Bronze Star Medal
The Bronze Star Medal (BSM) is a United States Armed Forces decoration awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces for either heroic achievement, heroic service, meritorious achievement, or meritorious service in a combat zone.
| Bronze Star Medal | |
|---|---|
Front view | |
| Type | Military medal (Decoration) |
| Awarded for | "Heroic or meritorious achievement or service" |
| Presented by | Department of the Army Department of the Navy Department of the Air Force Department of Homeland Security |
| Clasps | Army, Air Force, and Space Force – "V" device
|
| Status | Currently awarded |
| Established | Executive Order 9419, 4 February 1944 (superseded by E.O. 11046, 24 August 1962) |
| First awarded | 4 February 1944 (retroactive through 7 December 1941) |
| Last awarded | Currently awarded |
Medal ribbon (above) – Reverse side of star (below) | |
| Precedence | |
| Next (higher) | Army: Soldier's Medal Naval Service: Navy and Marine Corps Medal Air and Space Forces: Airman's Medal Coast Guard: Coast Guard Medal |
| Next (lower) | Purple Heart |
When the medal is awarded by the Army, Air Force, or Space Force for acts of valor in combat, the "V" device is authorized for wear on the medal. When the medal is awarded by the Navy, Marine Corps, or Coast Guard for acts of valor or meritorious service in combat, the Combat "V" is authorized for wear on the medal.
Officers from the other Uniformed Services of the United States are eligible to receive this award, as are foreign soldiers who have served with or alongside a service branch of the United States Armed Forces.
Civilians serving with U.S. military forces in combat are also eligible for the award. For example, UPI reporter Joe Galloway was awarded the Bronze Star with "V" device for actions during the Vietnam War, specifically rescuing a badly wounded soldier under fire in the Battle of Ia Drang Valley, in 1965. Another civilian recipient was writer Ernest Hemingway.