| Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal | |
|---|---|
 Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medals: Canada (left), Caribbean realms (centre), and United Kingdom and Commonwealth (right) | |
| Type | Medal |
| Awarded for | Having made an honourable service in military, police, prison, and emergency forces, or for outstanding achievement or public service |
| Presented by | Themonarch of Antigua and Barbuda,Australia,The Bahamas,Barbados,Canada,Grenada,Jamaica,New Zealand,Papua New Guinea,Saint Kitts and Nevis,Saint Lucia,Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and theUnited Kingdom    .svg) .svg)        |
| Status | No longer awarded |
| Total | 10 (Australia)[1] 60,000 (Canada)[2] 3 (New Zealand)[3] 450,000 (United Kingdom)[4] 5,898 (Jamaica)[5]
|
 .png)  Ribbons of the Diamond Jubilee Medal (top: Canadian and British; middle: Caribbean realms; bottom: Papua New Guinea) | |
| Precedence | |
| Next (higher) | Dependent on state |
| Next (lower) | Dependent on state |
TheQueen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (French:Médaille du jubilé de diamant de la reine Elizabeth II[6]) or theQueen's Diamond Jubilee Medal was a commemorative medal created in 2012 to mark the60th anniversary of QueenElizabeth II's accession in 1952. There are four versions of the medal: one issued by the United Kingdom, another by Canada, the third for the Caribbean realms of Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Barbados, Grenada, Jamaica, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and the fourth issued byPapua New Guinea. The ribbons used with the Canadian and British versions of the medal are the same, while the ribbon of the Caribbean and the Papua New Guinean medal differ slightly. The different iterations of the medal were presented to tens of thousands of recipients throughout theCommonwealth realms in the jubilee year.
Named byOrder in Council as theQueen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee Medal,[7] the Canadian medal was designed byCathy Bursey-Sabourin,Fraser Herald of theCanadian Heraldic Authority, and manufactured by theRoyal Canadian Mint.[8] It takes the form of a disc with, on the obverse, a crownedeffigy of the Queen circumscribed by the wordsELIZABETH IIDEI GRATIA REGINA • CANADA (Latin for "Elizabeth II, by the Grace of God, Queen • Canada").[9] The reverse features Elizabeth'sroyal cypher crowned and superimposed upon a diamond shield, behind which is a bed of fourmaple leaves and a ribbon with the dates 1952 and 2012 to the left and right of the shield andVIVAT REGINA (long live the Queen) below, all on a field of diamonds.
In the United Kingdom, the medal, more properly known asThe Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal,[10] was designed by Timothy Noad, acalligrapher andilluminator. It depicts on the obverse theIan Rank-Broadley effigy of the Queen crowned with a tiara and is circumscribed by the inscriptionELIZABETH II DEI GRATIA REGINAFID DEF (Latin for "Elizabeth II by the Grace of God, Queen, Defender of the Faith"). The reverse shows a faceted hexagon with a crowned royal cipher, inscribed with the years 1952 and 2012.[11]
Eight Commonwealth realms in the Caribbean—Antigua and Barbuda,The Bahamas,Barbados,Grenada,[12]Jamaica,Saint Kitts and Nevis,Saint Lucia, andSaint Vincent and the Grenadines—each issued a Diamond Jubilee medal. The obverse bears the same effigy of the Queen as does the British medal circumscribed by the wordsDIAMOND JUBILEE HM QUEEN ELIZABETH II. The reverse shows the royal cypher of Elizabeth II withCARIBBEAN REALMS above and the years1952–2012 below. The medal itself isrhodium plated.[13]
Papua New Guinea has also created its own version of the Diamond Jubilee Medal.[14] The obverse and reverse are exactly the same as the version issued to the Commonwealth Realms of the Caribbean, however with the name PAPUA NEW GUINEA above the royal cypher (instead of "CARIBBEAN REALMS").
Both the Canadian and British versions of the medal are worn suspended from a broad red ribbon with blue outer stripes and, at the centre, double white stripes with a red stripe between.[9] The ribbon of the Caribbean medal is similar to the aforementioned, with a black stripe between the middle two white stripes.[15] The ribbon of the medal version issued in Papua New Guinea is the most different. It keeps the same black stripe in the centre like the Caribbean ribbon, the shade of red is lighter than the other three versions and the blue is replaced by the colour yellow. Therefore, this version of the Diamond Jubilee Medal uses the colours of theflag of Papua New Guinea.
All four versions of the medal were awarded unnamed.[16]
In the United Kingdom and its overseas territories,[17] 450,000 medals were awarded only to members ofHM Armed Forces (regular and reserves) who had served longer than five years, operational members ofHM Prison Service, andemergency services personnel (includingPolice Community Support Officers) who have been in paid service, retained or in a voluntary capacity, and who had completed five full calendar years of service on 6 February 2012. Holders of theVictoria Cross andGeorge Cross and members of theRoyal Household were also eligible.[18] The medals cost theDepartment for Culture, Media and Sport £8m to produce.[19]
The Canadian medal, which is to "honour significant contributions and achievements by Canadians,"[9] is administered by the Chancellery of Honours atRideau Hall and was awarded to 60,000 citizens and permanent residents of Canada who made a significant contribution to their fellow countrymen, their community, or to Canada over the previous sixty years.[20] The medal could have been awarded posthumously if the recipient was alive on 6 February 2012.[20] The medals were allocated either automatically to individuals within certain prescribed categories—such as those in theCanadian order of precedence, theOrder of Canada, or recipients of theCross of Valour—or by selection by specific officials, such as the Governor General, senators, theChief of the Defence Staff, or presidents of various non-governmental organisations.[note 1] The Governor General was also permitted to make "exceptional awards" of the medal.[7]
On 30 May 2012, PrinceCharles, Prince of Wales, presented British jubilee medals to 28 members of theVictoria Cross and George Cross Association, including individuals from the United Kingdom, Australia,[21] Nepal, and Indonesia, as well as representatives from Malta and theRoyal Ulster Constabulary, which had each been collectively awarded theGeorge Cross between 1942 and 1999, respectively.[citation needed]
In Jamaica, the Diamond Jubilee medal was awarded to members of the Jamaica Defence Force, the Jamaica Constabulary Force, the Department of Correctional Services, the Jamaica Fire Brigade, and the Emergency Services.[5][note 2]
Some orders of precedence are as follows:
In keeping with previous jubilees, plans for a commemorative medal were first announced by theLord President of the Council,Peter Mandelson, in early 2010.[26] The design and eligibility criteria were subsequently announced by theSecretary of State for Culture,Jeremy Hunt, in the summer of 2011,[27] stating "I hope the official medal will serve as a mark of thanks to all those who give so much in the name of society and public service and I extend my congratulations to all the recipients."[28]
TheGovernor General of Canada,David Johnston, announced on 3 February 2011 that the Queen had approved the creation of the Canadian Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and he and Prime MinisterStephen Harper unveiled the medal's design at Rideau Hall.[29][30] The first medal was struck by the Governor General on 6 December of the same year.[31][32]
OnAccession Day 2012, the first Canadian medals were presented to 60 recipients by the Governor General at a ceremony atRideau Hall and to others at other locations across the country;[33][34] theLieutenant Governor of Prince Edward Island,Frank Lewis, awarded the medal to six persons at a ceremony atGovernment House.[35] It was at the same time announced that eachmember of thefederal parliament (MP) andsenator would receive a jubilee medal. At least sixQuebec MPs (four belonging to theBloc Québécois party and two to theNew Democratic Party (NDP)) declined the honour.[36] Bloc MPMaria Mourani did so because she felt the medal was a "symbol of colonisation" and to accept it would be offensive to her belief inQuebec sovereignty,[37] whileLouis Plamondon stated the money being spent by the Crown on jubilee events and markers was a waste.[38] NDP MPPierre Nantel stated his then four months in the House of Commons did not warrant such recognition and it should go to a more deserving constituent in hisriding.[39]
It was reported in April 2012 that some recipients of the British medal had been criticised for offering their awards for sale oneBay,[19] while ex servicemen and women, theMerchant Navy, andSt. John Ambulance were angered at being overlooked due to the "economic climate."[40] Recognising that "some people and organisations might be disappointed," a government spokesman said: "It is also important to maintain the integrity and exclusivity of the medal, and it is simply not possible to include all these groups."[41] The contract to produce the medal and ribbons was awarded to a consortium of small businesses holdingroyal warrants, led byWorcestershire Medal Service.[42]
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