History

The Cross for Military Valour was created on April 11, 1956. It was originally in the form of a Medal, the Medal of Military Valour. The Cross was instituted on October 12, 1956. Both the Medal and the Cross were created to recognize military and non-military for feats performed during operations of security and maintenance of order. The Cross may also be awarded posthumously.

Like other Crosses, the specific citations are represented by different ribbon clasps. A bronze star clasp was awarded for a citation at the unit, brigade, or regimental level, a silver star clasp was awarded for a citation at the divisional level, a gilt star was awarded for a citation at the Army Corps level, a bronze palm was awarded for a citation at the Army level, and a silver palm replaced five bronze palms.

Since its creation in 1956, when it recognized citations for operations in North Africa, the Cross has been used to recognize citations for a number of different campaigns. These include operations in Cape Verde, Congo, Liberia, Haiti, Côte d’Ivoire, Lebanon, Antilles, Chad, Libya, Senegal, Burkina Faso, Mauritius, Mali, Niger, Iraq, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and Bahrain.

The Medal for Military Valour is listed here as a version. There are two versions which differ in engraving. Both versions have an obverse inscription that translates to “French Republic,” and a reverse inscription that translates to “Medal of Military Valour.” There are additional versions of the Cross which vary in size and composition.