Military Cross

Military Cross
Left: Obverse of the medal Right: Albert Jacka's Military Cross and bar Bottom: Ribbon
Awarded by United Kingdom and Commonwealth
Type	Military decoration
Eligibility	British, (formerly) Commonwealth, and allied forces
Awarded for	... gallantry during active operations against the enemy.[1]
Status	Currently awarded.
Description	Silver cross with straight arms. (Obverse) Royal Cypher in centre (reverse) plain
Statistics
Established	28 December 1914
Precedence
Next (higher)	Conspicuous Gallantry Cross
Equivalent	Distinguished Service Cross, Distinguished Flying Cross
Next (lower)	Mention in Despatches

The Military Cross (MC) is the third level military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries.

The MC is granted in recognition of "an act or acts of exemplary gallantry during active operations against the enemy on land to all members, of any rank in Our Armed Forces…".^[2] In 1979 the Queen approved a proposal that a number of awards including the Military Cross could in future be awarded posthumously.^[3]

Contents 1 History 1.1 Description 2 Notable awards 3 Notes 4 Bibliography 5 See also 6 External links

History

The award was created in 1914 for commissioned officers of the substantive rank of Captain or below and for Warrant Officers. In 1931, the award was extended to Majors and also to members of the Royal Air Force for actions on the ground. Since the 1993 review of the honours system, as part of the drive to remove distinctions of rank in awards for bravery, the Military Medal, formerly the third level decoration for other ranks, has been discontinued. The MC now serves as the third level award for gallantry on land for all ranks of the British Armed Forces.^[4]

Bars are awarded to the MC in recognition of the performance of further acts of gallantry meriting the award. Recipients are entitled to the postnominal letters MC.

Description

• 46 mm max height, 44 mm max width
• Ornamental silver cross with straight arms terminating in broad finials decorated with imperial crowns, suspended from plain suspension bar. The Obverse has a Royal Cypher in centre;
• The reverse is plain, but from 1938 the name of the recipient and year of issue has been engraved on lower limb of cross.
• The ribbon width is 32 mm and consists of three equal vertical moire stripes of white, purple, and white.

Notable awards

For more information, see categories:Recipients of the Military Cross and Recipients of the Military Cross and Bar

• During World War I, Acting Captain Francis Victor Wallington of the Royal Field Artillery was the first person to be awarded the MC and three bars when he was invested with his third bar on 10 July 1918 (gazetted 13 September 1918: he had obtained the first three awards as a second lieutenant).^[5][6] Three other officers were subsequently awarded a third bar, Percy Bentley, Humphrey Arthur Gilkes and Charles Gordon Timms, all of whose awards were gazetted in a supplement to the London Gazette of 31 January 1919.^[5][7]

• During World War II Captain Sam Manekshaw, Indian Army (who eventually rose to the rank of Field Marshal), was leading a counter-offensive operation against the invading Japanese Army in Burma. During the course of the offensive he was hit by a burst of machine-gun fire and severely wounded in the stomach. Major General D.T. Cowan spotted Manekshaw holding on to life and was aware of his valour in face of stiff resistance from the Japanese. Fearing the worst, Major General Cowan quickly pinned his own Military Cross ribbon on to Manekshaw saying, "A dead person cannot be awarded a Military Cross."^[8]

• The first posthumous Military Cross was that awarded to Captain Herbert Richard Westmacott (491354), Grenadier Guards for gallantry in Northern Ireland during the period 1 February 1980 to 30 April 1980.^[9]

• The first woman to be awarded the Military Cross was Private Michelle Norris of the Royal Army Medical Corps, while attached to The Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment in Iraq. Norris was awarded her medal personally by Queen Elizabeth II on 21 March 2007 as the result of her actions in Iraq on 11 June 2006.^[10][11][12]
• Able Seaman Kate Nesbitt, second woman, first in the Royal Navy, for acts in Afghanistan in March 2009 as a Medical Assistant attached to 1 RIFLES, 3 Commando Brigade.^[13][14][15]

Notes

Bibliography

• Mackay, J and Mussel, J (eds) - Medals Yearbook - 2005, (2004), Token Publishing.

See also

• Category:Recipients of the Military Cross
• British and Commonwealth orders and decorations
• List of British gallantry awards for the Iraq War

External links

• Database of Australian Awardees at the Australian Government Honours website
• Search recommendations for the Military Cross on The UK National Archives' website.

• "The King's Own Royal Regiment Museum, (Lancaster), Military Cross". www.kingsownmuseum.plus.com. http://www.kingsownmuseum.plus.com/medalsaa.htm. 

• Notes on numbers awarded

United Kingdom Decorations and Medals for Gallantry, Valour, Distinguished Service and Meritorious Service   Current awards Level 1 Victoria Cross (VC)  • George Cross (GC) Level 2A Distinguished Service Order (DSO)  • Conspicuous Gallantry Cross (CGC)  • Royal Red Cross Class I (RRC) Level 3A Distinguished Service Cross (DSC)  • Military Cross (MC)  • Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC)  • Air Force Cross (AFC)  • Royal Red Cross Class II (ARRC) Level 2B George Medal (GM) Queen's Police Medal, for Gallantry (QPM) Queen's Fire Service Medal, for Gallantry (QFSM) Level 3B Constabulary Medal (Ireland)  • Medal for Saving Life at Sea (SGM)  • Queen's Gallantry Medal (QGM)  • Royal Victorian Medal (RVM)  • British Empire Medal (BEM)  • Queen's Police Medal, for Distinguished Service (QPM)  • Queen's Fire Sevice Medal, for Distinguished Service (QFSM)  • Queen's Volunteer Reserves Medal (QVRM)  • Queen’s Medal for Chiefs  • Polar Medal Level 4 Mentioned in Despatches  • Queen's Commendation for Bravery  • Queen's Commendation for Bravery in the Air  • Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service Other awards Badge of Honour   Obsolete awards Levels 1 / 2A Indian Order of Merit (First Class) (IOM)  • Indian Order of Merit (Second Class) (IOM) Level 3A Order of British India (First Class) (OBI)  • Order of British India (Second Class) (OBI)  • Kaisar-i-Hind, Gold  • Kaisar-i-Hind, Silver  • Kaisar-i-Hind, Bronze Level 2B Albert Medal (AM)  • Edward Medal (EM)  • Empire Gallantry Medal (EGM)  • Union of South Africa Queen's Medal for Bravery (Gold)  • Distinguished Conduct Medal (DCM)  • Conspicuous Gallantry Medal (CGM)  • Conspicuous Gallantry Medal (Flying) (CGM) Level 3B Royal West African Frontier Force Distinguished Conduct Medal  • King's African Rifles Distinguished Conduct Medal  • Indian Distinguished Service Medal (IDSM)  • Union of South Africa Queen's Medal for Bravery (Silver)  • Distinguished Service Medal (DSM)  • Military Medal (MM)  • Distinguished Flying Medal (DFM)  • Air Force Medal (AFM) Indian Order of Merit (Third Class) (IOM)  • Indian Police Medal, for Gallantry  • Ceylon Police Medal, for Gallantry  • Sierra Leone Police Medal, for Gallantry  • Sierra Leone Fire Brigades Medal, for Gallantry  • Colonial Police Medal, for Gallantry (CPM)  • Canada Medal (CM)  • Indian Police Medal, for Meritorious Service  • Ceylon Police Medal, for Merit  • Sierra Leone Police Medal, for Meritorious Service  • Sierra Leone Fire Brigades Medal, for Meritorious Service  • Colonial Police Medal, for Meritorious Service (CPM) Level 4 King's/Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct  • King's/Queen's Commendation for Valuable Service in the Air See also: Order of Wear, Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom and British campaign medals