King Charles III Coronation Medal

The medal features the effigy of His Majesty King Charles III, as well as the Royal Cypher. The medal’s blue, red and white ribbon is evocative of the 1902 Edward VII Coronation Medal, one of the earliest coronation medals awarded to Canadians. The Canadian Heraldic Authority is responsible for the design of the medal, which was approved by His Majesty the King.

A circular medal, silver in colour and 32 mm in diameter, bearing:

On the obverse, a crowned and robed effigy of His Majesty The King of Canada, facing right, circumscribed with the inscriptions “CHARLES III DEI GRATIA REX” and “CANADA”.

On the reverse, there appears on the background a ring of frosted triangular shapes evoking the image of a string of pennants displayed for a celebration. These 13 shapes allude to Canada’s provinces and territories, and their circular arrangement conveys the idea of inclusion for all Canadians. The circle is also an important concept for many Indigenous Peoples, symbolizing not only equity but also the cycles of the natural world. Over this background appears the Canadian Royal Cypher in the center, the date of the Coronation, 6.V.2023, on the left and the words “VIVAT REX” meaning Long Live The King, on the right.

A 12 mm ring, which holds the ribbon, passes through a small hollow ball at the top of a claw joined to the top of the medal.

The ribbon is 32 mm in width with a red stripe in the centre, 5 mm in width, on each side of which are white stripes, 2 mm in width, followed by dark blue stripes, 9.5 mm in width, and red edge stripes, 2 mm in width. This ribbon is identical to the British Coronation Medal ribbon and is inspired by the King Edward VII’s Coronation Medal ribbon from 1902, which was the first Coronation Medal suspended from a ribbon.

Call for medal nominations

On May 3, 2023, it was announced that a coronation medal would be struck to commemorate the historic occasion of the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III as King of Canada. The medal will be administered by the chancellery of honours at government house.

The coronation medal will be a tangible way for Canada to acknowledge his majesty as our new sovereign. At the same time, the presentation of 30,000 medals will serve to honour contributions and achievements made by individuals representing the full breadth of our society.

Members of the CAF justifiably take great pride in their association with his majesty as head of our armed forces. The King has been part of the CAF for over 45 years and has always taken a keen interest in the CAF and its members.

The CAF have been allocated 4,000 medals, which means that approximately 3.9 per cent of CAF members will be recognized on this occasion. The selection will be made on the basis of merit using a process similar to that of the Order Of Military Merit (ORMM). The five ORMM nominating commands, namely VCDS, RCN, CA, RCAF and CMP, will be given an allocation corresponding to their demographic weight, along with direction to ensure that the selection is representative of the CAF population. Recognition will be focused on the work of those in lower ranks for both the NCM and officer corps, which are critical to our operational success, particularly as we rebuild the CAF to its authorized strength. The aforementioned commands will solicit nominations from their units and formations and make a selection that meets the requirements. The nominations will be consolidated by DH and R and submitted to government house for approval.

To apply, email medals-medailles@forces.gc.ca. The deadline for commands to submit their nominations to the Directorate of Honours and Recognition (DH&R) is Sept. 6.