UK and Commonwealth Awards
Valor Friday
Last week we looked at the heroism of Australian Richard Norden. He recently received a Victoria Cross, the highest award given to those in British or Commonwealth service. The actions for which he was awarded this in 2024 happened decades earlier in the jungles of Vietnam. I briefly mentioned that the Aussies had only once […]
Valor Friday
We’ve highlighted the delayed awarding of high valor awards many times. The American awards system is nothing if not malleable to the whims of later generations that seek to right the wrongs of the past. The British (and by extension Commonwealth) system of awards and decorations is much more rigid. The British system is complex, […]
Valor Friday
I’ve explored the complicated British system of awards and decorations before. Even after having delved into it for several years, it’s still confusing. The Brits have both medals as well as dynastic and fraternal orders. The orders come in various grades, with the upper grades generally coming in the form of a knighthood which grants […]
Valor Friday
I’m currently reading Lieutenant-General Sir Adrian Carton de Wiart’s memoirs Happy Odyssey, so I figure it’s as good a time as any to refresh everyone on the story of this amazing chap. I also learned a new bit of old British slang. While at an all-boys school, he complained about “fagging“, which is not what you might […]
Valor Friday
I’ve talked about several recipients of American military awards for valor who were members of allied nations (or even civilians). This includes the Medal of Honor received by Mary Edwards Walker, the Distinguished Service Cross to Virginia Hall, and most recently, my article on the DSC awarded to John Paul Vann. Today’s subject is the […]
Valor Friday
Heroes come in all shapes and sizes and from all walks of life. This week’s subject is a bit different than most I cover. Tony Hudgell will never serve his country in uniform, as most of my subjects have. He’s found an amazing way to turn a life that started in tragedy into a way […]
Valor Friday
A recent question was posed to me. Have there been any people awarded medals by the enemy? I’ve talked before about some adjacent situations. Both Lieutenant Friedrich Lengfeld and Private Karl-Heinz Rosch have been honored by their enemy (Americans and Belgians respectively) for their heroics, but neither received a medal from the enemy government. I’ve […]
Valor Friday
Have you ever heard the story of the British Commando who beat a Nazi Luftwaffe field marshal about the head with the marshal’s own baton of rank to the point of literally breaking his skull? I hadn’t, but it’s a great story. Derek Mills-Roberts was born in England in 1908. He was schooled at Liverpool […]
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