KEY POINTS:
Why are we asking this now?
Because police are on the hunt for nine Victoria Crosses and other medals that were stolen from the Waiouru Army Museum on Sunday morning.
What is the Victoria Cross?
The Victoria Cross is a military medal awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of armed forces of the Commonwealth countries.
It may be awarded to an officer of any rank in any service, and civilians under military command.
A recommendation for the VC is usually issued by an officer at regimental level and has to be supported by three witnesses.
It has usually been presented to the recipient by the British monarch during an investiture held at Buckingham Palace.
The VC was introduced in 1856 by Queen Victoria to reward acts of valour during the Crimean War. The Victoria Cross for New Zealand was instituted in 1999 to replace the British Victoria Cross.
Who are the recipients?
The medal has been awarded 1356 times to 1353 recipients, including 22 New Zealanders.
Only 14 of the medals have been awarded since the end of the World War II. Only 13 winners are still alive.
Only three people have been awarded the VC and Bar - a medal for two separate actions - including New Zealander Charles Upham, who is probably the most famous Kiwi war hero.
Upham received his first VC for his actions in Greece during World War II. He was twice hit by mortar shrapnel and badly wounded but he refused hospital treatment and carried another wounded man to safety when forced to retire. Eight days later he fended off an attack at Sphakia, where 22 German soldiers fell to his fire.
His earned his second VC for actions in Egypt in 1942. Again Upham was wounded but kept fighting.
Eventually he was taken prisoner of war and tried to escape several times.
When the camp was liberated by American forces, most of the inmates made their way home but Upham broke into a German armoury, helped himself to weaponry and hunted Germans.
Upham was the only person to receive two VCs during World War II and the only combat soldier to receive the award twice.
The first member of the New Zealand military to win the VC was English-born Major Charles Heaphy, serving with the Auckland Rifle Volunteers during the New Zealand Wars in 1864.
The first New Zealand-born recipient was Captain Henry Cecil Dudgeon Darcy, who was awarded the VC in 1879 for an act of valour while serving with the British Army during the Zulu Wars.
The latest New Zealander to receive a VC is Corporal Willie Apiata of the Special Air Service, who received it in July for carrying a severely wounded comrade 70m over rocky ground while under heavy machine-gun fire during the Afghanistan conflict in 2004.
What does a Victoria Cross look like?
The VC is traditionally cast in gunmetal from guns captured from the Russian Army during the Crimean War. The metal is chemically treated to give a dark bronze finish. The rank, name, unit of service and the date of the act for which the cross is awarded is engraved on the medal.
The VC is manufactured by the London jeweller Hancock and Co, which has made the medal since its inception.
What is a Victoria Cross worth?
The VC is a collector's item and can reach more than $200,000 at auction. Lord Ashcroft, with 140 VCs, has the largest collection. The British businessman and politician has offered a $200,000 reward for the return of Waiouru's medals.
Charles Upham's daughters Amanda Upham and Virginia MacKenzie caused controversy last year when they sold their father's VC and Bar to a British museum. However, the honours were loaned back to Waiouru for 999 years.
