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Victoria Cross for Australia

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Victoria Cross for Australia
A bronze cross pattée bearing the crown of Saint Edward surmounted by a crowned lion with the inscription FOR VALOUR. A crimson ribbon is attached
Crimson ribbon with a miniature VC in the middle
Obverse of the medal and ribbon. Ribbon: 32mm, crimson
TypeMilitary decoration
DescriptionBronze Cross pattée with Crown and Lion Superimposed, and motto: 'For Valour'
EligibilityAustralian military personnel
Post-nominalsVC
StatusCurrently awarded
Established15 January 1991
Precedence
EquivalentCross of Valour[1][2]
Next (lower)Star of Gallantry

The Victoria Cross for Australia is the highest award in the Australian Honours System, superseding the Victoria Cross for issue to Australians. The Victoria Cross for Australia is the "decoration for according recognition to persons who in the presence of the enemy, perform acts of the most conspicuous gallantry, or daring or pre-eminent acts of valour or self-sacrifice or display extreme devotion to duty."[4]

The Victoria Cross for Australia was created by letters patent signed by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on 15 January 1991. As the highest Australian award, it is listed first on the Australian Order of Wear with precedence in Australia over all orders, decorations and medals.[5] The decoration may be awarded to members of the Australian Defence Force and to other persons determined by the Australian Minister for Defence.[6] A person to whom the Victoria Cross for Australia has been awarded is entitled to the post nominals VC placed after the person’s name.[7]

The Governor-General of Australia awards the Victoria Cross for Australia, with the approval of the Sovereign, on the recommendation of the Minister for Defence. The first medal was awarded on 16 January 2009 to Trooper Mark Donaldson, for the rescue of a coalition forces interpreter from heavy fire in Oruzgan Province in Afghanistan. Donaldson's award came almost 40 years after Warrant Officer Keith Payne became the last Australian to be awarded the (original) Victoria Cross for gallantry on 24 May 1969 during the Vietnam War. Original VCs awarded to Australians were usually presented either by the Governor-General or the reigning monarch. The first VC for Australia was presented to Trooper Donaldson by the Governor-General, and on a subsequent visit to the United Kingdom he was received at Windsor Castle by the Queen. As with the original VC, recipients are entitled to an annuity from the government.

History

Original medal

On 29 January 1856, Queen Victoria signed the Royal Warrant that officially instituted the Victoria Cross. The Warrant was backdated to 1854 to recognise acts of valour committed during the Crimean War.[8] It was originally intended that the Victoria Crosses would be cast from the bronze cascabels of two cannon that were captured from the Russians at the Siege of Sevastopol.[9][10][11] However, historian John Glanfield has proven, through the use of X-rays of older Victoria Crosses, that the metal used for the Victoria Crosses is in fact from antique Chinese guns, and not of Russian origin.[10][11][12]

The barrels of the cannon used to cast the medals are stationed outside the Officers' Mess, at the Royal Artillery Barracks at Woolwich. The remaining portion of the only remaining cascabel, weighing 10 kilograms (358 oz), is stored in a vault maintained by 15 Regiment, Royal Logistic Corps at Donnington, Telford, and can be removed only under armed guard. It is estimated that 80 to 85 more Victoria Crosses could be cast from this source. A single company of jewellers, Hancocks of London, established in 1849, has been responsible for the production of every medal since its inception.[13] Both the Australian and New Zealand Victoria Crosses are made from the same gunmetal as the originals.[14]

The original medal was awarded to 96 Australians; 90 of these were received for actions while serving with Australian units; six were received for actions while serving with other units. Sixty-four awards were for action in the First World War, nine of them for action during the Gallipoli Campaign. Twenty medals were awarded for action in the Second World War, and the other medals were for action in the Second Boer War, Russian Civil War and in the Vietnam War. The last recipient was Warrant Officer Keith Payne, for gallantry on 24 May 1969 during the Vietnam War. Payne was awarded the medal for instigating a rescue of more than 40 men.[3]

Separate Commonwealth awards

In the past 70 years several Commonwealth countries have introduced their own honours systems, completely separate from the British Honours System. Australia, Canada and New Zealand[14] have each introduced their own decorations for gallantry and bravery, replacing British decorations such as the Military Cross with their own awards. Most Commonwealth realms still recognise some form of the Victoria Cross as their highest decoration for valour.[15]

With the issuing of letters patent by the Queen of Australia on 15 January 1991, Australia became the first Commonwealth Realm to institute a separate Victoria Cross award in its own honours system. Although it is a separate award, the Victoria Cross for Australia's appearance is identical to its British counterpart.[16] Canada followed suit when in 1993, Queen Elizabeth II as Queen of Canada signed Letters Patent creating the Canadian Victoria Cross. The Canadian version has a different inscription, as well as being created from a different unspecified metal. The legend has been changed from FOR VALOUR to the Latin PRO VALORE.[17] Although one Canadian VC has been cast, none have been awarded. In 1999, New Zealand created the Victoria Cross for New Zealand, identical to the Australian and British Victoria Crosses,[14] and this has been awarded once, on 2 July 2007 to Corporal Willie Apiata.[18]

Appearance

The Victoria Cross for Australia is identical to the original design. It is a "cross pattée 41 millimetres high, 36 millimetres wide. The arms of the Cross have raised edges. The obverse bears a Crowned Lion standing on the Royal Crown with the words 'FOR VALOUR' inscribed on a semi-circular scroll below the Crown. The reverse bears raised edges on the arms of the cross and the date of the act for which the Cross is awarded is engraved within the circle in the centre.[19][20] The inscription 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 Victoria Cross were brave in battle.[10] The decoration, suspension bar, and link weigh about 27 grams (0.87 troy ounces).[21]

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.[22] 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.[22] The ribbon is crimson, and is 38 millimetres (1.5 inches) wide. Although the warrants state the colour as red, it is defined by most commentators as "crimson" or "wine-red".[23]

Conferment

The Victoria Cross for Australia 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.[3]

A view looking up a landscaped hill; steps lead to the entrance of a large cupola-topped building with three flag poles in front.
The Australian War Memorial which currently holds 61 Victoria Crosses

Awards are granted by the Governor-General with the approval of the Sovereign. The warrant for the Victoria Cross for Australia differs markedly from the Imperial warrant. The new warrant does not specify any particular process for recommendations, though it is expected that any recommendation will pass through the military hierarchy to the Minister for Defence.[3][24] The new warrant also allows for "other persons determined by the Minister [for Defence] for the purposes of this regulation." Author Robert Macklin has speculated that this has opened up the field of eligibility to policemen and women or civilians during a terrorist act. He goes on to say that by "separating the VC from its traditional roots the Hawke government can be accused, with some justice, of devaluing the honour ..."[25] Subsequent awards of the Victoria Cross for Australia to the same individual shall be made in the form of a bar to the Cross.[26] Where a person has been awarded a second or three or more awards, the post nominals “VC and Bar” or “VC and Bars” may be used.[7]

The Victoria Cross for Australia is the highest award in the Australian Honours Order of Precedence. As such, it takes precedence over all other postnominals and Australian orders and decorations. This postnominal is valid only for the recipient and is not transferred to the recipient's heirs.[27] "Tradition holds that even the most senior officer will salute a Victoria Cross recipient as a mark of the utmost respect for their act of valour."[28] Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston saluted Trooper Mark Donaldson after he received his VC.[28][29] Under Section 103, Subsection (4), of the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986, the Australian Government pays a Victoria Cross Allowance to any service person awarded the medal.[30] The act set this amount at A$3,230 per year. Since 20 September 2005, this amount has been indexed annually in line with Australian Consumer Price Index increases.[31] This amount is in addition to any amount that the veteran may be awarded under the general decoration allowance of $2.10 per fortnight.[32]

The various forms of the Victoria Cross are inherently valuable, as was highlighted on 24 July 2006, when at the auctionhouse Bonhams in Sydney, the VC which had been awarded to First World War soldier Captain Alfred Shout, fetched a world-record hammer price of $1 million. Shout had been awarded the Victoria Cross posthumously in 1915 for hand-to-hand combat at the Lone Pine trenches in Gallipoli, Turkey. The buyer, Kerry Stokes, has lent it to the Australian War Memorial for display with the eight other Victoria Crosses awarded to Australians at Gallipoli.[33][34] The Australian War Memorial in Canberra currently holds 61 Victoria Crosses, 59 awarded to Australians—including Mark Donaldson's Victoria Cross for Australia on loan—and two to British soldiers, forming the largest publicly displayed collection in the world.[34]

Recipients

A row of five medals with the Victoria Cross on the left; the other four medals are circular with multicoloured ribbons.
Trooper Donaldson's medals on display at the Australian War Memorial. His Victoria Cross for Australia is at left.

The first Victoria Cross for Australia was awarded to SAS Trooper Mark Donaldson by the Governor-General at Government House, Canberra on 16 January 2009.[35][36] On 2 September 2008, Donaldson rescued an interpreter under heavy enemy fire in Oruzgan province during Operation Slipper, the Australian contribution to the War in Afghanistan.[37]

A synopsis of Donaldson's citation is as follows:

On 2 September 2008 Trooper Donaldson was outstanding in the manner in which he fought during a prolonged and effective enemy ambush. On numerous occasions, he deliberately drew the enemy's fire in order to allow wounded soldiers to be moved to safety. As the battle raged around him he saw that a coalition interpreter was lying motionless on exposed ground. With complete disregard for his own safety, on his own initiative and alone, Trooper Donaldson ran back eighty metres across exposed ground to rescue the interpreter and carry him back to a vehicle. Trooper Donaldson then rejoined his patrol and continued to engage the enemy while remaining exposed to heavy enemy fire.[35]

Retrospective awards

On 3 April 2001, Senator Chris Schacht, a member of the Australian Senate, gave notice that on the next day of sitting he would introduce the “Award of Victoria Cross for Australia Bill 2001” to award the Victoria Cross for Australia to certain persons. The next sitting day, 4 April 2001, Senator Schacht introduced the bill for three members of the Australian forces to be awarded the Victoria Cross for Australia.[38] The bill was read a first time and Senator Schacht gave his Second Reading Speech in which he said it could be argued that an Act conferring a Victoria Cross for Australia may be beyond the legislative power of the Parliament but he believed that the "naval and military defence of the Commonwealth" power under section 51(vi) of the Constitution gave the Parliament authority to legislate with respect to honours and awards. In accordance with normal procedure the debate was then adjourned. On 1 June 2001, Sid Sidbottom, the Member for Braddon in the House of Representatives introduced the Defence Act Amendment (Victoria Cross) Bill 2001. The Bill was similar to the Senate bill and Sid Sidebottom also believed that the Parliament had power under section 51(vi) of the Constitution.[39] Neither bill was again debated before the Australian General Election on 10 November 2001. Both Senator Schacht and Mr Sidebottom were members of the Australian Labor Party, then in opposition and the issue was included by the then opposition leader Kim Beazley in his campaign for the General Election.[40] The awards were intended "to raise the profile and recognition of three ordinary Australians, who displayed outstanding bravery."[39]

The awards were to be made posthumously to John Simpson Kirkpatrick, Albert Cleary and Teddy Sheean for their actions in the First and Second World Wars. Kirkpatrick's story has become an Anzac legend.[41] He was a stretcher bearer with the 3rd Australian Field Ambulance, Australian Army Medical Corps at Gallipoli during the First World War. He landed at Anzac Cove on 25 April 1915 and, on that first night, took a donkey and began carrying wounded from the battle line to the beach for evacuation. He continued this work for three and a half weeks, often under fire, until he was killed. In the fiftieth anniversary year of the Anzac landings in 1965, there was a campaign to award the Victoria Cross to Simpson that resulted in his image with a donkey appearing on the obverse of the Anzac Medallion that was announced in 1966 and first issued in 1967. In 1919, King George V had decreed that no more operational awards would be made for the recently concluded war.[42] Following the 2007 Australian federal election the Labor party came to power and there was speculation that the 2001 bills may be reintroduced. Historians such as Anthony Staunton, writing in the Australian Journal of Military History, have stated that the Victoria Cross for Australia should not be awarded retrospectively.[43]

Notes

  1. ^ Staunton, Anthony, p. 350
  2. ^ The Cross of Valour (Australia) is the highest civilian award for bravery and in the Australian Honours Order of Precedence Order of wear is subordinate to the Victoria Cross for Australia.
  3. ^ a b c d "Victoria Cross for Australia" (PDF). Australian Government. Retrieved 2 July 2007.
  4. ^ Commonwealth Gazette No. S25, 4 February 1991, page 1.
  5. ^ The order of wearing Australian honours and awards, Commonwealth Gazette No. S192, 28 September 2007, page 1.
  6. ^ Victoria Cross Regulations, Commonwealth Gazette No. S25, 4 February 1991, page 2, Regulation 5.
  7. ^ a b Victoria Cross Regulations, Commonwealth Gazette No. S25, 4 February 1991, page 2, Regulation 8.
  8. ^ Ashcroft, Michael, pp. 7–10
  9. ^ Beharry, Johnson, p. 359
  10. ^ a b c "150 years of the Victoria Cross". Royal Naval Museum. Archived from the original on May 19, 2007. Retrieved 18 June 2007. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  11. ^ a b "Hancocks of London History of VC". Hancocks of London. Retrieved 24 June 2007.
  12. ^ Davies, Catronia (28 December 2005). "Author explodes myth of the gunmetal VC". The Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. Retrieved 16 June 2007.
  13. ^ "Hancocks Jewellers". Hancocks of London. Retrieved 16 June 2007.
  14. ^ a b c "New Zealand Honours". Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 30 January 2007.
  15. ^ "No. 56878". The London Gazette (invalid |supp= (help)). 17 March 2003. The Gazette containing the most up-to-date Order of Precedence.
  16. ^ "The Victoria Cross for Australia". The Government of Australia. Retrieved 30 June 2007.
  17. ^ CTV.ca, News staff (3 March 2007). "Top military honour now cast in Canada". CTV news. Retrieved 24 June 2007.
  18. ^ "Willie Apiata receives his VC". NZ Herald. APN News & Media. 26 July 2007. Retrieved 3 August 2007.
  19. ^ Victoria Cross Determination, Commonwealth Gazette No. S315, 18 November 1991, p. 1 Item 1.
  20. ^ 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".
  21. ^ Ashcroft, Michael, p. 16
  22. ^ a b "The Victoria Cross". Vietnam Veterans Of Australia. Retrieved 15 June 2007.
  23. ^ "The Victoria Cross". Imperial War Museum Exhibits and Firearms Collections. Retrieved 30 September 2006.
  24. ^ Macklin, Robert, p. 252
  25. ^ Macklin, Robert, p. 253
  26. ^ Victoria Cross Regulations, Commonwealth Gazette No. S25, 4 February 1991, p. 2, Regulation 6.
  27. ^ Ashcroft, Michael, Introduction
  28. ^ a b "I'm no hero says Aussie soldier with VC". The Age. Fairfax Media. 16 January 2009. Retrieved 16 January 2009.
  29. ^ The Chief of the Defence Force salutes Trooper Mark Donaldson, VC, Defence Media Release MSPA19/09, 16 January 2009.
  30. ^ "Veteran's Entitlement Act 1986". Australasian Legal Information Institute. Retrieved 16 June 2007.
  31. ^ Australian Veteran's Entitlement Act 1986, section 103, (4) Victoria Cross allowance granted to a veteran under this section is payable at the rate of $3,230 per year. Note: The amount fixed by this subsection is indexed annually in line with CPI increases. See section 198FA., "Veteran's Entitlement Act 1986, section 198a,". Australasian Legal Information Institute. Retrieved 30 June 2007.
  32. ^ "Veteran's Entitlement Act 1986, Section 102". Australasian Legal Information Institute. Retrieved 31 October 2007.
  33. ^ "Gallipoli VC medal sets auction record". The Age. Fairfax Media. 24 July 2006. Retrieved 2 November 2007.
  34. ^ a b Australian War Memorial "List of Victoria Crosses Held". Australian War Memorial. Retrieved 17 June 2007. {{cite web}}: Check |url= value (help)
  35. ^ a b "Trooper Mark Gregor Strang Donaldson, VC". Department of Defence. 16 January 2009. Retrieved 16 January 2009.
  36. ^ "Australian SAS soldier Mark Donaldson awarded Victoria Cross". The Australian. News Limited. 16 January 2009. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
  37. ^ Mark Dodd (12 December 2008). "Aussie special forces crush Taliban leaders in Afghanistan". The Australian. News Limited. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
  38. ^ "Parliamentary Debates, Senate" (PDF). Hansard. 1 April 2001. Retrieved 26 January 2008.(pp. 87–89)
  39. ^ a b "Parliamentary Debates, House of Representatives" (PDF). Hansard. 1 June 2001. Retrieved 26 January 2008.(20–23)
  40. ^ "Kim Beazley's plans for veterans" (PDF). Australian Labor Party. 2001. Archived from the original (PDF) on 7 November 2009. Retrieved 16 October 2007. {{cite web}}: |archive-date= / |archive-url= timestamp mismatch; 28 July 2008 suggested (help)
  41. ^ "Australia's favourite hero". Anzacs. Retrieved 26 January 2008.
  42. ^ Wilson, Graham (December 2006). "The Donkey Vote. A VC for Simpson — The Case Against". Sabretache: the Journal and Proceedings of the Military Historical Society of Australia. 47 (4): 25–37.
  43. ^ Myles-Kelly, Paul (15 January 2008). "Bravery award for war hero blocked". The Shields Gazette. Retrieved 26 January 2008.

References

Further reading

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