The Military Medal (MM)
The Military Medal was instituted in March 1916 as an award for NCOs and men of the Army for acts of bravery, and was later extended to women who showed bravery under fire. There was also a provision for the award of a bar for each further act of bravery.
All MMs issued to British personnel are named, usually in impressed capitals. All issued MMs have a notification in the London Gazette.
It is rare to find a citation for a Military Medal that was awarded during The Great War in the Gazettes. It is possible that the reasons for the award will be found in the Regimental War Diary. In addition, some details can appear in Regimental Histories and, very rarely, an original Divisional citation document that was given to the recipient will have survived.
It is of interest to note that the first Gazette listing awards of the Military Medal (3 June 1916) included retrospective awards for 1914-15 and early 1916.
About the citations
The citations have been compiled from the original recommendations typed or handwritten in the field at the time of the action and subsequently passed up the chain of command for approval.
Some have been almost illegible from the start; others have lost their edges or their continuations sheets, or have had filing holes punched through keywords. The text faithfully follows the original citations, except that, minor spelling mistakes have been corrected.