Victoria Cross & VC

medal and ribbon cross patté (described in the Royal Warrant as a 'Maltese cross of bronze') having at its centre a crown surmounted by 'lion gardant'; beneath the crown an ornamentally draped scroll bearing the motto: 'FOR VALOUR'. Raised borders outline the shape of the cross. The plain reverse bears a central circle (with raised edge) to enclose the date of the act of gallantry. The suspension bar comprises a straight laurelled bar with integral 'V' lug; the plain reverse of the suspension bar is engraved with details of the recipient. The 1½-inch wide ribbon is crimson. [Note: originally the ribbon was dark blue for Royal Navy recipients and crimson (described as 'red' in the Warrants) for the Army. After the formation of the Royal Air Force (1 April 1918) the crimson ribbon (sometimes described as 'claret', 'maroon' or 'dark red') was adopted for all recipients. When present, a straight laurelled Bar (in the same form as the suspension bar but without the 'V' lug) indicates a subsequent award.] This example is engraved LIEUT. BASIL C.G.PLACE, ROYAL NAVY. The recipient's name and service details are inscribed on the reverse of the suspension bar, and the date of the action, 1943 is inscribed on the reverse of the medal in the centre circle.

Victoria Cross awarded to Lieutenant Godfrey Place for his part in the midget submarine attack on the German battleship 'Tirpitz' in September 1943. Medal citation: (London Gazette, 22 February 1944; the citation is shared with Lieutenant Donald Cameron RNR). 'Lieutenants Place and Cameron were the Commanding Officers of two of His Majesty's Midget Submarines X 7 and X 6 which on 22nd September 1943 carried out a most daring and successful attack on the German battleship Tirpitz, moored in the protective anchorage at Kaafiord, North Norway. To reach the anchorage necessitated the penetration of an enemy minefield and a passage of fifty miles up the fiord, known to be vigilantly patrolled by the enemy and to be guarded by nets, gun defences and listening posts, this after a passage of at least a thousand miles from base. Having successfully eluded all these hazards and entered the fleet anchorage, Lieutenants Place and Cameron, with a complete disregard for danger, worked their small crafts past the close anti-submarine and torpedo nets surrounding the Tirpitz, and from a position inside these nets, carried out a cool and determined attack. Whilst they were still inside the nets a fierce enemy counter attack by guns and depth charges developed which made their withdrawal impossible. Lieutenants Place and Cameron therefore scuttled their craft to prevent them falling into the hands of the enemy. Before doing so they took every measure to ensure the safety of their crews, the majority of whom, together with themselves, were subsequently taken prisoner. In the course of the operation these very small craft pressed home their attack to the full, in doing so accepting all the dangers inherent in such vessels and facing every possible hazard which inegnuity could devise for the protection in harbour of vitally important Capital Ships. The courage, endurance an utter contempt for danger in the imediate face of the enemy shown by Lieutenants Place and Cameron during this determined and successful attack were supreme.'

Born in Worcestershire, on 19 July 1921, Godfrey Place entered the Royal Naval College, Dartmouth at 13 and was a midshipman at the outbreak of war in 1939. After winning the Distinguished Service Cross in 1942, he took command of X7, one of three midget submarines assigned to attack the German battleship Tirpitz in Kaa Fiord, Norway, on 22 September 1943. During the attack, the X7 twice became entangled in anti-torpedo nets but broke free and surfaced close to the Tirpitz. It struck the German battleship's side and slid under the keel, where Place released his starboard explosive charge. He then went astern for some 200 feet and dropped the port charge. As Place tried to get away, X7 was again caught in the nets and came under fire, eventually being shaken free by the explosion of the charges. With compasses and diving gauges out of action, Place decided to abandon ship. Two of the crew were drowned and Place and another officer became prisoners of war. The attack immobilised the Tirpitz for several months. Both Place and Lieutenant Donald Cameron - who commanded X6 - were awarded the Victoria Cross. The announcement of the award of the VC to Place appeared in the London Gazette, 22 February 1944. On his release from prison camp, Godfrey Place resumed his naval career, transferring to the Fleet Air Arm where he qualified as a fixed wing jet pilot. He flew on operations during the Korean War. Place's later sea-going commands included HMS Corunna and the commando carrier HMS Albion. His last active appointment was as Rear Admiral Commanding Reserves. At the date of his retirement in 1970, Place was the Royal Navy's last serving VC holder. From 1971, until shortly before his death on 27 Dec 1994, Rear Admiral Godfrey Place VC CB CVO DSC was Chairman of the Victoria Cross and George Cross Association. The Museum also holds the medals of Rear Admiral Place's father who won a DSO and MC while serving in The East Surrey Regiment during the First World War.

LIEUT. BASIL C.G.PLACE, ROYAL NAVY.

1943.