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Victoria Cross for New Zealand

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Victoria Cross for New Zealand
File:VictoriaCrossObv.jpg
Obverse of the medal and ribbon. Ribbon: 32mm, crimson.
TypeMilitary decoration
EligibilityNew Zealand military personnel
StatusCurrently awarded.
Established20 September 1999
Precedence
Next (higher)Highest
EquivalentNew Zealand Cross
Next (lower)New Zealand Gallantry Star

The Victoria Cross (VC) is a military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the New Zealand Armed Forces. It may be awarded to a person of any rank in any service and civilians under military command, and is presented to the recipient by the Governor-General of New Zealand during an investiture held at Government House, Wellington. As it is the highest award for bravery in New Zealand it takes precedence over other postnominals and medals.[2]

The VC was introduced in 1856 by Queen Victoria to reward acts of valour during the Crimean War. The Victoria Cross for New Zealand has, as of July 2007 been awarded only once. The original medal has been awarded 1,356 times to 1,353 individual recipients with three bars being awarded; of which one was a New Zealander; Captain Charles Upham. Only 14 medals have been awarded since the end of the Second World War. The medal itself is made from the gunmetal of a weapon supposedly captured at the siege of Sevastopol, but several historians have since questioned the true origin of the gunmetal.[3] Due to its rarity, the VC is highly prized and the medal can reach over £200,000 at auction. Originally all Commonwealth personnel were issued with the same award but in the last 50 years several countries introduced separate awards including New Zealand.

Origin

Victoria Cross

The original Victoria Cross was created by Royal Warrant by Queen Victoria in 1856. It was created to recognise incidents of gallantry that were unconnected with a man's lengthy or meritorious service. Queen Victoria signed a Royal Warrant on 29 January 1856[4] that officially recognised the VC. The order was backdated to 1854 to recognise acts of valour during the Crimean War.[5]

The Australian and New Zealand Victoria Crosses are made from the same gunmetal as the originals.[6] It was originally intended that the VCs would be cast from the bronze cascabels of two cannons that were captured from the Russians at the siege of Sevastopol.[7][8][9] The historian John Glanfield has since proven through the use of X-Rays of older Victoria Crosses that the metal used for VCs is in fact from antique Chinese guns and not of Russian origin.[3][8][10] It was also thought that some medals made during the First World War were composed of metal captured from different Chinese guns during the Boxer Rebellion but the original metal was used after the war. It is also believed that another source of metal was used between 1942 and 1945 to create five Second World War VCs when the Sevastopol metal went missing.[3]

The barrels of the cannon in question are stationed outside the Officers' Mess at the Royal Artillery Barracks at Woolwich. The remaining portion of the only remaining cascabel, weighing 358 oz (10 kg), is stored in a vault maintained by 15 Regiment Royal Logistic Corps at Donnington, Telford. It can only be removed under armed guard. It is estimated that approximately 80 to 85 more VCs could be cast from this source. A single company of jewellers, Hancocks of London, has been responsible for the production of every VC awarded since its inception.[11]

Separate Commonwealth Awards

In the last 20 years several Commonwealth countries have introduced their own honours systems, separate from the British Honours System. Australia, Canada and New Zealand[6] have each introduced their own decorations for gallantry and bravery, replacing British decorations such as the Military Cross with their own awards. Most Commonwealth countries, however, still recognise some form of the VC as their highest decoration for valour.[12]

Australia was the first Commonwealth nation to create its own VC, on 15 January 1991. Although it is a separate award, its appearance is identical to its British counterpart. [13]Canada followed suit when in 1993 Queen Elizabeth signed Letters Patent creating the Canadian VC, which is also similar to the British version, except that the legend has been changed from FOR VALOUR to the Latin PRO VALORE.[14]

New Zealand was the third country to create the VC as part of its own honours system. [6] On 21 September, 1999, it was announced by the then Prime Minister Ms Shipley that the Queen had approved the formal institution of a new range of Royal awards to recognise acts of gallantry and bravery performed by New Zealanders. The awards were designed to be the final major element in the development of a distinct New Zealand Royal honours system.

I am confident that the new system will serve us well and enable New Zealand to recognise the various acts of heroism performed in our community. The redevelopment of the awards for gallantry and bravery now means that we have a full range of awards and honours which are distinctly New Zealand. Jenny Shipley, Prime Minister of New Zealand[15]

The start of the process came with proposals released in 1995 by the Honours Advisory Committee that reviewed the honours system. Until May 1996, New Zealand made recommendations for various British awards for acts of gallantry performed during military operations and acts of bravery by civilians including the Victoria Cross and George Cross. However, the British Government's review and simplification of their awards system provided an ideal opportunity for New Zealand to also develop a unique and simplified system.[15]

Appearance

File:Victoria Cross Medal Ribbon & Bar.jpg
Victoria Cross medal, ribbon, and bar.

The Victoria Cross for New Zealand is identical to the original design. The decoration is a cross pattée, 41 mm high, 36 mm wide, bearing a crown surmounted by a lion, and the inscription FOR VALOUR.[16] This was originally to have been FOR BRAVERY, until it was changed on the recommendation of Queen Victoria, who thought some might erroneously consider that only the recipients of the VC were brave in battle.[8] The decoration, suspension bar and link weigh about 0.87 troy ounces (27 g).[17]

The cross is suspended by a ring from a seriffed "V" to a bar ornamented with laurel leaves, through which the ribbon passes. The reverse of the suspension bar is engraved with the recipient's name, rank, number and unit. On the reverse of the medal is a circular panel on which the date of the act for which it was awarded is engraved in the centre.[18] The ribbon is crimson, 38 mm (1.5 inches) wide. Although the warrants state the colour as being red it is defined by most commentators as being crimson or "wine-red".[19]

Awarding the Medal

The Victoria Cross for New Zealand is awarded for

"... most conspicuous gallantry, or some daring or pre-eminent act of valour or self-sacrifice, or extreme devotion to duty in the presence of the enemy or belligerents."[20]

The original Victoria Cross had been awarded to 21 New Zealanders. Eleven of these awards were for action in the First World War. As of 2 July 2007, the Victoria Cross for New Zealand has been awarded only once. It was announced on 2 July 2007, that Corporal Bill (Willy) Apiata of the NZ SAS was awarded the Victoria Cross for New Zealand for his actions in saving the life of a "comrade under heavy fire from opposing forces" during the Afghanistan conflict in 2004.[21][20] As of 7 July 2007 he is yet to formally receive the medal. It will be awarded in a special ceremony by the Governor-General with the approval of Sovereign. As with the original Victoria Cross any recommendations will pass through the military hierachy to the Minister for Defence.[20]

Similar decorations

Within the Commonwealth

Outside the Commonwealth

The following countries have high military awards similar to the Victoria Cross:

The following obsolete military decorations were the highest in their country at the time:

See Also

Notes

  1. ^ "Military Honours and Awards". Defence Internet. UK Ministry of Defence. Retrieved 2007-01-30.
  2. ^ a b "The world's most exclusive club". Ministry of Defence. 2007-04-30. Retrieved 2007-06-16.
  3. ^ a b c Davies, Catronia (2005-12-28). "Author explodes myth of the gunmetal VC". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2007-06-16.
  4. ^ VCH, Ashcroft, Introduction
  5. ^ Ashcroft, Michael, p.7-10
  6. ^ a b c "New Zealand Honours". Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 2007-01-30.
  7. ^ Beharry, p.359
  8. ^ a b c "150 years of the Victoria Cross". Royal Naval Museum. Retrieved 2007-06-18.
  9. ^ "Hancocks of London History of VC". Hancocks of London. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
  10. ^ "Hancocks of London history of VC". Hancocks of London. Retrieved 2007-06-24.
  11. ^ "Hancocks Jewellers". Hancocks of London. Retrieved 2007-06-16.
  12. ^ "Order of Precedence for Commonwealth Orders and Decorations". London Gazette. Retrieved 2007-06-30.
  13. ^ "The Victoria Cross for Australia". The Government of Australia. Retrieved 2007-06-30.
  14. ^ CTV.ca (2007-03-03). "Top military honour now cast in Canada". CTV news. Retrieved 2007-06-24. {{cite news}}: Text "first News staff" ignored (help)
  15. ^ a b "New NZ gallantry awards approved". New Zealand Defence Force. 1999-09-21. Retrieved 2007-07-07.
  16. ^ Original Warrant, Clause 1: Firstly. It is ordained that the distinction shall be styled and designated "The Victoria Cross", and shall consist of a Maltese cross of bronze, with our Royal crest in the centre, and underneath with an escroll bearing the inscription "For Valour".
  17. ^ Ashcroft, Michael, p.16
  18. ^ "The Victoria Cross". Vietnam Veterans Of Australia. Retrieved 2007-06-15.
  19. ^ "The Victoria Cross". Imperial War Museum Exhibits and Firearms Collections. Retrieved 2006-09-30.
  20. ^ a b c "Press kit related to july 2007 gallantry awards (NZ)" (PDF). NZ Government through news agency. Retrieved 2007-07-01.
  21. ^ "Gallantry in Afghanistan". NZ Government through news agency. Retrieved 2007-07-01.
  22. ^ "Japanese Order of the Kite". Naval History.net. Retrieved 2007-06-30.

References

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