Stanhope Medal

The Stanhope Medal or Stanhope Gold Medal is an international award given annually by the United Kingdom's Royal Humane Society for the most courageous and heroic rescue that was made in the previous year. It is in memory of British Royal Navy officer Chandos Scudamore Scudamore Stanhope, who performed several life-saving events during his lifetime.

Stanhope Medal
Old toe-claw medal mount style, later replaced with ornamental style mount.
Awarded forThe most courageous and heroic rescue made in the previous year
Sponsored byRoyal Humane Society
First awarded1873 (1873)

Background

The "Stanhope Medal" is named after the British Royal Navy officer Chandos Scudamore Scudamore Stanhope (1823–1871) who was a British Royal Navy officer of the nineteenth century.[1] He served as a naval officer mate from November 1842 after he passed his officer's exam. He was promoted to the rank of lieutenant in March 1846. Stanhope was also a personal assistant to First Lord of the Admiralty Hugh Childers.[2] He served on HMS Warspite, a 50-gun ship with captains Sir John Hay and Sir Provo William Parry Wallis. He was appointed in December 1846 to HMS Queen, a 110-gun ship of Sir John West at Devonport. Stanhope later served from August 1847 in the Pacific on HMS Asia, an 84-gun ship commanded by Rear-Admiral Phipps Hornby.[1] Stanhope became a captain in August 1858.[3] He commanded HMS Ocean from Rio de Janeiro to Singapore in 1867.[4][5]

Stanhope was recognized as a national hero, as he was ready to risk his life to help others. He received a Royal Humane Society Silver Medal in 1851 for a life-saving rescue of a seaman. Stanhope died from smallpox in 1871 when he was 48 years old.[2] Soon after his death a group of his friends formed a memorial in his honour and raised four hundred pounds—a large sum at the time—for the issuance of a yearly gold medal honoring a courageous rescue. They gave the money to the Royal Humane Society on the terms that any interest the money earned would be for a periodic gold medal to be given for the greatest gallantry of a hero of the previous year. It is called the "Stanhope Medal."[6]

Description

The Royal Humane Society issues the Stanhope Medal as the highest of several heroism awards. The award is presented annually for the most gallant rescue of the previous twelve months. The first gold medal awarded went to Matthew Webb in an attempt to rescue a man drowning in the Atlantic Ocean in 1873.[7] Beginning in 1962 several societies began nominating rescues for the award, including the Liverpool Shipwreck and Humane Society and the Humane Societies in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.[8][9] In five years—1959, 1960, 1961, 1969, and 1973—[10]no medal has been awarded as no significant rescue was deemed sufficiently worthy during the previous 12 months.[11] The medal issued in the twenty-first century is identical to the Royal Humane Society's bronze and silver awards.[8] The Stanhope Medal has been in 18-carat gold and suspended from a plaque-shaped bar inscribed with date of award and the words STANHOPE MEDAL. It became 9-carat gold in 1942.[9]

Police officer award

The Royal Humane Society Police Medal is awarded each year to a United Kingdom police officer whose lifesaving act is judged more notable than others. The society began issuing the award in 2000. Recipients of the Stanhope Gold Medal do not receive the Royal Humane Society Police Medal on the same notable event.[12]

Notable recipients

The standard for the award of the Stanhope Gold Medal has been met by the following notable recipients for the years designated.[10]

References
  1. O’Byrne 2012, p. 1108.
  2. "Intelligence has been received of the death of Captain Chanlos Scudamore Stanhope". The Morning Post – p. 6. London, England. July 8, 1871 – via Newspapers.com .
  3. "Local and District News". Berrow's Worcester Journal – p. 3. Worcester, England. August 21, 1858 – via Newspapers.com .
  4. "An Ironclad In A Cyclone (second part, column six)". Sydney Morning Herald. New South Wales, Australia. February 21, 1868.
  5. United Service Gazette (February 21, 1868). "An Ironclad In A Cyclone". Sydney Morning Herald. New South Wales, Australia.
  6. Johnson 1921, p. 268.
  7. Sprawson, Charles. "Webb, Matthew [Captain Webb] (1848–1883)". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (online ed.). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/28927. (Subscription or UK public library membership required.)
  8. "Awards of the Royal Humane Society". Royal Humane Society history. Royal Humane Society. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
  9. Fevyer 2013, p. 3.
  10. "Awardees of the Stanhope Gold Medal". Royal Humane Society history. Royal Humane Society. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
  11. Duckers 2013, p. 109.
  12. Fevyer 2013, p. 33.

Sources
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