Distinguished Service Cross (United Kingdom)

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Distinguished Service Cross
Obverse of the medal. Ribbon: 36mm, three equal parts of dark blue, white, and dark blue.
Awarded by United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
Type	Military decoration.
Eligibility	British, (formerly) Commonwealth, and allied forces.
Awarded for	... gallantry during active operations against the enemy.^[1]
Status	Currently awarded.
Description	43mm max height and width; plain silver cross with rounded ends, suspended by a ring. (Obverse) Royal cypher in centre, surrounded by a ring; (reverse) plain apart from hallmark. From 1940 year of issue has been engraved on lower limb of cross.
Statistics
Established	June 1901 (As Conspicuous Service Cross), renamed October 1914.
Total awarded	During World War I 1,983. Since 1945, less than 100.
Precedence
Next (higher)	Conspicuous Gallantry Cross
Same	Military Cross, Distinguished Flying Cross
Next (lower)	Mention in Despatches

The Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) is the third level military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) ratings of the Royal Navy and formerly also to officers of other Commonwealth countries.

The DSC, which may be awarded posthumously, is granted to Royal Navy personnel in recognition of '... gallantry during active operations against the enemy.'

The award was originally created in 1901 as the Conspicuous Service Cross, for award to warrant and junior officers inelegible for the DSO. It was renamed the Distinguished Service Cross in October 1914, eligibility being extended to all naval officers (commissioned and warrant) below the rank of Lieutenant Commander. In 1931, the award was made available to members of the Merchant Navy and in 1940 eligibility was further extended to non-naval personnel (British Army and Royal Air Force) serving aboard a British vessel. Since the 1993 review of the honours system, as part of the drive to remove distinctions of rank in awards for bravery, the Distinguished Service Medal, formerly the third level decoration for ratings, has been discontinued. The DSC now serves as the third level award for gallantry for all ranks of the Royal Navy.

Since 1916, bars have been awarded to the DSC in recognition of the performance of further acts of gallantry meriting the award. Recipients are entitled to the postnominal letters DSC.