- Time Period: The Great War
- Institution: 21 December 1920
- Country: South Africa
The Dekoratie voor Trouwe Dienst, abbreviated as DTD, is a military decoration in South Africa. Established in 1920, it serves as a retrospective honor for Boer officers who served during the Second Boer War from 1899 to 1902.
Neither the South African Republic (Transvaal) nor the Orange Free State had their own official honors systems. Hence, the decoration was created to provide Boer veteran officers, serving within the Union Defence Forces, with recognition parallel to their compatriots who fought on the British side during the conflict.
Throughout the Second Boer War, Republican commanders were directed to record the names of individuals within their ranks who displayed exceptional valor on the battlefield. These names were to be submitted to the War Council for verification and publication in the Staats Courant (Government Gazette) with the intention of awarding a medal post-war. However, as the Republican forces were defeated, the proposed medal never came to fruition.
It was later, in 1920, that King George V instituted the Dekoratie voor Trouwe Dienst, alongside the Medalje voor de Anglo-Boere Oorlog and the Lint voor Verwonding.
The Dekoratie voor Trouwe Dienst Design
The decoration, crafted in silver, takes the form of a disk measuring 1+7⁄16 inches (37 millimeters) in diameter and 1⁄8 inch (3 millimeters) in thickness at the raised rim. It is attached to a fixed bar suspender using claws and a pin inserted through the upper edge of the medal. The recipient’s rank and name are impressed on the rim.
Both sides of the medal feature an encircled coat of arms on a cross pattée, surrounded by the inscription “VOOR TROUWE DIENST” above and the years “1899 • 1902” below. The coat of arms of the South African Republic is depicted on one side of the cross, while that of the Orange Free State is shown on the other. This design allows recipients to wear the medal to display the coat of arms of the state under which they served.
The ribbon measures 1+1⁄4 inches (32 millimeters) wide and combines the colors of the two former Republics. While officially designated as red, green, white, blue, and orange, the orange hue appears as yellow on the actual ribbons.
