Ribbon
  Bronze Wing Ribbon
  Gold Anchor Ribbon
  Silver Anchor Ribbon
  Bronze Anchor Ribbon
  First class
  Second class
  Armed Forces level
  Corps level
  Division level
  Brigade level
  Regiment level
  Battalion level
  Company level
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  Unit Citation
  First class
  Second class
  Third class
  Fourth class
  Fifth class
  First class
  Second class
  Third class
  Fourth class
  Fifth class
  First class
  Second class
  Third class
  Honor class
  First class
  Second class
  Third class
  Honor class

Civilian awards and decorations

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Civilian awards are worn in the following order:[3]

  Exceptional class
  First class
  Second class
  Third class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  Third class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class
  Third class
  Unit Citation
  First class
  Second class
  Third class
  Unit Citation
  First class
  Second class
  First class
  Second class

Other awards

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These awards are not listed in the order of precedence for military or civilian awards:

Foreign recipients

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Many of the South Vietnamese military awards and decorations were awarded to members of foreign military forces fighting with and advising the South Vietnamese military. Some civilian awards were also presented, but their acceptance and wear was limited by the recipients' governments.[4]

References

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  1. ^ Sylvester Jr, John (1 December 1995). The Decorations and Medals of the Republic of Vietnam and Her Allies, 1950-1975. Medals of America. p. 16. ISBN 9781884452161.
  2. ^ HUY CHUONG AN THUONG TRONG QUAN-LU'C VlET-NAM CONG-HOA (Medals and Decorations of the Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces). Government of the Republic of Vietnam. 1967. Retrieved 30 August 2016.
  3. ^ Martin, Michael, ed. (2001). Warriors of the Sea. Paducah, KY.: Turner Publishing Company. p. 61. ISBN 9781563116636.
  4. ^ United States Federal Register (1972). The Code of Federal Regulations of the United States of America. U.S. Government Printing Office. p. 671.