World War I Victory Medal ( United States ) The World War I Victory Medal is a decoration of the United States military which was first created in 1919 , designed by James Earle Fraser . The medal was originally intended to be created due to an act of the United States Congress , however the bill authorizing the decoration never passed , leaving the service departments to create the award through general orders . The United States Army published orders authorizing the World War I Victory Medal in April 1919 and the U . S . Navy followed in June of that same year . Criteria . Known until 1947 simply as the “ Victory Medal ” , the World War I Victory Medal was awarded to any member of the U . S . military who had served in the armed forces between the following dates in the following locations : Design . The front of the bronze medal features a winged Victory holding a shield and sword on the front . The back of the bronze medal features " The Great War For Civilization " in all capital letters curved along the top of the medal . Curved along the bottom of the back of the medal are six stars , three on either side of the center column of seven staffs wrapped in a cord . The top of the staff has a round ball on top and is winged on the side . The staff is on top of a shield that says " U " on the left side of the staff and " S " on the right side of the staff . On left side of the staff it lists one World War I Allied country per line : France , Italy , Serbia , Japan , Montenegro , Russia , and Greece . On the right side of the staff the Allied country names read : Great Britain ( at the time the common term for the United Kingdom ) , Belgium , Brazil , Portugal , Rumania ( spelled with a U instead of an O as it is spelled now ) , and China . Distribution . The medals were awarded after the end of World War I , so they were mailed to the servicemen instead of awarded in person . For example , the boxes containing the Victory Medals for United States Army World War I veterans were mailed out by the depot officer at the General Supply Depot , U . S . Army , in Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , in April 1921 . An outer light brown box with an address label glued to it and its postage area marked " OFFICIAL BUSINESS , Penalty for private use $ 300 " contained an inner white box stamped with the bars the serviceman was supposed to receive on his medal . The inner white box contained the medal , which was wrapped in tissue paper . Name change . In 1945 , the “ Victory Ribbon ” was created as an award for those who served in World War II . Between 1945 and 1947 , the World War I award continued to be known by its original name , the “ Victory Medal , ” and the World War II award was known as the “ Victory Ribbon . ” In 1947 , the Victory Ribbon became a full - sized medal as the World War II Victory Medal , at which point the World War I Victory Medal adopted its current name . However , some military records as late as the 1950s continued to annotate the World War I decoration by its previous name , and the medal was often referred to as “ Victory Medal ( WWI ) ” . Devices . To denote battle participation and campaign credit , the World War I Victory Medal was authorized with a large variety of devices to denote specific accomplishments . In order of seniority , the devices authorized to the World War I Victory Medal were as follows : Silver Citation Star . The Silver Citation Star to the World War I Victory Medal was authorized by the United States Congress on 4 February 1919 . A silver star was authorized to be worn on the ribbon of the Victory Medal for any member of the U . S . Army who had been cited for gallantry in action between 1917 and 1920 . In 1932 , the Silver Citation Star was redesigned and renamed the Silver Star and , upon application to the United States War Department , any holder of the Silver Citation Star could have it converted to a Silver Star decoration . Navy Commendation Star . The Navy Commendation Star was authorized to any person who had been commended by the Secretary of the Navy for performance of duty during the First World War . The Navy Commendation Star was worn as a silver star on the World War I Victory Medal , identical in appearance to the Army ’ s Silver Citation Star . Unlike the Army ’ s version , however , the Navy Commendation Star could not be upgraded to the Silver Star medal . Army Battle Clasps . The following battle clasps , inscribed with a battle ' s name , were worn on the medal to denote participation in major ground conflicts . For general defense service , not involving a specific battle , the " Defensive Sector " Battle Clasp was authorized . The clasp was also awarded for any battle which was not already recognized by its own battle clasp . The World War I Victory Medal bears the clasps of the battles the U . S . Army participated in across the ribbon . Not all battles are shown on the bar clasps . Only the battles designated as battles that would have bars issued were shown on the medal . The famous Battle of Chateau Thierry to hold the Chateau and the bridge as a joint effort between the US Army and the US Marines against the German machine gunners did not get awarded clasps . Navy Battle Clasps . Navy battle clasps were issued for naval service in support of Army operations and had identical names to the Army battle clasps . There was a slight variation of the criteria dates for the Navy battle clasps , as listed below . The Defensive Sector Clasp was also authorized for Navy personnel who had participated in naval combat but were not authorized a particular battle clasp . Navy Operational Clasps . For sea - related war duty , the Navy issued the following operational clasps , which were worn on the World War I Victory Medal and inscribed with the name of the duty type which had been performed : Unlike the army , the navy only allowed one clasp of any type to be worn on the ribbon . Members of the marine or medical corps who served in France but was not eligible for a battle clasp would receive a bronze Maltese cross on their ribbons . Army Service Clasps . For non - combat service with the army during the First World War , the following service clasps were authorized to be worn with the World War I Victory Medal . Each service claps was inscribed with a country or region name where support service was performed . The U . S . Army issued the following service clasps : Navy Service Clasps . The U . S . Navy issued similar service clasps to the Army for service in the following regions during the following periods : Campaign Stars . Since battle and service clasps could only be worn on the full - sized World War I Victory Medal , bronze service stars were authorized for wear on the award ribbon . This was the common method of campaign and battle display when wearing the World War I Victory Medal as a ribbon on a military uniform . An International Award . Not only did the United States issue a Victory Medal , but so did a significant number of Allied and associated countries involved in the conflict against the Dual Alliance between Austria and Germany . The proposition of such a common award was first made by French Maréchal Ferdinand Foch who was supreme commander of the Allied Forces during the First World War . Each medal in bronze has the same diameter ( 36 mm ) and ribbon ( double rainbow ) , but with a national design representing a winged victory .