# Union of South Africa King's Medal for Bravery, Silver

The Union of South Africa King's Medal for Bravery, Silver is the lesser of two classes of a South African civil decoration for acts of bravery that was in use from 1939 to 1952, when the country was a constitutional monarchy in the British Commonwealth. The medal was instituted by King George VI on 23 June 1939.

## Institution

The Union of South Africa King's Medal for Bravery, Silver, the lesser of two classes of South Africa's highest civilian decoration for bravery, was instituted by Royal Warrant of 23 June 1939, published in Government Gazette no. 2671 dated 25 August 1939, and amended by Royal Warrants of 18 February 1947, 24 October 1949 and 17 October 1950.

## Award criteria

The medal was awarded to recognise gallantry performed in the face of imminent and obvious peril by those residents of the Union of South Africa or its dependent territories who endangered their own lives in the act of saving, or endeavouring to save, the lives of others.
Although it was primarily a civilian award, it was also granted to military personnel for non-combatant acts of gallantry during the Second World War.

## Order of wear

In the British order of precedence, the Union of South Africa King's Medal for Bravery, Silver ranks as a third level decoration, equivalent to the Queen's Gallantry Medal. It is preceded by the Indian Distinguished Service Medal and succeeded by the Distinguished Service Medal.
In South Africa, the medal is ranked as a second level decoration and, despite its status, it has no post-nominal letters. It is preceded by the Louw Wepener Decoration and succeeded by the South African Police Cross for Bravery.

## Description
### Obverse

    The decoration is struck in silver and is a disk, 38 millimetres in diameter with a raised rim and a large ring suspender. The obverse depicts the crowned effigy of King George VI, facing left, surrounded by the words "GEORGIVS VI REX ET IMPERATOR".

### Reverse

    A public competition was held to find a suitable design for the reverse of the medal. The winning entry, by Miss Renee Joubert, depicts the 18th-century Cape hero Wolraad Woltemade on his horse, rescuing shipwreck survivors from a stormy sea. As a result, the medal became commonly referred to as the Woltemade Medal. The image is circumscribed with the words "FOR BRAVERY • VIR DAPPERHEID" around the top.

### Ribbon

    The ribbon is 44 millimetres wide and dark blue with 4½ millimetres wide orange edges.

## Discontinuation

Upon the accession to the British Throne of Queen Elizabeth II on 6 February 1952, the Union of South Africa King's Medal for Bravery, Silver was discontinued and replaced by the Union of South Africa Queen's Medal for Bravery, Silver.

## Recipients

The Union of South Africa King's Medal for Bravery, Silver was awarded to altogether thirty-four individuals, of whom eighteen were military personnel.
| | Title/ Rank | Name | Gazette date | Action cited for |
| 1 | Mr | Dalling, William Tweeddale | 29 Dec 1939 | Tried to save a black man in a rock-burst, Rose Deep Mine |
| 2 | Mr | Nourse, Dennis | 9 Aug 1940 | Saved a man from being savaged by a shark, Warner Beach, Natal |
| 3 | Mr | Moubray, Robert John | 31 Jan 1941 | Jumped down a 50 feet waterfall near Tzaneen to save a friend, who had fallen and struck his head, from drowning in the pool below |
| 4 | Mr | Van den Berg, Michael Adriaan | 4 Apr 1941 | Saved an injured miner despite ignited dynamite fuses, Venterspost Gold Mine |
| 5 | Mr | Givana, son of Siqwayini | 4 Apr 1941 | Assisted Mr. M.A. van den Berg in the aforementioned rescue, Venterspost Gold Mine |
| 6 | Mr | Snell, Hendrik | 28 Aug 1942 | Tried to save the pilot in a crashed and burning aircraft, Landsdowne Road, Cape Town |
| 7 | Lt | Rabe, Arnold (SAAF) | 30 Jul 1943 | Saved a pilot from a burning aircraft |
| 8 | T/F Sgt | Brady, Martin Wilson Taylor Bellingham (SAAF) | 17 Dec 1943 | Saved a pilot from a burning aircraft, Youngsfield Base, Cape Town |
| 9 | Pupil Pilot | De Jong, Daniel Nicholaas (SAAF) | 4 Feb 1944 | Saved his instructor from a burning aircraft, Standerton |
| 10 | T/2 Lt | Fowles, Geoffrey Turner (SAAF) | 4 Feb 1944 | Saved a pilot from a burning aircraft, Pietersburg |
| 11 | A/M | Botes, Rudolph Daniel (SAAF) | 4 Feb 1944 | Attempted to save the crew of a burning aircraft, Wingfield, Cape Town |
| 12 | Mr | Mpotu | 6 Apr 1944 | Saved a miner in the face of exploding dynamite, Venterspost Gold Mine |
| 13 | A/Cpl | Faul, Joseph Piek (SAAF) | 21 Apr 1944 | Tried to save a man overcome by fumes in the fuel tank of a Catalina aircraft |
| 14 | T/Capt | Fisher, H.S. (UDF) | 14 Sep 1945 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 at the Grand Magazine, Pretoria |
| 15 | T/Capt | Warner, A.L.H. (UDF) | 14 Sep 1945 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 16 | T/Lt | Solomon, H.I. (UDF) | 14 Sep 1945 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 17 | T/WO2 | Bruyns, H.C. (UDF) | 14 Sep 1945 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 18 | WO2 | Murcia, L. (UDF) | 14 Sep 1945 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 19 | T/S Sgt | Du Plessis, P.F. (UDF) | 14 Sep 1945 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 20 | Sgt | Pentz, C. (UDF) | 14 Sep 1945 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 21 | L Cpl | Seholi, Peter (UDF) | 7 Dec 1945 | Rescued two men, gassed in a sewer, Maitland, Cape Town |
| 22 | Sgt | Ferreira, I.M. (UDF) | 8 Feb 1946 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 23 | Sgt | Bronkhost, N.J. (UDF) | 8 Feb 1946 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 24 | T/Cpl | Breet, W.S. (UDF) | 8 Feb 1946 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 25 | Mr | Theron, Marthinus Jacobus | 15 Feb 1946 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 26 | Mr | Hall, John Bassett | 15 Feb 1946 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 27 | Mr | Sehlogo, Andries | 15 Feb 1946 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 28 | Mr | Nel, Frederick | 15 Feb 1946 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 29 | Mr | Clark, Edward George | 15 Feb 1946 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 30 | Mr | Snyder, Erle Snider | 15 Feb 1946 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 31 | Mr | Mpye, Amos | 15 Feb 1946 | Gallantry displayed on the occasion of an explosion on 14 March 1945 |
| 32 | AB | Adlam, H.S.J. (SANF (V)) | 12 Apr 1946 | Saved a black man from the sea and sharks, Durban |
| 33 | Mr | Lewis, Peter Thomas | 23 Jan 1948 | Saved a child from the path of a railway locomotive, Pretoria |
| 34 | Master | Hart, Jack Jacobus | 22 Oct 1948 | At age 14, rescued a child from a burning garden hut, Johannesburg |