Republic of Korea (South Korea)

[Hugh]

Love the name!!!

As I mentioned, the translations were driven by the ingestion of quantities of soju, which can have interesting effects on your brain.

On another note, Megan, bless her, has started posting these on the OMSA site.

[Hugh]

KOREA, REPUBLIC OF ? 10^th Anniversary of ROK Army Medal, Mint in case of issue

Medal Factory, Seoul, 1/05

[Hugh]

KOREA, REPUBLIC OF ? 20^th Anniversary of ROK Army Medal, Mint in case of issue

Medal Factory, Seoul, 1/05

[Hugh]

Well, Hugh, it appears that virtually ALL South Korean orders exist in THREE types - 1950-67, 1967-73 and 1973 to the present day.

The 1967-73 versions are particularly hard to get hold of, but all of them are quite rare as it is illegal to sell what the government gives you.

Given the contents of my mailbox this morning, the relevant section of my website is going to grow fairly rapidly (copies to here & OMSA of course!).

More anon....

It's also quite difficult to buy replacements. You must bring your award certificate and a picture ID to the store. I commend them on preserving the integrity of their system.

[Hugh]

For those who are interested, there is a very helpful website hosted by Don Fifer, which lists Orders and decorations. By email, I'm inviting him to log on to this thread and comment / correct our input.

KOREA, REPUBLIC OF ? 30th Year Jubilee of ROK Army Medal 1948-78, Copper, bronze and chrome, Mint in case of issue, with medal ribbon

Invicta Intl., 11/00

[Hugh]

Sorry, forgot to list Fifer's website - http://home.earthlink.net/~dfifer/index.htm

KOREA, REPUBLIC OF ? 40th Year Jubilee of ROK Army Medal, Mint in case of issue, with medal ribbon, Mint in case of issue

[Hugh]

KOREA, REPUBLIC OF ? Viet Nam War Service Medal, Mint in case of issue

Medal Factory, Seoul, 1/05

[Hugh]

That's it; that's all I've got. Hope we hear from Don Fifer.

KOREA, REPUBLIC OF ? Meritorious Service Decoration (awarded to both military and civilians), Mint in case of issue

Medal Factory, Seoul, 1/05

[Megan]

Order of Civil Merit

Instituted: 22 December 1951

Awarded: To civilian employees of the government and the military for outstanding service, in 5 grades.

To start with the first type, here's the Moran Medal (2nd Class), as awarded 1951-67:

[Megan]

Dongbaeg Medal (3rd Class), 1951-67:

(Don't ask about the ribbon - this is how the picture came! Am inquiring...)

[Megan]

Mogryeon Medal (4th Class), 1951-67 version:

It looks like at least classes 2 and below were chest-medals, I am told that a 1st type 1st class star has been seen, however.

[Megan]

Moving on, Mogryeon Medal (4th Class) from the 1967-73 period - with a more conventional 'officer' style ribbon rosette:

[Megan]

Now the current version, a Dongbaeg Medal (3rd Class), post-1973, on neck ribbon as befits a 'Commander' grade:

[Megan]

The Mogryeon Medal (4th Class), post-1973, again on an 'officer' type ribbon:

(These will also be uploaded to OMSA but later, dearly beloved has started drinking my beer!)

[Dfifer]

I am not sure how much I can help with Korean ODM, but I can give it a try.

There are more or less 5 general time frames for Korean ODM

1. Pre Korean war - There were a number of Korean Medals issued before the war, but very little is known about them. There were also two orders created, namely: the Grand Order of Mugunghwa and the Order of National Foundation. There were also 7 Merit Medals created.

2. From the Korean War to Park Chung Hee (1950-62). Most of these Orders and Medals are fairly straight forward. The one exception is the Order of Military Merit. Established in Oct. 1950 in 4 classes, in Dec. they expanded each class of the order into three separate grades with the addition of the Gold Star, Silver Star or No Star to the ribbon. The following April, they changed the ribbon colors and stripe pattern, and later that year they completely redesigned the Order. (Roughly 36 different awards) There are a couple more that I will cover when I eventually publish my book. I do not have time at the moment, but there are a couple of other comments that I need to make about the Order of Civil Merit.

3. Park Chung Hee the early years (1962-67). He created a number of new orders, and added a fifth class to several older orders.

4. 1967 - 1973 - this is without a doubt the most confusing area, names were changed, designs were changed, etc., etc. For instance the Order of Civil Merit became the Order of Service Merit, the design changed but the class names and the purpose for the Order remained the same.

5. 1973 to present. Korean settled down with eleven Orders and the designs have been fairly consistent ever since. There are some minor changes many of which are hard to discern. For instance the Order of Military Merit went from 180 rays of the sun to 184. You will find these on my website at http://home.earthlink.net/~dfifer/index.htm

Some other tidbits

Korea has issued at least:

15 different Red Cross Medals,

4 different wound medals (Prewar wound medal, two different plachets for the Standard Wound Medal and one for Permanent Disability)

hundreds of diffent designs for their orders

40 different designs for the Merit Medals

As soon as I have time, I will write more. If you have any particular questions, please feel free to ask.

Don Pfeifer

dfifer@earthlink.net

[Ed_Haynes]

Thanks, Don. All of us need all the help we can get!

[Hugh]

I am not sure how much I can help with Korean ODM, but I can give it a try.

There are more or less 5 general time frames for Korean ODM

1. Pre Korean war - There were a number of Korean Medals issued before the war, but very little is known about them. There were also two orders created, namely: the Grand Order of Mugunghwa and the Order of National Foundation. There were also 7 Merit Medals created.

2. From the Korean War to Park Chung Hee (1950-62). Most of these Orders and Medals are fairly straight forward. The one exception is the Order of Military Merit. Established in Oct. 1950 in 4 classes, in Dec. they expanded each class of the order into three separate grades with the addition of the Gold Star, Silver Star or No Star to the ribbon. The following April, they changed the ribbon colors and stripe pattern, and later that year they completely redesigned the Order. (Roughly 36 different awards) There are a couple more that I will cover when I eventually publish my book. I do not have time at the moment, but there are a couple of other comments that I need to make about the Order of Civil Merit.

3. Park Chung Hee the early years (1962-67). He created a number of new orders, and added a fifth class to several older orders.

4. 1967 - 1973 - this is without a doubt the most confusing area, names were changed, designs were changed, etc., etc. For instance the Order of Civil Merit became the Order of Service Merit, the design changed but the class names and the purpose for the Order remained the same.

5. 1973 to present. Korean settled down with eleven Orders and the designs have been fairly consistent ever since. There are some minor changes many of which are hard to discern. For instance the Order of Military Merit went from 180 rays of the sun to 184. You will find these on my website at http://home.earthlink.net/~dfifer/index.htm

Some other tidbits

Korea has issued at least:

15 different Red Cross Medals,

4 different wound medals (Prewar wound medal, two different plachets for the Standard Wound Medal and one for Permanent Disability)

hundreds of diffent designs for their orders

40 different designs for the Merit Medals

As soon as I have time, I will write more. If you have any particular questions, please feel free to ask.

Don Pfeifer

dfifer@earthlink.net

Many thanks for these notes, Don, and apologies for the massacre of your name. I took it from the email address, as I'm sure you recognize. I suspect I should also have addressed you by a military rank, but didn't know it.

[Megan]

Interesting.

As I am in the middle of the South Korean section of my website right now, please pop over and proffer any suggestions you may have - it will be most appreciated!

[Megan]

Order of Sports Merit

Instituted: 25 January 1973 (so at least there's only one variety!!!).

Awarded: In recognition of outstanding sporting achievement, in 5 grades.

The only picture I have yet, and apologies for its low quality, is the Baegma Medal (4th Class):

[Megan]

Sports Merit Medal

Presumably created the same time as the Order, and awarded for much the same...

[Hugh]

awards) As soon as I have time, I will write more. If you have any particular questions, please feel free to ask.

Don Pfeifer

dfifer@earthlink.net

I'd be very grateful if you'd take a look at the names I've used on my posts and give us corrections. If you had nothing but time to spare, I'd love to see both the English translation and the transliteration of the Korean name. As I mentioned earlier, a ROK Army Colonel (Arty) and I did our best over much soju.

Thanks,

Hugh

[Dfifer]

<a name="_Toc183225618">Several people have asked if the Korean stuff is more confusing than the ROC awards. I would like to give some quick remarks to try and clear up some of the confusion, but I will probably muddy the field more than anything else.

Some of the information that I am about to give, comes from the English language section of three books published by the Korean government (1958, 1963, 1968). All three books specifically deal with Korean Orders, Merit Medals and Presidential Citations. The specific details for all of the name changes, comes from Presidential Decree #2929.

In 1951, Korea created the Order of the White Star in four classes, namely: Blue Stripes, Yellow Stripes, Red Stripes and Green Stripes. A fifth class named Aquamarine Stripes was instituted in 1963. In the 1958 and 1963 books, the Order of the White Star is listed as the Order of Civil Merit, and in both books, it states that the Order of Civil Merit is awarded to government employees, other than military personnel and civilian employees of military organizations, who distinguish themselves with outstanding meritorious services in the performance of their duties.

In 1967, the Order of the White Star was renamed Order of Service Merit. The 1968 book states that the Order of Service Merit was to be awarded to government employees who had greatly contributed to the national development through their outstanding performance of duties. It specifically excluded the military and the civilian employees of the military. The various classes for the Order of Service Merit now had the names that were previously used on the Order of the White Star. Perhaps a better title for this Order would be the ?Order of Civil Service Merit?.

In 1951, Korea established the Order of Cultural Merit in three classes (Republic of Korea Class, Presidential Class and National Class). In the 1958 book, it states that it was awarded: ?to Korean and foreign personnel in recognition of their outstandingly meritorious contributions to the fields of diplomatic service, military affairs, social relief, development of national economy, and other services rendered in the interest of the improvement of national welfare and productivity?.

When it comes to the Order of Civil Merit in the 1968 book, it states: ?These shall be given to those who have rendered distinguished service in the field of politics, economy, social welfare, education, art, science, physical education or other culture, and have thus made distinguished contributions to the advancement of national welfare and to the prosperity of the nation?. In effect, it is an Order of Civilian Merit.

In 1961, the government established the Order of Service Merit in seven classes, with no specific names for each of the classes only a number. It was awarded to those distinguishing themselves with outstanding meritorious service to the national safety and defense and was available to the military and government employees working for the military. In effect, it is a non combat military award. In 1967, it was renamed the Order of National Security Merit.

In 1967, the Order of Cultural Merit ceased to exist. The name, Order of Cultural Merit was resurrected in 1973, with a completely different purpose. Since the original Order ceased to exist in 1967, the names used for the three classes were transferred to the Order of National Foundation. Other than the similarity of the class names, there is no connection between the two Orders.

As a quick recap:

In 1967,

The original Order of the White Star (AKA Civil Merit) became the Order of Service Merit.

The original Order of Service Merit became the Order of National Security Merit.

The original Order of Cultural Merit became the Order of Civil Merit.

The Order of Cultural Merit ceases to exist.

The Classes for the Order of National Foundation are renamed.

Believe it or not, this is just the tip of the iceberg.

[Hugh]

Thanks for this, Don, We look forward to anything more you can provide. Since Megan intends to use these pictures on her website, she and i would be particularly interested to assure that we're not using incorrect names.

Best,

Hugh

[Ed_Haynes]

Yes, forcing names inteligently over into English is always "trisksy". But the original (in this case, Korean) name needs to be preserved (in both script and transliteration).

Edited August 5, 2008 by Ed_Haynes

[Megan]

Order of Industrial Service Merit

Instituted: 29 September 1962.

Awarded: To those who have contibuted greatly to the development of industry and the national economy.

This is the Bronze Tower (3rd Class), as awarded 1962-67.