When it comes to the wide range of distinctions that often encompass uniform decoration and award placement, it can be easy for many people to feel in over their head—from an outside perspective, the range of various awards and distinctions alone can often seem like it would be impossible to ever truly understand without living it firsthand. However, can simply focusing on you or your family’s specific branch of the military hold the potential to serve as a good starting point in understanding the fundamentals of medal and award mounting? We believe so.
Many of the core differences in medal mounting occur based on the branch of the military the awards are distributed across—for example, distinctions reserved for members of the United States Marines will often differ from those awarded to members of the United States Navy, and so on. Read ahead for our accessible rundown on key differences to understand when examining award and medal and ribbon mounting practices.
United States Army
Military regulations regarding uniform presentation require the utmost precision and attention to detail, and the United States Army is certainly no exception to this—measurements for fundamental distinctions, such as ribbons and badges, require care to ensure that placement of items are accurate by as close as 1/8th of an inch.
In particular, uniforms of enlisted members require that ribbons be placed three to a row over the left breast pocket, while combat badges are worn 1/4th of an inch above these ribbons. Awards that apply to the individual’s unit are positioned similarly to ribbons, however, they are located 1/8th of an inch above the right breast pocket, as opposed to the left.
United States Navy
In the United States Navy, ribbons are applicable when wearing not only an individual’s service coat, but also on their designated jumper, Service Khaki, Tropical White, Winter Blue, and Summer White. Similarly, Navy uniforms require that ribbons be arranged in single rows of three above the left breast pocket, with authorization being required for the display of more than three ribbons simultaneously– this allows for multiple rows of three ribbons to be displayed in some cases.
In the event that ribbons are not in multiples of three, the top row will always contain the lesser number of ribbons. However, if your uniform requires the display of one or more miniature medals, you should not wear ribbons as well—this differs significantly from the regulations defined in the United States Army. In the event that both ribbons and medals are worn, the lowest row of medals should be aligned with the lowest ribbon bar. Multiple rows of ribbons should be grouped with the same number of medals in each row.
United States Marine Corps
In regards to the United States Marine Corps regulations for the placement of ribbons, service ribbons can be worn in rows of three or four, depending on the number of awards—however, in the event that the lapel happens to conceal any ribbons, they can be displayed in successively decreasing rows—4,3,2, etc. Ribbons should be aligned 1/8th of an inch above the left breast pocket in accordance with the neatest possible appearance.
Medals, however, may be worn with up to four medals side by side per three-inch bar provided (with a maximum of seven medals in a collective row of bars being allowed to overlap). If medals are worn, ribbons which would normally be located above the left breast pocket must be situated above the right breast pocket instead.
