East and West Africa Medal

East and West Africa Medal
Obverse and reverse of the medal
Type	Campaign medal
Awarded for	Campaign service
Presented by	United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland
Eligibility	British and locally recruited forces
Campaign(s)	East and West Africa 1887-1900
Clasps	1887-8 Witu 1890 1891-2 1892 Witu August 1893 Liwondi 1893 Juba River 1893 Lake Nyassa 1893 1893-94 Gambia 1894 Benin River 1894 Brass River 1895 1896-98 Niger 1897 Benin 1897 Dawita 1897 1897-98 1898 Sierra Leone 1898-99 1899 1900
Ribbon: Yellow with black edges and 2 black stripes towards the centre

The East and West Africa Medal, established in 1892, was a campaign medal awarded for minor campaigns that took place in East and West Africa between 1887 and 1900. A total of twenty one clasps were issued.^[1]

Awards of the medal covered punitive expeditions against local tribesmen, generally in response to attacks against Europeans or neighbouring tribes, or for operations to suppress slavery. Most medals were granted to personnel from either the Royal Navy, the West India Regiment or British led local forces, including locally recruited police. No units of the British Army were present, although a number of officers and non commissioned officers received the medal while seconded to local units.^[2] Recipients of the Benin 1897 clasp included three nursing sisters.^[3]

The obverse bears a left-facing portrait of Queen Victoria with the inscription "VICTORIA REGINA".^[1]
The reverse has an image of British soldiers fighting Africans in dense jungle. The design, by Sir Edward Poynter, was also used on the reverses of the Ashantee Medal and the Central Africa Medal.^[4]
The recipient's name, rank and unit appear on the rim of the medal, using a number of different impressed and engraved styles.^[2]
The medal was issued in silver to officers and men of the British led forces. The medal with some clasps was also awarded in bronze to native porters.^[5]
The 31.7 millimetres (1.25 in) wide ribbon is yellow with black edges and two black stripes towards the centre.^[5]