The Castle of Good Hope Decoration was a military decoration for bravery which was instituted by the

Union of South Africa The Union of South Africa ( nl, Unie van Zuid-Afrika; af, Unie van Suid-Afrika; ) was the historical predecessor to the present-day Republic of South Africa. It came into existence on 31 May 1910 with the unification of the Cape, Natal, Tr ...

on 6 April 1952, but never awarded. The decoration was intended for award to members of the

South African Defence Force The South African Defence Force (SADF) (Afrikaans: ''Suid-Afrikaanse Weermag'') comprised the armed forces of South Africa from 1957 until 1994. Shortly before the state reconstituted itself as a republic in 1961, the former Union Defence F ...

for a signal act of valour or most conspicuous bravery or some daring or pre-eminent act of self-sacrifice or extreme devotion to duty in the presence of the enemy.South African Medal Website - Post-nominal Letters
(Accessed 28 April 2015)

Institution

The Castle of Good Hope Decoration was instituted by

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

on 6 April 1952, during the Tercentenary Van Riebeeck Festival, as the most senior of a series of military decorations and medals which substituted many of the British and Commonwealth awards which had earlier been used.CometoCapeTown.com Blast from the past – Van Riebeeck festival in 1952
/ref>

Award criteria

The Castle of Good Hope Decoration could be awarded to members of the

for a signal act of valour or most conspicuous bravery or some daring or pre-eminent act of self-sacrifice or extreme devotion to duty in the presence of the enemy in wartime. A Bar could be awarded for a further similar deed of bravery. It was the most senior of all South African orders, decorations and medals from 1952 to 2003. It was formally authorised by

on 26 January 1953 as a South African substitute for the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previousl ...

(VC), for which South African servicemen had previously been eligible.South African Medal Website - SA Defence Force : 1952-1975
(Accessed 30 April 2015)Alexander, E.G.M., Barron, G.K.B. and Bateman, A.J. (1986). ''South African Orders, Decorations and Medals''. Human and Rousseau.Monick, S, (1988). ''South African Military Awards 1912-1987''. South African National Museum of Military History. In 1986, during the undeclared 1966-1989 Border War, the restriction to wartime acts was removed to make the decoration available to reward actions during other military operations. The Castle of Good Hope Decoration still appeared in the official order of precedence table which was published on 3 September 1993 but, since it was never awarded and was officially discontinued on 27 April 2003, it was no longer listed when a new table was published on 11 March 2005.Republic of South Africa Government Gazette Vol. 477, no. 27376, Pretoria, 11 March 2005, . In the document, the printed identification number is 9771682584003.Republic of South Africa Government Gazette no. 15093, Pretoria, 3 September 1993

Description

;Obverse The Castle of Good Hope Decoration was a gold pentagon representing the outline of South Africa's oldest military building, the

Castle of Good Hope The Castle of Good Hope ( nl, Kasteel de Goede Hoop; af, Kasteel die Goeie Hoop) known locally as the Castle or Cape Town Castle is a bastion fort built in the 17th century in Cape Town, South Africa. Originally located on the coastline of T ...

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

. The obverse shows Van Riebeeck's three ships sailing into

Table Bay Table Bay (Afrikaans: ''Tafelbaai'') is a natural bay on the Atlantic Ocean overlooked by Cape Town (founded 1652 by Van Riebeeck) and is at the northern end of the Cape Peninsula, which stretches south to the Cape of Good Hope. It was named b ...

in 1652, framed in a double ring, the inner ring decorated with a wreath of proteas and the outer inscribed "CASTEEL DE GOEDE HOOP DEKORASIE" at the top and "CASTLE OF GOOD HOPE DECORATION" at the bottom. ;Reverse The reverse had the pre-2000 South African coat of arms and Queen Elizabeth's royal cipher (E II R) above the coat of arms. Only one decoration was struck. ;Bar The bar was of gold with a miniature replica of the Castle of Good Hope embossed in the centre. ;Ribbon The ribbon was 44 millimetres wide and green. The Castle of Good Hope Decoration was designed to be worn around the neck, but since a new specimen would have to be made without the royal cipher on the reverse in any event, should it ever be awarded, it was decided in 1991 to alter it to a chest decoration. The alteration never became necessary.

Discontinuation

The Castle of Good Hope Decoration was never awarded and now never will be. Conferment of the decoration was discontinued in respect of services performed on or after 27 April 2003.Republic of South Africa Government Gazette Vol. 457, no. 25213, Pretoria, 25 July 2003
/ref>Republic of South Africa Government Gazette no. 26778, Pretoria, 17 September 2004

References

{{Reflist, 30em Military decorations and medals of South Africa