Equal stripes of dark blue, to represent the Royal and Merchant Navies, red, to represent the Armies and light blue to represent the Air Forces.

Shaded and watered stripes of blue, white and green to represent the Atlantic.

A wide central stripe of light blue, flanked at the edges by narrow stripes of yellow and black symbolic of the continuous night and day service of the Air Forces.

Pale buff to symbolise the desert, overlaid with a central red stripe and one narrow stripe each of dark and light blue to represent the three services.

A wide central stripe of green bisected by a central narrow yellow stripe to represent the jungles and beaches of the Pacific, flanked by one stripe of dark blue and one of light blue with red edges to represent the three services.

Dark blue representing the Royal navy and merchant navy overlaid with a central red stripe to represent the Commonwealth Forces and two narrow stripes of orange to symbolise the sun.

In the colours of the Italian Flag, a central green stripe flanked by white and red stripes of equal width.

In the colours of the Union Flag, also symbolising those of France and the Netherlands, a central red stripe flanked by white and blue stripes of equal width.

The obverse of the medal shows the uncrowned head of King George VI.

The obverse of the medal shows the uncrowned head of King George VI. The reverse bears the Royal Crown resting on an oak tree, flanked by two lions above the words 'The Defence Medal', with the date 1939 top left and 1945 top right.

White Metal Figure 8