Juliana (died 1946) was a medal-winning

Great Dane The Great Dane is a German list of dog breeds, breed of large mastiff-sighthound, which descends from hunting dogs of the Middle Ages used to hunt bears, wild boar, and deer. They were also used as guardian dogs of German nobility. It is one o ...

. She was awarded two Blue Cross medals, the first for extinguishing an

incendiary bomb Incendiary weapons, incendiary devices, incendiary munitions, or incendiary bombs are weapons designed to start fires. They may destroy structures or sensitive equipment using fire, and sometimes operate as anti-personnel weaponry. Incendiarie ...

and the second for alerting her masters to a fire that had started in their shop. In September 2013 the second of these medals, along with a portrait of Juliana, sold at auction for £1,100. The discovery and sale of these items uncovered the story of Juliana's heroic acts.

Honours

In April 1941, two years into

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, incendiary bombs were being dropped across Britain during

The Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...

. One such device is believed to have fallen through the roof of the house in which Juliana and her owner lived. The dog is reported to have stood over the bomb and urinated on it, extinguishing the fire and preventing it from spreading. She was awarded her first Blue Cross medal for her actions. Juliana was celebrated as a hero for a second time when, in November 1944, she again helped to save the lives of her owners. After a fire had taken hold in their shoe shop, she alerted her master's family to the impending danger. For this she was awarded a second medal. The second medal, along with a portrait of Juliana, was discovered during a house clearance in Bristol. The items were sold together at a Gloucestershire auction in September 2013, with the auctioneer describing Juliana as "a Great Dane with a great bladder". Initially expected to achieve £60, the sale reached £1,100 with the winning bid coming from an anonymous buyer.

Death

Juliana died from poisoning in 1946 after a substance was posted through her owner's letterbox.

References

{{reflist, refs= {{cite web , url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/10285810/Dog-cocked-leg-to-extinguish-Nazi-bomb.html , title=Dog cocked leg to extinguish Nazi bomb , date=4 September 2013 , author=Sam Marsden , work=The Telegraph , accessdate=7 September 2013 {{cite web , url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-bristol-23985116 , title=Urinating WWII Great Dane's medal sold , date=6 September 2013 , work=BBC News , accessdate=7 September 2013 Individual dogs 1946 animal deaths Deaths by poisoning Individual animals in England