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Filip Konowal, VC ( September 15 , 1888 – June 3 , 1959 ) was a Ukrainian Canadian recipient of the Victoria Cross , the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. He is the only Ukrainian recipient of the VC. He is the patron of Royal Canadian Legion Branch 360 (Konowal Branch) in Toronto . KONOWAL'S ACT OF HEROISM Konowal was 28 years old, and an Acting Corporal in the 47th (New Westminster), later (Western Ontario) Bn., Canadian Expeditionary Force during the First World War . The following deed took place for which he was awarded the VC, during the period August 22nd – 24th , 1917 , at the Battle Of Hill 70 in Lens , France .
From ''The London Gazette'' Issue 30400 1917 - 11-23 (Fourth Supplement 1917 - 11-26 p. 12329) HONOURS Konowal's Victoria Cross medal was personally presented by King George V , and he was promoted to Sergeant . He was also awarded the British War Medal (1914–1920), Victory Medal (1914–1919), George VI Coronation Medal (1937), Elizabeth II Coronation Medal (1953), and entitled to the Cross of St George, 4th Class, from Russia. The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 360 (Konowal Branch) in Toronto made him its patron in 1953 . The Legion helped established the Konowal Prize, an annual scholarship grant at the Royal Military College Of Canada . Konowal died in 1959 at Hull , Quebec , aged 72. He was buried at Notre Dame De Lourdes Cemetery , Ottawa, under a headstone in section A, lot 502. In 1996 Konowal's headstone was replaced by an upright marker, and memorial plaques were unveiled:
The Victoria Cross medal The Canadian War Museum (Ottawa, Canada) purchased Konowal's Victoria Cross and other medals in 1969 . The medal went missing sometime in the 1970s , apparently stolen, and was sold to an antique shop along with some Hawaiian coins in the mid- 1990s . The shop owner believed the medal was a fake, as it was inscribed with "For Valour" - evidently not realizing that all VCs awarded to Canadians had the English motto. (The source of confusion was the fact that a "Canadian VC" was introduced into the Canadian Honours System bearing the Latin ''Pro Valore'' motto; this change was made well after the First World War and the award of Konowal's VC). The medal was rediscovered when the shop owner offered it to the Jeffrey Hoare Auction House in London, Ontario in April, 2004 . It was recovered by police, and returned to permanent display at the War Museum on 2004 - 08-23 , 87 years after it was awarded. REFERENCES
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This page has been from the Victoria Cross Reference with permission. |
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