Commemorative medal of the 1870 – 1871 War The Commemorative medal of the 1870 – 1871 War ( ) was a French military campaign medal awarded to those who served during the Franco - Prussian War . The Prussian victory in the 1866 Austro - Prussian War destabilized the European balance of power . German unification , although not yet quite complete , posed a serious threat to French power . The candidacy of Prussian Prince Leopold to the vacant throne of Spain further endangered the status quo created by the 1815 Congress of Vienna . Demands by Emperor Napoleon III of France to King William I of Prussia , although reasonable at first , were soon seen as the perfect pretext to escalate tensions between the two empires . Prussian Prime Minister Otto von Bismarck ensured such tensions did escalate with the release of the Ems Dispatch . The French Emperor , confident of the strength of his armies declared war on Prussia on 19 July 1870 . Unfortunately for him , the stipulations of the 1866 peace agreement between Prussia and Austria greatly enlarged the forces he would face , adding the armies of Bavaria , Württemberg , Saxony , Hanover , Baden , Hesse , Schaumburg - Lippe , Saxe - Meiningen , Nassau and Reus to the already formidable Prussian Army . Fast deployment of troops by Prussia and swift engagements in the East soon saw the French armies defeated or encircled within the walls of their cities , including the capture of the French emperor and his Army of Châlons on 2 September during the Battle of Sedan . Their emperor having surrendered , France dismissed him and on 4 September , proclaimed the Third Republic . They refused to surrender and mobilized new armies . Over a five - month campaign , the German forces defeated the newly recruited French armies in a series of battles fought across northern France . Following a prolonged siege , Paris fell on 28 January 1871 and the war ended with the Treaty of Frankfurt of 10 May 1871 . Although the bravest were rewarded with the Legion of Honour and the Military Medal , the authorities firmly refused to create a commemorative medal for award to the participants of the conflict . Possibly in an effort to forget the humiliation and national shame caused by these sad events . Forty years would have to elapse before the government would agree to a tangible form of recognition for the surviving veterans of the conflict . The Commemorative medal of the 1870 – 1871 War was finally established by a law of 9 November 1911 . Award statute . The Commemorative medal of the 1870 – 1871 War was awarded to veterans of the Franco - Prussian War who could prove with an official document , their service under French colours in France or Algeria , or on board armed naval vessels , between the months of July 1870 and February 1871 , in : The law of 27 March 1912 will enlarge this list of potential recipients to include doctors , medics , nurses and chaplains able to prove their presence on the battlefield , in ambulances and hospitals , as well as to balloon pilots who escaped from besieged Paris to carry out a public service . A decree of 17 September 1921 added all veterans of the war of 1870 - 1871 that were wounded or maimed in combat , or that particularly distinguished themselves in the face of the enemy , as potential recipients of the Military Medal . Finally , a new law of 13 July 1923 ( published on 17 July 1923 ) added as recipients : Award description . The Commemorative medal of the 1870 – 1871 War was a 30mm in diameter circular medal struck from bronze . Its obverse bore the relief image of the effigy of the " warrior republic " in the form of the left profile of a helmeted woman ' s bust wearing armour . On either side , the relief inscription along the outer medal circumference " RÉPUBLIQUE FRANÇAISE " ( ) . The reverse bore at its lower center , a rectangle bearing the relief inscription " AUX DÉFENSEURS DE LA PATRIE " ( ) , superimposed over the relief images of military weapons ( sabres , lances , cannons ) , a naval anchor and a flowing banner , at its top , the relief years " 1870 1871 " bisected by the banner ' s mast . The medal hung from a ribbon passing through a ring itself passing through a ball shaped suspension loop at the top . The 36mm wide green silk moiré ribbon bore four 4mm wide equidistant vertical black stripes , the whole forming nine alternating 4mm stripes . The clasp " ENGAGÉ VOLONTAIRE " ( ) could be worn on the ribbon . The medal was engraved by artist Georges Lemaire , his model to represent the effigy of the republic was Miss Fernande Dubois , an artist at the Opéra - Comique .