Lord Roberts-Honours-Victoria Cross

Victoria Cross

From the Encyclopaedia Britannica Online:

The Victoria Cross is the highest decoration for valour in the British armed forces, awarded for extreme bravery in the face of the enemy. It was instituted in 1856 by Queen Victoria at the request of her consort, Prince Albert. The first crosses were awarded during the Crimean War. In 1858, new statutes allowed the Victoria Cross to be conferred for gallantry when not in the presence of the enemy; instances of this were extremely rare, and by 1881 the cross was again awarded only for conspicuous courage in the face of the enemy. King Edward VII, in 1902, decreed that the honour could be awarded posthumously, which, since then, it frequently has been. Anyone in any branch of the British armed forces is eligible, including women, although no woman has as yet received the award.

So great is the prestige of the Victoria Cross that it takes precedence over all other orders and medals in Britain, and recipients are entitled to add V.C. after their name. Only 1,348 crosses have been awarded since the honour was instituted. The medal is bronze (originally cast from Russian guns captured in the Crimean War), depicting a lion on a crown with the inscription “For Valour,” while the reverse side has the date of the act for which the decoration is bestowed and the name, rank, and regiment of the recipient.

"Victoria Cross" Encyclopædia Britannica
<http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?eu=77245>
[Accessed January 12, 2003].

From the Citation for the Victoria Cross, Frederick Sleigh Roberts, Lieutenant, Bengal Artillery, Indian Army:

On 2 January 1858 at Khodagunge, India, on following up the retreating enemy, Lieutenant Roberts saw in the distance two sepoys going away with a standard. He immediately gave chase, overtaking them just as they were about to enter a village. Although one of them fired at him the lieutenant was not hit and he took possession of the standard, cutting down the man who was carrying it. He had also on the same day saved the life of a sowar who was being attacked by a sepoy.

From the Victoria Cross Reference by Mike Chapman

		Lord Roberts was awarded the Victoria Cross for gallantry in the face of the enemy while serving as a Lieutenant in the Bengal Artillery (Indian Army) during the Indian Mutiny. The Victoria Cross Reference by Mike Chapman records all recipients of the V.C. since its creation in 1856. In 1899, Lord Roberts son, Frederick Hugh Sherston Roberts, was awarded the V.C. posthumously for his actions at the Battle of Colenso during the South African War.

		Field Marshal Lord Roberts of Kandahar Honours and Decorations
		Background and short biography of Lord Roberts.
		In his autobiography, Forty-One Years in India, London, 1897, Lord Roberts recounts the Siege of Delhi (1857) during the Indian Mutiny (Chapters XIII through XIX).

		Perspectives on the South African War. A collection of links to primary and contemporary resources on the war in South Africa.

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