Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (France)

The Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (English: War Cross) was a French military decoration, the first version of the Croix de Guerre. It was created to recognize French and allied soldiers who were cited for valorous service during World War I, similar to the British mentioned in dispatches but with multiple degrees equivalent to other nations' decorations for courage.

Soon after the outbreak of World War I, French military officials felt that a new military award had to be created. At that time, the Citation du jour ("Daily Citation") already existed to acknowledge soldiers, but it was just a sheet of paper. Only the Médaille Militaire and Legion of Honour were bestowed for courage in the field, due to the numbers now involved, a new decoration was required in earnest. At the end of 1914, General Boëlle, Commandant in Chief of the French 4th Army Corps, tried to convince the French administration to create a formal military award. Maurice Barrès, the noted writer and parliamentarian for Paris, gave Boëlle support in his efforts.

On 23 December 1914, the French parliamentarian Georges Bonnefous proposed a legislative bill to create the Croix de la Valeur Militaire ("Cross of Military Valour") signed by 66 other parliamentarians. Émile Driant, a parliamentarian who served in the war zone during much of this time, became its natural spokesman when he returned to the legislature. On 18 January 1915, Driant submitted this bill but the name of the military award was renamed to Croix de guerre ("War Cross"). After parliamentary discussions, the bill was adopted on 2 April 1915.

World War I began in 1914 and ended in 1918, so the final name adopted is "Croix de guerre 1914–1918".

Award statute

Every Croix de guerre awarded carries at least one citation for gallantry or courage to a member of any rank of the French military or of an allied army. Ribbon devices indicate the importance or degree of the soldier's role during the action cited. The lowest degree is represented by a bronze star and the highest degree is represented by a bronze palm. The cross is only awarded once and subsequent actions worthy of citations will be limited to additional ribbon devices on the originally received insignia. The number of ribbon devices on a Croix de guerre is not limited, some awards, especially to ace fighter pilots, had extremely long ribbons with dozens of stars and palms.

The Croix de guerre 1914-1918 was attributed to:

French and allied soldiers individually cited for a wartime act of gallantry;
Civilians and militarized personnel individually cited for a wartime act of gallantry;
Automatically to soldiers and civilians not specifically cited for a Croix de guerre but awarded the Légion d'honneur or Médaille militaire for the highest acts of wartime valour and gazetted in the Official Journal of the French Republic;
Collectively, to army units, ships or air squadrons;
To cities and villages, martyrs of war, destroyed, ravaged or bombed by the enemy (2952 towns received the Croix de guerre 1914–1918, in this case, always awarded with palm).

Soldiers who were/are members of units recognized by a collective unit award of the Croix de guerre may wear the Fourragère of the Croix de guerre 1914-1918 as long as they remain members of that unit. Soldiers who actively took part as members of units during repeated feats of arms recognized by more than one collective award of the Croix de guerre may continue to wear the fourragère even after leaving the meritorious unit. Battle streamers in the colours of the Croix de guerre 1914-1918 are affixed to the colours of recipient units.

Award description

The cross was designed by the sculptor Paul-Albert Bartholomé. It is 37 mm wide, Florentine bronze cross pattée, with two crossed swords pointing up between the arms. The obverse centre medallion bears the relief image of the French Republic in the form of the bust of a young woman wearing a Phrygian cap surrounded by the circular relief inscription RÉPUBLIQUE FRANCAISE (FRENCH REPUBLIC). Not knowing how long the war would last, the reverse centre medallion bears the dates 1914–1915, 1914–1916, 1914–1917 and finally 1914–1918.

The cross is suspended by a ring through a suspension loop cast atop the upper cross arm. It hangs from a 37 mm wide green silk moiré ribbon with seven narrow 1,5 mm wide vertical red stripes evenly spaced and two 1 mm red edge stripes.

The lowest degree is represented by a bronze star and the highest degree is represented by a silver palm. The cross was worn with the appropriate attachments to signify the singular or multiple awards of the decoration.

Bronze star (étoile de bronze): for those who were mentioned at the regiment, battalion or brigade level.
Silver star (étoile d'argent): for those who were cited at the division level.
Silver gilt star (étoile vermeil): for those who were cited at the corps level.
Bronze palm (palme de bronze): for those who were cited at the army level.
Silver palm (palme d'argent): could be worn in lieu of five bronze palms.

Award Ribbons

Notable French recipients (partial list)

General Charles de Gaulle (1 citation)
Fighter ace lieutenant Charles Nungesser (30 citations)
Fighter ace captain Georges Guynemer (26 citations)
General Edgard de Larminat (4 citations)
General Joseph de Goislard de Monsabert (7 citations)
Colonel Théophile Marie Brébant (4 citations)
General Jean Vallette d'Osia (6 citations)
General Raoul Salan (1 citation)
Fighter ace colonel René Fonck (29 citations)
General Marie-Pierre Kœnig (2 citations)
General Raoul Magrin-Vernerey (11 citations)
Fighter ace lieutenant-colonel Charles Nuville (10 citations)
Fighter ace captain Georges Madon (10 citations)
Marshal Joseph Joffre (1 citation)
General Robert Nivelle (3 citations)
Private Albert Severin Roche (12 citations)

Notable foreign recipients (partial list)

Brigadier General John William Barker United States
Fighter ace Air Marshal William Avery "Billy" Bishop Canada
Field Marshal Petar Bojović Kingdom of Serbia
Lieutenant General Lewis H. Brereton United States
Lieutenant Stanley Bruce Australia
Major General Charles Budworth United Kingdom
Corporal Eugene Bullard, French Air Force United States
Fighter ace Captain Vernon Castle United Kingdom
Carrier Pigeon Cher Ami, Lost Battalion (World War I) United States
Fighter ace Air Vice Marshal Raymond Collishaw Canada
General Sir Arthur William Currie Canada
Fighter ace Major Roderic Dallas Australia
Private Herman Davis United States
Brigadier General Edward Terence Donnelly United States
Brigadier General Lucius Loyd Durfee United States
Field Marshal John French, 1st Earl of Ypres United Kingdom
Director General Stephen Galatti, American Field Service United States
Lieutenant William F. Howe United States
Brigadier General Evan M. Johnson United States
Sergeant Henry Johnson United States
Sergeant George Lawson Keene United States
Fighter ace Captain Robert A. Little United Kingdom
General Douglas MacArthur United States
Lieutenant Giuseppe Franchi Maggi, Royal Italian Army Italy
General George C. Marshall United States
Fighter ace Major James McCudden United Kingdom
Corporal Harry Miner Canada
Field Marshal Živojin Mišić Kingdom of Serbia
Lieutenant Colonel "Mad" Harry Murray Australia
Air Chief Marshal Sir Keith Rodney Park New Zealand
General George S. Patton United States
Sergeant John Ranner 282nd Brigade, Royal Field Artillery United Kingdom
Captain Eddie Rickenbacker United States
Private Needham Roberts United States
Lieutenant Quentin Roosevelt United States
Lieutenant Colonel Clarence O. Sherrill United States
General Phraya Thephatsadin Siam
General Sir Archibald Paris United Kingdom
Philanthropist Julia Hunt Catlin Park DePew Taufflieb United States
Lieutenant Stephen W. Thompson, Lafayette Escadrille United States
Sergeant First Class Wilson H Williams (Red) 227th Aero Squadron Toul Sector United States
Sergeant Alvin C. York United States
Sergeant Milunka Savić Serbia

French recipient units (partial list)

1st Infantry Regiment
54th Infantry Regiment
126th Infantry Regiment
2nd Battalions of Light Infantry of Africa
1st Cuirassier Regiment
12th Cuirassier Regiment
6th Dragoon Regiment
9th Hussar Regiment
1st Artillery Regiment
2nd Dragoon Regiment
1st Moroccan Division
French battleship Bouvet
French battleship Gaulois
French submarine Bernouilli
Lafayette Escadrille France United States

Allied recipient units (partial list)

Portuguese Expeditionary Corps 15th Infantry Battalion Portugal
Russian Expeditionary Force Russian Legion Battalion Russia
The Black Watch United Kingdom
Devonshire Regiment United Kingdom
5th Battery R.F.A. United Kingdom
2nd Motorized Field Ambulance United Kingdom
24th Field Ambulance United Kingdom
5th Field Artillery Regiment United States
2nd Infantry Division United States
- 15th Field Artillery Regiment United States
3rd Infantry Division United States
4th Infantry Division United States
16th Infantry Division United States
26th Infantry Division United States
32nd Infantry Division United States