Elizabeth Webber Harris

Elizabeth Webber Harris (1834–1917) was an English nurse who was awarded a replica Victoria Cross (VC) in 1869, with the permission of Queen Victoria, for her bravery during a cholera outbreak in India. She remains the only woman to be awarded a VC of any description. She was the second child of James Matthews and Mary Ann Bailey. On 22 February 1859 she married Webber Desborough Harris (born 1823) then a captain in the 2nd Bengal Fusiliers (later renamed the 104th).

India and the Victoria Cross The details of Harris' time in India is highly reliant on her own account. In 1869 Harris was the only woman with her husband's regiment, near Peshawar (modern Pakistan), during a cholera outbreak.

Later life Harris died in 1917 in London and her ashes were interred at St Mark, Ampfield, Hampshire.

In 1920 a Royal Warrant allowed for women serving in the Armed Forces to be formally awarded the VC. However to date no woman has received the VC.

Footnotes