[1][2][3] The Ciskei Defence Force (CDF) was established upon that country's independence on 4 December 1981.

[3] Since the Ciskei Defence Medal was authorised for wear by one of the statutory forces which came to be part of the South African National Defence Force on 27 April 1994, it was accorded a position in the official South African order of precedence on that date.

The position of the Ciskei Defence Medal in the official order of precedence was revised twice after 1994, to accommodate the inclusion or institution of new decorations and medals, first in April 1996 when decorations and medals were belatedly instituted for the two former non-statutory forces, the Azanian People's Liberation Army and Umkhonto we Sizwe, and again upon the institution of a new set of honours on 27 April 2003, but it remained unchanged on both occasions.

[1] The Ciskei Defence Medal is a medallion struck in bronze, 38 millimetres in diameter, displaying a Xhosa shield on a crossed spear and knobkierie between two sprays of leaves.

[3][7] The reverse displays the Coat of Arms of the Republic of Ciskei, with the inscriptions "IMBASA YOMKHOSI" above and "DEFENCE MEDAL" below.