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Distinguished Service Order (DSO)

This Order was instituted on November 9th 1886 by Queen Victoria to reward individuals for meritorious or distinguished service in wartime. This is a military Order for officers only, and while normally given for services under fire or under conditions equivalent to service in actual combat with the enemy, between 1914 and 1916 it was awarded under circumstances which could not be regarded as under fire.

After January 1st 1917, commanders in the field were instructed to recommend this award only for those serving under fire. Many DSO’s were awarded to squadron commanders for a long period of leadership but in some cases it was awarded to junior officers for just one operation.
Prior to 1943, the Order could be awarded only to someone ‘Mentioned in Despatches’. The Order is generally given to officers in command, above the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel and awards to ranks below this are usually for a high degree of gallantry just short of deserving the Victoria Cross. The Royal Warrant for this award was published in the London Gazette on November 9th 1886.

A bar is awarded for an act which would have merited the Order in the first place. The bar is plain gold with an Imperial Crown in the centre. The year of conferment is engraved on the reverse of the bar.

The medal is a gold coloured cross and on the obverse, within a wreath of laurel, enamelled green, is the Imperial Crown in gold on a red enamelled ground. On the reverse, within a wreath of laurel, enamelled green, is the Royal Cipher in gold on a red enamelled ground.
The red ribbon is 1.125 inches wide with narrow vertical blue edges.

A rosette is worn in undress uniform to signify the possession of a bar.The award is issued unnamed, but some recipients have privately had their names engraved on the back of the award or suspension bar.

Total issued unto 1983 : 1291, including 113 first bars and 18 second bars.

Grid List
Waddell, Robert Charles Arthur* July 6th, 1915
† April 5th, 1975

Wade, Lance Cleo* 1915
† January 12th, 1944

Walker, Frederick John* June 3rd, 1896
† July 9th, 1944

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Walker, Peter Russell* 1914
† 1980

Waller, Hector Macdonald Laws "Hard Over Hec"* April 4th, 1900
† March 1st, 1942

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Waller, James* September 6th, 1911

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Wallis, Charles Brian Berry† July 24th, 1942
Plot: H Grave: 54

Walsh, Geoffrey* August 19th, 1900
† April 3rd, 1999

Wanklyn, Malcolm David* June 28th, 1911
† April 14th, 1942

Warburton, Adrian "Warby"* March 10th, 1918
† April 12th, 1944

Ware, Cameron Bethel* August 9th, 1913
† January 21st, 1999

Wark, Blair Anderson* July 27th, 1894
† June 13th, 1941

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Warnes, Geoffrey* October 22nd, 1914
† February 22nd, 1944

Warrack, Graeme Matthew* June 27th, 1913
† January 13th, 1985

Warren, William Henry Farrington* October 19th, 1877
† April 13th, 1918
Plot: 15 Row: G Grave: 26

Washbourn, Richard Everley* February 14th, 1910
† August 8th, 1988

Watkins, William David Gordon "Four-Run"* September 11th, 1908
† June 26th, 1965

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Watson, William de Norban "Bucko"* October 1919
† February 6th, 1992

Webb, George Clifford† April 14th, 1945
Plot: 7 Row: B Grave: 18

Webb, Joseph Leroy* April 24th, 1919
† March 24th, 1997

Wedd, William Basil* May 1st, 1890
† November 6th, 1966

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Well Groeneveld, van, Carel Adrianus Johannes* May 12th, 1906
† March 4th, 1942

Wells, Edward Preston* July 26th, 1916
† November 1st, 2005

Welsh, George Arthur "Tiger"* July 28th, 1896
† February 16th, 1965

Wemyss, Henry Colville Barclay* April 26th, 1891
† April 2nd, 1959

Westlake, George Herbert* April 21st, 1918
† January 18th, 2006

Wheatley, Percival Ross† January 1988

Whelan, James Roger* April 29th, 1914
† March 8th, 1985

Whistler, Lashmer Gordon "Bolo"* September 3rd, 1898
† July 4th, 1963

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Whitaker, William Denis* February 27th, 1915
† May 30th, 2001

White, Cyril Brudenell Bingham* June 23rd, 1876
† August 13th, 1940
Plot: C of E Grave: 40

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Whitehead, David Adie "Torpy"* September 30th, 1896
† October 23rd, 1992

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Whitworth, John Nicholas Haworth* January 10th, 1912
† November 13th, 1974

Whymark, John Percy* January 9th, 1920
† October 4th, 1945

Wickham, Peter Reginald Whalley* March 26th, 1918
† April 29th, 1970

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Wigle, Frederick Ernest* July 11th, 1913
† April 14th, 1945
Plot: IX Row: A Grave: 8

Wilkinson, William Alexander Camac* December 8th, 1892
† December 19th, 1983

William-Powlett, Peveril Barton Reiby Wallop* March 5th, 1898
† November 10th, 1985

Willis, Algernon Usborne* May 17th, 1889
† April 12th, 1976

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Willis, George Geoffrey Lightly† July 17th, 1943
Plot: II Row: E Grave: 15

Wilson, Arnold Talbot* July 18th, 1884
† May 31st, 1940

Wilson, Guy Greville* May 19th, 1877
† February 1st, 1943

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Wilson, Henry Maitland "Jumbo", 1st Baron Wilson* September 5th, 1881
† December 31st, 1964

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Wilson, Maurice Fiennes Fitzgerald* June 22nd, 1886
† February 16th, 1975

Wilson, Robert* November 4th, 1911
† April 2002

Wilson, Stanley Livingston* April 17th, 1905
† June 2nd, 1990

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Windeyer, William John Victor* July 28th, 1900
† November 23rd, 1987

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Windsor, Elizabeth II (Queen Elizabeth II)* April 21st, 1926
† September 8th, 2022

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Windsor, George VI* December 14th, 1895
† February 6th, 1952

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Windsor-Lewis, James Charles* 1907
† October 27th, 1964

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Wingate, Orde Charles* February 26th, 1903
† March 24th, 1944

Wingfield, Charles Mervyn Hunt† May 28th, 1944
Plot: 1 Row: F Grave: 22

Wishart, William Geoffrey† February 21st, 1945
Plot: VIII Row: D Grave: 7

Witholt, Arend Winter* April 25th, 1912
† August 17th, 1987

Witt, Dennis Theodore* September 27th, 1915

Wohner, John H.* December 31st, 1915
† December 23rd, 2005

Woodroffe, John† October 9th, 1957

Wootten, George Frederick* May 1st, 1893
† March 31st, 1970

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Worsley, Richard Stanley† May 4th, 1917

Wright, John Roger Bodley* 1919
† November 13th, 1943
Plot: III Row: O Grave: 5

Wynter, Henry Douglas* June 6th, 1886
† February 7th, 1945
Plot: 1 Row: N Grave: B1

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Sources