Physical Description

A circular medal constructed of bronze. The obverse bears the image of a Leopold cross with the crowned cipher of Ernst August in the centre of the cross and the date "1813" below. The reverse bears the inscription "KÖNIGLICH-DEUTSCHE LEGION TAPFER UND TREU" (royal German legion brave and loyal) within a wreath of laurel. On a loop for suspension, on a yellow and white striped ribbon.

History

The Commemorative Medal for Volunteers of the King's German Legion, 1814 was instituted on May 11, 1841 by King Ernst August. The medal was conferred upon individuals who demonstrated their loyalty and patriotism by voluntarily enlisting in the King’s German Legion.

The King’s German Legion was a British Army unit formed after the dissolution of the Electorate of Hanover in 1803, and it was composed primarily of expatriate Germans. The Legion fought as part of the British Army in the Napoleonic Wars (1804-1815) and participated in campaigns such as the Walcheren Campaign (1809), the Campaign of the Hundred Days (1815), and the Peninsular War (1807-1815). The Legion was disbanded in 1816.