Introduction
Every military medal hangs from a distinctive ribbon, and every ribbon tells a story. Medal ribbons are designed to be instantly recognisable — even at a distance across a parade ground, you should be able to tell what medals a soldier is wearing. For collectors and historians, knowing your ribbons is a fundamental skill. This guide covers the most important British military medal ribbons.
How Medal Ribbons Work
Medal ribbons serve two purposes: they suspend the medal when worn in full dress, and they represent the medal when worn as a “ribbon bar” on everyday uniform. A ribbon bar is a small strip of the medal ribbon mounted on a pin, worn on the left breast.
The order in which medals are worn follows strict rules: gallantry awards first, then campaign medals in date order, then long service medals, then coronation/jubilee medals. The most senior medal sits closest to the centre of the chest.
World War One Medal Ribbons
1914 Star (“Mons Star”)
Ribbon: Red, white, and blue shaded watered silk. The ribbon shades from red on the left through white to blue on the right.
Awarded to those who served in France or Belgium between 5 August and 22 November 1914 — the “Old Contemptibles” who fought in the opening battles of the war.
1914-15 Star
Ribbon: Red, white, and blue in equal stripes. Similar to the 1914 Star but with distinct, unshaded stripes.
Awarded for service in any theatre of war between 5 August 1914 and 31 December 1915. This is the more common of the two stars.
British War Medal 1914-1920
Ribbon: Central orange stripe flanked by white and black (repeated). A distinctive ribbon with orange, white, black, blue, and white stripes.
Over 6.5 million issued. Awarded for service overseas or certain service at home. This is the most common WW1 medal.
Victory Medal
Ribbon: A rainbow of double stripes: red, yellow, green, blue, and violet from the centre outwards. The famous “rainbow ribbon.”
Awarded in conjunction with the British War Medal. Known colloquially as “Mutt and Jeff” when paired together.
World War Two Medal Ribbons
1939-1945 Star
Ribbon: Equal stripes of dark blue, red, and light blue. Represents the three services: Navy, Army, and Air Force respectively.
Africa Star
Ribbon: Pale buff (sand) with a central red stripe flanked by dark blue and light blue stripes. The sand colour represents the desert.
Italy Star
Ribbon: Red, white, green, red, white. The colours of the Italian flag, reflecting the campaign theatre.
France and Germany Star
Ribbon: Blue, white, red, white, blue stripes. Representing the French tricolour.
Burma Star
Ribbon: Dark blue with a central red stripe and orange edges. A striking, easily recognisable ribbon.
War Medal 1939-1945
Ribbon: Narrow red, narrow white, narrow blue stripe on each side of a broad red central stripe. Similar to the King’s colours.
Defence Medal
Ribbon: Green with orange edges and narrow black stripes. Awarded for non-operational service, including Home Guard duty and civil defence.
Gallantry Medal Ribbons
Victoria Cross (VC)
Ribbon: Crimson (wine red). Originally dark blue for the Royal Navy and crimson for the Army, unified to crimson for all services in 1918. The VC is always worn first, before all other medals.
Distinguished Service Order (DSO)
Ribbon: Red with blue edges.
Military Cross (MC)
Ribbon: White with a broad purple central stripe.
Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM)
Ribbon: Crimson with a dark blue centre stripe.
Military Medal (MM)
Ribbon: Dark blue with white, crimson, and white stripes on each side.
Collecting Medal Ribbons
Medal ribbons are highly collectable in their own right:
- Full-size ribbons — Cut lengths of ribbon for mounting medals. Original wartime ribbon has a slightly different texture and colour to modern replacements
- Ribbon bars — Mounted ribbon strips worn on uniform. A group of 4-5 WW2 ribbon bars is affordable and makes an excellent display piece
- Miniature ribbons — Smaller versions used with miniature medals at evening functions
When buying medal ribbons, compare against known examples. Wartime ribbon can be darker or lighter than modern reproductions due to age and different dye batches.
Browse our medal ribbon collection for mounted and loose ribbons from all periods, or visit our medals section for complete medal groups.