The King's Gallantry Medal (KGM), formerly the Queen's Gallantry Medal (QGM), is a United Kingdom decoration awarded for exemplary acts of bravery where the services were not so outstanding as to merit the George Medal, but above the level required for the King's Commendation for Bravery.

History

The Queen's Gallantry Medal was instituted on 20 June 1974 to replace the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry and the British Empire Medal for Gallantry, which ended the anomaly where the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry was awarded for lesser acts of bravery than the George Medal but took precedence over it in the Order of Wear. In addition, the QGM replaced the Colonial Police Medal for Gallantry (the last award of which was made in November 1974 ). It de facto replaced awards of the Sea Gallantry Medal, but this has never been formally announced. The Royal Warrant for the Queen's Gallantry Medal was amended on 30 November 1977 to allow for posthumous awards, as was that for the George Medal. During the reign of Queen Elizabeth II between June 1974 and the final list published in March 2023 after her death, there were 1,101 awards announced in The London Gazette, including 19 second award bars. The armed forces received 542 awards and civilians, including police, 559 (including 120 to the Royal Ulster Constabulary, almost twice as many as any other group). Forty-two of the awards were posthumous, and 27 were to women. Since the accession of King Charles III, the Queen's Gallantry Medal has been renamed the King's Gallantry Medal. The first six awards of the King's Gallantry Medal were announced on 14 May 2024.

Criteria

The medal is awarded for "exemplary acts of bravery" by civilians, and by members of the Armed Forces for "actions for which purely military Honours are not normally granted". The award is not restricted to British subjects.

Description

The medal is silver and circular in shape, 36 mm in diameter, with the following design: Recipients are entitled to the post-nominal letters "Q.G.M" or "K.G.M.".

Notable recipients

Among the more notable recipients are:

Sources