- Commemorative Medals for Army Marches
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The Commemorative Medals for Army Marches are two distinct medals awarded for participating in the two marches organised yearly by the Belgian Army. They are not decorations, but they may be worn by members of the Belgian Armed Forces on their uniform during the year following the participation if they request it. For members of the Belgian Army, participating in the marches counts as operational training.
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Marche Européenne du Souvenir et de l'Amitié (MESA)
The European March of Memory and Friendship is a four-days international march originally organised in 1967 by the 3rd Battalion of Ardennes Hunters in memory of the operations performed by their predecessors at the beginning of World War II in the same region. The march is now organised on a yearly basis and also focusses on honouring the towns in the region, regularly changing its course to do so. The march is in four times thirty-two kilometers long in the Ardennes region of Belgium as well as the Grand Duchy of Luxemburg.
The medal is silver with the imprint of the head of a boar. The ribbon of the medal is dark green with a thin vertical Belgian flag on each border and two thin vertical red lines in the middle.
Vier Dagen van de Ijser
The Four Days of the Yser is a four day international march organised since 1967 by the Order of the Horse Fishermen of Oostduinkerke, in order to honour the tradition of shrimping on horseback on the one hand and to emphasize the scenic attractions of the Westhoek, the western part of the Belgian coast. Since 1972 it is organised by the Belgian Armed Forces to strengthen the bond between the Belgian Armed Forces and society, to commemorate the casualties of both World Wars, particularly those who fell on the battlefields of the Westhoek during the First World War, and to introduce the hikers to the historical and touristic values of the Westhoek. The march is in four times thirty-two kilometers long.
The medal is round or triangular, made in silver or bronze, and showing the imprint of a World War I Belgian soldier, but the shape of the medal can change every five years. The ribbon is dark blue with a large vertical scarlet stripe. Small metal bars are added to the ribbon when the bearer has completed the march more than one time.
See also
External links
Categories:- Orders, decorations, and medals of Belgium
- Military awards and decorations of Belgium
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