The Queen's Scarf was awarded to British and colonial soldiers for bravery during the

Second Boer War The Second Boer War (, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, Transvaal War, Anglo–Boer War, or South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer republics (the South African Republic and ...

(1899–1902). Eight scarves were personally crocheted by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in January 1901. Her reign of 63 year ...

, with assistance from Princess Mary, Duchess of Cornwall, and presented to soldiers. Each was approximately 152

centimetre upright=1.35, Different lengths as in respect to the electromagnetic spectrum, measured by the metre and its derived scales. The microwave is in-between 1 meter to 1 millimeter. A centimetre (International spelling) or centimeter (American ...

s (five

feet The foot (: feet) is an anatomical structure found in many vertebrates. It is the terminal portion of a limb which bears weight and allows locomotion. In many animals with feet, the foot is an organ at the terminal part of the leg made up of ...

) long, 23 centimetres (nine

inch The inch (symbol: in or prime (symbol), ) is a Units of measurement, unit of length in the imperial units, British Imperial and the United States customary units, United States customary System of measurement, systems of measurement. It is eq ...

es) wide, made of khaki-coloured Berlin wool, and bore the Queen's

royal cypher In modern heraldry, a royal cypher is a monogram or monogram-like device of a country's reigning Monarch, sovereign, typically consisting of the initials of the monarch's name and title, sometimes interwoven and often surmounted by a Crown (heral ...

, ''VRI'', at one end. The Earl Roberts wrote on 1 March 1902 that "his Lordship desires to place on record that in April 1900, Her Late Majesty Queen Victoria was graciously pleased to send him four woollen scarves worked by herself, for distribution to the four most distinguished private soldiers in the Colonial Forces of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa, then serving under his command. The selection for these gifts of honour was made by the officers commanding the contingents concerned, it being understood that gallant conduct in the field was to be considered the primary qualification".

Status

There was some speculation that the award of the Queen's Scarf was equivalent to that of the

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British ...

. The New Zealand government asked that the title be used in the Army List, but permission to do so was denied by the Secretary of State for War in 1902. ''

The Illustrated London News ''The Illustrated London News'', founded by Herbert Ingram and first published on Saturday 14 May 1842, was the world's first illustrated weekly news magazine. The magazine was published weekly for most of its existence, switched to a less freq ...

'' in 1956 called it "the world's rarest award for valour". In 1956, a relative of one of the holders asked to attend the centenary celebrations for the VC, but was told that the scarf was not equal in status to the cross.

Recipients

References

{{Reflist Second Boer War Military awards and decorations of the United Kingdom Scarves