Battle honours of South Africa South Africa follows the British system of awarding battle honour s to military units , to recognise the wars and battles in which they have fought . History . Before the unification of South Africa in 1910 , units were largely left to invent their own battle honours . Exceptions were the honours for the Anglo - Zulu War ( 1879 ) and the Natal Rebellion ( 1906 ) , which were authorised by the Natal colonial government in 1909 and 1908 respectively , and the honours for the Anglo - Boer War ( 1899 – 1902 ) , which were authorised by the British authorities . Many of these units were embodied in the Union Defence Forces in 1913 . The UDF did not acknowledge their self - assumed battle honours in official publications , e . g . the annual " Officers List " , but did not prevent the units from displaying the honours on their Colours . Only in the 1960s were these honours reviewed : many were then approved , but some were disallowed . Battle honours for World War I ( 1914 – 18 ) were authorised for the UDF and South African Overseas Expeditionary Force units in 1926 and 1927 . By then , the SAOEF units had all been disbanded , so they were unable to display them . In 1937 – 38 , the UDF authorised commando units to bear battle honours for campaigns and operations in which their 19th - century predecessors had fought . Battle honours for World War II ( 1939 – 45 ) were authorised for the army , air force , and navy in 1957 . Honours for the Korean War ( 1950 – 53 ) were authorised at the same time . Honours for the Border War ( 1966 – 89 ) and the 1975 – 76 and 1987 – 88 Angola campaigns were announced in 1993 , but in view of the political transition that followed soon afterwards , it is unclear how many units actually received these honours . Customs of the services . SA Army . In the army , battle honours are granted to mounted , infantry and armoured regiments , which display them on their Regimental Colours . Traditionally , the artillery are not granted honours , but an exception was made for them for World War I . Some infantry regiments which were converted to artillery after World War II were not allowed to display their honours , or to receive World War II honours , until after they had been converted back to infantry ( or armour ) in the 1960s . The battle honours of a regiment which has been disbanded become dormant until such time – if ever – as it is re - formed , or another regiment is officially recognised as its successor . An example is the South African Cape Corps , formed in 1973 , which was allowed the honours won by the 1st Battalion , Cape Corps in World War I . The honours of a regiment which is divided into two or more battalions are transferred to the new battalions , which can thereafter earn their own individual honours . In this way , Regiment Vrystaat , formed in 1975 as a second battalion of Regiment President Steyn , and later a regiment in its own right , bears the battle honours which RPS won in World War II . Conversely , if a multi - battalion regiment is later reduced to a single battalion , the honours of all the former battalions are combined and transferred to the surviving unit . SA Air Force . In the air force , battle honours are granted only to flying squadrons , which display them on their Squadron Colours . If a squadron is disbanded , its honours become dormant , but if it is re - formed ( i . e . a new squadron is given the same number as the disbanded unit ) , the honours are revived and granted to the successor squadron . SA Navy . In the navy , battle honours are granted only to seagoing vessels , which display them on plaques . The honours are linked to the ships ' names , so that if a ship is taken out of commission , and a later ship is given the same name , she inherits the honours earned by her predecessor ( s ) . As none of the World War II ship names are currently in use , the navy ' s battle honours are effectively dormant . SA Military Health Service . Medical units do not usually receive battle honours , but an exception was made for them in World War I . SA Police . The former SA Police ( 1913 – 95 ) had a strong military tradition , which included fielding active service contingents in World Wars I and II , and conducting counter - insurgency operations in southern Africa in the 1960s and 1970s . Police units earned several battle honours , which were displayed on the Colour of the police force from 1971 until 1994 . As the SAP as such no longer exists , its honours are presumably now dormant .