1.
Royal Red Cross
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The Royal Red Cross is a military decoration awarded in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth for exceptional services in military nursing. The award was established on 27 April 1883 by Queen Victoria, with a class of Member and first awarded into the founder of Modern Nursing. A second and lower class, Associate, was added during World War I in 1917 and this decoration had the distinction of being conferred exclusively to females until 1976. It is conferred on members of the nursing services regardless of rank, holders of the second class who receive a further award are promoted to the first class, although an initial award can also be made in the first class. Holders of the first class who receive an award are awarded a bar. Recipients of the Royal Red Cross are entitled to use the post-nominal letters RRC or ARRC for Members, the badge for RRC is in the shape of a golden cross,1.375 inches wide, the obverse enamelled red, with a circular medallion at its centre. The words Faith, Hope and Charity are inscribed on the limbs of the cross. The reverse is plain except a circular medallion bearing the Royal Cypher of the reigning monarch. The badge for ARRC is in the shape of a cross,1.375 inches wide, the obverse enamelled red, with broad silver edges around the enamel. The ribbon for both grades is dark blue with edge stripes. The bar is linked to the cross and is made of red enamel, a rosette is worn on the ribbon in undress to denote a bar to the RRC. Category, Members of the Royal Red Cross British and Commonwealth orders, Royal Red Cross Medal Manufacturer of The Royal Red Cross
2.
Military Cross
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The Military Cross is the third-level military decoration awarded to officers and other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and used to be awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC is granted in recognition of an act or acts of gallantry during active operations against the enemy on land to all members. In 1979, the Queen approved a proposal that a number of awards, including the Military Cross, the award was created on 28 December 1914 for commissioned officers of the substantive rank of Captain or below and for Warrant Officers. In August 1916, Bars were awarded to the MC in recognition of the performance of acts of gallantry meriting the award. In 1931 the award was extended to Majors and also to members of the Royal Air Force for actions on the ground, the MC now serves as the third-level award for gallantry on land for all ranks of the British Armed Forces. 46 mm max height,44 mm max width, ornamental silver cross with straight arms terminating in broad finials, suspended from plain suspension bar. Obverse decorated with crowns, with the Royal Cypher in centre. Reverse is plain, but from 1938 the name of the recipient, the ribbon width is 32 mm and consists of three equal vertical moire stripes of white, purple, and white. During World War I, Acting Captain Francis Wallington of the Royal Field Artillery was the first person to be awarded the MC, during World War II Captain Sam Manekshaw, Indian Army, was leading a counter-offensive operation against the invading Japanese Army in Burma. During the course of the offensive, he was hit by a burst of machine-gun fire, Major General D. T. Cowan spotted Manekshaw holding on to life and was aware of his valour in face of stiff resistance from the Japanese. Fearing the worst, Major General Cowan quickly pinned his own Military Cross ribbon on to Manekshaw saying, the first posthumous Military Cross was that awarded to Captain Herbert Westmacott, Grenadier Guards for gallantry in Northern Ireland during the period 1 February 1980 to 30 April 1980. The first woman to be awarded the Military Cross was Private Michelle Norris of the Royal Army Medical Corps, Norris was awarded her medal personally by Queen Elizabeth II on 21 March 2007 as the result of her actions in Iraq on 11 June 2006. Able Seaman Kate Nesbitt, second woman, first in the Royal Navy, sergeant Michael Lockett MC was the first holder of the MC to be killed in action since World War II. Database of Australian Awardees at the Australian Government Honours website Search recommendations for the Military Cross on The UK National Archives website, the Kings Own Royal Regiment Museum, Military Cross
3.
Distinguished Service Medal (United Kingdom)
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The medal was established on 14 October 1914. Recipients of the Distinguished Service Medal are entitled to use the post-nominal letters DSM, in 1993, the DSM was discontinued, and since then the Distinguished Service Cross has been available for award to personnel of all ranks. A circular silver medal, 36mm in diameter, the obverse bears the crowned effigy of the reigning monarch. The reverse has the inscription FOR DISTINGUISHED SERVICE in three lines, within a wreath surmounted by an Imperial crown. The suspender is plain and straight, the ribbon is 1.25 inches wide and consists of three equal stripes, dark blue, white, and dark blue, with a thin dark blue stripe down the centre of the white. Bars were authorised for subsequent awards, bars issued during the First World War were dated on the reverse, while those awarded during the Second World War were undated. British and Commonwealth orders and decorations Australian Honours Order of Precedence
4.
Military awards and decorations
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While the United States Government does not consider all its military awards and medals as being decorations, other countries tend to refer to all their military awards and medals as decorations. Civil decorations awarded to military personnel should not be considered military decorations, although some orders of chivalry have civil, decorations received by police and fire brigade personnel may sometimes be considered alongside military decorations, on which they may be modelled, although they are strictly not military awards. Decorations have been known since ancient times, the Egyptian Old Kingdom had the Order of the Golden Collar while the New Kingdom awarded the Order of the Golden fly. Celts and Romans wore a torc or received other military decorations such as the hasta pura, dayaks wore and still wear tattoos, etc. Necklaces and bracelets were given during the early Middle Ages, evolving into richly jewelled big necklaces, the medal was instituted by Gustav III on 28 May 1789, during his war against Russia. Whilst technically it is active, in reality it as inactive. The next oldest was the Austro-Hungarian Tapferkeits Medaille Honour Medal for Bravery 1789-1792 and this medal was instituted on 19 July 1789 by the Emperor Joseph II. Another of the oldest military decorations still in use is Polands War Order of Virtuti Militari and it was first awarded in 1792. Medals have been forged by many people to make the medal appear more valuable or to make one look like a decorated soldier. Medal forgeries can include, Adding bars, engraving a famous soldiers name on it or creating a new medal. Medal forgery is illegal in most countries and can be punishable by jail time, in most NATO militaries, only the service ribbons are normally worn on everyday occasions
5.
Naval rating
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A naval rating is an enlisted member of a countrys navy, subordinate to warrant officers and officers hence not conferred by commission or warrant. Historically the term also applied to ships, denoting their combat strength by the number. It is analogous to the rank as used, for example. However, the rank should not be used in lieu of rate when referring to U. S. naval enlisted personnel. A rating refers to the occupational specialty, combined with their paygrade. Navy personnel in pay grades E-1 to E-3 may not have a rate and are classed into one of five groups. Petty Officers and Chief Petty Officers are sometimes referred to by a combination of rate, for example, a Petty Officer Second Class with the rating of Gunners Mate may be addressed as Gunners Mate Second Class. Similarly, a Chief Petty Officer with the rating of Quartermaster is referred to in formal occasions as Chief Quartermaster, on less formal occasions, however, senior enlisted personnel are referred to simply as Chief, Senior Chief, or Master Chief, as applicable. Rate badges consist of insignia that indicate the rate and rating. Within these a number of further specializations are available such as aviation electrician, royal Navy ratings rank insignia Enlisted rank Military Occupational Specialty Ordinary seaman Able seaman Baker, Ernest A. The New English Dictionary, Odhams Press, London,1932, the Blue Jackets Manual Centennial Edition, Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Maryland,2002
6.
British Armed Forces
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They also promote Britains wider interests, support international peacekeeping efforts, and provide humanitarian aid. Repeatedly emerging victorious from conflicts has allowed Britain to establish itself as one of the leading military. The Commander-in-chief of the British Armed Forces is the British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, the UK Parliament approves the continued existence of the armed forces by passing an Armed Forces Act at least once every five years, as required by the Bill of Rights 1689. The armed forces are managed by the Defence Council of the Ministry of Defence, with the Acts of Union 1707, the armed forces of England and Scotland were merged into the armed forces of the Kingdom of Great Britain. Britain feared that Russian expansionism in the region would eventually threaten the Empire in India and this ultimately led to British involvement in the Crimean War against the Russian Empire. The beginning of the twentieth century served to reduce tensions between Britain and the Russian Empire, partly due to the emergence of a unified German Empire. Allied victory resulted in the defeat of the Central Powers, the end of the German Empire, the Treaty of Versailles, once again tensions accumulated in European relations, and following Germanys invasion of Poland in September 1939, the Second World War began. The conflict was the most widespread in British history, with British Empire and Commonwealth troops fighting in campaigns from Europe and North Africa, to the Middle East, approximately 390,000 British Empire and Commonwealth troops lost their lives. Allied victory resulted in the defeat of the Axis powers and the establishment of the United Nations, reflecting Britains new role in the world and the escalation of the Cold War, the country became a founding member of the NATO military alliance in 1949. By the mid-1970s, the forces had reconfigured to focus on the responsibilities allocated to them by NATO. While NATO obligations took increased prominence, Britain nonetheless found itself engaged in a number of low-intensity conflicts, however the Dhofar Rebellion and The Troubles emerged as the primary operational concerns of the armed forces. Perhaps the most important conflict during the Cold War, at least in the context of British defence policy, was the Falklands War. Since the end of the Cold War, an international role for the armed forces has been pursued, with re-structuring to deliver a greater focus on expeditionary warfare. In addition to the campaign, the British Army has trained and supplied allies on the ground. Figures released by the Ministry of Defence on 31 March 2016 show that 7,185 British Armed Forces personnel have lost their lives in medal earning theatres since the end of the Second World War. As Sovereign and head of state, Queen Elizabeth II is Head of the Armed Forces, the Queen, however, remains the ultimate authority of the military, with officers and personnel swearing allegiance to the monarch. It has been claimed that this includes the power to prevent unconstitutional use of the armed forces, responsibility for the management of the forces is delegated to a number of committees, the Defence Council, Chiefs of Staff Committee, Defence Management Board and three single-service boards. The Defence Council, composed of representatives of the services
7.
Royal Fleet Auxiliary
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The Royal Fleet Auxiliary is a civilian-manned fleet owned by the United Kingdoms Ministry of Defence, whose purpose is to support the Royal Navy. The RFA enables ships of the Royal Navy to maintain operations around the world and its primary role is to supply the Royal Navy with fuel, ammunition and supplies, normally by replenishment at sea. It also transports Army and Royal Marine personnel, as well as supporting training exercises, the RFA counts an Aviation Training ship/Hospital Ship and landing vessels amongst its assets. Royal Navy personnel are also needed to operate weapons, such as the Phalanx. Since the Royal Navy of that era possessed the largest network of bases around the world of any fleet, World War II also saw naval ships staying at sea for much longer periods than had been the case since the days of sail. Techniques of Replenishment at Sea were developed, the auxiliary fleet comprised a diverse collection, with not only RFA ships, but also commissioned warships and merchantmen as well. The need for the fleet to be maintained was unambiguously demonstrated by World War II, after 1945, the RFA became the Royal Navys main source of support in the many conflicts that the Navy was involved in. The RFA performed important service to the Far East Fleet off Korea from 1950 until 1953, during the extended operations of the Konfrontasi in the 1960s, the RFA was also heavily involved. As the network of British bases overseas shrank during the end of the Empire, the Navy increasingly relied on the RFA to supply its ships during routine deployments. The RFA played an important role in the largest naval war since 1945, the Falklands War in 1982, and also the Gulf War, Kosovo War, Afghanistan Campaign and the 2003 invasion of Iraq. In July 2008, the RFA was presented with a Queens Colour, Ships in RFA service carry the ship prefix RFA, standing for Royal Fleet Auxiliary, and fly the Blue Ensign defaced with an upright gold killick anchor. All Royal Fleet Auxiliaries are built and maintained to Lloyds Register, the most important role provided by the RFA is replenishment at sea, therefore the mainstay of the current RFA fleet are the replenishment ships. The Wave-class and Rover-class are Fleet Tankers, which primarily provide under way refuelling to Royal Navy ships, the remaining Rover-class will be replaced by the new Tide-class Fast Fleet Tankers that were ordered in February 2012. The four new tankers have been ordered from DSME, South Korea with design support from Britains BMT Defence Services, the 2015 Strategic Defence and Security Review has confirmed that three Fleet Solid Support Ships will be built and bidding for the contract will start in late 2016. Fort Victoria is a replenishment ship, capable of providing under way refuelling. The older Fort Rosalie-class ships provide only dry cargoes, the Wave-class, Fort Victoria and the Fort Rosalie-class have generous aviation facilities, providing aviation support and training facilities and significant vertical replenishment capabilities. They are capable of operating and supporting several Merlin and Lynx Wildcat helicopters, the presence of aviation facilities on RFA ships allows for them to be used as force multipliers for the task groups they support in line with Royal Navy doctrine. The RFA is tasked with the role of supporting Royal Navy amphibious operations through ts three Bay-class dock landing ships, typically one Bay-class is also assigned as a permanent mothership for Royal Navy mine countermeasures vessels in the Persian Gulf
8.
Merchant Navy (United Kingdom)
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The Merchant Navy is the maritime register of the United Kingdom, and describes the seagoing commercial interests of UK-registered ships and their crews. Merchant Navy vessels fly the Red Ensign and are regulated by the Maritime, king George V bestowed the title of Merchant Navy on the British merchant shipping fleets following their service in the First World War, a number of other nations have since adopted the title. The Merchant Navy has been in existence for a significant period in British history, owing much of its growth to British imperial expansion. As an entity in itself it can be dated back to the 17th century and that registration of merchant seafarers failed, and it was not successfully implemented until 1835. The merchant fleet grew over years to become the worlds foremost merchant fleet, benefiting considerably from trade with British possessions in India. The lucrative trade in sugar, contraband, spices and tea helped to solidify this dominance in the 19th century, in the First and Second World Wars, the Merchant Service suffered heavy losses from German U-boat attacks. A policy of unrestricted warfare meant that merchant seafarers were also at risk of attack from enemy ships, the tonnage lost to U-boats in the First World War was around 7,759,090 tons, and around 14,661 merchant seafarers were killed. In honour of the sacrifice made by merchant seafarers in the First World War, since Edward VIII the title has automatically been held by the sovereigns George VI and Elizabeth II. To each one I would say, Yours is a no less essential to my peoples experience than that allotted to the Navy, Army. Upon you the Nation depends for much of its foodstuffs and raw materials and you have a long and glorious history, and I am proud to bear the title Master of the Merchant Navy and Fishing Fleets. I know that you carry out your duties with resolution and with fortitude. God keep you and prosper you in your great task, in the Second World War, German U-boats sank nearly 14.7 million tons of Allied shipping, which amounted to 2,828 ships. The United Kingdom alone suffered the loss of 11.7 million tons,32,000 merchant seafarers were killed aboard convoy vessels in the war, but along with the Royal Navy, the convoys successfully imported enough supplies to allow an Allied victory. In honour of the made in the two World Wars, the Merchant Navy lays wreaths of remembrance alongside the armed forces in the annual Remembrance Day service on 11 November. Despite maintaining its dominant position for decades, the decline of the British Empire in the mid-20th century inevitably led to the decline of the merchant fleet. For example, in 1939 the Merchant Navy was the largest in the world with 33% of total tonnage, by 2012, the Merchant Navy - yet still remaining one of the largest in the world - held only 3% of total tonnage. According to the CIA World Fact Book, in 2010 the Merchant Navy consisted of 504 UK registered ships of 1,000 gross register tons or over. In addition, UK merchant marine interests possessed a further 308 ships registered in countries and 271 foreign-owned ships were registered in the UK
9.
Commonwealth of Nations
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The Commonwealth of Nations, also known as simply the Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of 52 member states that are mostly former territories of the British Empire. The Commonwealth dates back to the century with the decolonisation of the British Empire through increased self-governance of its territories. It was formally constituted by the London Declaration in 1949, which established the states as free. The symbol of free association is Queen Elizabeth II who is the Head of the Commonwealth. The Queen is also the monarch of 16 members of the Commonwealth, the other Commonwealth members have different heads of state,31 members are republics and five are monarchies with a different monarch. Member states have no obligation to one another. Instead, they are united by language, history, culture and their values of democracy, free speech, human rights. These values are enshrined in the Commonwealth Charter and promoted by the quadrennial Commonwealth Games, the Commonwealth covers more than 29,958,050 km2, 20% of the worlds land area, and spans all six inhabited continents. She declared, So, it marks the beginning of that free association of independent states which is now known as the Commonwealth of Nations. As long ago as 1884, however, Lord Rosebery, while visiting Australia, had described the changing British Empire—as some of its colonies became more independent—as a Commonwealth of Nations. Conferences of British and colonial prime ministers occurred periodically from the first one in 1887, the Commonwealth developed from the imperial conferences. Newfoundland never did, as on 16 February 1934, with the consent of its parliament, Newfoundland later joined Canada as its 10th province in 1949. Australia and New Zealand ratified the Statute in 1942 and 1947 respectively, after World War II ended, the British Empire was gradually dismantled. Most of its components have become independent countries, whether Commonwealth realms or republics, there remain the 14 British overseas territories still held by the United Kingdom. In April 1949, following the London Declaration, the word British was dropped from the title of the Commonwealth to reflect its changing nature, burma and Aden are the only states that were British colonies at the time of the war not to have joined the Commonwealth upon independence. Hoped for success was reinforced by such achievements as climbing Mount Everest in 1953, breaking the four minute mile in 1954, however, the humiliation of the Suez Crisis of 1956 badly hurt morale of Britain and the Commonwealth as a whole. More broadly, there was the loss of a role of the British Empire. That role was no longer militarily or financially feasible, as Britains withdrawal from Greece in 1947 painfully demonstrated, Britain itself was now just one part of the NATO military alliance in which the Commonwealth had no role apart from Canada
10.
Warrant officer
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The rank was first used in the 13th century in the English Royal Navy and is today used in most services in many countries, including the Commonwealth nations and the United States. Outside the United States, warrant officers are included in the Other Ranks category, equivalent to the US E category, Warrant officers in the United States are classified as officers and are in the W category, they are technical leaders and specialists. Chief warrant officers are commissioned by the President of the United States and they may be technical experts with a long service as enlisted personnel, or direct entrants, notably for U. S. Army helicopter pilots. The warrant officer corps began in the nascent English Royal Navy, at that time, noblemen with military experience took command of the new Navy, adopting the military ranks of lieutenant and captain. As cannon came into use, the officers also required gunnery experts, specialist gunners began to appear in the 16th century, since all warrant officers had responsibility for stores, this was enough to debar the illiterate. In origin, warrant officers were specialist professionals whose expertise and authority demanded formal recognition, in the early 19th century, they were joined in the wardroom by naval chaplains, who also had warrant officer status. Other warrant officers included surgeons mates, boatswains mates and carpenters mates, sailmakers, armourers, schoolmasters, masters-at-arms, who had formerly overseen small-arms provision on board, had by this time taken on responsibility for discipline. On 25 July 1864 the standing warrant officers were divided into two grades, warrant officers and chief warrant officers. By the time of the First World War, their ranks had been expanded with the adoption of technology in the Navy to include telegraphists, electricians, shipwrights, artificer engineers. Both warrant officers and commissioned warrant officers messed in the warrant officers mess rather than the wardroom, Warrant officers and commissioned warrant officers also carried swords, were saluted by ratings, and ranked between sub-lieutenants and midshipmen. Collectively, these officers were known as officers, being retitled special duties officers in 1956. In 1998, the special duties list was merged with the general list of officers in the Royal Navy, the Australian Army has two warrant officer ranks, warrant officer class one and warrant officer class two, the former is superior in rank to the latter. All warrant officers are addressed as Sir or Maam, to gain the attention of a particular warrant officer in a group, they can be addressed as Warrant Officer Bloggs, sir/maam or by their appointment, e. g. ASM Bloggs, sir/maam. All warrant officers hold an appointment such as company sergeant major or regimental sergeant major, the WO1 appointed to the position of Regimental Sergeant Major of the Army is the most senior warrant officer in the Australian Regular Army, including the Army Reserve. The appointment of RSM-A was introduced in 1991, the rank insignia are, a crown for a WO2, the Australian Commonwealth coat of arms for a WO1, and the Australian Commonwealth coat of arms surrounded by a laurel wreath for the RSM-A. The Royal Australian Navy rank of warrant officer is the only rank appointed by warrant and is equivalent to the armys WO1. The most senior non-commissioned member of the navy is the warrant officer appointed Warrant Officer of the Navy, the Royal Australian Air Force rank of warrant officer is the air forces only rank appointed by warrant and is equivalent to both the armys WO1 and the navys WO. The most senior non-commissioned member is the warrant officer appointed Warrant Officer of the Air Force, the ranks of adjudant, adjudant-chef, and major may be considered equivalent to Commonwealth warrant officer ranks
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