Victoria Cross (Canada)

TheVictoria Cross(VC;French:Croix de Victoria) was created in 1993, perpetuating the lineage of the BritishVictoria Cross, while serving as the highest award within theCanadian honours system,taking precedence overall other orders, decorations, and medals. It is awarded by either theCanadian monarchor hisviceregalrepresentative, thegovernor general of Canada, to any member of theCanadian Armed Forcesor allies serving under or with Canadian military command for extraordinary valour and devotion to duty while facing hostile forces. The British Victoria Cross was recommended prior to the creation of the Canadian medal. The previous Victoria Cross remains the highest award of theUnited Kingdom honours systemand was also awarded in other Commonwealth countries; although most, including Canada, later established their own honours systems and no longer recommended British honours.
Whereas in many otherCommonwealthcountries the relevant version of the Victoria Cross can only be awarded for actions against the enemy in a wartime setting, theCanadian governmenthas a broader definition of the termenemy. In Canada, the Victoria Cross can be awarded for action against armed mutineers, pirates, or other such hostile forces without war being officially declared. Recipients are entitled to use thepost-nominal lettersVC(for bothEnglishandFrench), but they do not receive anannuityfor the award.The decoration has not been awarded since its inception.
The originalVictoria Crosswas created by aRoyal Warrantissued on 29 January 1856 with theroyal sign-manualofQueen Victoria, and was intended to recognize demonstrations of gallantry during theCrimean War, regardless of either a man's social status or his record of service.Initially, the Victoria Cross could not be conferred on colonial troops,until MajorCharles Heaphyreceived the medal for his actions while serving with a New Zealand militia unit in 1864.After this, the Victoria Cross was made available to all "local forces under imperial command."The cross could not be awarded posthumously but the policy was reversed in 1907.
Until 1972, 81 members of the Canadian military (including those fromNewfoundland) and 13 Canadians serving in British units had beenawarded the Victoria Cross.After that date, however, the Canadian honours system was overhauled, and the Victoria Cross was eliminated from the officiallist of honours, instigating a decades-long debate on whether or not to reinstate the decoration. Theprime ministerat the time,Pierre Trudeau, regularly dodged questions about the Victoria Cross, stating only that Canadians should receive Canadian decorations.In 1987, prime ministerBrian Mulroneyset up a committee to look into the creation of a Canadian Victoria Cross as part of a new series of military honours.Although the committee did not recommend the Victoria Cross—names such as theCanada Crossand theCross of Military Valourwere put forward—the creation of aVictoria Cross for Australiain 1991 and pressure fromThe Globe and Mailandadvocacy groups,such as theMonarchist League of Canadaand theRoyal Canadian Legion, forced the plans to be amended.In 1991 aprivate member's billreceivedall-party supportin theHouse of Commons, following which the Victoria Cross, along with other Canadian military valour decorations, were on 31 December 1992 formally requested by Mulroney. The request was approved with the issue ofletters patentby QueenElizabeth IIon 2 February of the following year, thereby ceasing Canadian dependence (except for those honours and awards in the personal gift of the Sovereign) on theBritish honours system.
The Victoria Cross 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" at any point after 1 January 1993. It may be presentedposthumously, and, like its British counterpart, can not be revoked.The main distinction between the Victoria Cross and theCross of Valouris the specific reference to "the enemy",which the Canadian government has defined as a force hostile towards theCanadian Crown, including armed mutineers, rebels, rioters, andpirates. This means that theKing-in-Councildoes not officially have to declare war to give acknowledgement of the existence of a hostile force that fits the official description.Thus, a Canadian serving as part of apeacekeepingoperation is eligible to be awarded the Victoria Cross if the service member fulfils the above criteria.
In the case of a gallant and daring act having been performed by a squadron, ship's company, or detached body of individuals (such as a security detachment) in which all persons were deemed equally brave and deserving of the Victoria Cross, a ballot is to be drawn; thecommissionedandnon-commissioned officerseach select one of their own, and the private soldiers or seamen select from amongst themselves two individuals.This provision with modification is included in the current warrant but has not been used since the First World War.
The process of awarding the Victoria Cross may take place in two ways: One is through a recommendation by the Decorations and Commendations Advisory Committee,which is a part of theDepartment of National Defenceand has six members, one appointed by the governor general and the rest by thechief of the Defence Staff. Alternatively, a field commander can submit a name for consideration, though permission must be obtained from the governor general before the award can be presented. Recipients are entitled to receive an annuity from the federalCanadian Crown; per the Canadian gallantry awards order issued in January 2005, members of the Canadian Armed Forces or those who joined theBritish forceswhile domiciled in Canada or Newfoundland prior to 31 March 1949, after receiving the Victoria Cross, be grantedCA$3,000each year.Previously, Canadians who were posthumously awarded the British Victoria Cross were given special headstones at their burial sites inCommonwealth War Gravesand other cemeteries.
To date, no Canadian Victoria Cross has been conferred;Smokey Smith, who died in 2005, was the last living Canadian recipient of the imperial Victoria Cross, personally receiving it from KingGeorge VIat Buckingham Palace in December 1944. The last action that resulted in a Canadian being awarded the Victoria Cross was to LieutenantRobert Hampton Grayfor gallantry on 9 August 1945, atOnagawa Bay,Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. The award was posthumously gazetted on 13 November 1945 although in the following five months, three additional awards to Canadians were gazetted for actions in 1941, 1942 and February 1945. Prior to Queen Elizabeth II's re-dedication of theVimy Memorialon 7 April 2007, there was speculation she would present a Canadian Victoria Cross to her then-prime minister,Stephen Harper, offering it in recognition of the gallantry of theUnknown Soldier, as representative of all Canada's casualties of combat.The proposal was met with a mixed response from members of the Royal Canadian Legion and Canadian Armed Forces, detractors feeling that the Unknown Soldier should not be elevated above his other comrades killed in war. It had also been agreed at the time of the Unknown Soldier's repatriation that no award or decoration would be bestowed on the remains.No decision was taken about the awarding of the Victoria Cross to the Unknown Soldier.
Near the end ofCanada's role in the Afghanistan War, concerns were raised about the stringency of the criteria that needed to be met to receive the Victoria Cross. Other countries with a Victoria Cross had awarded it numerous times since the end of the Second World War, some members of the Australian, New Zealand, and British armed forces receiving the decoration for their actions during the Afghan and Iraq wars of the 2000s. Members of the Canadian Armed Forces questioned why some actions by Canadians were deemed worthy only of theStar of Military Valour; citations for individuals who had received the imperial Victoria Cross during the First World War were very similar to those for Canadians who were presented with the Star of Military Valour during the war in Afghanistan. This led then Chief of the Defence Staff,Walter Natynczyk, to create a special committee to review the matter. The Department of National Defence's Directorate of Honours and Recognition explained concepts of war had changed since the mid-20th century and Canada had also developed a more elaborate honours system.
Beginning in 2021, a campaign was launched to awardJess Larochellethe medal, upgrading hisStar of Military Valour. To date the campaign has been unsuccessful.
The design of the Canadian medal is derived from that of the British original, which was the creation ofAlbert, Prince Consort,royal consortto Queen Victoria. Canada's Victoria Cross is thus acrosspattéewith straight arms, 38 millimetres (1.5 in) across in each direction, and made out ofbronzecolouredalloy, the obverse bearing a lion crowned and statant guardant, similar to that which forms thecrestof theRoyal Arms of Canada, standing upon a representation ofSt. Edward's Crown, which itself rests above a semi-circular scroll. On the reverse is a raised circle for engraving the date of the act of gallantry along with the name, rank, and unit of the recipient.The medal is suspended from a link forming the letterVattached to a bar adorned on the front withlaurelleaves, and on the reverse with the name, rank, and unit of the medal's recipient,all cast in the same metal as the medal. The ribbon, also38 mmwide, is solidcrimsonin colour.Cathy Bursey-Sabourin,Fraser Heraldof theCanadian Heraldic Authority, andBruce W. Beatty, however, made certain modifications for the Canadian Victoria Cross, the most notable being the inclusion of Canadian flora as decoration and the alteration of the inscription on the scroll fromFOR VALOURto theLatintranslation,PRO VALORE,so as to accommodateCanada's two official languages.In 2008,Citizens for a Canadian Republic's leader, Tom Freda, publicly objected to the decoration's name and appearance, with what he saw as its "objectionable colonial symbolism," royal iconography, and a shape offensive to Muslims and Jews.
WithCanada at warfor the first time since its version of the Victoria Cross was created, preparations for a physical cast of the medal were initiated in 2006, when a committee called the Victoria Cross Production Planning Group was formed under the leadership of the Chancellery of Honours atRideau Hall. It originally consisted of representatives from theDepartment of National Defence,Veterans Affairs Canada, and the Office of theSecretary to the Governor General of Canada, and the group later expanded to include individuals from theDepartment of Canadian Heritage,Natural Resources Canada, and theRoyal Canadian Mint,with assistance provided by the Queen and theBritish Ministry of Defence.Following their research and deliberations, the first Victoria Cross decoration was struck in 2007, as confirmed byDeputy Herald ChancellorEmmanuelle Sajous,and the medal was officially released to the public on 16 May 2008 by Governor GeneralMichaëlle Jeanat Rideau Hall.It was one of 20 cast, each of which is composed of three groupings of metals: that of aRussiancannon captured at thesiege of Sevastopol(1854–1855), donated by Queen Elizabeth II; a Confederation Medal, created to markCanada's confederationin 1867; and a selection of metals from each ofCanada's regions.These werecast, rather than struck, continuing the tradition started in the United Kingdom when it was found the metal alloy was too brittle for striking,and finished at the Royal Canadian Mint. The first two were sent toBuckingham Palacefor addition to the BritishRoyal Collectionand other specimens were kept as part of theCrown Collectionat Rideau Hall, as well as at the Department of National Defence,Library and Archives Canada, and theCanadian War Museum.
As the apex of theCanadian system of honours, the Victoria Cross is to be worn before all other Canadian decorations and insignia of orders, including theOrder of Meritand theOrder of Canada. It is worn as a medal, suspended from a medal bar on the left chest, unless protocol calls for a ribbon bar, which consists of a crimson ribbon with a miniature bronze Victoria Cross at its centre. Should an individual receive multiple awards of the Victoria Cross, additional bronze medal bars are added to the ribbon and further miniatures are placed evenly on the ribbon bar, reflecting the number of crosses the wearer has earned.