- Time Period: World War II
- Year of Institution: 26 October 1945
- Country: Poland
The Medal of Victory and Freedom 1945 (or Medal Zwycięstwa i Wolności 1945 in Polish) was a military decoration from Poland awarded to persons who fought during World War II against Nazi Germany.
The medal was introduced by a decree of the Council of Ministers and approved by the State National Council (Krajowa Rada Narodowa) on October 26, 1945. According to the decree, it was instituted “to commemorate the victory of the Polish Nation and its allies over the barbarism of hitlerism, a triumph of the idea of democratic freedom, and to award persons who helped in this victory”.
It was awarded to:
- soldiers of the Polish People’s Army (Ludowe Wojsko Polskie) in the USSR.
- soldiers fighting in the invasion of Poland in 1939.
- soldiers of the Polish Armed Forces in the West, provided that they come back to Poland after the war.
- Poles who fought against Germans in allied armies.
- Polish partisans fighting in the country or abroad.
- members of the Soviet, Yugoslav or French partisan units.
- armed forces members who served at least three months by May 9, 1945, in auxiliary units, helping in the victory.
The medal was awarded by the Prime Minister, and from 1958 by the Council of State. It ceased to be awarded in 1992. About 670,000 Medals were awarded by 1985.
The Medal of Victory and Freedom 1945 Design
The medal in the first version was a bronze disc with a diameter of 33 mm.
On the obverse was the state eagle, surrounded by oak leaves, with the inscription KRN in the upper part, but this version was not introduced.
The final version, sanctioned by the regulations in 1946, is a disc 33 mm in diameter, patinated in brown, with the State Eagle on the obverse and the inscription around the medal: KRAJOWA RADA NARODOWA. At the bottom of the medal there are two tied oak leaves. On the reverse there are four lines separated by horizontal lines: RP – VICTORY – AND FREEDOM – 9.V.1945.
In 1945, a ribbon was established, which was half red and white in a vertical line. From 1946, the ribbon of the medal was 35 mm wide and consisted of 3 red and 2 white stripes 7 mm wide, arranged alternately. Since 1960, the width of the ribbon has been defined as 33 mm.
