Honoris Crux (1952)
| Honoris Crux (1952) | |
|---|---|
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Captain Geoff Heim's Honoris Crux
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| Awarded by the Monarch of the United Kingdom and the Commonwealth realms and, from 1961, the State President | |
| Country |
 South Africa
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| Type | Military decoration for bravery |
| Eligibility | All Ranks |
| Awarded for | Gallantry in action against the enemy |
| Campaign(s) | 1966-1989 Border War |
| Status | Discontinued in 1975 |
| Clasps | Bar for subsequent award |
| Post-nominals | HC |
| Statistics | |
| Established | 1952 |
| First awarded | 1973 |
| Last awarded | 1975 |
| Total awarded | 5 |
| SADF pre-1994 & SANDF post-2002 orders of wear | |
| Next (higher) |
SADF precedence:
SANDF precedence:
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| Next (lower) |
SADF succession:
SANDF succession:
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The Honoris Crux (Cross of Honour) of 1952, post-nominal letters HC, is a military decoration for bravery which was instituted by the Union of South Africa in 1952. It was in use from 1952 to 1975 and was awarded to members of the South African Defence Force for gallantry in action against the enemy in the field. It was discontinued on 1 July 1975, when it was replaced by a new set of four Honoris Crux decorations, in four classes.
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).
The Honoris Crux of 1952, post-nominal letters HC, was instituted by Queen Elizabeth II on 6 April 1952, during the Van Riebeeck Festival.
The Honoris Crux of 1952 was awarded for gallantry in action against the enemy in the field. A Bar could be awarded for a further similar deed of bravery. Only five awards were made, the first in 1973 and the others in 1974 and 1975, all to helicopter pilots and flight engineers of the South African Air Force. The first decoration was awarded to Captain A.P. (Aap) Möller. No bar to the decoration was ever awarded.
With effect from 6 April 1952, when the Honoris Crux and several other new decorations and medals were instituted, these new awards took precedence before all earlier British orders, decorations and medals awarded to South Africans, with the exception of the Victoria Cross, which still took precedence before all other awards. The other older British awards continued to be worn in the order prescribed by the British Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood.
The position of the Honoris Crux of 1952 in the official order of precedence was revised twice after 1975, to accommodate the inclusion or institution of new decorations and medals. These revisions took pace upon the integration into the South African National Defence Force in 1994, and upon the institution of a new set of awards in 2003.
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