BACKGROUND: Awarded for combatants and medical personnel from every nation in the empire who participated in a theatre of war within the established dates.

PHYSICAL DESCRIPTION: The medal is in the form of a bronze four-pointed star; the uppermost point obscured by a King’s crown, the distance between the tips of the left and right points being 45mm. To the center is a scroll with "1914" surrounded by a wreath of oak leaves with a "G" encompassing a "V" to its base (for King George the fifth). Crossed swords intersect beneath the scroll and extend behind and beyond the wreath. The reverse is plain but for the stamped name and unit of the recipient. "88031 SPR.H. Barrett. R.E." The horizontally ribbed ribbon is drawn through the integral ring emanating from the cross atop the crown. The ribbon is coloured, from left to right, deep, medium, and light red, white, light, medium, and dark blue.