Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer Usage Conditions May Apply Usage Conditions Apply There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page. IIIF provides researchers rich metadata and image viewing options for comparison of works across cultural heritage collections. More - https://iiif.si.edu View Manifest View in Mirador Viewer

Presented to Kiffin Rockwell of the Lafayette Escadrille. Médaille Commémorative Française 1914-1918 was awarded to all members of the French Armed Forces who saw service between August 2, 1914 and November 11, 1918. The medal was instituted on June 23, 1920 and it could also be awarded to members of the Merchant Navy, medical personnel, local authorities, police of fire brigades of bombed cities.

American citizen Kiffin Rockwell volunteered to fly with the French Air Service during World War I prior to the United States' entry into the conflict. Rockwell was the first American pilot to shoot down an enemy aircraft in World War I. He was killed in action in September 1916, the second American airman to die in combat in France.

 Display Status

This object is not on display at the National Air and Space Museum. It is either on loan or in storage.
Object Details
Country of Origin France Type AWARDS-Medals & Ribbons Physical Description Engagé Volontaire (World War I Commemorative Medal); Obverse: relief profile bust of goddes Nike in French army helmet depicted; Reverse: embossed text "Republique Francaise Grande Guerre 1914-1918"; red and white vertically striped ribbon. Dimensions 3-D: 4.1 × 7.9 × 0.5cm (1 5/8 × 3 1/8 × 3/16 in.)
 Materials Medal:
Bronze
White Metal
Paint
Ribbon:
Silk
Steel
 Inventory Number A19620114003 Credit Line Donated by Mr. Paul A. Rockwell Data Source National Air and Space Museum Restrictions & Rights Usage conditions apply
For more information, visit the Smithsonians Terms of Use.