A few years ago, Kevin Brazier published The Complete Victoria Cross (Brazier, 2010) (RR 2010/344) and he has now completed a companion volume devoted to the highest British award for civilian gallantry (still also available in some Commonwealth countries). Its history is rather more complex than that of the VC King George VI instituted it in September 1940 to recognise the many deeds of bravery being carried out by civilians, and by military personnel not in the presence of the enemy, during the second world war (the first in which the burden fell so heavily on the civilian population). However, there were then three existing awards for such deeds, the Empire Gallantry Medal of 1922; the Albert Medal of 1866, for saving life at great risk; and the Edward Medal of 1907, for saving life in mines and quarries. It was eventually provided that surviving holders of all these could exchange them for the GC: though not all did so, the remainder in fact account for more than half of the 400 awards listed. It is possible for the GC to be awarded more than once to the same person, but this has never occurred, though in one case it was recommended. The George Medal, ranking just below the GC, is not covered in the book.
There are four main sections:
- 1.
A chronological list of all GC holders, with the date of the award, and (if the holder is deceased, as most are) his or her place of burial, and the present location of the Cross, if these are known.
- 2.
Accounts, in chronological order, of the deeds for which the cross was awarded, with the date of death of the holder if applicable.
- 3.
A geographical list of the locations of the graves of GC holders, where known.
- 4.
An alphabetical list of holders.
Apart from the historical introduction, which is accompanied by a transcript of the warrants governing awards of the GC, the supplementary material comprises a glossary of unusual words used in citations (for instance, technical terms in mining) a list of relevant abbreviations, and a short bibliography.
The text demonstrates, as one would expect, that awards of the GC and its predecessors were considerably more numerous in the second world war than in the First, but that in both conflicts, the majority of awards related to wartime activities, such as rescues from burning aircraft, defusing unexploded bombs, and other events which would not have occurred but for the wars. During the inter‐war period, the majority of awards involved serious industrial accidents, especially in mines, though many, as in every period, were made to military personnel for acts of valour not in the face of the enemy.
It is almost invidious to single out particular awards to demonstrate the range of deeds which have been honoured. But we may perhaps distinguish two varieties of brave deeds. Some were carried out, almost instinctively, in an unforeseen emergency, as in the case of an 11‐year‐old Canadian girl who received the Albert Medal for rescuing her younger friend from a cougar. In others, the recipient knowingly entered a dangerous situation: perhaps the most outstanding example would be the two members of the Royal Army Ordnance Corps who received the GC for dealing jointly with a total of 275 unexploded bombs. The award which probably saved the greatest number of lives was that to the engine driver who in 1944 drove off with a burning wagon full of newly manufactured bombs (which exploded), thus preventing a train of 50 such wagons from exploding and destroying the whole town of Soham. The famous award of the GC collectively to the people of Malta reflected the fact that they had suffered air raids at the rate of one every seven hours for two and a half years all told.
It is significant that since 1976, every award of the GC – only ten in total, of which four have been posthumous – has involved the consequences of war, terrorism, or crime. Compared with earlier periods, this appears to point to a trend towards greater safety in industrial situations, combined with the decline of the more dangerous industries, such as mining. So the most highly prized civilian award in the UK seems likely to become still rarer in future.
