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The Victoria Cross (VC)
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Three members of the Douglas family have been awarded the Victoria Cross.

The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest award of the United Kingdom honours system. It is awarded for gallantry "in the face of the enemy" to members of the British armed forces. It may be awarded posthumously. It was previously awarded to Commonwealth countries, most of which have established their own honours systems and no longer recommend British honours. It may be awarded to a person of any military rank in any service and to civilians under military command although no civilian has received the award since 1879. Since the first awards were presented by Queen Victoria in 1857, two thirds of all awards have been personally presented by the British monarch. These investitures are usually held at Buckingham Palace.

The first citations of the VC, particularly those in the initial gazette of 24 February 1857, varied in the details of each action; some specify date ranges while some specify a single date. The original Royal Warrant did not contain a specific clause regarding posthumous awards, although official policy was not to award the VC posthumously. Between 1897 and 1901, several notices were issued in the London Gazette regarding soldiers who would have been awarded the VC had they survived. In a partial reversal of policy in 1902, six of the soldiers mentioned were granted the VC, but not "officially" awarded the medal. In 1907, the posthumous policy was completely reversed and medals were sent to the next of kin of the six soldiers.

The Victoria Cross has been awarded 1,358 times to 1,355 individual recipients.

The Douglas recipients are:

•  Campbell Douglas Assistant surgeon 24th Regiment of Foot Andaman Islands Expedition 7 May 1867
•  Henry Douglas Lieutenant Royal Army Medical Corps Second Boer War 11 December 1899
•  Angus Douglas-Hamilton Temp. Lieutenant Colonel Queen's Own Cameron Highlanders First World War 25–26 September 1915

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    Last modified: Monday, 25 March 2024