India Service Medal

 

World War II.

 

Further relevant historical context can be found at the foot of this entry.

 

 

The Indian Service Medal 1939-1945 was a British Commonwealth campaign medal presented for service during World War II. The medal was instituted in 1945 and awarded to the Indian Forces for three years of non-operational service in India between 3 September 1939 and 2 September 1945.

 

This medal is sometimes referred to as the Defence Medal for India although that is not its correct name.

 

 

The medal is circular, 36mm in diameter and was struck in cupro-nickel. The obverse of this medal depicts the crowned effigy of King George VI and the inscription; ‘GEORGIVS VI D: G: BR: OMN: REX ET INDIAE IMP:’ (George VI by the grace of God King of Great Britain and Emperor of India).

 

The reverse depicts a relief of the Indian map and the inscription; ‘INDIA’ and the dates; ‘1939-45’.

 

The ribbon suspender is of the plain, straight and non-swivelling style riveted to the medal.

 

The medal was issued un-named.

 

 

 

The ribbon is 32mm wide and is blue-grey in colour with two narrow central black strips and a wider black strip along either edge. The colours represent the Order of the Star of India and the Order of the Indian Empire.

 

 

None were authorised for this medal.

 

Further relevant historical context can be found at the foot of this entry.

 

 

 

* It should be noted that the values quoted above reflect the average price that a medal dealer may expect to sell this medal for - please see the ‘things you should know’ web page for more details about valuing medals.

 

 

This section contains information on:-

 

- Indian Forces During World War II.

 

Indian Forces During World War II - British India (today known as India, Pakistan and Bangladesh) was controlled by Britain and thus India officially declared war on Nazi Germany in September 1939. The British Raj, as a possession of Great Britain, formed part of the Allied Nations and sent over two million volunteer soldiers to fight under British command against the Axis powers. Additionally, several Indian Princely States provided large donations to support the Allied campaign during the War.

 

India also provided the base for American operations in support of China in the China Burma India Theatre.

 

Indians fought with distinction throughout the world; in the European theatres of Germany and Italy, in the deserts against Rommel and in the Asian region defending India against the Japanese, and liberating British colonies such as Singapore and Hong Kong when the Japanese surrendered in August 1945.

 

The Muslim League supported the British war effort while the largest and most influential political party existing in India at the time, the Indian National Congress, demanded independence before it would help Britain. London refused, and when Congress announced a 'Quit India' campaign in August 1942, its leaders were imprisoned by the British for the duration. Meanwhile, Japan set up an army of Indian POWs known as the Indian National Army with the help of Indian revolutionaries who were seeking independence from the British.

 

Apart from this, Indian participation in the Allied campaign remained strong. The financial, industrial and military assistance of India formed a crucial component of the British campaign against Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan.

 

India's strategic location at the tip of the Indian Ocean, its massive production of armaments, and its huge armed forces played a decisive role in halting the progress of Imperial Japan in the South-East Asian theatre.

 

The Indian Army during World War II was one of the largest Allied forces contingents which took part in the North and East African Campaign, Western Desert Campaign and the Italian Campaign. At the height of the World War, more than 2.5 million Indian troops were fighting Axis forces around the globe.

 

After the end of the World War, India emerged as the world's fourth largest industrial power and its increased political, economic and military influence paved the way for its independence from the United Kingdom in 1947.

 

This information was taken from ‘Wikipedia’. The original article and details of the authors can be found here. It is reproduced on this web-site under the ‘creative commons’ licence which can be found here.