| Canada General Service Medal | |
| Presenter: | Canada United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland |
| Type: | Campaign medal |
| Eligibility: | Imperial and Canadian forces |
| Awarded For: | Campaign service. |
| Description: | Silver disk 36 mm wide |
| Clasps: |
|
| Established: | 1 January 1899[1] |
| Total Awarded: | 17,623 [2] |
The Canada General Service Medal was a campaign medal awarded by the Canadian Government[3] to both Imperial and Canadian forces for duties related to the Fenian raids between 1866 and 1871.[4] The medal was initially issued in 1899 and had to be applied for.[5] The application period was later extended to 1907, then to 1928.[3]
With late applications, 17,623 medals were awarded,[2] including 15,300 to members of Canadian units.[5]
The medal, 1.4inches in diameter, is silver and has a plain straight swivel suspender.[3] The obverse bears the head of Queen Victoria with the legend VICTORIA REGINA ET IMPERATRIX, while the reverse depicts the ensign of Canada surrounded by a wreath of maple leaves with the word CANADA above.[5]
The recipient's name, rank and unit appear on the rim of the medal. A number of different impressed and engraved styles were used, reflecting that the medal was awarded over a long period of time.[3]
The 1.25inches wide ribbon consists of three equal stripes of red, white and red. In 1943 the same ribbon was adopted for the Canada Medal.[6]
The medal was always awarded with a clasp, with 12 medals awarded with all three clasps.[2] The number of clasps indicated below includes those that appear on multi-clasp medals.