Medal:
An
ornamental cross in silver, with straight arms terminating in broad
finals ornamented with Imperial Crowns. At the centre on the cross is
the Royal Cypher (King George VI shown here). The reverse of the cross
is plain in design, though at certain times the year of the award has
been engraved.
Clasp:
A silver bar
ornamented by the Crown may be issued to MC holders performing a
further act of such gallantry which would have merited award of the MC.
Ribbon:
A central stripe of deep purple flanked by equally sized stripes of white.
Awarded to:
All ranks of the RN, RM, Army, and RAF in recognition of exemplary gallantry during active operations against the enemy on land.
History
Instituted in 1914, the Military
Cross (MC) was issued for gallantry in presence of the enemy to warrant
and junior officers of the Army who were ineligible (on account of
their rank) for the Distinguished Service Order. During the First World
War, it was also available to equivalent ranks in the Royal Naval
Division and Royal Marines and it later became available to equivalent
ranks in the RAF for acts of gallantry on land.
The equivalent award for the other ranks for gallantry on land in
presence of the enemy was the Military Medal (MM) which had been
instituted in 1916 and, similarly to the MC, later became available to
RAF other ranks serving on the ground.
Following the 1993 review, the MM was discontinued and the MC became
available to all ranks of all services for exemplary gallantry on land
in presence of the enemy. It is at a level below the Conspicuous
Gallantry Cross and is at the equivalent level to the Distinguished
Service Cross (for exemplary gallantry at sea) and the Distinguished
Flying Cross (for exemplary gallantry in the air).