1.
Royal Marines
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The Corps of Royal Marines is the United Kingdoms amphibious light infantry force, forming part of the Naval Service, along with the Royal Navy. The Royal Marines were formed in 1755 as the Royal Navys infantry troops, as a highly specialised and adaptable light infantry force, the Royal Marines are trained for rapid deployment worldwide and capable of dealing with a wide range of threats. The Royal Marines have close ties with allied marine forces, particularly the United States Marine Corps. Today, the Royal Marines are a fighting force within the British Armed forces. The Royal Marines can trace its origins back as far as 28 October 1664 when at the grounds of the Honourable Artillery Company the Duke of York and Albanys maritime regiment of foot was first formed. On 5 April 1755, His Majestys Marine Forces, fifty Companies in three Divisions, headquartered at Chatham, Portsmouth, and Plymouth, were formed by Order of Council under Admiralty control. Initially all field officers were Royal Navy officers as the Royal Navy felt that the ranks of Marine field officers were largely honorary and this meant that the furthest a Marine officer could advance was to lieutenant colonel. It was not until 1771 that the first Marine was promoted to colonel and this attitude persisted well into the 1800s. During the rest of the 18th century, they served in numerous landings all over the world and they also served in the American War of Independence, being particularly courageous in the Battle of Bunker Hill led by Major John Pitcairn. In 1788 a detachment of four companies of marines, under Major Robert Ross, due to an error the Fleet left Portsmouth without its main supply of ammunition, and were not resupplied until the Fleet docked in Rio de Janeiro midway through the voyage. In 1802, largely at the instigation of Admiral the Earl St. Vincent, the Royal Marines Artillery was formed as a separate unit in 1804 to man the artillery in bomb ketches. These had been manned by the Armys Royal Regiment of Artillery, during the Napoleonic Wars the Royal Marines participated in every notable naval battle on board the Royal Navys ships and also took part in multiple amphibious actions. In the Caribbean theatre volunteers from freed French slaves on Marie-Galante were used to form Sir Alexander Cochranes first Corps of Colonial Marines and these men bolstered the ranks, helping the British to hold the island until reinforcements arrived. This practice was repeated during the War of 1812, where escaped American slaves were formed into Cochranes second Corps of Colonial Marines and these men were commanded by Royal Marines officers and fought alongside their regular Royal Marines counterparts at the Battle of Bladensburg. Throughout the war Royal Marines units raided up and down the east coast of America including up the Penobscot River and they fought in the Battle of New Orleans and later helped capture Fort Bowyer in Mobile Bay in what was the last action of the war. In 1855 the Infantry forces were renamed the Royal Marines Light Infantry, during the Crimean War in 1854 and 1855, three Royal Marines earned the Victoria Cross, two in the Crimea and one in the Baltic. In 1862 the name was altered to Royal Marine Light Infantry. The Royal Navy did not fight any other ships after 1850, in these Naval Brigades, the function of the Royal Marines was to land first and act as skimishers ahead of the sailor Infantry and Artillery
2.
40 Commando
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Tasked as a Commando light infantry unit,40 Commando is capable of a wide range of operational tasks. Based at Norton Manor Camp, Norton Fitzwarren their barracks is in Taunton, personnel regularly deploy outside the United Kingdom on operations or training. Whilst 3 Commando Brigade RM are the cold weather warfare formation, personnel are capable of operating in a variety of theatres including tropical jungle. The Commando is a participant in the annual Brigade cold weather warfare exercise in Norway. The unit’s first winter was 1991, until which the unit was nicknamed the Sunshine Commando, early Commando units were all from the British Army but by February 1942, the Royal Marines were asked to organise Commando units of their own, and 6,000 men volunteered. The first Royal Marines commando unit was formed at Deal in Kent on 14 February 1942, before long it was re-designated RM ‘A’ Commando. Col J Picton Phillips was the Commanding Officer, the Commando’s baptism of fire was at Dieppe on 19 August 1942. In the pre-dawn run-in the landing craft of No, on the other flank at Varengeville No. 40, when committed to their landing, under impossible conditions. Of the 370 officers and men,76 were lost on the beaches, among those killed was the Commanding officer, while the second-in-command, Robert Houghton was captured. On return RM ‘A’ Commando was again re-designated, this time as 40 Commando, further training and replenishment was carried out. Once back to strength it was sent to Sicily in July 1943. Later that year the Commando was in action in Termoli in October, later service in Yugoslavia and Albania followed by policing duties on Corfu wound up 40’s wartime activities. Following the Second World War,2 Commando disbanded leaving 3 Commando Brigade, to recognise 2 Commando Brigade one of the Commandos was renamed, No44 becoming No40. The Commando was deeply involved in 1947–1948 Civil War in Palestine acting as the rearguard in the Protectorate and they subsequently undertook security duties in Cyprus, Hong Kong and Egypt before moving to Singapore in 1961. It was involved in operations during the confrontation with Indonesia throughout the following decade, in 1971 the Commando left Singapore and re-established itself in Seaton Barracks, Crownhill, Plymouth. Over the next decade the Commando found itself deployed to Northern Ireland four times, in 1982, following the Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands, the Commando deployed on Operation Corporate. On 21 May the Commando were among the first troops ashore, the Unit was subsequently split having two companies attached to the Welsh Guards, preparing to attack Port Stanley, when the Argentine surrender came
3.
Falklands War
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It began on Friday,2 April 1982, when Argentina invaded and occupied the Falkland Islands in an attempt to establish the sovereignty it had claimed over them. On 5 April, the British government dispatched a naval force to engage the Argentine Navy. The conflict lasted 74 days and ended with the Argentine surrender on 14 June 1982, in total,649 Argentine military personnel,255 British military personnel, and three Falkland Islanders died during the hostilities. The conflict was an episode in the protracted confrontation over the territories sovereignty. Argentina asserted that the islands are Argentine territory, and the Argentine government thus characterised its military action as the reclamation of its own territory, the British government regarded the action as an invasion of a territory that had been a Crown colony since 1841. Falkland Islanders, who have inhabited the islands since the early 19th century, are descendants of British settlers. The conflict has had an effect in both countries and has been the subject of various books, articles, films, and songs. Patriotic sentiment ran high in Argentina, but the outcome prompted large protests against the military government. In the United Kingdom, the Conservative Party government, bolstered by the outcome, was re-elected the following year. The cultural and political weight of the conflict has had less effect in Britain than in Argentina, diplomatic relations between the United Kingdom and Argentina were restored in 1989 following a meeting in Madrid, Spain, at which the two governments issued a joint statement. No change in either countrys position regarding the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands was made explicit, in 1994, Argentinas claim to the territories was added to its constitution. In December 1981 there was a change in the Argentine military regime, bringing to office a new junta headed by General Leopoldo Galtieri, Brigadier Basilio Lami Dozo. Anaya was the architect and supporter of a military solution for the long-standing claim over the islands. Such action would also bolster its dwindling legitimacy, the newspaper La Prensa speculated in a step-by-step plan beginning with cutting off supplies to the islands, ending in direct actions late in 1982, if the UN talks were fruitless. The Royal Navy ice patrol vessel HMS Endurance was dispatched from Stanley to South Georgia in response, the Argentine military junta, suspecting that the UK would reinforce its South Atlantic Forces, ordered the invasion of the Falkland Islands to be brought forward to 2 April. Britain was initially taken by surprise by the Argentine attack on the South Atlantic islands, despite repeated warnings by Royal Navy captain Nicholas Barker, on 2 April 1982, Argentine forces mounted amphibious landings off the Falkland Islands. The invasion was met with a defence organised by the Falkland Islands Governor Sir Rex Hunt. Word of the invasion first reached Britain from Argentine sources, a Ministry of Defence operative in London had a short telex conversation with Governor Hunts telex operator, who confirmed that Argentines were on the island and in control
4.
Order of the Bath
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The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the medieval ceremony for appointing a knight. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath, George I erected the Knights of the Bath into a regular Military Order. Prior to 1815, the order had only a class, Knight Companion. Recipients of the Order are now usually senior officers or senior civil servants. Commonwealth citizens who are not subjects of the Queen and foreign nationals may be made Honorary Members, in the Middle Ages, knighthood was often conferred with elaborate ceremonies. These usually involved the taking a bath during which he was instructed in the duties of knighthood by more senior knights. He was then put to bed to dry, clothed in a special robe, he was led with music to the chapel where he spent the night in a vigil. At dawn he made confession and attended Mass, then retired to his bed to sleep until it was fully daylight, in the early medieval period the difference seems to have been that the full ceremonies were used for men from more prominent families. Knights Bachelor continued to be created with the form of ceremony. The last occasion on which Knights of the Bath were created was the coronation of Charles II in 1661. From at least 1625, and possibly from the reign of James I, Knights of the Bath were using the motto Tria iuncta in uno, and wearing as a badge three crowns within a plain gold oval. These were both adopted by the Order of the Bath, a similar design of badge is still worn by members of the Civil Division. Their symbolism however is not entirely clear, the three joined in one may be a reference to the kingdoms of England, Scotland and either France or Ireland, which were held by English and, later, British monarchs. This would correspond to the three crowns in the badge, another explanation of the motto is that it refers to the Holy Trinity. The prime mover in the establishment of the Order of the Bath was John Anstis, Garter King of Arms, the Court remained the centre of the political world. The King was limited in that he had to choose Ministers who could command a majority in Parliament, the leader of an administration still had to command the Kings personal confidence and approval. A strong following in Parliament depended on being able to supply places, pensions, the attraction of the new Order for Walpole was that it would provide a source of such favours to strengthen his political position
5.
Order of the British Empire
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There is also the related British Empire Medal, whose recipients are affiliated with, but not members of, the order. Recommendations for appointments to the Order of the British Empire were at first made on the nomination of the United Kingdom, the self-governing Dominions of the Empire, nominations continue today from Commonwealth countries that participate in recommending British honours. Most members are citizens of the United Kingdom or the Commonwealth realms that use the Imperial system of honours and awards. Honorary knighthoods are appointed to citizens of nations where the Queen is not head of state, occasionally, honorary appointees are, incorrectly, referred to as Sir or Dame – Bill Gates or Bob Geldof, for example. In particular, King George V wished to create an Order to honour many thousands of those who had served in a variety of non-combatant roles during the First World War, when first established, the Order had only one division. However, in 1918, soon after its foundation, it was divided into Military. The Orders motto is For God and the Empire, at the foundation of the Order, the Medal of the Order of the British Empire was instituted, to serve as a lower award granting recipients affiliation but not membership. In 1922, this was renamed the British Empire Medal, in addition, the BEM is awarded by the Cook Islands and by some other Commonwealth nations. The British monarch is Sovereign of the Order, and appoints all members of the Order. The next most senior member is the Grand Master, of whom there have been three, Prince Edward, the Prince of Wales, Queen Mary, and the current Grand Master, the Duke of Edinburgh. The Order is limited to 300 Knights and Dames Grand Cross,845 Knights and Dames Commander, and 8,960 Commanders. There are no limits applied to the number of members of the fourth and fifth classes. Foreign recipients, as members, do not contribute to the numbers restricted to the Order as full members do. Though men can be knighted separately from an order of chivalry, women cannot, and so the rank of Knight/Dame Commander of the Order is the lowest rank of damehood, and second-lowest of knighthood. Because of this, Dame Commander is awarded in circumstances in which a man would be created a Knight Bachelor, for example, by convention, female judges of the High Court of Justice are created Dames Commander after appointment, while male judges become Knights Bachelor. The Order has six officials, the Prelate, the Dean, the Secretary, the Registrar, the King of Arms, the Bishop of London, a senior bishop in the Church of England, serves as the Orders Prelate. The Dean of St Pauls is ex officio the Dean of the Order, the Orders King of Arms is not a member of the College of Arms, as are many other heraldic officers. From time to time, individuals are appointed to a higher grade within the Order, thereby ceasing usage of the junior post-nominal letters
6.
45 Commando
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Tasked as a Commando amphibious unit,45 Cdo RM is capable of a wide range of operational tasks. Based at RM Condor, their barracks in Arbroath, personnel regularly deploy outside the United Kingdom on operations or training. While 3 Cdo Bde RM are the cold weather warfare formation, personnel are capable of operating in a variety of theatres including tropical jungle. The 5th RM Battalion was originally raised for a period at the end of World War I, and was again raised on 2 April 1940 following mass mobilisation. The battalion was raised at Cowshot Camp in Brookwood, being incorporated into 101 RM Bde, between August and October 1940 the battalion took part in operations in Dakar. On return until August 1943 the battalion conducted training in Wales, Scotland, the Isle of Wight and Burley. After reforming and retitling, the unit transitioned to the Commando role as a unit, by-passing the individual volunteer. Personnel undertook, and completed, the Commando Basic Training Course at Achnacarry, as part of the 1st Special Service Brigade, the Commando participated in Operation Overlord, before going on to move through Europe into Germany, including Montforterbeek on 23 January 1945. Following the Second World War both 1st Commando Brigade and 2nd Commando Brigade disbanded, leaving 3 Cdo Bde in place in the Far East. 3 Cdo Bde reorganised, disbanding 1 and 5 Army Cdos, and took on 45 RM Cdo, the three remaining commandos were restyled 40,42 and 45 Commandos RM in March 1946. The Commando was based in Hong Kong between January 1946 and May 1947, conducting internal security duties, as part of 3 Cdo Bde RM. Between May 1947 and December 1948 the Commando moved to Malta, during time it deployed to Libya, Palestine, Suez. The Commando returned to Hong Kong in December 1948 and from there deployed to Malaya between 1950 and 1952 taking part in operations during the Emergency, between 1952 and 1959 the Commando was once again based in Malta. In September 195545 Commando was deployed to Cyprus to undertake anti-terrorist operations against the EOKA guerrillas during tensions between the Greek and Turkish inhabitants of the island, the EOKA were a small, but powerful organisation of Greek Cypriots, who had great local support from the Greek community. The unit travelled to the Kyrenia mountain area of the island and in December 1955 launched Operation Foxhunter, then in 1956 the unit deployed to Egypt as part of the response to the Suez Crisis, conducting a helicopter assault. Between 1960 and 1967 the Commando was based in Aden, from where it conducted 10 operational tours in the Radfan during the Aden Emergency, the Commando also deployed briefly to Kuwait following an Iraqi threat to her Independence in 1961. In January 1964, part of the Tanzanian Army mutinied, within 24 hours elements of 45 Commando had left Bickleigh Camp, Plymouth, Devon, and were travelling by air to Nairobi, Kenya, continuing by road into Tanzania. At the same time, Commandos aboard HMS Bulwark sailed to East Africa and anchored off-shore from Dar es Salaam, the revolt was put down and the next six months were spent in touring Tanzanian military out-posts disarming military personnel
7.
Borneo
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Borneo is the third-largest island in the world and the largest island in Asia. At the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia, in relation to major Indonesian islands, it is located north of Java, west of Sulawesi, the island is politically divided among three countries, Malaysia and Brunei in the north, and Indonesia to the south. Approximately 73% of the island is Indonesian territory, in the north, the East Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak make up about 26% of the island. Additionally, the Malaysian federal territory of Labuan is situated on an island just off the coast of Borneo. The sovereign state of Brunei, located on the north coast, antipodal to an area of Amazon rainforest, Borneo is itself home to one of the oldest rainforests in the world, and to Bornean orangutans. The island is known by names, internationally it is known as Borneo, after Brunei. The name Brunei possibly was derived from the Sanskrit word váruṇa, meaning either ocean or the mythological Varuna. Indonesian natives called it Kalimantan, which was derived from the Sanskrit word Kalamanthana, prior to that the island was also known by other names. In 977 Chinese records began to use the term Po-ni to refer to Borneo or Brunei, in 1225 it was also mentioned by the Chinese official Chau Ju-Kua. The Javanese manuscript Nagarakretagama, written by Majapahit court poet Mpu Prapanca in 1365, mentioned the island as Nusa Tanjungnagara, to the west of Borneo are the Malay Peninsula and Sumatra. To the south and east are islands of Indonesia, Java and Sulawesi, to the northeast are the Philippine Islands. With an area of 743,330 square kilometres, it is the third-largest island in the world and its highest point is Mount Kinabalu in Sabah, Malaysia, with an elevation of 4,095 m. The largest river system is the Kapuas in West Kalimantan, with a length of 1,143 km, other major rivers include the Mahakam in East Kalimantan, the Barito in South Kalimantan, and Rajang in Sarawak. Clearwater Cave, for example, has one of the worlds longest underground rivers, deer Cave is home to over three million bats, with guano accumulated to over 100 metres deep. The South China Sea and Gulf of Thailand now submerge the former low-lying areas of the peninsula, the Borneo rainforest is 140 million years old, making it one of the oldest rainforests in the world. There are about 15,000 species of flowering plants with 3,000 species of trees,221 species of mammals and 420 species of resident birds in Borneo. There are about 440 freshwater fish species in Borneo and it is the centre of the evolution and distribution of many endemic species of plants and animals. The Borneo rainforest is one of the few remaining habitats for the endangered Bornean orangutan
8.
King's College London
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Kings College London is a public research university located in London, United Kingdom, and a founding constituent college of the federal University of London. Kings was established in 1829 by King George IV and the Duke of Wellington, in 1836, Kings became one of the two founding colleges of the University of London. It is a member of organisations such as the Association of Commonwealth Universities, the European University Association. Kings has five campuses, its main campus on the Strand in central London. In 2015/16, Kings had an income of £738.4 million, of which £193.2 million was from research grants and contracts and as of 2014/15. It has the fifth largest endowment of any university in the United Kingdom, and its academic activities are organised into nine faculties which are subdivided into numerous departments, centres and research divisions. Kings is home to six Medical Research Council centres and is a member of the Kings Health Partners academic health sciences centre, Francis Crick Institute. Kings College London, so named to indicate the patronage of King George IV, was founded in 1829 in response to the controversy surrounding the founding of London University in 1826. The need for such an institution was a result of the religious and social nature of the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, which then educated solely the sons of wealthy Anglicans. The secular nature of London University was disapproved by The Establishment, indeed, thus, the creation of a rival institution represented a Tory response to reassert the educational values of The Establishment. Winchilsea and about 150 other contributors withdrew their support of Kings College London in response to Wellingtons support of Catholic emancipation. In a letter to Wellington he accused the Duke to have in mind insidious designs for the infringement of our liberty, the letter provoked a furious exchange of correspondence and Wellington accused Winchilsea of imputing him with disgraceful and criminal motives in setting up Kings College London. The result was a duel in Battersea Fields on 21 March 1829, Winchilsea did not fire, a plan he and his second almost certainly decided upon before the duel, Wellington took aim and fired wide to the right. Accounts differ as to whether Wellington missed on purpose, Wellington, noted for his poor aim, claimed he did, other reports more sympathetic to Winchilsea claimed he had aimed to kill. Honour was saved and Winchilsea wrote Wellington an apology, duel Day is still celebrated on the first Thursday after 21 March every year, marked by various events throughout Kings, including reenactments. Kings opened in October 1831 with the cleric William Otter appointed as first principal, despite the attempts to make Kings Anglican-only, the initial prospectus permitted, nonconformists of all sorts to enter the college freely. William Howley, the governors and the professors, except the linguists, had to be members of the Church of England but the students did not, though attendance at chapel was compulsory. Kings was divided into a department and a junior department, also known as Kings College School
9.
Public school (United Kingdom)
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A public school in England and Wales is an older, student selective and expensive fee-paying independent secondary school which caters primarily for children aged between 11 or 13 and 18. The term public should not be misunderstood to mean that these are public sector schools, traditionally, public schools were all-male boarding schools, although most now allow day pupils, and many have become either partially or fully co-educational. The origins of schools in the UK were primarily religious until 1640 and it was intended that by-products of this would be the publication of universal books and the setting up of schools for boys and girls. Henceforth each of these schools was to be managed by a board of governors, Public schools have had a strong association with the ruling classes. Historically they educated the sons of the English upper and upper-middle classes, the sons of officers and senior administrators of the British Empire were educated in England while their parents were on overseas postings. In 2010, over half of Cabinet Ministers had been educated at public schools, in 2014, annual fees at Canford School and Eton College were more than £33,000 for boarders. The name dates back to the time when schools founded for local children went public and it is also used to describe the some 230 girls senior schools belonging to the Girls Schools Association. Until the late medieval period most schools were controlled by the church and had specific entrance criteria, others were restricted to the sons of members of guilds, trades or livery companies. The need for professional trades in an increasingly secularised society required schools for the sons of the gentry that were independent from ecclesiastical authority, from the 16th century onward, boys boarding schools were founded or endowed for public use. Traditionally, most of public schools were all boys and full boarding. Separate preparatory schools for younger boys developed from the 1830s, with entry to the schools becoming limited to boys of at least 12 or 13 years old. The first of these was Windlesham House School, established with support from Thomas Arnold, many of the schools, including Rugby School, Harrow School and the Perse School fell into decline during the 18th century and nearly closed in the early 19th century. Protests in the local newspaper forced governors of the Perse School to keep it open, a Royal Commission, the Clarendon Commission, investigated nine of the more established schools, including seven boarding schools and two day schools. St Pauls School and the Merchant Taylors School claimed successfully that their constitutions made them private schools, in 1887 the Divisional Court and the Court of Appeal determined that the City of London School was a public school. In the first year only 12 headmasters attended, but in the following year 34 did, the Headmasters Conference has since grown steadily to over 200 schools. The Public Schools Yearbook was published for the first time in 1889, listing 30 schools, mostly boarding schools except for St Pauls School, some academically successful grammar schools were added in later editions. The 1902 edition included all schools whose principals qualified for membership of the Headmasters Conference, the Fleming Report defined a public school as a member of the Governing Bodies Association or the Headmasters Conference. Based on the recommendations of this report, the Education Act 1944 offered a new status to endowed grammar schools receiving a grant from central government
10.
Iraq War
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The Iraq War was a protracted armed conflict that began in 2003 with the invasion of Iraq by a United States-led coalition that toppled the government of Saddam Hussein. The conflict continued for much of the decade as an insurgency emerged to oppose the occupying forces. An estimated 151,000 to 600,000 or more Iraqis were killed in the first 3–4 years of conflict and it became re-involved in 2014 at the head of a new coalition, the insurgency and many dimensions of the civil armed conflict continue. The invasion began on 20 March 2003, with the U. S. joined by the United Kingdom and several allies, launching a shock. Iraqi forces were overwhelmed as U. S. forces swept through the country. The invasion led to the collapse of the Baathist government, President Hussein was captured during Operation Red Dawn in December of that same year, the United States responded with a troop surge in 2007. The winding down of U. S. involvement in Iraq accelerated under President Barack Obama, the U. S. formally withdrew all combat troops from Iraq by December 2011. Select U. S. officials accused Saddam of harboring and supporting al-Qaeda, while others cited the desire to end a repressive dictatorship, after the invasion, no substantial evidence was found to verify the initial claims about WMDs. The rationale and misrepresentation of pre-war intelligence faced heavy criticism within the U. S. in the aftermath of the invasion, Iraq held multi-party elections in 2005. Nouri al-Maliki became Prime Minister in 2006 and remained in office until 2014, the al-Maliki government enacted policies that were widely seen as having the effect of alienating the countrys Sunni minority and worsening sectarian tensions. The Iraq War caused hundreds of thousands of civilian, and thousands of military casualties, the majority of casualties occurred as a result of the insurgency and civil conflicts between 2004 and 2007. A1990 Frontline report on The arming of Iraq said, Officially, most Western nations participated in an arms embargo against Iraq during the 1980s. Western companies, primarily in Germany and Great Britain, but also in the United States, sold Iraq the key technology for its chemical, missile, any Western governments seemed remarkably indifferent, if not enthusiastic, about those deals. N Washington, the government consistently followed a policy which allowed and perhaps encouraged the growth of Saddam Husseins arsenal. The Western arming of Iraq took place in the context of the Iran-Iraq War, prior to September 2002, the CIA was the George W. Bush administrations main provider of intelligence on Iraq. The agency was out to disprove linkage between Iraq and terrorism the Pentagon adviser told me, the U. N. had prohibited Iraq from developing or possessing such weapons after the Gulf War and required Iraq to permit inspections confirming compliance. This was confirmed by The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, during 2002, Bush repeatedly warned of military action against Iraq unless inspections were allowed to progress unfettered. In accordance with U. N. Security Council Resolution 1441, Iraq agreed to new inspections under United Nations Monitoring, as part of its weapons inspection obligations, Iraq was required to supply a full declaration of its current weapons capabilities and manufacturing
11.
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
