The Nkwe ya Gauta - Golden Leopard, post-nominal letters NG, is a military decoration for bravery which was instituted in 2003, to replace the Honoris Crux Gold (HCG). It is South Africa's highest military decoration for bravery.
The South African military
The Union Defence Forces (UDF) were established in 1912 and renamed the South African Defence Force (SADF) in 1958. On 27 April 1994, it was integrated with six other independent forces into the South African National Defence Force (SANDF).
Institution
The Nkwe ya Gauta - Golden Leopard, post-nominal letters NG, was instituted by the President of the Republic of South Africa on 16 April 2003 and came into effect on 27 April 2003. The bilingual title of the decoration is in Sesotho and English. This decoration replaced the Honoris Crux Gold (HCG) as South Africa's highest military decoration for bravery. It is the senior of a set of three military decorations for bravery, along with the Nkwe ya Selefera - Silver Leopard and the Nkwe ya Boronse - Bronze Leopard.
- Deliberate but daring and courageous actions, on a single occasion or over a period of time.
- A single act of valour, or most conspicuous bravery, or daring or pre-eminent act of self-sacrifice, or extreme devotion to duty in the presence of an enemy.
- A real threat of loss of own life.
- Placing a high premium on the prevention of the loss of lives.
- Actions vital to attain success.
- Perseverance under extremely difficult situations.
Order of wear
The position of the Nkwe ya Gauta - Golden Leopard in the official military and national orders of precedence is as follows:
x37px|Star for Bravery in Gold (SBG) x37px|Nkwe ya Gauta (NG) x37px|Star of South Africa, Gold (SSA)
;Official military order of precedence:
- Preceded by the Star for Bravery in Gold (SBG) of Umkhonto we Sizwe.
- Succeeded by the Star of South Africa, Gold (SSA) of the Republic of South Africa.
;Official national order of precedence:
- Preceded by the Star for Bravery in Gold (SBG) of Umkhonto we Sizwe.
- Succeeded by the Mendi Decoration for Bravery, Gold (MDG) of the Republic of South Africa.
Description
thumb|100px|Bar button and insignia for the Army, Air Force, Navy and Military Health Service
;Obverse
The Nkwe ya Gauta - Golden Leopard is a five-armed cross pattée struck in 9 carat gold, with a diameter of 38 millimetres. The arms of the cross are faceted per chevron, embowed throughout and the extremities also embowed, with each pair of arms of the cross separated by three short rays. In the centre of the obverse is a light blue enamel roundel, 19 millimetres in diameter, with a golden leopard's head.