Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct (Military)

Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct (Military)
King George V version
Awarded by the Monarch of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India
Country	United Kingdom
Type	Military long service medal
Eligibility	British Army other ranks Conditionally to officers from 1947 Female soldiers from 1955 British officers from 2016
Awarded for	18 years service until 1977 15 years service from 1977
Status	Current
Clasps	Instituted in 1944 for 15 years additional service 10 years service from 2016
Statistics
Established	1930
First awarded	1930
Order of wear
Next (higher)	Accumulated Campaign Service Medal
Equivalent	Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct (South Africa)
Next (lower)	Naval Long Service and Good Conduct Medal (1830)
Related	Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal
Ribbon Bar

The Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct (Military) was instituted by King George V in 1930 and replaced the Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal as well as the Permanent Forces of the Empire Beyond the Seas Medal. The medal could be awarded to Regular Army warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and men of the British Army. It also had a number of territorial versions for the Permanent Forces of the British Dominions. The eligibility criteria were later relaxed to also allow the award of the medal to officers who had served a minimum period in the ranks before being commissioned.

In the complex British honours system, there were distinct awards for officers and men of the Navy, Army and Air Force, and separate awards for the Regular Force or Reserve components. Regular Force officers were not eligible for any long service awards since, as they held a commission, they were expected to serve honourably and for a long period of time. Reserve Force officers were eligible for various long service decorations that granted them the use of post-nominal letters, while Reserve Force other ranks were eligible for various long service and good conduct medals, but without post-nominals.

The United Kingdom's Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal was instituted by King William IV in 1830.

In 1895 Queen Victoria authorised Colonial governments to adopt, amongst others, this medal and to award it to other ranks of their own permanent military forces. Territories that took advantage of the authorisation include Canada, Cape of Good Hope, India, Natal, New South Wales, New Zealand, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and, from 1902, the Commonwealth of Australia. Each territorial version of the medal had the name of the respective territory inscribed in a curved line above the inscription on the reverse.

In 1910 the Permanent Forces of the Empire Beyond the Seas Medal was instituted as a single common award to supersede these territorial versions of the Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal.