For over 100 years the Distinguished Conduct Medal (the DCM)—was the second highest medal that could be awarded for gallantry to the other ranks of the British army—in some cases also the RAF and Royal Navy, yet the holders of this major award have rarely been given the recognition they deserve.

While the heroic exploits of recipients of the Victoria Cross have been the subject of repeated accounts, DCM holders have largely been ignored in print. But now in this graphic narrative history Matthew Richardson sets the record straight by describing the conspicuous courage of men who have been awarded the DCM in the Crimean and the colonial wars, in the two world wars, and during recent conflicts in the Falklands and the Gulf. Told often in their own words, their extraordinary stories of bravery and self-sacrifice are the central focus of his book.