The medal was a sterling silver cross with an enamelled roundel in the centre bearing a lion's head, suspended from a ribbon woven half-red and half blue, with green edges and narrow white stripes at the inner edge of the green .

A total of 34 awards of the Silver Cross of Rhodesia were made,[1] three posthumously.

Notable recipients included Martin Pearse, who was killed in Lusaka in 1979 during the attempted assassination by the Rhodesian SAS of the ZAPU insurgent leader Joshua Nkomo.

Robert C. MacKenzie was awarded the medal in 1979 for his role in commanding the Beira fuel depot attack.

The Silver Cross of Rhodesia was superseded in October 1980[3] by the Silver Cross of Zimbabwe, which is also awarded for conspicuous bravery, but which is open for award to civilians as well as military personnel.