VAD medals and Awards During the Great War

After the war several medals were awarded to members of the VAD.

OBE and MBE

Order of the British Empire ( OBE)  and Member of the British Empire (MBE) was awarded to many senior members of Essex VAD mainly at Commandant or Medical Officer level.

Click here to see some recipients of OBE.

Click here to see some recipitents of MBE.

Royal Red Cross Medal

The Royal Red Cross Medal was established in 1883 for officially recognised nurses who have shown very exceptional bravery and devotion at their post or who have shown exceptional devotion and competence in the performance of nursing duties over a continuous and long period.

Red Cross War Medal

Awarded in 1920 by the Red Cross to members of the Red Cross or a VAD who served in the UK from the start of the war to December 1919 and who has performed at least 1,000 hours service. For ambulance drivers and stretcher bearers this was reduced to 500 hours.

The Red Cross estimate that 41,000 medals were awarded

Click here to see some recipitents of Royal Red Cross Medal

Order of St John War Service Badge

Awarded by St John for those who had been working on its behalf in hospitals, or who have been employed in some other form of war work.

By 1920 St John had awarded over 11,000 of these badges.

Military Medals

Some military campaign medals were available for service in a specific wartime area if, like the Victory Medal, the citation included nurses.

Publically brought to notice of the Secretary of State for War

At the conclusion of the war many VAD members in Essex were publically brought to the notice of the Secretary of State for War by the chairman of the Joint War Committee of the Red Cross for valuable services rendered in connection with the war.

Click here to see more details