Honoris Crux Diamond

This article is about the Honoris Crux Diamond. For other uses, see Honoris Crux.
Honoris Crux Diamond
Awarded by the State President
Country  South Africa
Type Military decoration for bravery
Eligibility All Ranks
Awarded for Death-defying heroic deeds of outstanding valour
Status Discontinued in 1993
Post-nominals HCD
Statistics
Established 1975
First awarded Never awarded
Order of wear
Next (higher) Castle of Good Hope Decoration (CGH)
Next (lower) Honoris Crux Gold (HCG)

Ribbon bar

The Honoris Crux Diamond (Diamond Cross of Honour), post-nominal letters HCD, is a military decoration for bravery that was instituted by the Republic of South Africa on 1 July 1975, but never awarded. The decoration was intended for award to members of the South African Defence Force for death-defying heroic deeds of outstanding valour.[1][2]

The South African military

The Union Defence Forces (UDF) were established in 1912 and renamed the South African Defence Force (SADF) in 1958. On 27 April 1994 it was integrated with six other independent forces into the South African National Defence Force (SANDF).[2][3][4][5][6]

Institution

The Honoris Crux Diamond (Diamond Cross of Honour), post-nominal letters HCD, was instituted by the State President on 1 July 1975.[2]

Award criteria

The decoration could be awarded to members of the South African Defence Force for death-defying heroic deeds of outstanding valour. It was the most senior of a set of four classes of Honoris Crux decorations, the Honoris Crux Diamond, Honoris Crux Gold, Honoris Crux Silver and Honoris Crux, that together replaced the discontinued Honoris Crux of 1952.[2]

Order of wear

The Honoris Crux Diamond was never awarded and was officially discontinued on 3 September 1993, when it was no longer listed in the official order of precedence table that was published on that date. Until then it was preceded by the Castle of Good Hope Decoration (CGH) and succeeded by the Honoris Crux Gold (HCG).[7]

South African Defence Force until 3 September 1993

Description

Obverse

The Honoris Crux Diamond is a silver-gilt Maltese cross that fits in a circle 45 millimetres in diameter, with two swords in saltire surmounted by a circular protea wreath, the arms of the cross in green enamel, with a roundel in the centre tierced horizontally in the orange, white and blue bands of the national flag, framed in a double circle containing eight diamonds set in green enamel. Apart from the eight diamonds in the enameled circle, it is identical to the Honoris Crux Gold in all respects.[2][8]

Reverse

The reverse has the pre-1994 South African Coat of Arms, with the decoration number underneath.[8]

Ribbon

The ribbon is 32 millimetres wide and orange.[2][8]

Discontinuation

Since it was never awarded and now never will be, the Honoris Crux Diamond was no longer listed in the official order of precedence lists, as published in the Republic of South Africa Government Gazette, since 1993.[7][9]

Only one Honoris Crux Diamond Decoration was ever struck. The Department of Defence donated it to the South African National Museum of Military History in Johannesburg on 21 May 2009.

References

  1. ↑ South African Medal Website - Post-nominal Letters (Accessed 28 April 2015)
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 South African Medal Website - SA Defence Force : 1975-2003 (Accessed 30 April 2015)
  3. ↑ South African Medal Website - SA Defence Force : 1952-1975 (Accessed 30 April 2015)
  4. ↑ Suid-Afrikaanse militêre dekorasies: 1952-1975
  5. ↑ Suid-Afrikaanse militêre dekorasies: 1975-2003
  6. ↑ Republic of South Africa Government Gazette Vol. 457, no. 25213, Pretoria, 25 July 2003
  7. 1 2 3 4 Republic of South Africa Government Gazette no. 15093, Pretoria, 3 September 1993
  8. 1 2 3 Monick, S (1988). South African Military Awards 1912-1987. South African National Museum of Military History. p. 49.
  9. ↑ Republic of South Africa Government Gazette Vol. 477, no. 27376, Pretoria, 11 March 2005, OCLC 72827981
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