The Order of Canada is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit.
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the monarch. The present monarch, King Charles III, is the sovereign of the order. The order's motto is Victoria. The order's official day is 20 June. The order's chapel is the Savoy Chapel in London.
The Canadian Forces' Decoration is a Canadian award bestowed upon members of the Canadian Armed Forces who have completed twelve years of military service, with certain conditions. By convention, it is also given to the governor general of Canada upon their appointment, which includes the title of Commander-in-Chief in and over Canada. The decoration is awarded to all ranks, who must have a good record of conduct during the final eight years of claimed service.
The Polar Medal is a medal awarded by the Sovereign of the United Kingdom to individuals who have outstanding achievements in the field of polar research, and particularly for those who have worked over extended periods in harsh climates. It was instituted in 1857 as the Arctic Medal, and renamed the Polar Medal in 1904.
The orders, decorations, and medals of Canada comprise a complex system by which Canadians are honoured by the country's sovereign for actions or deeds that benefit their community or the country at large. Modelled on its British predecessor, the structure originated in the 1930s, but began to come to full fruition at the time of Canada's centennial in 1967, with the establishment of the Order of Canada, and has since grown in both size and scope to include dynastic and national orders, state, civil, and military decorations; and various campaign medals. The monarch in right of each Canadian province also issues distinct orders and medals to honour residents for work performed in just their province. The provincial honours, as with some of their national counterparts, grant the use of post-nominal letters and or supporters and other devices to be used on personal coats of arms.
The 125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal is a commemorative medal struck by the Royal Canadian Mint to commemorate the 125th anniversary of the Confederation of Canada and was awarded to Canadians who were deemed to have made a significant contribution to their fellow citizens, to their community, or to Canada. Nominations were submitted to lieutenant governors and territorial commissioners, senators, members of parliament, provincial governments, the Public Service Commission of Canada, the Canadian Forces, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, and various federal government departments, as well as organizations throughout the country, and some 42,000 medals were awarded.
The Canadian Centennial Medal is a commemorative medal struck by the Royal Canadian Mint in 1967 to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Canadian Confederation and was awarded to Canadians who were recommended by government, professional, educational and cultural associations, as well as military and protective services, veterans' groups, sports associations, and philanthropic and charitable bodies, for having provided valuable service to Canada. Some 29,500 medals were issued after its inauguration on 1 July 1967, of which 8,500 went to personnel in the Canadian Forces.
The Royal Victorian Medal (RVM) is a decoration established by Queen Victoria in April 1896. A part of the Royal Victorian Order, it is a reward for personal service to the Sovereign or the royal family, and is the personal gift of the Sovereign. It differs from other grades of the order in appearance and in the way it is worn.
The Polar Medal is a Canadian medal intended to honour explorers of Canada's polar regions and defenders of the country's sovereignty in the north. The medal was initially conceived by Governor General Adrienne Clarkson as the Governor General's Northern Medal and created on September 15, 2005, to award those who served with distinction in northern Canada. It was replaced by the Polar Medal on June 23, 2015.
The Canadian titles debate originated with the presentation to the House of Commons of Canada of the Nickle Resolution in 1917. This resolution marked the earliest attempt to establish a federal government policy requesting the sovereign, in the right of the United Kingdom, not to grant knighthoods, baronetcies, and peerages to Canadians and set the precedent for later policies restricting Canadians from accepting titles from foreign countries. Dissatisfaction with the British honours system led to the gradual creation of a separate system for Canada.
The Air Efficiency Award, post-nominal letters AE for officers, was instituted in 1942. It could be awarded after ten years of meritorious service to officers, airmen and airwomen in the Auxiliary and Volunteer Air Forces of the United Kingdom and the Territorial Air Forces and Air Force Reserves of the Dominions, the Indian Empire, Burma, the Colonies and Protectorates.
The Decoration for Officers of the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve, post-nominal letters VD until c. 1947 and VRD thereafter, was instituted in 1908. It could be awarded to part-time commissioned officers in the United Kingdom's Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve after twenty years of service as efficient and thoroughly capable officers. The decoration was a Naval version of the Volunteer Officers' Decoration and its successor, the Territorial Decoration.
The Order of Military Merit is a military honour for merit that is, within the Canadian system of honours, the second highest order administered by the Governor in Council on behalf of the Canadian monarch.
The Efficiency Decoration, post-nominal letters TD for recipients serving in the Territorial Army of the United Kingdom or ED for those serving in the Auxiliary Military Forces, was instituted in 1930 for award to part-time officers after twenty years of service as an efficient and thoroughly capable officer. The decoration superseded the Volunteer Officers' Decoration, the Colonial Auxiliary Forces Officers' Decoration and the Territorial Decoration.
The Queen's Medal for Champion Shot is a Canadian medal instituted on 28 August 1991 to honour one member each of the Canadian Armed Forces (CF) Regular Force and either the CF Reserve Force or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) who obtained the highest aggregate score in stages one and two of the Queen's Medal Competition. It replaced its British counterpart, the Queen's Medal for Champion Shots in the Military Forces, after 1992. In respect of the Canadian Regular Force, the British medal could only be won by Army members, whereas the Canadian medal can be won by members of the Canadian Forces.
The Medal for Long Service and Good Conduct (Military) is a medal awarded to regular members of the armed forces. It was instituted by King George V in 1930 and replaced the Army Long Service and Good Conduct Medal as well as the Permanent Forces of the Empire Beyond the Seas Medal. The medal was originally awarded to Regular Army warrant officers, non-commissioned officers and men of the UK Armed Forces. It also had a number of territorial versions for the Permanent Forces of the British Dominions. The eligibility criteria were relaxed in 1947 to also allow the award of the medal to officers who had served a minimum period in the ranks before being commissioned. Since 2016, the eligibility was widened to include officers who had never served in the ranks, and so the medal can now be awarded to all regular members of the British Armed Forces who meet the required length of service.
The Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal or The Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the 60th anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's accession in 1952. There are four versions of the medal: one issued by the United Kingdom, another by Canada, the third for the Caribbean realms of Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the fourth issued by Papua New Guinea. The ribbons used with the Canadian and British versions of the medal are the same, while the ribbon of the Caribbean and the Papua New Guinean medal differ slightly. The different iterations of the medal were presented to tens of thousands of recipients throughout the Commonwealth realms in the jubilee year.
The Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Long Service and Good Conduct Medal, initially designated the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve Long Service Medal, was instituted in 1908. It could be awarded to part-time ratings in the United Kingdom's Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve after twelve years of service and good conduct. The medal was a Naval version of the Volunteer Long Service Medal and its successor, the Territorial Force Efficiency Medal.
The Canada Medal was an honour created in 1943 as part of an attempt to establish an indigenous honours system in Canada. It was meant to serve as the highest award that could be awarded to civilians and military personnel.
The Medal of Service of the Order of Canada was a decoration, within the Canadian system of honours, created at the same time as the Companion level of the Order of Canada and the Medal of Courage of the Order of Canada. The federal cabinet refused to allow for the establishment of a multi-level national order, and thus the Medal of Service was established as a second tier to the Companion level.
