Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (France) in the context of "Flying ace"

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⭐ Core Definition: Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (France)

The Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (English: War Cross) was a French military decoration, the first version of the Croix de Guerre. It was created to recognize French and allied soldiers who were cited for valorous service during World War I, similar to the British mentioned in dispatches but with multiple degrees equivalent to other nations' decorations for courage.

Soon after the outbreak of World War I, French military officials felt that a new military award had to be created. At that time, the Citation du jour ("Daily Citation") already existed to acknowledge soldiers, but it was just a sheet of paper. Only the Médaille Militaire and Legion of Honour were bestowed for courage in the field, due to the numbers now involved, a new decoration was required in earnest. At the end of 1914, General Boëlle, Commandant in Chief of the French 4th Army Corps, tried to convince the French administration to create a formal military award. Maurice Barrès, the noted writer and parliamentarian for Paris, gave Boëlle support in his efforts.

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👉 Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (France) in the context of Flying ace

A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down a certain minimum number of enemy aircraft during aerial combat; the exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace varies, but is usually considered to be five or more.

The concept of the "ace" emerged in 1915 during World War I, at the same time as aerial dogfighting. It was a propaganda term intended to provide the home front with a cult of the hero in what was otherwise a war of attrition. The individual actions of aces were widely reported and the image was disseminated of the ace as a chivalrous knight reminiscent of a bygone era. For a brief early period when air-to-air combat was just being invented, the exceptionally skilled pilot could shape the battle in the skies. For most of the war, however, the image of the ace had little to do with the reality of air warfare, in which fighters fought in formation and air superiority depended heavily on the relative availability of resources. The use of the term ace to describe these pilots began in World War I, when French newspapers described Adolphe Pégoud, as l'As (the ace) after he became the first pilot to down five German aircraft.

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Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (France) in the context of Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures

The Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieurs (French pronunciation: [kʁwa d(ə) ɡɛʁ de teɑtʁ dɔpeʁɑsjɔ̃ ɛksteʁjœʁ]; "War Cross for Foreign Operational Theatres"), also called the Croix de Guerre TOE for short, is a French military award denoting citations earned in combat in foreign countries. The Armistice of November 11, 1918 ended the war between France and Germany, but French soldiers continued fighting in theatres outside metropolitan France. Combat operations continued in Syria, Palestine, Constantinople, Morocco, French West Africa and French Equatorial Africa.

The Croix de Guerre TOE is the second of three versions of the Croix de Guerre created since the award's inception, (the others being distinct versions for World War I and World War II), and the only one considered active for new awards.

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Croix de guerre 1914–1918 (France) in the context of Ace (military)

Ace, when used in the context of military propaganda, denotes a successful military professional who has accumulated a meaningfully measurable statistic such as aircraft shot down, tanks destroyed, tonnage sunk, or a number of successful sniper shots. In a manner analogous to sport statistics, some military roles can be measured in terms of a quantifiable metric. Once said metric is established, military personnel (whether within the same force, in different forces, or in different eras) may be quantified versus the designated metric and compared in a tabular fashion. Such metrics may be used as a basis for military merit awards, such as Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross by setting an arbitrary threshold. Likewise, a designation of "ace" ("double ace", "triple ace", etc.) may be applied, such as 5 aircraft shot down.

The ace achieved success with "skill and luck, and if victorious won the accolades of the patriotic public". The usage of the term in popular culture evolved to include "tank aces" ("Panzer aces") and "submarine aces".

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Flying ace ← Croix de guerre des théâtres d'opérations extérieures ← Flying aces ← Ace (military)
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Fourragère → Military decoration → Croix de Guerre → Allies of World War I → World War I → Mentioned in dispatches → Médaille Militaire → Legion of Honour → Maurice Barrès → French Parliament →