The Victoria Cross and Other Gallantry Medals: How Rare Are They Really?

Of every award, medal and honour in the British system, one sits above all the rest — literally, in terms of order of precedence. The Victoria Cross is Britain's highest recognition for bravery, and the numbers behind it explain exactly why it carries the weight it does.

What it actually looks like

The VC is a bronze cross pattée, with a crown and lion on top and the simple inscription "For Valour." The bronze itself has a genuinely evocative origin story — the earliest medals were cast from Russian cannon captured during the Crimean War, the conflict that led to the VC being created in the first place, in 1856.

Just how rare it is

Since its creation, the Victoria Cross has been awarded only 1,358 times in total — across nearly 170 years and every major conflict Britain has fought since. Nearly half of those — 628 — came during WWI alone; WWII, by contrast, saw only 181 awarded across the entire war, reflecting both the different nature of the fighting and a genuinely more selective approach to the award by that point. Only three men in history have ever received it twice: Arthur Martin-Leake, Noel Chavasse, and Charles Upham, each earning a Bar for a second act of extraordinary bravery — an achievement so rare it's effectively never been repeated.

Who can receive one

The criterion is simply "most conspicuous bravery... in the presence of the enemy" — genuinely open to anyone regardless of rank, background or origin across the British Empire and Commonwealth, one of the more egalitarian aspects of the honours system historically. Privates and Generals are held to exactly the same standard, and the medal itself looks identical whoever wears it — no rank distinction on the award itself, unlike almost everything else in military insignia.

Other gallantry medals, for context

Below the VC sits a genuine hierarchy of other bravery awards — the Distinguished Service Order, Military Cross, Distinguished Flying Cross and others, each with their own eligibility (often tied to rank or service) and their own real rarity. None carry quite the same singular status as the VC, but all represent genuine, verified acts of courage, and all are legitimately collectable in a way the VC itself effectively isn't.

Genuine British medal ribbon clasps — campaign and service medals like these are legitimately collectable, unlike the Victoria Cross itself.

Why this matters for collectors

Given how few genuine VCs exist, real ones are museum-grade historical artefacts, not something that circulates through general surplus — if you ever see one offered casually, treat it with serious scepticism. Genuine surplus medal collecting is much more realistically, and legitimately, about campaign and service medals and their ribbon bars, which are widely and honestly available.

Looking for genuine campaign or service medals and ribbon bars? Email us at sales@jungleuk.com and we'll help.