Defense Distinguished Service Medal

Defense Distinguished Service Medal
Defense Distinguished Service Medal
Type	Distinguished service medal
Awarded for	Exceptionally meritorious service in a duty of great responsibility
Presented by	United States Department of Defense
Eligibility	United States Armed Forces service members
Clasps	Oak leaf cluster for subsequent awards
Status	Currently awarded
Established	July 9, 1970
First awarded	General Earle Wheeler (1970)
	Service ribbon
Precedence
Next (higher)	Army: Distinguished Service Cross ; Naval Service: Navy Cross ; Air and Space Forces: Air Force Cross ; Coast Guard: Coast Guard Cross
Equivalent	Department of Homeland Security: Homeland Security Distinguished Service Medal
Next (lower)	Army: Distinguished Service Medal (Army) ; Naval Service: Navy Distinguished Service Medal; Air and Space Forces: Distinguished Service Medal (Air and Space Forces) ; Coast Guard: Coast Guard Distinguished Service Medal

The Defense Distinguished Service Medal is a military decoration of the United States Department of Defense, which is presented to United States Armed Forces service members for exceptionally distinguished performance of duty contributing to the national security or defense of the United States. The medal was created on July 9, 1970, by President Richard Nixon in Executive Order 11545.^[2] President Nixon awarded the first medal, on the day the Executive Order was signed, to General Earle Wheeler, who was retiring from the US Army after serving as Chief of Staff of the United States Army and then Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

^ "Issuances" (PDF). www.esd.whs.mil. 2016. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2017-09-12. Retrieved 2018-09-29.
^ Air Force Personnel Center Defense Distinguished Service Medal Archived 2011-06-16 at the Wayback Machine