Victoria Cross (Canada)

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Victoria Cross
The Canadian Victoria Cross, as appearing in a promotional photograph from the Canadian government, May 2008.
Awarded by the Queen of Canada
Type	Medal
Eligibility	The recipient must be a member of the Canadian Forces or a member of an allied armed force that is serving with or in conjunction with the Canadian Forces, on or after January 1, 1993.
Awarded for	The most conspicuous bravery, a daring or pre-eminent act of valour or self-sacrifice or extreme devotion to duty, in the presence of the enemy.
Status	Currently awarded
Post-nominals	V.C.
Statistics
Established	February 2, 1993
Distinct recipients	0
Precedence
Next (lower)	Cross of Valour

The Canadian Victoria Cross (French: Croix de Victoria canadienne) is a military award of Canada based on the original British Victoria Cross. Created in 1993, it and the original are the highest honours in the Canadian honours system, taking precedence over all other orders, decorations, and medals, including the Order of Canada.

It is awarded for extraordinary valour and devotion to duty while facing a hostile force, and can be awarded to any member of the Canadian Forces and to allies serving under or with Canadian military command. Whereas in many other Commonwealth countries, the Victoria Cross can only be awarded for actions against the enemy in a wartime setting, the Canadian government has a broader definition of the term enemy, and so the Victoria Cross can be awarded for action against armed mutineers, pirates, or other such hostile forces without war being officially declared.

The Canadian medal is based on the original Victoria Cross instituted in 1856, although the Canadian version has several small changes in its appearance. It is presented to the recipient by the Monarch (presently Queen Elizabeth II) or the Governor General of Canada. Recipients are entitled to use the post-nominal letters V.C. (whether in English or French), and also to an annuity of C$3,000 annually.^[1] It can be awarded more than once, but no one has received the award since its inception.

Contents 1 Origin 2 Criteria 3 Conferment 4 Appearance 4.1 Display 5 See also 6 Notes 7 Bibliography 8 External links

[edit] Origin

For more details on this topic, see Victoria Cross#Origin

The original Victoria Cross was created through a Royal Warrant issued by Queen Victoria, on January 29, 1856, in order to recognize incidents of gallantry that were unconnected with a man's lengthy or meritorious service.^[2] Originally, the VC could not be awarded posthumously, and could not be awarded to Indian or African troops (although it could be awarded to their European officers).^[3] However, one colonial soldier, Major Charles Heaphy, was awarded the VC retrospectively for his actions in 1864, as he was under British command. Following this, the VC was made available to all "local forces under imperial command."^[4] In 1905, it was made available to be awarded posthumously

In 1972 the Canadian honours system was overhauled and the Victoria Cross was omitted from the official list of Honours. The debate about whether to reinstate the Victoria Cross raged throughout the late 1970s and 1980s. The Prime Minister of the time, Pierre Trudeau, regularly dodged questions about the award, stating "that only Canadians should receive Canadian decorations."^[5]

Three years after his appointment as Prime Minister in 1984, Brian Mulroney set up a committee to look into the creation of a Canadian Victoria Cross as part of a new set of military honours.^[6] Although the committee did not recommend the Victoria Cross, pressure from lobbying groups such as the Monarchist League of Canada and the Royal Canadian Legion forced the plans to be amended.^[7][8] In 1991, a Private Member's Bill received all-party support in the House of Commons, following which the Victoria Cross, along with other Canadian military valour decorations, were formally requested on December 31, 1992, by Mulroney. The request was approved by the issue of Letters Patent by Elizabeth II, the Queen of Canada, on February 2, 1993. The other awards approved were the Star of Military Valour and the Medal of Military Valour. Upon the creation of the awards, coined the Modern Honours of Canada, the Canadian honours system was no longer dependent on the British.^[9]

By 1990, other Commonwealth countries had begun to develop their own distinct military awards systems. In 1991, Australia created a separate awards system and introduced the Victoria Cross for Australia as the highest award for gallantry.^[10] In 1999 New Zealand introduced the Victoria Cross for New Zealand which still uses the same gunmetal as the original Victoria Cross.^[11]

[edit] Criteria

The Canadian Victoria Cross, as with the British VC, is awarded for "the most conspicuous bravery, a daring or pre-eminent act of valour or self-sacrifice or extreme devotion to duty, in the presence of the enemy."^[12] The Canadian government has defined the term enemy as a force hostile towards the Canadian government, which includes the following: armed mutineers, armed rebels, armed rioters, and armed pirates. Canada does not officially have to declare war to give acknowledgement of the existence of a hostile force that fits the above description. This means that a Canadian serving as part of a peacekeeping operation is eligible to be awarded the VC if the service member fulfils the above criteria. The time period for the service to be eligible for the Victoria Cross is on or after January 1, 1993.^[12] The Victoria Cross, along with the other military valour decorations, can be awarded posthumously. Unlike the British VC, the Canadian Victoria Cross can be revoked.^[9]

In the case of a gallant and daring act being performed by a squadron, ship's company or a detached body of men (such as marines) in which all men are deemed equally brave and deserving of the Victoria Cross then a ballot is drawn. The officers select one officer, the NCOs select one individual and the private soldiers or seamen select two individuals. ^[13]

[edit] Conferment

Ninety-four Canadians and Newfoundlanders were awarded the British VC, the last in 1945. The last living recipient, Smokey Smith, died in 2005. No one has been awarded or nominated for the Canadian VC to date, though there were announcements that Elizabeth II, Queen of Canada, would present a Victoria Cross to Prime Minister Stephen Harper, in recognition of the gallantry of the Unknown Soldier, at the rededication of the Vimy Memorial on April 7, 2007, the 90th anniversary of the battle of Vimy Ridge.^[14] The proposal was met with a mixed response from members of the Royal Canadian Legion and Canadian Forces; detractors felt the Unknown Soldier should not be elevated above his other fallen comrades. It had also been agreed at the time of the repatriation of the Unknown Soldier that no award or decoration would be bestowed on the remains.^[15] Ultimately the plan to award the VC to the Unknown Soldier was quietly dropped. It should be noted that the American Unknown Soldier has been awarded the British Victoria Cross and the British Unknown Soldier was awarded the American Medal of Honor, while the Canadian soldier has received neither of these awards.^[16]

The process of awarding the VC can be done in two ways. The first method is recommendation by a committee called the Military Valour Decoration Advisory Committee. The committee is made up of six members: one appointed by the Governor General and the rest appointed by the Chief of Defence Staff. The second method can be started by the field commanders. However, the commanders must have permission from the Governor General before the award can take place. Recipients of the medal are entitled to an annuity paid by the Canadian Government. As of January 2005, under the Canadian Gallantry Awards Order, members of the Canadian Forces or people who joined the British forces before March 31, 1949 while domiciled in Canada or Newfoundland receive $3,000 per year.^[17]

[edit] Appearance

The first Victoria Cross medal was struck in 2007, while Canada was at war in Afghanistan. Preparations to create a physical medal were begun in 2006, and it was confirmed by Deputy Herald Chancellor Emmanuelle Sajous that at least one Victoria Cross had been created.^[7] The medal was officially released to the public on May 16, 2008 at Rideau Hall by the Governor General and the Prime Minister.^[18] The medal is described as a cross pattée with straight arms, measuring 38 mm across, made out of bronze cast in an alloy of metals from (reputedly) a Russian cannon from the Crimean War (1854-6), the Confederation Medal (1867), and from regions nationwide.^[19] On the obverse, a crowned lion in the guardant position is standing upon the royal crown. Below the crown, there is a semi-circular scroll bearing the inscription PRO VALORE (Latin meaning For Valour), changed from the original English inscription to accommodate the two official languages of Canada (English and French).^[9][20] On the reverse of the medal, there is a raised circle, into which will be engraved the date of the act of gallantry and the name, rank, and unit of the recipient.

The medal is suspended from a link forming the letter V. The V is attached to a bar adorned with laurel leaves. The name, rank and unit of the recipient will be engraved on the reverse of this bar. The suspension device and the bar is also made out of bronze. In the case of further awards to the same individual, a bronze bar with laurel leaves will be worn on the medal ribbon, one for each further award. The ribbon is also 38 mm wide and is described as a crimson colour. This ribbon design is also used on the British VC.^[21]

The Canadian VC is based on the British version. The original insignia was created by Prince Albert, Prince Consort to Queen Victoria. The Canadian modifications to the VC were done by Bruce Beatty and Cathy Bursey-Sabourin, Fraser Herald of the Canadian Heraldic Authority.

[edit] Display

The Victoria Cross is the highest Canadian decoration in the Canadian honours system, thus it is placed before all other Canadian decorations, including the Order of Canada. It is worn on the left breast as a medal. When the use of a medal is inappropriate, a ribbon bar is worn. The ribbon bar consists of a crimson ribbon, with a small VC medal in bronze placed in the centre of the ribbon bar. When there is a second award of the VC, two small VC medals will be placed evenly on the ribbon bar.^[9]

[edit] See also

• List of Canadian Victoria Cross recipients

[edit] Notes

[edit] Bibliography

• Ashcroft, Michael (2006). Victoria Cross Heroes. Headline Book Publishing. ISBN 0755316320. 
• Beharry, Johnson (2006). Barefoot Soldier. Sphere. ISBN 0-316-73321-0. 
• Pro Valore: Canada's Victoria Cross. Department of National Defence. 2008. 
• Blatherwick, Francis John (2003). Canadian Orders, Decorations and Medals. Toronto: Unitrade Press. ISBN 978-0-91980-1103. 
• McCreery, Christopher (2005). The Canadian Honours System. Toronto: Dundurn Press. ISBN 078-1-55002-554-5. 
• McCreery, Christopher (2008). The Beginner's Guide to Canadian Honours. Toronto: Dundurn Press. ISBN 978-1-55002-748-8. 

See also: Orders, decorations, and medals of Canada: Bibliography

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Victoria Cross (Canada)

• Pro Valore: Canada's Victoria Cross
• Administrative Order 18-4 Recommendations for Canadian Orders, Decorations and Military Honours
• Canadian Orders, Decorations and Military Honours

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