My grandfather's WWII history is as yet undiscovered by me, except a few facts. One is, that he had ( he is deceased) a European - African - Middle Eastern Campaign Medal Ribbon with 5 stars on it. I am pretty sure he was 3rd Army, and I am certain that he spent a long period of time in hospital in France after Bastogne. Any knowledge on the possibilities for the 5 stars?
d. A bronze star is worn on the ribbon to indicate participation in designated campaigns. The designated campaigns for the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater are:
Egypt-Libya 11 Jun 42 - 12 Feb 43 Air Offensive, Europe 4 Jul 42 - 5 Jun 44 Algeria-French Morocco 8-11 Nov 42 Tunisia 12 Nov 42 - 13 May 43 Sicily 14 May 43 - 17 Aug 43 Naples-Foggia 18 Aug 43 - 21 Jan 44 Anzio 22 Jan 44 - 24 May 44 Rome-Arno 22 Jan 44 - 9 Sep 44 Normandy 6 Jun 44 - 24 Jul 44 Northern France 25 Jul 44 - 14 Sep 44 Southern France 15 Aug 44 - 14 Sep 44 Northern Apennines 10 Sep 44 - 4 Apr 45 Rhineland 15 Sep 44 - 21 Mar 45 Ardennes-Alsace 16 Dec 44 - 25 Jan 45 Central Europe 22 Mar 45 - 11 May 45 Po Valley 5 Apr 45 - 8 May 45 * Antisubmarine 7 Dec 41 - 2 Sep 45 * Ground Combat 7 Dec 41 - 2 Sep 45 * Air Combat: 7 Dec 41 - 2 Sep 45
* These campaigns are not displayed as streamers on the Army flag.
Originally posted by zerkmon: My grandfather's WWII history is as yet undiscovered by me, except a few facts. One is, that he had ( he is deceased) a European - African - Middle Eastern Campaign Medal Ribbon with 5 stars on it. I am pretty sure he was 3rd Army, and I am certain that he spent a long period of time in hospital in France after Bastogne. Any knowledge on the possibilities for the 5 stars?
The WWII campaign entitlement for the 3rd Army is as follows: Normandy; Northern France; Rhineland; Ardennes-Alsace; Central Europe. For greater detail his unit would need to be identified.
Originally posted by FormerEmbassyMarine: Whats wierd, it was given for duty in Iraq.....if one was there during WWII.
A British soldier serving in Iraq and then Italy and subsequently Germany could be awarded three individual campaign stars (similar to our campaign medals): Africa Star; Italy Star; France & Germany Star. The same soldier could also qualify for the 1939-45 Star as well the Defense and War Medals.
Assuming an enlistment/induction after 7 Dec 41 a US soldier with the same assigments would be entitled to 3 separate medals: American Campaign Medal; EAME Campaign Medal; WWII Victory Medal. Those on active duty prior to 7 Dec 41, and who had a service commitment of more than 1 year, would also be entitled to the American Defense Medal. Unlike the Brits, the US soldier would also be eligible for the Good Conduct Medal after 1 year of service - for the Brits it took 18 years. The service requirement was formalized at 3 years after the war.
This message has been edited. Last edited by: adminnco1,
no runfuret, adminnco and redleg13f are machines....
They offer some great insight.....I trust em.
I am jsut good at harnessing information and offering a little reasoning....and bringing up "what ifs" (the epitomy of Army training) to strain the brain in terms of awards.......
Originally posted by FormerEmbassyMarine: no runfuret, adminnco and redleg13f are machines....
They offer some great insight.....I trust em.
I am jsut good at harnessing information and offering a little reasoning....and bringing up "what ifs" (the epitomy of Army training) to strain the brain in terms of awards.......
In my case, an old guy with way too much free time...but on a serious note, this is one of the more functional areas of military.com. Insightful conversation and bit of fun - things we all need in this day and age.
Thanks so much guys. I am in the midst of requesting all of his records and from that I hope to make a lot more discoveries about his war experiences. Apparently I am the only one, his grandson, that he ever talk too about any of it. He had a lot of memorabilia that has since disappeared, lugers, nazi stuff, even a damn nazi flag. I think it was all stolen by housekeepers during and immidiately after his death. In our large extended family I am the only one that ever he ever talked with about his experiences and that even knew this stuff existed. All I managed to salvage was the aforementioned ribbon with 5 bronze stars, 2 purple heart ribbons and a good conduct ribbon. I SAW all of the medals, but alas, they disappeared. Perhaps he sold them, though I doubt it.
Hopefully his records weren't lost in the fire like my great great grandfather who was a Major General during WWII and later ***. Chief of Staff of EUROCOMM.
Thank you for the info on the campaigns, I discovered that they owe my dad one more star for North Africa Tunisia 12 Nov 42 - 13 May 43 to be exact. He was there with the 478th Amphibious Truck CO 1st Engineer Special BDE, he was in a total of 7 campaigns with Tunisia 12 Nov 42 - 13 May 43. He also received the Bronze Arrowhead for Normandy, Utah Beach.
