Cross of Honour for Military Service Abroad

Cross of Honour for Military Service Abroad
	Cross of Honour for Military Service Abroad (obverse)
Type	Cross
Awarded for	Foreign service
Presented by	Kingdom of Belgium
Eligibility	Military personnel of the Belgian Armed Forces
Status	Active
Established	16 June 1997
	; First class ribbon bar; ; Second class ribbon bar; ; Third class ribbon bar
Precedence
Next (higher)	Military Decoration for Long Service
Next (lower)	Commemorative Medal for Armed Humanitarian Operations

The Cross of Honour for Military Service Abroad (Dutch: Erekruis voor Militaire Dienst in het Buitenland, French: Croix d'Honneur pour Service Militaire à l'Étranger) is a Belgian military decoration originally established for award to Belgian servicemen who served for a long period of time in the Federal Republic of Germany, Zaire (now Congo), Rwanda or Burundi. It was established on 16 June 1997 in three classes.

Classes and award prerequisites

The Cross of Honour is awarded in three classes based on the duration of service in the relevant territory. Years of service do not have to be continuous:

The First Class is awarded for 15 years of service
The Second Class for 10 years of service
The Third Class for 5 years of service

However, depending of the region where the services were performed, one year of actual service may count for more than one year for the purpose of awarding the Cross of Honour. One year of service in the Congo, Rwanda or Burundi counted as five years, one year of service at the border between the former West Germany and the former East Germany counted for three years, and one year of service performed in the central region of the former West Germany counted for two years.

Insignia

The medal is a gold star with a red pearl at each tip. The star is suspended to the ribbon by a royal crown and a ring. The obverse bears a central medallion with a golden lion on a black enamelled background surrounded by a ring of blue enamel with the motto in gold letters Pro Patria. The reverse medallion bears a crown of laurels surrounding two crossed swords.

The ribbon is azure blue with a purple vertical border on each side and in the centre a vertical stripe the colour of which depends on the class: gold for first class, silver for second class, and red for third class.

First Class Obverse	Second Class Obverse	Third Class Obverse	Third Class Reverse

References

Royal Decree of 16 June 1997 Creating a Cross of Honour for Military Services Abroad (Moniteur Belge of 18 July 1997)
Belgian military regulation DGHR-REG-DISPSYS-001 of 20 February 2006

Other sources

Quinot H., 1950, Recueil illustré des décorations belges et congolaises, 4e Edition. (Hasselt)
Cornet R., 1982, Recueil des dispositions légales et réglementaires régissant les ordres nationaux belges. 2e Ed. N.pl., (Brussels)
Borné A.C., 1985, Distinctions honorifiques de la Belgique, 1830-1985 (Brussels)

External links

Cross Of Honour For Military Service Abroad

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Orders, decorations, and medals of Belgium
Current orders	Order of Leopold Order of the Crown Order of Leopold II
Former orders	Order of the African Star Service Star Royal Order of the Lion
Pre–1914	Civic Guard Merit Medal 1830 Star of Honour Iron Cross 1830 Volunteers' Commemorative Cross 1870–71 Commemorative Medal
1914–1918	Croix de guerre 1914–18 Fire Cross 1914–1918 Yser Medal Yser Cross Volunteer Combatant's Medal 1914–1918 Commemorative Medal of the 1914–1918 War Commemorative Medal of the 1914–1917 African Campaigns Liège Medal Maritime Decoration 1914–1918 Political Prisoner's Medal 1914–1918 Deportees' Cross 1914–1918 1914–1918 Medal for National Restoration King Albert Medal Queen Elisabeth Medal Inter-Allied Victory Medal 1914–1918 Civic Decoration 1914–1918 Commemorative Medal of the National Committee for Aid and Food
1940–1945	Croix de guerre 1940–45 Maritime Medal 1940–1945 1940–1945 Military Combatant's Medal Volunteer's Medal 1940–1945 1940–1945 African War Medal 1940–1945 Colonial War Effort Medal Abyssinian Campaigns Commemorative Medal Resistance Medal 1940–1945 Civilian Resistance Medal Civilian Disobedience Medal Political Prisoner's Cross 1940–1945 Prisoner of War Medal 1940–1945 Escapees' Cross 1940–1945 Medal for Resistance against Nazism in the Annexed Territories Medal of the Recruiting Centers 1940 Medal of Belgian Gratitude 1940–1945 Commemorative Medal of the 1940–1945 War Civic Decoration 1940–1945
Post–1945	Foreign Operational Theatres Commemorative Medal War Volunteer's Medal Medal of Military Merit
Current military awards	Military Cross Military Decoration Croix de guerre (post–1954) Cross of Honour for Military Service Abroad Commemorative Medal for Armed Humanitarian Operations Medal for Services Rendered Commemorative Medal for Foreign Operations or Missions Meritorious Service Medal Commemorative Medal for the "European March of Memory and Friendship" "Four Days of the Yser" Commemorative Medal
Current civilian awards	Civic Decoration Honour Badge of Labour Labour Decoration Decoration for Mutuality
Commemorative medals	Commemorative Decoration of the 50th Anniversary of the Creation of the Railroads Commemorative Medal of the Reign of King Leopold II Commemorative Medal for the 75th Anniversary of the Belgian Postal Service Centenary of National Independence Commemorative Medal Commemorative Medal for the Centenary of the Telegraphic Service Commemorative Medal for the 100th Anniversary of the Belgian Postal Service Commemorative Medal of the Reign of King Albert I
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