1898 Jubilee Medal


The 1898 Jubilee Medal was a military and civil decoration of Austria-Hungary established in 1898 and awarded for the anniversary of Emperor Franz Josef's accession to the throne of the Habsburg Empire.

History

General

The 1898 Jubilee Medal was created by Emperor Franz Josef on 2 December 1898 in order to commemorate the 50th anniversary of his accession to the throne of the Habsburg Empire
The medal was 34–35 mm in diameter. The golden Jubilee medal had an eagle on top. The obverse of the medal bore the portrait of Emperor Franz Josef. On the reverse is written MDCCCXLLVIII-MDCCCXCVIII in a laurel wreath. The medal is suspended from a red trifold ribbon for the armed forces, a red and white for civilians, and a white ribbon with a wide red stripe for Court officials. It was possible to receive both military and civilian versions of the medal if the recipient was both a civilian state official and, for example, an officer in the reserve.
The civilian version and the one for military personnel had different inscriptions around the obverse:
Civilian version:
FRANC•IOS•I•D•G•IMP•AVSTR•REX•BOH•ETC•REX•AP•HVNG.
Military version:
FRANC•IOS•I•D•G•IMP•AVSTR•REX•BOH•ETC•AC•AP•REX•HVNG.

Ribbons

The medal came in four versions:
  • Jubilee Court Medal – Jubiläums-Hofmedaille
  • Gold Jubilee Medal for the Armed Forces – Goldene Jubiläums-Erinnerungsmedaille für die bewaffnete Macht und die Gendarmerie
  • Bronze Jubilee Medal for the Armed Forces – Jubiläums-Erinnerungsmedaille für die bewaffnete Macht und die Gendarmerie
  • Jubilee Medal for Civilian Servants – ''Jubiläums-Erinnerungsmedaille für Zivilstaatsbedienstete''