At the start of World War I, the only medals awarded by the French military for acts of valor and courage on the battlefield were the Médaille Militaire and the Legion of Honor, with the latter also serving as an award for civilian achievements. The only other way the military could recognize outstanding acts of heroism was by issuing the Citation du jour, an award whose significance was undermined by the fact it was merely a paper certificate.
What made this a problem was the sheer number of soldiers serving in the French military—the figure stood at 1.5 million in 1915— and the fact that a huge percentage of them saw action because nearly all the battles of the war were fought on French soil. With each engagement, countless French soldiers were performing valorous acts worthy of recognition, but to give them all the nation’s highest-ranking awards would inevitably cheapen the significance of those honors. What was needed was a new award to honor courage on the battlefield so that, as one writer at the time put it, a commander “could decorate his bravest soldiers on the battlefield after each case [of heroism].”
In late December 1914, a bill was proposed that would use legislation to create the Croix de la Valeur Militaire (Cross of Military Valor). It was submitted to Parliament on January 18, 1915, but with the name of the medal changed to Croix de Guerre; it was adopted on April 2, 1915. The medal was disestablished after the war came to an end, but was reauthorized after the outbreak of World War II; the version awarded for actions in the First World War is officially known as Croix de Guerre 1914–1918.
The Croix de Guerre was awarded to both individuals and units in one of five degrees based upon the organizational ranking of the awarding command. Bronze, silver, and and silver-gilt star attachments indicate the award was issued at the regimental (or brigade), division, or corps level respectively. Recipients cited at the Army level received a bronze palm appurtenance, and a silver palm was authorized to wear in place of five bronze palms.
Besides being awarded for military valor by soldiers and units and for acts of heroism during wartime by civilians, the Croix de Guerre 1914-1918 was also awarded to cities and villages that were destroyed or attacked by the enemy; over 2900 cities, towns, and villages received the medal with the palm attachment. It was even given to Cher Ami, a homing pigeon who delivered a message from the “Lost Battalion” of the 77th Division to its division headquarters during the Battle of the Argonne in October, 1918 requesting a halt to an errant “friendly fire” artillery barrage.