Military Merit Medal (Austria-Hungary)

Military Merit Medal (Signum Laudis) Militär-Verdienstmedaille (Signum Laudis)
Bronze Military Merit Medal on the War Ribbon with Swords, Franz Joseph I
Awarded by Austria-Hungary
Type	Military decoration
Eligibility	Austro-Hungarian officers and officials of similar rank
Awarded for	Military merit
Status	Obsolete
Description	Bronze, silver or gold medal with bust of the reigning emperor on the obverse and the words "SIGNUM LAUDIS" (Latin for "Sign of Praise") on the reverse, surrounded by a wreath, half-laurels and half-oak leaves. The Medal is surmounted by a crown (dual crowns for the Karl I type) and worn from a tri-fold ribbon.
Statistics
Established	March 12, 1890
Precedence
Next (higher)	War Cross for Civil Merits
Next (lower)	Medal for Bravery
Ribbon of the medal

The Military Merit Medal (German: Militär-Verdienstmedaille, Hungarian: Katonai Érdemérem, Croatian: Vojna medalja za zasluge) was a military decoration of the Empire of Austria-Hungary. It was founded by Emperor Franz Joseph I on March 12, 1890. The Military Merit Medal is often referred to as the "Signum Laudis" (Latin for "sign of praise") after the inscription on the reverse of the medal.

The Military Merit Medal was only awarded to officers and officials of similar rank. In the Austro-Hungarian order of precedence, the Military Merit Medal ranked below orders, such as the Order of the Iron Crown, and the Military Merit Cross. The Silver Military Merit Medal (established in 1911) outranked the Bronze Military Merit Medal. The one exception to the order of precedence was the Large Military Merit Medal (Große Militär-Verdienstmedaille), a golden medal given as a sign of special recognition by the Emperor and usually awarded to senior officers. It outranked the lower grades of the Military Merit Cross and some orders.

The Military Merit Medal was awarded in peacetime for meritorious service and in wartime for outstanding acts (including bravery or military merit). The peacetime awards were on the statute ribbon, a red ribbon, while wartime awards were on the ribbon of the Bravery Medal, a "laddered" pattern of red stripes edged in white and with white between the "rungs". This latter was referred to as being either "on the War Ribbon" ("am Kriegsband") or "on the ribbon of the Bravery Medal" ("am Bande der Tapferkeitsmedaille"). Occasionally, the phrase "on the ribbon of the Military Merit Cross" ("am Bande des Militär-Verdienstkreuzes") was used, as the Military Merit Cross also used the ribbon of the Bravery Medal.

Awards on the War Ribbon took precedence over awards of the same class on the peacetime ribbon.

The Military Merit Medal originally came in one class, a gilt bronze version. Originally, repeat awards were not authorized (except that one could receive both the peacetime version and the version on the War Ribbon). On March 26, 1911, a Silver Military Merit Medal was founded. It was intended to reward those who would have earned a second award of the Military Merit Medal. It too could be awarded on either of the two ribbons. Originally, it was intended that the Silver Military Merit Medal would replace a Bronze Military Merit Medal, but on April 7, 1914, the wear of both at the same time was permitted.