The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal (sometimes referred to as (EAME TCR [*]) was established by Executive Order 9265 signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on November 6, 1942, and implemented by War Department Bulletin 56 (1942) and Navy Department General Orders Number 253 (1942).

(TCR: Theater Campaign Ribbon; Temporary Campaign Ribbon; Transistional Campaign Replacement)

Effective Dates:

The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal was awarded for qualifying service between December 7, 1941, and March 2, 1946.

Criteria:

The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal was awarded for for qualifying service within the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater of Operations between December 7, 1941, and March 2, 1946, under any of the following conditions:

Order of Precedence:

The European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal was worn after the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal and before the World War II Victory Medal.

Devices:

Designer:

The obverse of the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal was designed by Thomas Hudson Jones (1892-1969). The reverse was designed by Adolph A. Weinman (1870-1952).

First Recipient:

The first recipient of the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal was General Dwight D. Eisenhower, who was presented his medal on July 24, 1947.

Description and Symbolism:

The western boundary of EAME Theater is from the North Pole, south along the 75th meridian west longitude to the 77th parallel north latitude, then southeast through Davis Strait to the intersection of the 40th parallel north latitude and the 35th meridian west longitude, then south along the meridian to the 10th parallel north latitude, then southeast to the intersection of the Equator and the 20th meridian west longitude, then along the 20th meridian west longitude to the South Pole. The eastern boundary of the EAME Theater is from the North Pole south along the 60th meridian east longitude to its intersection with the east boundary of Iran, then south along the Iran boundary to the Gulf of Oman and the intersection of the 60th meridian east longitude, then south along the 60th meridian east longitude to the South Pole. The EAME Theater included Europe, European Russia, Greenland, Iceland, Africa, Iran, Iraq, and Turkey.

Components: The following are authorized components:

Background: a. The EAME Campaign Medal was established per Executive Order 9265, dated 6 November 1942, by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and announced in War Department Bulletin 56, 1942. The criteria was initially announced in Department of the Army (DA) Circular 84, dated 25 March 1948, and subsequently published in Army Regulation 600-65, dated 22 September 1948.

The ribbon design was approved by the Secretary of War in December 1942. The brown represents the sands of Africa and the green represents the green fields of Europe. The center blue, white, and red stripes are taken from the American Defense Service Medal ribbon and refers to the continuance of American Defense after Pearl Harbor. Green, white and red are the Italian colors and the white and black colors represent Germany.

The medal was designed by Mr. Thomas Hudson Jones, based on General Eisenhower's request that the medal include an invasion scene. The reverse side was designed by Mr. A. A. Weinman and is the same design as used on the reverse of the Asiatic-Pacific and American Campaign Medals. The medal design was submitted to the Commission of Fine Arts on 17 September 1946 and the first sample was completed in July 1947. General Eisenhower was presented the first medal on 24 July 1947.

A bronze star is worn on the ribbon to indicate participation in designated campaigns. The designated campaigns for the European-African-Middle Eastern Theater are:

A bronze arrowhead is worn on the ribbon to indicate participation in a combat parachute jump, combat glider landing, or amphibious assault landing within the EAME Theater.

Executive Order 9265--American, European-African-Middle Eastern and Asiatic-Pacific campaign medals