Burma Star

The medal was awarded for service between 11 December 1941 and 2 September 1945 in the Burma Campaign. The medal could be earned in a variety of ways, depending on which service you were in.

Members of the Royal or Merchant Navy qualified through service in an area restricted to the Bay of Bengal running from Ceylon for a distance of 300 miles South, then to a point 300 miles West of the most Southern point of Sumatra. The Malacca Straits are also included. The 1939 - 1945 Star must have been earned before the qualification for the Burma Star began. If personnel entered in the operational area druing the last 6 months qualified for the star. Anybody in the Navy who served ashore, had to qualify under the same rules as the Army.

Members of the Army qualified through service in any part of Burma between 11 December 1941 and 2 September 1945. They also qualified for serving in the provinces of Bengal and Assam between 1 May 1942 and 2 September 1945. Service in China or Malaya between 16 February 1942 and 2 September 1945 also counted towards the medal.

If a member of RAF aircrew, then you qualified by carrying out one operational sortie in the area. If you were RAF ground crew then you were subject to the same regulations as the Army.

The medal itself is a bronze six pointed star with the Royal Cipher "GRI VI" in the centre, surmounted by a crown with the inscription "THE BURMA STAR". The reverse is plain and blank as with all Second World War Stars.

There was one Clasp issued with this medal, which was the PACIFIC clasp. This was issued if the serviceman later qualified for the Pacific Star.

The ribbon is 1.25" wide and has a red centre with dark blue, orange and dark blue edges. The red represents the Commonwealth Forces and the orange denotes the sun.

An interesting site to look at, that gives you information on the battles and stories of the sailors, soldiers and airmen who were awarded the Burma Star is the Burma Star Organisation