# List of Royal Engineers recipients of the Victoria Cross

This is a list of Royal Engineers recipients of the Victoria Cross.The Victoria Cross (VC) is a military decoration that may be bestowed upon members of the British or Commonwealth armed forces for acts of valour or gallantry performed in the face of the enemy. Within the British honours system and those of many Commonwealth nations it is the highest award a soldier can receive for actions in combat. It was established in 1856 and since then has been awarded 1,356 times, including three service personnel who were awarded the VC twice.
The VC was introduced on 29 January 1856 by Queen Victoria to reward acts of valour during the Crimean War. The traditional explanation of the source of the gunmetal from which the medals are struck is that it derives from Russian cannon captured at the siege of Sevastopol. Recent research has thrown doubt on this story, suggesting a variety of origins. The original Royal Warrant did not contain a specific clause regarding posthumous awards, although official policy was to not award the VC posthumously. Between 1897 and 1901, several notices were issued in the London Gazette regarding soldiers who would have been awarded the VC had they survived. In a partial reversal of policy in 1902, six of the soldiers mentioned were granted the VC, but not "officially" awarded the medal. In 1907, the posthumous policy was completely reversed and medals were sent to the next of kin of the six officers and men. The Victoria Cross warrant was not officially amended to explicitly allow posthumous awards until 1920 but one quarter of all awards for the First World War were posthumous.
Due to its rarity, the VC is highly prized and the medal has fetched over £400,000 at auction. A number of public and private collections are devoted to the Victoria Cross. The private collection of Lord Ashcroft, amassed since 1986, contains over one-tenth of all VCs awarded. Following a 2008 donation to the Imperial War Museum, the Ashcroft collection went on public display alongside the museum's Victoria and George Cross collection in November 2010. Since 1990, three Commonwealth countries that retain the Queen as head of state have instituted their own versions of the VC. As a result, the original Victoria Cross is sometimes referred to as the "Commonwealth Victoria Cross" or the "Imperial Victoria Cross", to distinguish it from the newer awards.
The Corps of Royal Engineers can trace its origins back 900 years, during which time they have been involved in every major conflict the British Army has fought in. The Royal Flying Corps – the forerunner of the Royal Air Force – and the present day Royal Signals were originally part of the Corps. Their first recipient of the Victoria Cross received the award for actions performed during the Crimean War, while the last came during the Second World War. In total, thirty-six Royal Engineers have been awarded the Victoria Cross, across ten different conflicts or campaigns.

## Royal Engineer recipients

| Name | Date | Conflict | Location |
| Adam Archibald | 4 November 1918 | First World War | Sambre–Oise Canal |
| Fenton Aylmer | 2 December 1891 | Hunza-Nagar Campaign | Nilt |
| Mark Sever Bell | 4 February 1874 | Third Anglo-Ashanti War | Ordashu |
| John Chard | 22–23 January 1879 | Anglo-Zulu War | Rorke's Drift |
| Brett Cloutman | 6 November 1918 | First World War | Pont-sur-Sambre |
| Clifford Coffin | 31 July 1917 | First World War | Westhoek |
| James Morris Colquhoun Colvin | 16–17 September 1897 | First Mohmand Campaign | Mohmand Valley |
| James Lennox Dawson | 13 October 1915 | First World War | Hohenzollern Redoubt |
| Robert James Thomas Digby-Jones | 6 January 1900 | Second Boer War | Ladysmith |
| Thomas Frank Durrant | 28 March 1942 | Second World War | St Nazaire |
| Howard Craufurd Elphinstone | 18 June 1855 | Crimean War | Sevastopol |
| George de Cardonnel Elmsall Findlay | 4 November 1918 | First World War | Sambre–Oise Canal |
| Gerald Graham | 18 June 1855 | Crimean War | Sevastopol |
| William Hackett | 22–23 June 1916 | First World War | Givenchy-lès-la-Bassée |
| Reginald Clare Hart | 31 January 1879 | Second Anglo-Afghan War | Bazar Valley |
| Lanoe Hawker | 25 July 1915 | First World War | Passendale |
| Charles Jarvis | 23 August 1914 | First World War | Jemappes |
| Frederick Henry Johnson | 25 September 1915 | First World War | Hill 70 |
| William Henry Johnston | 14 September 1914 | First World War | Missy-sur-Aisne |
| Frank Howard Kirby | 2 June 1900 | Second Boer War | Delagoa Bay |
| Cecil Leonard Knox | 22 March 1918 | First World War | Tugny |
| Edward Pemberton Leach | 17 March 1879 | Second Anglo-Afghan War | Maidanah |
| Peter Leitch | 18 June 1855 | Crimean War | Sevastopol |
| William James Lendrim | 14 February 1855 | Crimean War | Sevastopol |
| Wilbraham Lennox | 20 November 1854 | Crimean War | Sevastopol |
| Henry MacDonald | 19 April 1855 | Crimean War | Sevastopol |
| Edward Mannock | 17 June 1918 7 July 1918 14 July 1918 19 July 1918 20 July 1918 22 July 1918 | First World War | Western Front |
| Cyril Gordon Martin | 12 March 1915 | First World War | Spanbroek Molen |
| James McPhie | 14 October 1918 | First World War | Sensée Canal |
| Philip Neame | 19 December 1914 | First World War | Neuve-Chapelle |
| John Perie | 18 June 1855 | Crimean War | Sevastopol |
| Claud Raymond | 21 March 1945 | Second World War | Talaku |
| John Ross | 21 July 1855 | Crimean War | Sevastopol |
| Michael Sleavon | 3 April 1858 | Indian Mutiny | Jhansi |
| Thomas Colclough Watson | 16 September 1897 | First Mohmand Campaign | Mohmand Valley |
| Arnold Horace Santo Waters | 4 November 1918 | First World War | Sambre–Oise Canal |
| Theodore Wright | 23 August 1914 | First World War | Jemappes |