British South Africa Company Medal

British South Africa Company Medal
Medal: Obverse, and reverse for Rhodesia 1896.
Type	Medal
Awarded for	Service in the Matabele Wars
Description	Circular silver medal, 36 mm in diameter.
Presented by	the British South Africa Company
Campaign(s)	First Matabele War Second Matabele War Pioneer Column
Clasps	Matabeleland 1893, Rhodesia 1896, Mashonaland 1897, Mashonaland 1890
Established	1896, 1897, 1927
Ribbon bar

The British South Africa Company Medal (1890–97). In 1896, Queen Victoria sanctioned the issue by the British South Africa Company of a medal to troops who had been engaged in the First Matabele War. In 1897, the award was extended to those engaged in the two campaigns of the Second Matabele War, namely Rhodesia (1896) and Mashonaland (1897). The three medals are the same except for name of the campaign for which the medal was issued, inscribed on the reverse.^[1]

In 1927, the government of Southern Rhodesia re-issued the medal and instituted a new clasp, to commemorate the Pioneer Column that operated within Mashonaland in 1890. Those previously awarded the medal were required to exchange it for the new version.^[2]

The majority of awards were to colonial and locally raised troops, rather than members of the regular British Army.^[2]