Military Medal: The MM was a military decoration awarded for bravery in battle on land.
The award was for personnel below commissioned rank, although it could be awarded to Warrant Officers. The equivalent award for commissioned officers was the Military Cross (MC).
Bar to Military Medal: A servicemen could be recommended more than once for the same award (on separate occasions), in this case a second medal is not awarded.
Instead a Bar to the medal is awarded indicating a first, second or in one case, (for an Australian Serviceman during WW1), third Bar award. WW1 there were 14 MM awarded to servicemen from Collie.
There were two servicemen from Collie who were recognised with the MM and Bar and one serviceman from Collie who was recognised with the MM with 1st and 2nd Bar: 2858 CSM 48th Bn Charles Henry ALCORN
MM & Bar (2); 650 Cpl 16th Bn George BALL MM; 855 Lt 11th Bn & 4th Machine Gun Bn Henry Ernest BRADBURY MM; 7586A Pte 28th Bn Lewis Albert CRIDDLE
MM; 1254 L/Cpl 32nd Bn John DICKSON MM; 888 Cpl 11th Bn Robert Alexander DRYSDALE MM; 6996 Pte 16th Bn Alexander Coulton FORSTER
MM; 3667 Pte 44th Bn Harold HICKS MM; 2905 L/Cpl 16th Bn Aron Frank LAWRIE MM; 743 Cpl 16th Bn Charles McQUADE MM; 4736 Cpl 51st Bn George Blunderfield Bawden NOELL MM & Bar; 1438 Tpr 10th Light Horse Regiment Thomas Hugh SARRE
MM; 3934 L/Cpl 51st Bn William Henry SAUNDERS MM (medal on display Collie-Cardiff RSL Sub Branch); 608 Sgt 11th Bn Walter Edgar WEBB MM & Bar.
WW2 there were two MM awards to servicemen from Collie: WX546 2/11th Bn Warrant Officer Class 2 Eric EYRE MM; WX 16886 2/4th Machine Gun Bn Cpl Arthur Melville MAGILL MM (POW).
Vietnam War: 25 years after the end of the Vietnam War several veterans who were recommended for awards for acts of gallantry during that war, finally received recognition.
Originally recommended for the Military Medal for bravery (under the Imperial Awards System), the recommendations were later downgraded to Mention in Despatches, MID.
This was done to meet the Imperial Awards System quota which operated at the time.
After intense lobbying of the Government, the original decision to downgrade the awards was overturned and the soldiers were awarded the Australian Medal for Gallantry for the acts of bravery.
Under the Australian Military Awards System (introduced in 1991), the MG replaced the MM.
Medal for Gallantry: Introduced in 1991, the MG is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force. It recognises acts of gallantry in action in hazardous circumstances.
The MG was introduced on January 15, 1991 replacing the Imperial equivalent MM. It is ranked third in the gallantry decorations in the Australian Honours System.
Twenty-five years after the Vietnam War there were 21 awards of the MG made to Australian servicemen for acts of gallantry during that war.
Vietnam War there was one MM recommendation for a Collie serviceman.
This was downgraded to a MID award, but later overturned resulting in an award of the MG: 54237 2Sqn SASR Sgt Francis (Frank) Carr CASHMORE MG MID.