12 SERVICE BATTALION MUSEUM

MEDALS OF THE CANADIAN FORCES
WW II Segment - Article No. 1.

Evolution of a Medal - CANADIAN VOLUNTEER SERVICE MEDAL (CVSM)

During the Second World War, Canada attempted to raise and field an all-volunteer army. Memories of conscription to fight a "British" war in 1914-18 were not readily forgotten in Quebec, a primarily French-speaking province. Nonetheless, the demands on manpower, necessary to raise 8 divisions (five were sent overseas, three were for home-defence and were disbanded before war's end), soon required the introduction of selective conscription. To enabling legislation, the Government had to promise the conscripts, nicknamed Zombies by those at the front, would not be sent overseas unless they had volunteered for "General Service"(GS).

To encourage volunteers for "GS" the Canadian Government had initiated a medal, the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal (CVSM) the ribbon of which could be worn by every volunteer to the Canadian military forces after 18 months of honourable service. Additionally after six months of service overseas the "GS" volunteers could wear a miniature silver maple leaf on the ribbon. This actually lead to instances where the maple leaf device was worn on the battledress blouse before the recipient could qualify for the medal itself. Large-scale issue of the ribbon to Canada's largely volunteer military soon had the CVSM known as the EBGO (Every bastard's got one!)

The prologue to the Order-in-Council that authorized the distribution of the medal reads: "The Canadian Volunteer Service Medal is granted to persons of any rank in the Naval, Military or Air Forces of Canada who have voluntarily served on Active Service and have honourably completed eighteen months (540 days) total voluntary service from September 3, 1939, to March 1, 1947." (1)

At the conclusion of the war, the government introduced the actual medal and made arrangements to issue one to every qualified recipient. The design of the medal itself was fraught with changes. The initial design called for a representative from each of the three services; the Army, the Royal Canadian Navy and the Royal Canadian Air Force, and they were all male! As can be seen the final design includes members, of both sexes, of the three Services as well as a Nursing Sister. The models were serving members of the Forces and received no official recognition. The design was executed by noted Canadian war artist Charles Comfort who worked from photographs taken at Cartier Square Drill Hall in Ottawa.

Eligibility for the medal depended upon when you applied for it. At one point an individual qualified for the CVSM if he was a Canadian who served the qualifying time period with an Allied force and then joined the Canadian forces. (2) This clause was later dropped. According to the regulation (3) which now governs the CVSM, all voluntary service in any Forces in Canada counts whether the time is continuous or not, except for any absence without leave and service while imprisoned or under sentence of penal servitude.

The eighteen month period could be waived for persons on Active War Service who had been discharged or retired after having proceeded outside of Canada; for those who served on Active Service but were discharged as a result of injury or disease which was attributable to such service, posthumously. This also included persons serving as of September 2, 1945, who had served on Active Service, but had not attained their 19th birthday, by that date, or were compulsorily honourably discharged before the completion of the 18-month period. The medal was also presented to the next-of-kin of those who lost their lives in the conflict. Up to this point the concept, criteria, and issuance of the medal was little different from that of most other countries except that this medal would continue to evolve 50 years later.

Midway between the fall of France and the invasion of Normandy, the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division, supported by the 14th Canadian Army Tank regiment (The Calgary Regiment), and with elements of the Royal Marine Commandos and some American Rangers, took part in a raid-in-force on the French coastal town of Dieppe. For any number of reasons, the raid proved to be a costly exercise. Of 4,963 Canadians involved, 1,492 were killed or wounded and a further 1,946, of whom 568 were wounded, were taken prisoner for the duration of the war. (4)

After the war these veterans complained that they were only entitled to the CVSM (with overseas bar), the British War 1939-45 Medal and, for some, the Defence of Britain Medal. In fact, a quick glance at a Dieppe veterans chest on Remembrance Day and one thought of a filing clerk at Canadian Military Headquarters, or perhaps a Storeman at one of the large Ordnance depots. Little could one imagine the horror of Dieppe, the years of captivity and for many, the last desperate weeks of marching from one POW camp to another as the war closed in on Germany. In response to the veterans' demands, the Canadian Government in 1992 investigated the possibility of either striking a separate medal for these veterans or adding a device to the British 1939-45 War Medal. Early in the process it was decided that a poor precedent would be set if a medal were struck for a single battle - and a losing one at that! At the same time, the British were hesitant to allow Canada to alter the 1939-45 War Medal in any way. The Canadians decided that as the CVSM was a purely Canadian medal, they could do with it as they pleased. The result was a bar which featured the Combined Operations symbol. This clasp was announced on July 14,1994. Its design was created in consultation with the Dieppe Veterans and Prisoners of War Association. On the undress ribbon a second maple leaf device may be worn. This satisfied the Dieppe veterans.

The eligibility for the clasp was extended to include members of the Royal Canadian Navy and Royal Canadian Air Force who also took part in the operation as well as the Merchant Navy.

The door having been opened a crack for the Dieppe veterans, those who fought on the other side of the world demanded equal consideration. The Hong Kong veterans found themselves in much the same situation. In 1941, at the urging of the British War Office, Canada sent two untrained Infantry battalions to the British colony of Hong Kong, totalling 1,975 all ranks. These soldiers were supposed to undergo a lengthy training schedule, which would see them prepared to take up established defensive positions. The advancing Japanese, however, moved too quickly for this to happen and the two battalions found themselves fighting for their very survival just three weeks after arriving. In the 6-week campaign, the Canadians helped to inflict over 2,750 casualties on the enemy while suffering 290 killed themselves. The garrison surrendered on Christmas Day, 1941. The survivors, 492 of whom were wounded, were taken into captivity by the Japanese invaders. While in captivity 318 died, either as a result of wounds, from illness, forced labour or summary execution. (5)

To recognize the contributions made by these soldiers the Canadian government introduced a "Hong Kong" clasp to the CVSM on July 27,1995. This bar consists of the circular "HK" symbol super-imposed on a pebbled silver bar and bracketed by the words "HONG KONG". The Hong Kong veterans initially wore the "HK" device on the post-war formation patch. The design was arrived at with the active participation of the Hong Kong Veterans Association. Members of the Canadian Army, are eligible if they "served in the Defence of Hong Kong", from December 8, 1941 to December 25, 1941. First presentations of the new bar were made on August 11, 1995 as part of the VJ day 50th anniversary.

Fittingly, both clasps were manufactured at the Royal Canadian Mint, where 50 years earlier, the medal itself was minted.

References

1. National Archives of Canada, RG2/21, Pri vy Council, Order-in-Council
2. DHist, Canadian Army Routine Order No 6462
3. Government House, Honours and Awards Secretariat, Canadian Forces Administrative Orders, CFAO (128-2)
4. Six Years of War, Official History of the Canadian Army, Vol.1, Col CP Stacey, Queen's Printer, Ottawa, 1955
5. Ibid.

Additional information was provided by the MCC of C Journal, and Veterans Affairs Canada.