Medal of Honor explained

Medal of Honor
Presenter:	The president of the United States in the name of the United States Congress^[1]
Status:	Currently awarded
Type:	Military medal with neck ribbon (decoration)
Eligibility:	United States Armed Forces service members
Awarded For:	Conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty^[2] ^[3]
Established:	Naval Service and Marine Corps: December 21, 1861^[4] Army: July 12, 1862^[5] Air Force: August 10, 1956^[6] Coast Guard: July 25, 1963^[7] Space Force: January 1, 2021^[8]
Firstawarded:	March 25, 1863
Lastawarded:	July 4, 2024^[9]
Total Awarded Posthumously:	618^[10]
Total Recipients:	3,536^[11]
Lower:	Army: Distinguished Service Cross Naval Service: Navy Cross Air and Space Forces: Air Force Cross Coast Guard: Coast Guard Cross

The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians, and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor.^{[2] [12]} The medal is normally awarded by the President of the United States (the commander in chief of the armed forces) and is presented "in the name of the United States Congress." It is often colloquially (but technically incorrectly) referred to as the Congressional Medal of Honor.^{[13] [14]}

There are three distinct variants of the medal: one for the Department of the Army, awarded to soldiers; one for branches of the Department of the Navy, awarded to sailors, marines, and coast guardsmen; and one for military branches of the Department of the Air Force, awarded to airmen and guardians.^[15] The Medal of Honor was introduced for the Naval Service in 1861,^[16] soon followed by the Army's version in 1862.^[17] The Air Force used the Army's version until they received their own distinctive version in 1965.^[18] The Medal of Honor is the oldest continuously issued combat decoration of the United States Armed Forces.^[19] The President typically presents the Medal of Honor at a formal ceremony intended to represent the gratitude of the American people, with posthumous presentations made to the primary next of kin.^{[20] [21] [22]}

As of September 2023, there have been 3,536 Medals of Honor awarded, with over 40% awarded for actions during the American Civil War. A total of 911 Army medals were revoked after Congress authorized a review in 1917, and a number of Navy medals were also revoked before the turn of the century—none of these are included in this total except for those that were subsequently restored.^[23] In 1990, Congress designated March 25 annually as Medal of Honor Day.^[24]

History

In 1861, early in the American Civil War, a proposal for a battlefield decoration for valor was submitted to Lieutenant General Winfield Scott, the Commanding General of the United States Army, by Lieutenant Colonel Edward D. Townsend, an assistant adjutant at the Department of War and Scott's chief of staff. Scott, however, was strongly against the American republic's awarding medals for valor, a European monarchical tradition. After Scott retired in October 1861, however, Secretary of the Navy Gideon Welles adopted the idea of a decoration to recognize and honor distinguished naval service.

On December 9, 1861, Iowa Senator James W. Grimes, Chairman on the Committee on Naval Affairs,^[25] introduced bill S. 82.^{[26] [27]} The bill included a provision authorizing 200 "medals of honor," "to be bestowed upon such petty officers, seamen, landsmen, and marines as shall most distinguish themselves by their gallantry in action and other seaman-like qualities during the present war...."^[28] On December 21, the bill was passed and signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln. Secretary Welles directed the Philadelphia Mint to design the new military decoration.^{[29] [30]} On May 15, 1862, the United States Department of the Navy ordered 175 medals ($1.85 each) from the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia with "Personal Valor" inscribed on the back of each one.^[31]

On February 15, 1862, Senator Henry Wilson, the chairman of the Senate Committee on Military Affairs and the Militia, introduced a resolution (equivalent to a bill) for a Medal of Honor for the Army.^[32] The resolution (equivalent to a modern Act of Congress) was approved by Congress and signed into law on July 12, 1862.^[32] This measure provided for awarding a medal of honor "to such non-commissioned officers and privates as shall most distinguish themselves by their gallantry in action and other soldier-like qualities during the present insurrection."^[32] By mid-November the Department of War contracted with Philadelphia silversmith William Wilson and Son, who had been responsible for the Navy's design, to prepare 2,000 medals for the Army ($2.00 each) to be struck at the mint.^[33] The Army's version had "The Congress to" written on the back of the medal. Both versions were made of copper and coated with bronze, which "gave them a reddish tint."^{[34] [35]}

On March 3, 1863, Congress made the Army Medal of Honor a permanent decoration by passing legislation permitting the award to such soldiers "as have most distinguished or who may hereafter most distinguish themselves in action." The same legislation also authorized the medal for officers of the Army.^[36] On March 25, the Secretary of War presented the first Medals of Honor to six U.S. Army volunteers in his office.^[37]

In 1896, the ribbon of the Army's version of the Medal of Honor was redesigned with all stripes being vertical.^[38] Again, in 1904 the planchet of the Army's version of the Medal of Honor was redesigned by General George Lewis Gillespie.^[38] The purpose of the redesign was to help distinguish the Medal of Honor from other medals,^[39] particularly the membership insignia issued by the Grand Army of the Republic.^[40]

In 1917, based on the report of the Medal of Honor Review Board, established by Congress in 1916, 911 recipients were stricken from the Army's Medal of Honor list because the medal had been awarded inappropriately. Among them were William Frederick "Buffalo Bill" Cody and Mary Edwards Walker. In 1977, the Army's board for correction of military records unilaterally restored Walker's medal at the request of a relative. The board had no authority to overturn a statute, and the restoration violated not only the period law during the Civil War, but also the law requiring revocation in 1916, and modern law in 1977. As a reaction to Walker's restoration, a relative of Cody's requested the same action from the Army's board for correction, and it reinstated the medals for Cody and four other civilian scouts on June 12, 1989. Subsequent litigation over the Garlin Conner award, which was recommended by the Army's board for correction of military records in 2015, established that the correction boards lack the authority to unilaterally award medals of honor. In Conner's case, the board merely recommended the medal, which was then referred to the Senior Army Decorations Board, and ultimately to the Secretary of the Army, the Secretary of Defense, and the President, who requested a waiver be passed by Congress.

A separate Coast Guard Medal of Honor was authorized in 1963 but was not designed or awarded.^{[41] [7]} A separate design for a version of the medal for the Department of the Air Force was authorized in 1956,^[42] designed on April 14, 1965, and first awarded in January 1967. Previously, airmen of the U.S. Air Force received the Army's version of the medal.

Appearance

There are three versions of the Medal of Honor, one for each of the military departments of the Department of Defense (DoD): the Department of the Army, Department of the Navy (including the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard), and Department of the Air Force (Air and Space Forces). Members of the Coast Guard, part of the Department of Homeland Security, are eligible to receive the Naval version. Each medal is constructed differently, and the components are made from gilding metals and red brass alloys with some gold plating, enamel, and bronze pieces. The United States Congress considered a bill in 2004 which would require the Medal of Honor to be made with 90% gold, the same composition as the lesser-known Congressional Gold Medal, but the measure was dropped.^[43]

Army variant

The Army's version is described by the Institute of Heraldry as "a gold five-pointed star, each point tipped with trefoils, NaNinches wide, surrounded by a green laurel wreath and suspended from a gold bar inscribed VALOR, surmounted by an eagle. In the center of the star, Minerva's head surrounded by the words UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. On each ray of the star is a green oak leaf. On the reverse is a bar engraved THE CONGRESS TO with a space for engraving the name of the recipient."^[44] The pendant and suspension bar are made of gilding metal, with the eye, jump rings, and suspension ring made of red brass.^[45] The finish on the pendant and suspension bar is hard enameled, gold plated, and rose gold plated, with polished highlights.

Naval variant

The Naval version is described as "a five-pointed bronze star, tipped with trefoils containing a crown of laurel and oak. In the center is Minerva, personifying the United States, standing with her left hand resting on fasces and her right hand holding a shield emblazoned with the shield from the coat of arms of the United States. She repulses Discord, represented by snakes (originally, she was repulsing the snakes of secession). The medal is suspended from the flukes of an anchor. It is made of solid red brass, oxidized and buffed.^[46]

Air and Space Forces variant

The Air and Space Forces version is described as "within a wreath of green laurel, a gold five-pointed star, one point down, tipped with trefoils and each point containing a crown of laurel and oak on a green background. Centered on the star, an annulet of 34 stars is a representation of the head of the Statue of Liberty. The star is suspended from a bar inscribed with the word VALOR above an adaptation of Jupiter's thunderbolt from the Department of the Air Force's seal. The pendant is made of gilding metal.^[47] The connecting bar, hinge, and pin are made of bronze. The finish on the pendant and suspension bar is hard enameled, gold plated, and rose gold plated, with buffed relief.

Historic versions

See main article: Tiffany Cross Medal of Honor. The Medal of Honor has evolved in appearance over time. The upside-down star design of the Naval version's pendant adopted in early 1862 has not changed since its inception. The Army's 1862 version followed and was identical to the Naval version except an eagle perched atop cannons was used instead of an anchor to connect the pendant to the suspension ribbon. The medals featured a female allegory of the Union, with a shield in her right hand that she used to fend off a crouching attacker and serpents. In her left hand, she held a fasces. There are 34 stars surrounding the scene, representing the number of states in the union at the time.^[48] In 1896, the Army version changed the ribbon's design and colors due to misuse and imitation by nonmilitary organizations. In 1904, the Army "Gillespie" version introduced a smaller redesigned star and the ribbon was changed to the light blue pattern with white stars seen today. The 1904 Army version also introduced a bar with the word "Valor" above the star.^[48] In 1913, the Naval version adopted the same ribbon pattern.

After World War I, the Department of the Navy decided to separate the Medal of Honor into two versions, one for combat and one for non-combat. This was an attempt to circumvent the requirement enacted in 1919 that recipients participate "in action involving actual conflict with the enemy," which would have foreclosed non-combat awards. By treating the 1919 Medal of Honor as a separate award from its Civil War counterpart, this allowed the Department of the Navy to claim that it was not literally in violation of the 1919 law. The original upside-down star was designated as the non-combat version and a new pattern of the medal pendant, in cross form, was designed by the Tiffany Company in 1919. Secretary of the Navy Josephus Daniels selected Tiffany after snubbing the Commission of Fine Arts, which had submitted drawings that Daniels criticized as "un-American". The so-called Tiffany Cross was to be presented to a sailor or marine who "in action involving actual conflict with the enemy, distinguish[es] himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty."^[49] Despite the "actual conflict" guidelines, the Tiffany Cross was awarded to Navy CDR (later RADM) Richard E. Byrd and Floyd Bennett for their flight to the North Pole in 1926. The decision was controversial within the Navy's Bureau of Navigation (which handled personnel administration), and officials considered asking the attorney general of the United States for an advisory opinion on the matter. Byrd himself apparently disliked the Tiffany Cross, and eventually requested the alternate version of the medal from President Herbert Hoover in 1930. The Tiffany Cross itself was not popular among recipients—one author reflected that it was "the most short-lived, legally contentious, and unpopular version of the Medal of Honor in American history." In 1942, in response to a lawsuit, the Department of the Navy requested an amendment to expressly allow noncombat awards of the Medal of Honor. When the amendment passed, the Department of the Navy returned to using only the original 1862 inverted 5-point star design and retired the Tiffany Cross.

In 1944, the suspension ribbons for both versions were replaced with the now-familiar neck ribbon. When the Air and Space Force's version was designed in 1965,^[18] it incorporated similar elements and design from the Army version. At the Department of the Air Force leadership's insistence, the new medal depicted the Statue of Liberty's image in place of Minerva on the medal and changed the connecting device from an eagle to Jupiter's thunderbolt flanked with wings as found on the Department of the Air Force's seal.^{[50] [51]} The Air Force diverged from the traditional depiction of Minerva in part due to a desire to distinguish itself from the Army, including the Institute of Heraldry that traditionally designs awards, but which falls under the Army.

Neck ribbon, service ribbon and lapel button

On May 2, 1896, Congress authorized a "ribbon to be worn with the medal and [a] rosette or knot to be worn in lieu of the medal."^{[52] [53]} The service ribbon is light blue with five white stars in the form of an "M." It is placed first in the top position in the order of precedence and is worn for situations other than full-dress military uniform. The lapel button is a NaNinches, six-sided light blue bowknot rosette with thirteen white stars and may be worn on appropriate civilian clothing on the left lapel.

Since 1944, the Medal of Honor has been attached to a light blue colored moiré silk neck ribbon that is NaNinches in width and NaNinches in length.^[54] The center of the ribbon displays thirteen white stars in the form of three chevron. Both the top and middle chevrons are made up of 5 stars, with the bottom chevron made of 3 stars. The medal itself differs by branch:

• Army: A gold five pointed star, each point tipped with trefoils, 1½ inches wide, surrounded by a green laurel wreath and suspended from a gold bar inscribed "VALOR" surmounted by an eagle.  In the center of the star, Minerva's head surrounded by the words "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA."  On each ray of the star is a green oak leaf.  On the reverse is a bar engraved "THE CONGRESS TO" with a space for engraving the name of the recipient.^[55]
• Department of the Navy: The current Navy Medal of Honor is a five-pointed bronze star, tipped with trefoils containing a crown of laurel and oak. In the center is Minerva, personifying the United States, standing with left hand resting of fasces and right hand holding a shield blazoned with the shield from the coat of arms of the United States. She repulses Discord, represented by snakes. The medal is suspended from the flukes of an anchor.^[56]
• Department of the Air Force: Within a wreath of green laurel, a gold five-pointed star, one point down, tipped with trefoils and each point containing a crown of laurel and oak on a green background. Centered on the star, an annulet of 34 stars is a representation of the head of the Statue of Liberty. The star is suspended from a bar inscribed with the word "VALOR" above an adaptation of the thunderbolt from the Air Force Coat of Arms.^[57]

The Medal of Honor is one of only two United States military awards suspended from a neck ribbon.^[58] The other is the Commander's Degree of the Legion of Merit, and is usually awarded to individuals serving foreign governments.^{[59] [60]}

Devices

In 2011, Department of Defense instructions in regard to the Medal of Honor were amended to read "for each succeeding act that would otherwise justify award of the Medal of Honor, the individual receiving the subsequent award is authorized to wear an additional Medal of Honor ribbon and/or a 'V' device on the Medal of Honor suspension ribbon" (the "V" device is a NaNadj=midNaNadj=mid bronze miniature letter "V" with serifs that denotes valor). The Medal of Honor was the only decoration authorized to use the "V" device (none were ever issued) to designate subsequent awards in such a fashion. Nineteen individuals, all now deceased, were double Medal of Honor recipients.^[61] In July 2014, DoD instructions were changed to read, "A separate MOH is presented to an individual for each succeeding act that justified award," removing the authorization for the "V" device.^[62]

Medal of Honor Flag

On October 23, 2002, was enacted, modifying, authorizing a Medal of Honor Flag to be presented to each person to whom a Medal of Honor is awarded. In the case of a posthumous award, the flag will be presented to whomever the Medal of Honor is presented to, which in most cases will be the primary next of kin of the deceased awardee.^{[63] [64]}

The flag was based on a concept by retired U.S. Army Special Forces First Sergeant Bill Kendall of Jefferson, Iowa,^[65] who in 2001, designed a flag to honor Medal of Honor recipient Army Air Forces Captain Darrell Lindsey, a B-26 pilot from Jefferson who was killed in action during World War II. Kendall's design of a light blue field emblazoned with 13 white five-pointed stars was nearly identical to that of Sarah LeClerc's of the Institute of Heraldry. LeClerc's gold-fringed flag, ultimately accepted as the official flag, does not include the words "Medal of Honor" as written on Kendall's flag. The color of the field and the 13 white stars, arranged in the form of a three-bar chevron, consisting of two chevrons of five stars and one chevron of three stars,^[3] emulate the suspension ribbon of the Medal of Honor. The flag has no defined proportions.^[66]

The first Medal of Honor Flag recipient was U.S. Army Sergeant First Class Paul R. Smith, whose flag was presented posthumously. President George W. Bush presented the Medal of Honor and Flag to the family of Smith during the award ceremony for him in the White House on April 4, 2005.^[67]

A special Medal of Honor Flag presentation ceremony was held for over 60 living Medal of Honor recipients on board the in September 2006.^[68]

Presentation

There are two distinct protocols for recommending and adjudicating the Medal of Honor. The first and most common is recommendation within three years and approval within five years through the chain of command of the service member.^[69] The second method, which normally applies outside of the statute of limitations, is when a recommendation is referred to a military service by a member of the U.S. Congress, generally at the request of a constituent under . In both cases, if the proposal is outside the time limits for the recommendation, approval to waive the time limit requires a special Act of Congress. The Medal of Honor is presented by the President on behalf of, and in the name of, the Congress.^[70] Since 1980, nearly all Medal of Honor recipients—or in the case of posthumous awards, the next of kin—have been personally decorated by the president.^{[71] [72]} Since 1941, more than half of the Medals of Honor have been awarded posthumously.^[73]

Evolution of criteria

• 19th century (Navy): Navy regulations published in 1865 specified that "The medal shall only be awarded to those petty officers, and others indicated, who shall have evinced in battle some signal act of valor or devotion to their country; and nothing save such conduct, coupled with good general qualities in the service, shall be held to establish a sufficient claim to it."^[74] The regulation also permitted awards to seamen for "extraordinary heroism in the line of their profession," which meant heroism outside of combat operations.^[75]
• 19th century (Army): Several months after President Abraham Lincoln signed Public Resolution 82 into law on December 21, 1861, for a Navy medal of honor, a similar resolution was passed in July 1862 for an Army version of the medal. Six U.S. Army soldiers who hijacked a Confederate locomotive named The General in 1862 were the first Medal of Honor recipients; James J. Andrews led the raid. He was caught and hanged as a U.S. spy, but as a civilian he was not eligible to receive the medal. Many Medals of Honor awarded in the 19th century were associated with "saving the flag" (and country), not just for patriotic reasons, but because the U.S. flag was a primary means of battlefield communication at the time. Because no other military decoration was authorized during the Civil War, some seemingly less exceptional and notable actions were recognized by a Medal of Honor during that conflict.
• 20th century: Early in the twentieth century, the Department of the Navy awarded many Medals of Honor for peacetime bravery. For instance, in 1901, John Henry Helms aboard was awarded the medal for saving the ship's cook from drowning. Seven sailors aboard were awarded the medal after the ship's boiler exploded on January 25, 1904. Richard Byrd and Floyd Bennett were awarded the medal—the combat ("Tiffany") version despite the existence then of a non-combat form of the Navy medal—for the 1926 flight they claim reached the North Pole.^[76] And Admiral Thomas J. Ryan was awarded the medal for saving a woman from the burning Grand Hotel in Yokohama, Japan, following the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake.^[77] Between 1919 and 1942, the Department of the Navy issued two separate versions of the Medal of Honor, one for acts related to combat and one for non-combat bravery. The criteria for the award tightened during World War I for the Army version of the Medal of Honor, while the Navy version retained a non-combat provision until 1963. In an Act of Congress of July 9, 1918, the War Department version of the medal required that the recipient "distinguish himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty," and also required that the act of valor be performed "in action involving actual conflict with an enemy."^[78] This followed shortly after the results of the Army Medal of Honor Review Board, which struck 911 medals from the Medal of Honor list in February 1917 for lack of basic prerequisites. These included the members of the 27th Maine erroneously awarded the medal for reenlisting to guard the capital during the Civil War, 29 members of Abraham Lincoln's funeral detail, and six civilians, including Buffalo Bill Cody (restored along with four other scouts in 1989)^[79] and a doctor, Mary Edwards Walker, who had cared for the sick (this last was restored posthumously in 1977).^[80]
• World War II: As a result of lawsuits, the Department of the Navy requested the Congress expressly authorize non-combat medals in the text of the authorizing statute, since the department had been awarding non-combat medals with questionable legal backing that had caused it much embarrassment. The last non-combat Navy Medal of Honor was awarded in 1945, although the Department of the Navy attempted to award a non-combat Medal of Honor as late as the Korean War. Official accounts vary, but generally, the Medal of Honor for combat was known as the "Tiffany Cross", after the company that designed the medal. The Tiffany Cross was first awarded in 1919, but was unpopular partly because of its design as well as a lower gratuity than the Navy's original medal. The Tiffany Cross Medal of Honor was awarded at least three times in non-combat circumstances. By a special Act of Congress, the medal was presented to Byrd and Bennett (see above).^{[81] [82]} In 1942, the Department of the Navy reverted to a single Medal of Honor, although the statute still contained a loophole allowing the award for both "action involving actual conflict with the enemy" or "in the line of his profession."^[83] Arising from these criteria, approximately 60 percent of the medals earned during and after World War II have been awarded posthumously.^[84]
• Public Law 88–77, July 25, 1963: The requirements for the Medal of Honor were standardized among all the services, requiring that a recipient had "distinguished himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty."^[85] Thus, the act removed the loophole allowing non-combat awards to Navy personnel. The act also clarified that the act of valor must occur during one of three circumstances:^[86]

1. While engaged in action against an enemy of the United States
2. While engaged in military operations involving conflict with an opposing foreign force.
3. While serving with friendly foreign forces engaged in an armed conflict against an opposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party.^{[87] [88]}

• Congress drew these three circumstances of combat from President Kennedy's executive order of April 25, 1962, which previously added the same criteria to the Purple Heart. On August 24, Kennedy added similar criteria for the Bronze Star Medal.^{[89] [90]} The amendment was necessary because Cold War armed conflicts did not qualify for consideration under previous statutes such as the 1918 Army Medal of Honor statute that required valor "in action involving actual conflict with an enemy,"^[91] since the United States has not formally declared war since World War II as a result of the provisions of the United Nations Charter. According to congressional testimony by the Army's Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel, the services were seeking authority to award the Medal of Honor and other valor awards retroactive to July 1, 1958, in areas such as Berlin, Lebanon, Quemoy and Matsu Islands, Taiwan Straits, Congo, Laos, Vietnam, and Cuba.^[89]

Revocation

• 19th century: Early Navy regulations published in the Civil War era permitted the Navy Department to unilaterally rescind Medals of Honor for dishonorable behavior, including being "convicted of treason, cowardice, felony, or any infamous crime." As a result, at least 15 medals were revoked in the nineteenth century, including a medal for Third-Class Boy George Hollat, whose medal was revoked for desertion. Hollat's name erroneously remains on the Navy's list of medal recipients in modern times. The Army did not revoke any medals until the twentieth century.
• 20th century: In the early twentieth century the Medal of Honor Legion requested that some Army Medals of Honor be revoked, in particular the 864 medals awarded to members of the 27th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment for reenlisting to guard the capital during the Civil War. The Judge Advocate General of the Army determined that it would be unlawful for the Army to revoke the medals unilaterally absent "fraud, mistake in matters of fact arising from errors in calculation, or newly discovered material evidence," since this would require reopening acts or decisions of predecessors, and thus unsettling administrative res judicata (an administrative finality doctrine).^[92] This interpretation led Congress to authorize a review to revoke these medals in 1916, leading to the revocation of 911 medals.^[92] The Army later authorized revocation of service medals due to misconduct in 1961, and eventually expanded this authority to include valor decorations (including the Medal of Honor) in 1974.^[93] The Army regulation stated "[o]nce an award has been presented, it may be revoked if facts subsequently determined would have prevented original approval of the award, had they been known at the time of award."^[94] Eventually, all services' regulations permitted revocation on similar grounds: the Air Force adopted unilateral revocation of valor decorations in 1969,^[95] and Navy adopted regulations permitting revocation of valor decorations in 1976.^[96]
• 21st century: Unilateral revocation of decorations (including the Medal of Honor) were eventually standardized by the Office of the Secretary of Defense after controversy surrounding the revocation of the Distinguished Service Cross approved for Army Major Mathew L. Golsteyn, who was charged with murdering a detainee but then pardoned (a grant of forgiveness, which differs from a court's finding of innocence) by President Trump before trial.^[97] This incident led DoD to clarify the prerequisites for revoking military awards due to misconduct in the DoD Awards Manual in 2019: "[t]he revocation of [personal military decorations] under the 'honorable' service requirement should be used sparingly and should be limited to those cases where the Service member's actions are not compatible with continued military service, result in criminal convictions, result in determinations that the Service member did not serve satisfactorily in a specific grade or position, or result in a discharge from military service that is characterized as 'Other Than Honorable,' 'Bad Conduct,' or 'Dishonorable.'"^[98] DoD also requested that Congress expand the statutory requirement for honorable service after award qualification to include all military decorations, which passed in December 2019.^[99] In 2019, a bill titled "Remove the Stain Act" sought to revoke Medals of Honor awarded for conduct during the Wounded Knee Massacre of 1890.^[100] The bill directed revocation of 20 Medals of Honor, and also directed removal of the recipients from the Medal of Honor Roll.^[100] The number of medals awarded for conduct at Wounded Knee--which was actually 19--was based on a mistake in the War Department's circular listings in the 1890s, which transcribed Private Marvin Hillock as a Wounded Knee recipient despite actually earning the medal at White Clay Creek a day later.^[101] Directing revocation from the MoH Roll was also a mistake, as the Roll of that time was merely a pension listing for recipients who lived past the age of 65 and separated honorably from the military without retiring.^[102] Since many of the Wounded Knee recipients did not live to the age of 65, were discharged dishonorably, or were retired from the military, this meant they never would have been on the Roll. The Remove the Stain Act did not pass despite being added to the House version of the FY2022 National Defense Authorization Act.^[103] In that particular case, the Senate Committee on Armed Services reflected that "these Medals of Honor were awarded at the prerogative of the President of the United States, not the Congress," suggesting that it was not the role of the legislature to direct awarding or revocation of medals, rather to control the authorizing criteria for the award.^[103]

Authority and privileges

The four specific statutory sections authorizing the medal, as last amended on January 1, 2021, are as follows:^[87]

• Army:
• Navy and Marine Corps:
• Air Force and Space Force:
• Coast Guard: A version is authorized but it has never been awarded.

Privileges and courtesies

The Medal of Honor confers special privileges on its recipients:^{[104] [105]}

• Each Medal of Honor recipient may have his or her name entered on the Medal of Honor Roll (and) so long as they qualified for the medal under modern statutory authority.
• Each person whose name is placed on the Medal of Honor Roll is certified to the United States Department of Veterans Affairs as being entitled to receive a monthly pension above and beyond any military pensions or other benefits for which they may be eligible. The pension is subject to cost-of-living increases;, it is $1,671.16 a month.^[106]
• Enlisted recipients of the Medal of Honor are entitled to a supplemental uniform allowance.
• Recipients receive special entitlements to air transportation under the provisions of DOD Regulation 4515.13-R. This benefit allows the recipient to travel as deemed fit, as well as allows the recipient's dependents to travel either overseas–overseas, overseas–continental U.S., or continental U.S.–overseas when accompanied by the recipient.^[107]
• Special identification cards and commissary and exchange privileges are provided for Medal of Honor recipients and their eligible dependents.^[108]
• Recipients are granted eligibility for interment at Arlington National Cemetery, if not otherwise eligible.^[109]
• Fully qualified children of recipients are automatically nominated to any of the United States service academies, although they must otherwise be qualified for admission.^[110]
• Recipients receive a ten percent increase in retired pay.
• Those awarded the medal after October 23, 2002, receive a Medal of Honor Flag. The law specified that all 103 living prior recipients as of that date would receive a flag.
• Recipients receive an invitation to all future presidential inaugurations and inaugural balls.^[111]
• As with all medals, retired personnel may wear the Medal of Honor on "appropriate" civilian clothing. Regulations specify that recipients of the Medal of Honor are allowed to wear the uniform "at their pleasure" with standard restrictions on political, commercial, or extremist purposes (other former members of the armed forces may do so only at certain ceremonial occasions).^[112]
• Forty states offer a special license plate for certain types of vehicles to recipients at little or no cost to the recipient.^{[113] [114]} The states that do not offer Medal of Honor specific license plate offer special license plates for veterans for which recipients may be eligible.^[115]
• In 1969, the Nebraska State Legislature amended the Nebraska Hall of Fame statutes "to provide that Nebraskans awarded the Medal of Honor shall be named to the Hall of Fame" and required that the Hall of Fame Commission procure a plaque with the names of the Medal of Honor recipients.^[116]

Saluting

• Although not required by law or military regulation of all military services,^{[117] [118] [119]} members of the uniformed services are encouraged to render salutes to recipients of the Medal of Honor as a matter of respect and courtesy regardless of rank or status, whether or not they are in uniform.^[120] This is one of the few instances where a living member of the military will receive salutes from members of a higher rank. According to paragraph 1.8.1.1 of Air Force Instruction 1-1, the United States Air Force requires that salutes be rendered to Medal of Honor recipients.^[121]

Legal protection

• 1904: The Army redesigned its Medal of Honor, largely a reaction to the copying of the Medal of Honor by various veterans organizations, such as the Grand Army of the Republic.^[122] To prevent the making of copies of the medal, Brigadier General George Gillespie, Jr., a Medal of Honor recipient from the Civil War, applied for and obtained a patent for the new design.^{[122] [123]} General Gillespie received the patent on November 22, 1904,^[123] and he transferred it the following month to the Secretary of War at the time, William Howard Taft.^[122]
• 1923: Congress passed a statute (the year before the 20-year term of the patent would expire)—which would later be codified at 18 U.S.C. §704—prohibiting the unauthorized wearing, manufacturing, or sale of military medals or decorations.^[124] In 1994, Congress amended the statute to permit an enhanced penalty if the offense involved the Medal of Honor.^[125]
• 2006: The Stolen Valor Act of 2005 was enacted.^[126] The law amended 18 U.S.C. § 704 to make it a federal criminal offense for a person to deliberately state falsely that he or she had been awarded a military decoration, service medal, or badge.^{[127] [128]} The law also permitted an enhanced penalty for someone who falsely claimed to have been awarded the Medal of Honor.
• June 28, 2012: In the case of United States v. Alvarez, the Supreme Court of the United States held that the Stolen Valor Act of 2005's criminalization of the making of false claims of having been awarded a military medal, decoration, or badge was an unconstitutional violation of the First Amendment's guarantee of free speech.^[129] The case involved an elected official in California, Xavier Alvarez, who had falsely stated at a public meeting that he had been awarded the Medal of Honor, even though he had never served in any branch of the armed forces. The Supreme Court's decision did not specifically address the constitutionality of the older portion of the statute which prohibits the unauthorized wearing, manufacturing, or sale of military medals or decorations. Under the law, the unauthorized wearing, manufacturing, or sale of the Medal of Honor is punishable by a fine of up to $100,000 and imprisonment of up to one year.^[130]
• June 3, 2013: President Barack Obama signed into law a revised version of the Stolen Valor Act, making it a federal offense for someone to falsely represent themselves as awardees of medals for valor in order to receive "money, property, or other tangible benefit" (including grants, educational benefits, housing, etc.).^{[131] [132]} False representations about the Medal of Honor or other valor decorations still result in a fine or imprisonment up to one year, or both, but are now narrowly tailored to financial gain rather than protected speech.^[133] As of 2017, there were only two reported arrests and prosecutions under the law, leading at least 22 states to enact their own legislation to criminalize stolen valor amid claims that the federal law was virtually unenforced.^[134]

Duplicate medals

Medal of Honor recipients may apply in writing to the headquarters of the service branch of the medal awarded for a replacement or display Medal of Honor, ribbon, and appurtenance (Medal of Honor flag) without charge. Primary next of kin may also do the same and have any questions answered in regard to the Medal of Honor that was awarded.^[135]

Recipients

See main article: List of Medal of Honor recipients.

• The first Medals of Honor were awarded and presented to six U.S. Army soldiers ("Andrews Raiders") on March 25, 1863, by Secretary of War Edwin Stanton, in his office of the War Department. Private Jacob Parrott, a U.S. Army volunteer from Ohio, became the first actual Medal of Honor recipient, awarded for his volunteering for and participation in a raid on a Confederate train in Big Shanty, Georgia, on April 12, 1862, during the American Civil War. After the medal presentations, the six decorated soldiers met with President Lincoln in the White House.^[136]
• Bernard John Dowling Irwin was the first (chronologically by action) Medal of Honor recipient during the Apache Wars. His actions on February 13, 1861, are the earliest for which the Medal of Honor was awarded.^[137]
• The first U.S. Navy sailors were awarded the Medal of Honor on April 3, 1863. 41 sailors received the award, with 17 awards for action during the Battle of Forts Jackson and St. Philip.^[138]
• The first marines awarded the Medal of Honor were John F. Mackie and Pinkerton R. Vaughn on July 10, 1863;^[139] Mackie for on May 15, 1862, and Vaughn for on March 14, 1863.
• The first, and so far only, Coast Guardsman to be awarded the Medal of Honor was Signalman First Class Douglas Munro. He was posthumously awarded it on May 27, 1943, for evacuating 500 marines under fire on September 27, 1942, during the Battle of Guadalcanal.
• The only woman awarded the Medal of Honor is Mary Edwards Walker, who was a civilian Army acting assistant surgeon during the American Civil War. She received the award in 1865 after the Judge Advocate General of the Army determined that she could be given a retroactive commission or brevet, but Secretary of War Stanton ruled against her in spite of this legal advice.^[140] Instead of a commission, President Andrew Johnson directed that "the usual medal of honor for meritorious services be given her." Evidently, Johnson did not know that the award was restricted by law to soldiers, which made the award unlawful. This defect later led to the award's revocation in 1917, and then questionable reinstatement by the Army's Board for Correction of Military Records in 1977.^[141]
• The first black recipients of the Medal of Honor were sixteen Army soldiers and sixteen Navy sailors that fought during the Civil War. The first black recipient was Robert Blake, who received the medal on April 16, 1864 for serving as a powder boy on the USS Marblehead.^[142] The first Army award was announced on April 6, 1865, to twelve black soldiers from the five regiments of U.S. Colored Troops who fought at New Market Heights outside of Richmond on September 29, 1864.^[48] The first action by a black man to eventually earn the Medal of Honor was by William Harvey Carney. He earned the Medal during the Battle of Fort Wagner, but was not presented with it until 1900.
• The only Medal of Honor to be classified as "top secret" was awarded to Hiroshi "Hershey" Miyamura for his actions on April 24, 1951, during the Korean War when he was presumed dead. The Medal of Honor, which had not been publicly announced, was classified as top secret for his protection until his release in August 1953.^[143]

The 1917 Medal of Honor Board revoked 911 awards, but only 910 names from the Army's Medal of Honor list, including awards to Mary Edwards Walker, William F. "Buffalo Bill" Cody and the first of two awards issued February 10, 1887, to George W. Mindil, who retained his award issued October 25, 1893. None of the 910 impacted recipients were ordered to return their medals, although on the question of whether the recipients could continue to wear their medals, the Judge Advocate General advised the Medal of Honor Board that the Army was not obligated to police the matter. Walker continued to wear her medal until her death. Although some sources claim that President Jimmy Carter formally restored her medal posthumously in 1977,^[144] this action was actually taken unilaterally by the Army's Board for Correction of Military Records. The Army Board for Correction of Military Records also restored the Medals of Honor of Buffalo Bill and four other civilian scouts in 1989.

• Sixty-one Canadians who served in the United States Armed Forces earned the Medal of Honor, most during the American Civil War. Since 1900, four Canadians have received the medal.^[145] The only Canadian-born, naturalized U.S. citizen to receive the medal for heroism during the Vietnam War was Peter C. Lemon.^[146]

While the governing statute for the Army's Medal of Honor, beginning in 1918, explicitly stated that a recipient must be "an officer or enlisted man of the Army," "distinguish himself conspicuously by gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of his life above and beyond the call of duty," and perform an act of valor "in action involving actual conflict with an enemy,"^[78] exceptions have been made:

• Charles Lindbergh, 1927, civilian pilot, and U.S. Army Air Corps reserve officer.^[147] Lindbergh's medal was authorized by a special act of Congress, which effectively waived his ineligibility on the grounds of not being on duty, performing an act of gallantry, or being in combat.^[78] Lindbergh's award also violated President Coolidge's executive order prohibiting multiple awards for the same action, as he also received a Distinguished Flying Cross for the same transatlantic flight.
• Major General (Retired) Adolphus Greely was awarded the medal in 1935, on his 91st birthday, "for his life of splendid public service." The result of a special act of Congress similar to Lindbergh's, Greely's medal citation did not reference any acts of valor.^[148]
• Foreign unknown recipients include five WWI Unknowns: the Belgian Unknown Soldier, the British Unknown Warrior, the French Unknown Soldier, the Italian Unknown Soldier, and the Romanian Unknown Soldier.^[149]
• U.S. unknown recipients include one each from four wars: World War I,^[150] World War II,^[151] Korea,^[152] and Vietnam.^[153] The Vietnam Unknown was later identified as Air Force First Lieutenant Michael Blassie through the use of DNA identification. Blassie's family asked for his Medal of Honor, but the Department of Defense denied the request in 1998. According to Undersecretary of Defense Rudy de Leon, the medal was awarded symbolically to all Vietnam unknowns, not to Blassie specifically.^[154] The action also resulted in clarification of unknown medal awards in the FY2005 defense bill, which expressly stated such medals are "awarded to the member as a representative of the members of the armed forces who died in such war or other armed conflict and whose remains have not been identified, and not to the individual personally."

Conflict!scope="col"

Date	Medal count (3,530)	List article
Civil War	1861–1865	1,523	American Civil War Medal of Honor recipients
Indian Wars	1865–1891	426	Medal of Honor recipients for the Indian Wars
Korean Expedition	1871	15	Medal of Honor recipients in Korea
Spanish–American War	1898	110	Medal of Honor recipients for the Spanish–American War
Second Samoan Civil War	1899	4	Medal of Honor recipients for the Samoan Civil War
Philippine–American War	1899–1902	86	Philippine–American War Medal of Honor recipients
Boxer Rebellion	1899–1901	59	Medal of Honor recipients for the Boxer Rebellion
Occupation of Veracruz	1914	56	Medal of Honor recipients for Veracruz
United States occupation of Haiti	1915–1934	8	Medal of Honor recipients for Haiti
Dominican Republic Occupation	1916–1924	3	Medal of Honor recipients for the Occupation of the Dominican Republic
World War I	1914–1918	126	Medal of Honor recipients for World War I
Occupation of Nicaragua	1912–1933	2	Medal of Honor recipients for Occupation of Nicaragua
World War II	1939–1945	472	Medal of Honor recipients for World War II
Korean War	1950–1953	146	Korean War Medal of Honor recipients
Vietnam War	1955–1975	268	Medal of Honor recipients for the Vietnam War
USS Liberty incident	1967	1	Medal of Honor recipients for the USS Liberty incident
Battle of Mogadishu	1993	2	Medal of Honor recipients for the Battle of Mogadishu
Iraq War	2003–2011	7	Medal of Honor recipients for the Iraq War
War in Afghanistan	2001–2021	20	Medal of Honor recipients for the War in Afghanistan
Operation Inherent Resolve	2014–present	1	Medal of Honor recipients for Operation Inherent Resolve
Noncombat	1865–1939	193	Medal of Honor recipients in non-combat incidents
Unknown soldiers	1914–1973	9	Unknown Medal of Honor recipients (4 American and 5 Allies)

Note that the number of Air Force recipients does not count recipients from its pre-September 19, 1947, Army-related predecessor organizations. Nevertheless, the Air Force's transfer agreement gave it retroactive jurisdiction over military awards to the date the Air Corps was authorized by statute: Jul. 2, 1926. Thus, were a decoration submitted retroactively for an aviator's actions on or after that date (including a Medal of Honor), it would be processed by the Air Force despite the fact that the Air Force did not yet exist as a separate service.^[158]

Double recipients

Nineteen service members have been awarded the Medal of Honor twice. The first double Medal of Honor recipient was Thomas Custer (brother of George Armstrong Custer) for two separate actions that took place several days apart during the American Civil War.^[159]

Five "double recipients" were awarded both the Army's and Navy's Medal of Honor for the same action, with all five of these occurrences taking place during World War I.^[160] This was a consequence of the marine recipients serving under Army command, which had been reviewed by the Army's judge advocate general. According to the judge advocate general, the marines were "a party 'of the Army'" since they were detached for service under the Army by presidential directive, and thus were subject to the Army's decoration statutes for that time period. No modern recipients have more than one medal because of laws passed for the Army in 1918, and for the Navy in 1919, which stipulated that "no more than one medal of honor . . . shall be issued to any one person," although subsequent awards were authorized by issuance of bars or other devices in lieu of the medal itself. The prohibition on double awards did not technically apply to the double recipients of WWI because they received Medals of Honor from different services, which meant the same medals were not duplicated and had independent statutory authority. Later, in 1927, President Coolidge issued an executive order that forbade issuing more than one federal decoration for the same action, a policy that continues through the present time. The statutory bar on issuing multiple medals was finally repealed in the FY2014 defense bill,^[161] at the request of the Office of the Secretary of Defense, meaning that recipients can now be issued more than one medal rather than simply receiving a device for subsequent awards. However, no more than one medal may be issued for the same action.

To date, the maximum number of Medals of Honor earned by any service member has been two.^[41] The last living individual to be awarded two Medals of Honor was John J. Kelly, on October 3, 1918; the last individual to receive two Medals of Honor for two different actions was Smedley Butler, in 1914 and 1915. None of the double awardees earned two distinct medals under modern Medal of Honor criteria, although the WWI awardees qualified under substantially modern statutes.

Name	Service	Rank	War(s)	Notes
data-sort-value="Baldwin"	Frank Baldwin	Army	First Lieutenant, Captain	American Civil War, Indian Wars
data-sort-value="Butler"	Smedley Butler	Marine Corps	Major	Veracruz, Haiti
data-sort-value="Cooper"	John Cooper	Navy	Coxswain	American Civil War
data-sort-value="Cukela"	Louis Cukela	Marine Corps	Sergeant	World War I	Awarded both Navy and Army versions for same action.
data-sort-value="Custer"	Thomas Custer	Army	Second Lieutenant	American Civil War	Battle of Namozine Church on April 3 and Battle of Sayler's Creek on April 6, 1865.
data-sort-value="Daly"	Daniel Daly	Marine Corps	Private, Gunnery Sergeant	Boxer Rebellion, Haiti	^[162]
data-sort-value="Hogan"	Henry Hogan	Army	First Sergeant	Indian Wars
data-sort-value="Janson"	Ernest A. Janson	Marine Corps	Gunnery Sergeant	World War I	Both awarded for same action. Received the Army MOH under the name Charles F. Hoffman.
data-sort-value="Kelly"	John J. Kelly	Marine Corps	Private	World War I	Both awarded for same action.
data-sort-value="King"	John King	Navy	Water tender	Peacetime	1901 and 1909
data-sort-value="Kocak"	Matej Kocak	Marine Corps	Sergeant	World War I	Both awarded for same action.
data-sort-value="Lafferty"	John Lafferty	Navy		American Civil War, peacetime
data-sort-value="McCloy"	John C. McCloy	Navy	Coxswain, Chief Boatswain	Boxer Rebellion, Veracruz
data-sort-value="Mullen"	Patrick Mullen	Navy	Boatswain's Mate	American Civil War
data-sort-value="Pruitt"	John H. Pruitt	Marine Corps	Corporal	World War I	Both awarded for same action.
data-sort-value="Sweeney"	Robert Sweeney	Navy	Ordinary Seaman	Peacetime	1881 and 1883
data-sort-value="Weisbogel"	Albert Weisbogel	Navy	Captain of the Mizzen Top	Peacetime	1874 and 1876
data-sort-value="Williams"	Louis Williams	Navy	Captain of the Hold	Peacetime	1883 and 1884. Also known as Ludwig Andreas Olsen.
data-sort-value="Wilson"	William Wilson	Army	Sergeant	Indian Wars

Related recipients

Arthur MacArthur, Jr. and Douglas MacArthur are the first father and son to be awarded the Medal of Honor. The only other such pairing is Theodore Roosevelt (awarded in 2001) and Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. Notably, one member in each pair was strongly influenced by political considerations; Douglas MacArthur's medal was approved for service in violation of both law and policy that prohibited such action, and Theodore Roosevelt's medal was approved after members of Congress successfully lobbied the Secretary of the Army to reverse a prior determination that "Theodore Roosevelt's bravery in battle did not rise to the level that would justify the Medal of Honor and, indeed, it did not rise to the level of men who fought in that engagement."

Five pairs of brothers have received the Medal of Honor:

• John and William Black, in the American Civil War. The Blacks are the first brothers to be so honored.
• Charles and Henry Capehart, in the American Civil War, the latter for saving a drowning man while under fire.
• Antoine and Julien Gaujot. The Gaujots also have the unique distinction of receiving their medals for actions in separate conflicts, Antoine in the Philippine–American War and Julien when he crossed the Mexican border to rescue Mexicans and Americans in a Mexican Revolution skirmish.
• Harry and Willard Miller, during the same naval action in the Spanish–American War.
• Allen and James Thompson, in the same American Civil War action.

Another notable pair of related recipients are Admiral Frank Friday Fletcher (rear admiral at the time of award) and his nephew, Admiral Frank Jack Fletcher (lieutenant at the time of award), both awarded for actions during the United States occupation of Veracruz.

Late awards

Since 1979, 86 late Medal of Honor awards have been presented for actions from the Civil War to the Vietnam War. In addition, five recipients whose names were included on the Army's medal revocations in 1917 had their awards restored.^[163] A 1993 study commissioned by the U.S. Army investigated "racial disparity" in the awarding of medals.^[164] At the time, no Medals of Honor had been awarded to U.S. soldiers of African descent who served in World War II. After an exhaustive review, the study recommended that ten Distinguished Service Cross recipients be awarded the Medal of Honor. On January 13, 1997, President Bill Clinton presented the Medal of Honor to seven of these World War II veterans, six of them posthumously and one to former Second Lieutenant Vernon Baker.

In 1998, a similar study of Asian Americans resulted in Clinton presenting 22 Medals of Honor in 2000.^[165] This was following a historical review conducted by a team of historians headed by Jim McNaughton at the Defense Language Institute Foreign Language Center, located in the Presidio of Monterey, California.^[166] The review ultimately forwarded at least 47 cases of Distinguished Services Crosses for potential upgrade, as well as one Silver Star.^[167] Twenty of the resulting medals went to U.S. soldiers of Japanese descent of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team (442nd RCT) who served in the European Theater of Operations during World War II.^{[165] [168]} One of these Medal of Honor recipients was Senator Daniel Inouye, a former U.S. Army officer in the 442nd RCT.

In 2005, President George W. Bush presented the Medal of Honor to Tibor Rubin, a Hungarian-born American Jew who was a Holocaust survivor of World War II and enlisted U.S. infantryman and prisoner of war in the Korean War, whom many believed to have been overlooked because of his religion.^[169]

On April 11, 2013, President Obama presented the Medal of Honor posthumously to Army chaplain Captain Emil Kapaun for his actions as a prisoner of war during the Korean War.^[170] This follows other awards to Army Sergeant Leslie H. Sabo, Jr. for conspicuous gallantry in action on May 10, 1970, near Se San, Cambodia, during the Vietnam War^[171] and to Army Private First Class Henry Svehla and Army Private First Class Anthony T. Kahoʻohanohano for their heroic actions during the Korean War.^[172]

As a result of a congressionally mandated review to ensure brave acts were not overlooked due to prejudice or discrimination, on March 18, 2014, President Obama upgraded Distinguished Service Crosses to Medals of Honor for 24 Hispanic, Jewish and black individuals—the "Valor 24"—for their actions in World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War. Three were still living at the time of the ceremony.^[173]

On November 6, 2014, President Obama presented the Medal of Honor posthumously to First Lieutenant Alonzo Cushing for actions on July 3, 1863, during the Battle of Gettysburg. Lieutenant Cushing's award is the last Medal of Honor to be presented to a soldier in the American Civil War, 151 years after the date of the action.^[174]

In 2010 and again in 2014, Congress directed the Department of Defense to “survey military leaders . . . to the lowest level of command to determine if there is a trend of downgrading awards . . . for medals related to acts of valor and gallantry,” and also to “review the Medal of Honor process to ensure that the nomination process, valor requirements, and timeliness of the process do not unfairly penalize service members.” This ultimately resulted in a review of all post 9/11 valor awards, several of which resulted in Medals of Honor.

Another historical review for World War I medals that may have been tainted by discrimination was authorized in the FY2021 National Defense Authorization Act.^[175] Conducted under the George S. Rob Centre at Park University, the review is still ongoing but has already identified some 200 medals for potential upgrade.^[176]

27th Maine and other revoked awards

During the Civil War, Secretary of War Edwin M. Stanton promised a Medal of Honor to every man in the 27th Maine Volunteer Infantry Regiment who extended his enlistment beyond his separation date. The Battle of Gettysburg was imminent, and 311 men of the regiment volunteered to serve until the battle was resolved. The remaining men returned to Maine, and with the Union victory at Gettysburg the 311 volunteers soon followed. They arrived back in Maine in time to be discharged with the men who had returned earlier. Since there seemed to be no official list of the 311 volunteers, the War Department exacerbated the situation by forwarding 864 medals to the commanding officer of the regiment. The commanding officer only issued the medals to the volunteers who stayed behind and retained the others on the grounds that, if he returned the remainder to the War Department, the War Department would try to reissue the medals.

In 1916, a board of five Army generals on the retired list convened under act of law to review every Army Medal of Honor awarded. The board was to report on any Medals of Honor awarded or issued "for any cause other than distinguished conduct by an officer or enlisted man in action involving actual conflict with an enemy." The board, led by Nelson A. Miles, identified 911 awards for causes other than distinguished conduct. This included the 864 medals awarded to members of the 27th Maine regiment; 29 servicemen who served as Abraham Lincoln's funeral guard; six civilians, including Mary Edwards Walker and Buffalo Bill Cody; and 12 others. Walker's medal was restored by the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in 1977, an action that is often attributed to President Jimmy Carter in error. Cody and four other civilian scouts who rendered distinguished service in action, and who were therefore considered by the board to have fully earned their medals, also had their medals restored by the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in 1989. The report issued by the Medal of Honor review board in 1917 was reviewed by the Judge Advocate General, who also advised that the War Department should not seek the return of the revoked medals from the recipients identified by the board. In the case of recipients who continued to wear the medal, the War Department was advised to take no action to enforce the statute.^[177]

Similarly-named U.S. decorations

The following decorations, in one degree or another, bear similar names to the Medal of Honor, but are entirely separate awards with different criteria for issuance:

• Cardenas Medal of Honor: decoration of the United States Revenue Cutter Service, which was later merged into the United States Coast Guard
• Congressional Space Medal of Honor: the highest medal awarded by NASA (although military astronauts are also eligible for the Medal of Honor, and there is no formal precedence between the two awards)

See also

• Medal of Honor Day
• List of Medal of Honor recipients
• Medal of Honor Memorial (Indianapolis)
• African-American Medal of Honor Recipients Memorial
• Kentucky Medal of Honor Memorial
• Texas Medal of Honor Memorial
• Distinguished Intelligence Cross
• Home of the Heroes, a recognition of Pueblo, Colorado, for being the hometown of four Medal of Honor recipients
• Merchant Marine Distinguished Service Medal
• Military awards and decorations

References

Works cited

• • Book: Collier . Peter . Del Calzo . Nick . Medal of Honor: Portraits of Valor Beyond the Call of Duty . 2006 . 2nd . New York . . 978-1-57965-314-9 . 852666368 .
• Book: Mears, Dwight S. . The Medal of Honor: The Evolution of America's Highest Military Decoration . Lawrence, KS . University Press of Kansas . 2018 . 9780700626656 . 1032014828.
• Book: Mikaelian . Allen . Wallace . Mike . Medal of Honor: Profiles of America's Military Heroes from the Civil War to the Present . 2003 . . New York . 978-0-7868-8576-3.
• Book: Tucker, Spencer . Almanac of American Military History . 1 . 2012 . ABC-CLIO . Santa Barbara, CA . 978-1-59884-530-3.

Further reading

• Book: Broadwater, Robert P. . Civil War Medal of Honor recipients still in actice duty:Thomas Payne, Earl Plumlee, William Swenson, and Matthew Williams Medal of Honor Recipients: A Complete Illustrated Record . Jefferson, NC . McFarland & Co. . 2007 . 978-0-7864-3223-3 . 144767966.
• Book: Collier . Peter . Del Calzo . Nick . Medal of Honor: Portraits of Valor Beyond the Call of Duty . 2011 . 3rd . New York . Artisan . 978-1-57965-462-7 . 712124011.
• Book: Curtis, Arthur S. . 37 Greatest Navy Heroes: Including the Story of Marvin Shields, First Seabee Medal of Honor Hero (Vietnam) . Washington, D.C. . 1969 . 10660663.
• Book: DeKever, Andrew J. . Here Rests in Honored Glory: Life Stories of Our Country's Medal of Honor Recipients . Bennigton, Vermont . Merriam Press . 2008 . 978-1-4357-1749-7 . 233835859.
• Book: Foster, Frank C. . A Complete Guide to All United States Military Medals, 1939 to Present . Fountain Inn, S.C. . MOA Press . 2002 . 978-1-884452-18-5 . 54755134.
• Book: Hanna, Charles W. . Black Recipients of the Medal of Honor: A Biographical Dictionary, Civil War Through Vietnam War . Jefferson, N.C. . Mcfarland . 2010 . 978-0-7864-4911-8 . 476156919.
• Book: Johnson, John L. . Every Night & Every Morn: Portraits of Asian, Hispanic, Jewish, African-American, and Native-American Recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor . Winston-Salem, NC . Tristan Press . 2007 . 978-0-9799572-0-8 . 180773640.
• Book: Willbanks, James H. . America's Heroes: Medal of Honor Recipients from the Civil War to Afghanistan . Santa Barbara, CA . ABC-CLIO . 2011 . 978-1-59884-394-1 . 662405903 . registration .

External links

• Congressional Medal of Honor Society
• U.S. Army Medal of Honor
• Submarine Force Medal of Honor Recipients. Submarine Force Museum website
• List of Native Americans who have received the Medal of Honor
• History, Legend and Myth: Hollywood and the Medal of Honor (Medal of Honor recipients depicted on film)
• National Medal of Honor Museum of Military History in Chattanooga, Tennessee
• American Valor PBS/WETA.
• Loubat, J. F. and Jacquemart, Jules, Illustrator, The Medallic History of the United States of America 1776–1876.
• U.S. Army Institute of Heraldry: Medal of Honor-Army
• U.S. Army Institute of Heraldry: Medal of Honor-Navy
• U.S. Army Institute of Heraldry: Medal of Honor-Air Force
• Pritzker Military Museum & Library

Notes and References

1. Web site: DoD Manual 1348.33, Vol 1, October 19, 2020. p. 4, 1.2.b./p. 8, 3.1.a.. December 26, 2020. November 29, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201129014230/https://www.esd.whs.mil/Portals/54/Documents/DD/issuances/dodm/134833_Vol1.PDF?ver=103X2lC-z6ECdoT0q0rcgQ%3D%3D. live.
2. Web site: Description of Awards – U.S. Military Awards for Valor. U.S. Department of Defense. 2020-12-25. 2021-06-18. https://web.archive.org/web/20210618070138/https://valor.defense.gov/Description-of-Awards/. live.
3. Web site: Department of the Army . July 1, 2002 . Section 578.4 Medal of Honor . Code of Federal Regulations Title 32, Volume 2 . . March 14, 2012 . United States Department of the Army . June 15, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130615164829/http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/CFR-2002-title32-vol3/html/CFR-2002-title32-vol3-sec578-4.htm . live .
4. Act of December 21, 1861, 12 Stat. 330
5. Act of July 12, 1862, 12 Stat. 623–624
6. An Act to Revise, Codify, and Enact into Law, Title 10 of the United States Code, Entitled “Armed Forces,” and Title 32 of the United States Code, Entitled “National Guard,” Pub. L. 84-1028 (1956), 70A Stat. 540.
7. Pub. L. 88–77 (1963), 77 Stat. 95.
8. National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021, Pub L. 116–283 (2021), 134 Stat. 3811.
9. Web site: Remarks by President Biden at Presentation of the Medal of Honor to Army Private Philip G. Shadrach and Private George D. Wilson. July 4, 2024. The White House.
10. Web site: Statistics of the Medal of Honor for the United States Army. U.S. Army. 2020-12-19. 2021-03-25. https://web.archive.org/web/20210325231735/https://www.army.mil/medalofhonor/statistics.html. live.
11. Web site: Medal of Honor . . Mohhsus.com . Medal of Honor Historical Society of the United States . December 28, 2021 . as of July 5, 2022, there have been 3,534 Medals of Honor awarded including 19 second awards. . June 29, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160629095327/http://www.mohhsus.com/medal-of-honor . live .
12. Web site: Department of Defense Manual 1348.33, Volume 1. https://web.archive.org/web/20170209095623/http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/134833v1_dodm_2016.pdf. dead. February 9, 2017. Defense Technical Information Center. February 25, 2017. 4.
13. Web site: The Medal of Honor. . Library of Congress. December 14, 2020. December 14, 2020. October 28, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20201028000259/https://www.loc.gov/collections/charles-reed/articles-and-essays/the-medal-of-honor/. live.
14. DoD Award Manual, November 23, 2010, 1348. 33, P. 31, 8. c. (1) (a)
    Book: The Encyclopedia of North American Indian Wars, 1607–1890: A Political, Social, and Military History. Tucker. Spencer C.. Arnold. James. Wiener. Roberta. ABC-CLIO. 2011. 978-1-85109-697-8. 879. March 14, 2012. January 15, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230115062217/https://books.google.com/books?id=JsM4A0GSO34C&pg=PA879. live.
    
15. Web site: Congressional Medal of Honor Society . October 8, 2013 . August 10, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110810181831/http://www.cmohs.org/medal-types.php . live .
16. Act of December 21, 1861, 12 Stat. 330.
17. Act of July 12, 1862, 12 Stat. 623–624.
18. US Air Force, The Medal of Honor, https://www.af.mil/Medal-of-Honor/The-Medal/
19. Web site: Medal of Honor. March 23, 2018. American Battlefield Trust. en. July 11, 2019. March 31, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20190331025637/https://www.battlefields.org/learn/topics/medal-honor. live.
20. Web site: Department of Defense Manual 1348.33, Volume 1. https://web.archive.org/web/20170209095623/http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/134833v1_dodm_2016.pdf. dead. February 9, 2017. Defense Technical Information Center. February 25, 2017. 19.
21. Book: Pullen, John J.. A Shower of Stars: The Medal of Honor and the 27th Maine. Stackpole Books. Mechanicsburg, PA. 1997. preface p2. April 15, 2010. 978-0811700757. January 15, 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230115062218/https://books.google.com/books?id=xGtImta-9QEC&q=Pullen+A+Shower+of+stars. live.
22. SECNAVINST 1650.1H, P. 2–20, 224.2. August 22, 2006
23. Dwight Mears, “Medals ‘Ridiculously Given’?: The Authority to Award, Revoke, and Reinstate Military Decorations in Three Case Studies Involving Executive Clemency,” Military Law Review 229 (2021): 398, 419.
24. Public Law 101-564, November 15, 1990
25. Web site: U.S. Senate: James Grimes: A Featured Biography . www.senate.gov . 2018-02-16 . 2017-07-19 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170719222459/https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/Featured_Bio_GrimesJames.htm . live .
26. 12 Stat. 329–330
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30. Web site: Types of the Medal of Honor: 1862 To Present . Congressional Medal of Honor Society . March 14, 2012 . August 10, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110810181831/http://www.cmohs.org/medal-types.php . live .
31. Book: Above and Beyond: A History of the Medal of Honor and the Civil War . 5 . These medals were made of copper and coated with bronze . 0-939526-19-0 . Boston Publishing Company in cooperation with the CMOH Society . 1985.
32. 37th Congress, Second Session; Resolution No. 52, 12 Stat. 623–624
33. Book: Above and Beyond . Boston Publishing Company . 5 . 2nd paragraph . 1985.
34. Book: Bonds, Russell S. . Stealing the General, The Great Locomotive Chase and the First Medal of Honor . 2006 . 978-1-59416-033-2 . 309 . Westholme . The medal of honor is bronze, of neat device, and is highly prized by those of whom it has been bestowed," Townsend wrote in an 1864 report. Its original design, embodied first in the Navy Medal, was an inverted, five-pointed star ....
35. Book: Above and Beyond: A History of the Medal of Honor from the Civil War to Vietnam . 5 . The medals were made of copper and coated with bronze, which gave them a reddish tint . 0-939526-19-0 . 1985 . Boston Publishing Company in cooperation with the CMOH Society.
36. Book: Above and Beyond . 1985 . 5.
37. Book: Bonds, Russell S. . Great Locomotive Chase and the First Medal of Honor . 2006 .
38. Book: Hargis, Robert . August 20, 2012 . World War II Medal of Honor Recipients (2): Army & Air Corps . Osprey Publishing . 3 . 978-1-78200-207-9 . September 3, 2012 .
39. Mollan . Mark C. . Summer 2001 . The Army Medal of Honor: The First Fifty-five Years . Prologue Magazine . 33 . 2 . September 3, 2014 . Further depreciating the value of the medal, the Grand Army of the Republic and other veterans groups began giving out their own medals, some of which looked conspicuously similar to the Medal of Honor. . July 18, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140718052027/http://www.archives.gov/publications/prologue/2001/summer/medal-of-honor-1.html . live .
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41. Web site: Medal of Honor, Frequently Asked Questions . Navy.mil . May 12, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120605001140/http://www.navy.mil/moh/faq.html . June 5, 2012 .
42. An Act to Revise, Codify, and Enact into Law, Title 10 of the United States Code, Entitled “Armed Forces,” and Title 32 of the United States Code, Entitled “National Guard,” Pub. L. 84-1028 (1956), 70A Stat. 540
43. News: Martin. John. Medal of Honor: Gold or Brass?. September 21, 2012. ABC News. February 5, 2004. March 20, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140320193303/http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/story?id=130511&page=1#.UFu-W41mTYg. live.
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48. Book: Schubert, Frank N.. Black Valor: Buffalo Soldiers and the Medal of Honor, 1870–1898. 2,6. Frank N. Schubert. Scholarly Resources Inc.. 1997. 9780842025867.
49. Web site: The Medal of Honor – Navy Medals of Honor, 1861–1941 – The Tiffany Cross pattern . https://web.archive.org/web/20100822161740/http://www.history.navy.mil/photos/awd/us-indiv/moh-3t.htm . dead . August 22, 2010 . Department of the Navy . November 30, 2012 . January 23, 2008 . Naval History & Heritage Command .
50. Web site: Medal of Honor History . . Exhibits . State Historical Society of Iowa . January 28, 2013 . September 28, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130928071755/http://www.iowahistory.org/museum/exhibits/medal-of-honor/medal-of-honor-history/war.htm . live .
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52. Congressional Medal of Honor site, History of the Medal of Honor, May 2, 1896 (20 Stat. 473)
53. Web site: H. Rept. 54-2504 - Medals of honor. January 13, 1897. -- Committed to the Committee of the Whole House on the State of the Union and ordered to be printed . 23 June 2023 . GovInfo.gov . U.S. Government Printing Office.
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55. Web site: Medal of Honor - Army . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220108150314/https://tioh.army.mil/Catalog/Heraldry.aspx?HeraldryId=15237&CategoryId=3&grp=4&menu=Decorations%20and%20Medals&ps=24&p=0 . 2022-01-08 . 2024-01-27 . The Institute of Heraldry.
56. Web site: Medal of Honor - Navy . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210416135035/https://tioh.army.mil/Catalog/Heraldry.aspx?HeraldryId=15242&CategoryId=3&grp=4&menu=Decorations%20and%20Medals&ps=24&p=0 . 2021-04-16 . 2024-01-27 . The Institute of Heraldry.
57. Web site: Medal of Honor - Air Force . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20210416135342/https://tioh.army.mil/Catalog/Heraldry.aspx?HeraldryId=15243&CategoryId=3&grp=4&menu=Decorations%20and%20Medals&ps=24&p=0 . 2021-04-16 . 2024-01-27 . The Institute of Heraldry.
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59. Web site: Legion of Merit . Awards . Institute of Heraldry . March 14, 2012 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120331032923/http://www.tioh.hqda.pentagon.mil/Awards/legion_of_merit.aspx . March 31, 2012 .
60. Web site: Legion of Merit . August 3, 2010 . afpc.af.mil . United States Air Force . September 3, 2014 . The degrees of chief commander and commander are conferred on members of foreign governments only and are awarded for services comparable to those for which the Distinguished Service Medal is given to members of the United States armed forces. . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20120915153310/http://www.afpc.af.mil/library/factsheets/factsheet.asp?id=7732 . September 15, 2012 .
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62. Web site: Department of Defense Manual 1348.33, Volume 1. https://web.archive.org/web/20170209095623/http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/134833v1_dodm_2016.pdf. dead. February 9, 2017. Defense Technical Information Center. February 25, 2017. 10.
63. Web site: Department of Defense Manual 1348.33, Volume 1. https://web.archive.org/web/20170209095623/http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/134833v1_dodm_2016.pdf. dead. February 9, 2017. Defense Technical Information Center. February 25, 2017. 20.
64. Web site: Medal of Honor Flag. https://web.archive.org/web/20161126140245/http://www.tioh.hqda.pentagon.mil/Catalog/Heraldry.aspx?HeraldryId=15743&CategoryId=9360&grp=2&menu=Uniformed%20Services&ps=24&p=0. November 26, 2016.
65. Web site: Special Forces veteran's idea leads to new Medal of Honor Flag . Army News Service. July 24, 2006. https://web.archive.org/web/20060111151709/http://www4.army.mil/news/article.php?story=7244 . January 11, 2006. dead.
66. Web site: Medal of Honor Flag . The Institute of Heraldry . US Army . July 21, 2006. https://web.archive.org/web/20060911012812/http://www.tioh.hqda.pentagon.mil/Flags_Guidons/MedalOfHonorFlag.htm. September 11, 2006.
67. Web site: Cramer . Eric W. . March 29, 2005 . First Medal of Honor Flag to be presented . Army News Service . US Army. July 21, 2006. https://web.archive.org/web/20060721040551/http://www4.army.mil/ocpa/read.php?story_id_key=7085 . July 21, 2006. dead.
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69. See, e.g., AR 600-8-22 (5 Mar 2019), para. 1-14(g), and 10 U.S.C. § 7274.
70. Web site: Medal of Honor Citations . History.army.mil . June 4, 2008 . January 3, 2012 . June 11, 2009 . https://web.archive.org/web/20090611082639/http://www.history.army.mil/moh.html . dead .
71. Ron Owens. Medal of Honor: historical facts and figures, Turner, 2004,
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73. News: Marine posthumously awarded Medal of Honor . Jeff Schogol . Leoo Shane III . Stars and Stripes . January 12, 2007 . January 28, 2013 . At the ceremony, Bush noted that more than half of the Medal of Honor recipients since World War II have died earning it. . February 19, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130219071159/http://www.stripes.com/news/marine-posthumously-awarded-medal-of-honor-1.59068 . live .
74. Regulations for the Government of the United States Navy (Washington: GPO, 1865), 141.
75. Regulations for the Government of the United States Navy (Washington: GPO, 1865), 142.
76. Book: argis. Robert H. Sinton. Starr . World War II Medal of Honor recipients (1): Navy & USMC. March 14, 2012. 2003. Osprey Publishing. 978-1-84176-613-3. 6.
77. Web site: Medal of Honor Recipients, Interim Awards 1920–1940 . . July 23, 2006 . April 20, 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20100420102912/http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/interim1920-40.html . dead .
78. Act of July 9, 1918, 40 Stat. 870.
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83. "An Act to Amend the Act Approved February 4, 1919 (40 Stat. 1056)", August 7, 1942, Public Law 702, 56 Stat. 743-45."
84. Ron Owens. Medal of Honor: Historical Facts and Figures (Paducah, KY: Turner, 2004), 11.
85. "An Act to Amend Titles 10, 14, and 38, United States Code, with Respect to the Award of Certain Medals and the Medal of Honor Roll", July 25, 1956, HR 2998, Public Law 88-77, 77 Stat. 93.
86. DoD Awards Manual 1348.33, V1, October 12, 2011 (November 23, 2010). pp. 31–32, 8. Medal of Honor (1) (a) 1., 2., 3. (k), p. 10, Title 10 US Code sections 3741, 6241, and 8741 (Titles 14 & 38 not referenced by DoD)
87. "An Act to Amend Titles 10, 14, and 38, United States Code, with Respect to the Award of Certain Medals and the Medal of Honor Roll", July 25, 1963, HR 2998, Public Law 88–77, 77 Stat. 93.
88. DoD Manual 1348.33, V1, Oct. 12. 2011 (November 23, 2010), pp. 31 & 32, 8. Medal of Honor (1) (a) 3. (k), p. 10, Title 10 US Code sections 3741, 6241, and 8741 (Title 14 & 38 not referenced By DoD).
89. "Subcommittee No.2 Consideration of HR2998, A Bill to Amend Titles 10, 14, and 38, United States Code, with Respect to the Award of Certain Medals and the Medal of Honor Roll", House of Representatives, Committee of Armed Services, June 6, 1963.
90. Executive order 11046 – DoD Awards Manual 1348.33, V3, October 12, 2011 (November 23, 2010), pp. 19–21, 4. Bronze Star Medal (Title 10 & 37 is referenced by DoD, Titles 14 & 38 is not referenced by DoD)
91. "An Act Making Appropriations for the Support of the Army for the Fiscal Year Ending June Thirtieth, Nineteen Hundred and Nineteen", July 9, 1918, HR12281, Public Law 193, 40 Stat. 870.
92. Dwight Mears, “Medals ‘Ridiculously Given’?: The Authority to Award, Revoke, and Reinstate Military Decorations in Three Case Studies Involving Executive Clemency,” Military Law Review 229 (2021): 398.
93. Dwight Mears, “Medals ‘Ridiculously Given’?: The Authority to Award, Revoke, and Reinstate Military Decorations in Three Case Studies Involving Executive Clemency,” Military Law Review 229 (2021): 400, 402.
94. Army Regulation 672-5-1, Military Awards, Par. 1-28a, Jun. 3, 1974.
95. Air Force Manual 900-3, para. 3-2(d)(2), Nov. 20, 1969.
96. Dwight Mears, “Medals ‘Ridiculously Given’?: The Authority to Award, Revoke, and Reinstate Military Decorations in Three Case Studies Involving Executive Clemency,” Military Law Review 229 (2021): 419.
97. Todd South, "Former Green Beret, whom Trump pardoned for alleged murder, won't get Silver Star or SF tab back, Army rules," Army Times, Mar. 17, 2021.
98. DoD Instruction 1348.33, Sec. 8, Dec. 21. 2016, Change 3, May 22, 2019
99. Dwight Mears, “Medals ‘Ridiculously Given’?: The Authority to Award, Revoke, and Reinstate Military Decorations in Three Case Studies Involving Executive Clemency,” Military Law Review 229 (2021): 406.
100. https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/BILLS-116hr3467ih/pdf/BILLS-116hr3467ih.pdf
101. War Dept. General Orders No. 100, Dec. 17, 1891.
102. An Act to Establish in the War Department and in the Navy Department, Respectively, a Roll, Designated as “the Army and Navy Medal of Honor Roll,” and for Other Purposes, Pub. L. 64-50, 36 Stat. 53.
103. https://docs.house.gov/billsthisweek/20211206/17s1605-rcp117-21-jes.pdf
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109. 32 CFR 553.15(d)(1)
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115. Web site: State / Territory Benefits – New Hampshire . July 25, 2012 . My Army Benefits . United States Army . January 30, 2013 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20130202005948/http://myarmybenefits.us.army.mil/Home/Benefit_Library/State__Territory_Benefits/_New_Hampshire.html . February 2, 2013 .
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116. Legislative Bill 1212. Legislative Journal of the State of Nebraska. 1969. 1. Eightieth Session. 603. 12 June 2016.
117. United States Army. The Soldier's Guide . 2003. Chapter 4.
118. Army Regulation 600-25, Sep. 10, 2019, para. 2-1
119. OPNAVINST 1710.7A, Jun. 15, 2001, para. 1209
120. Web site: USCG CG-5421 Web Site – Customs & Courtesy . Uscg.mil . February 18, 2011 . January 3, 2012 . March 14, 2016 . https://web.archive.org/web/20160314183722/http://www.uscg.mil/auxiliary/cginfo/uniforms/custom.asp . live .
121. Web site: November 12, 2014. Air Force Instruction 1-1. March 9, 2021. March 22, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210322143440/https://static.e-publishing.af.mil/production/1/af_cc/publication/afi1-1/afi1-1.pdf. live.
122. http://www.cmohs.org/medal-types.php Types of Medals of Honor
123. Web site: Patent number: D37236 . November 22, 1904 . May 16, 2012.
124. See Notes to 18 U.S.C. § 704, citing 42 Stat. 1286. Retrieved on June 30, 2012.
125. http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-103hr3355enr/pdf/BILLS-103hr3355enr.pdf Pub.L. 103-322, The Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, § 320109
126. http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PLAW-109publ437/pdf/PLAW-109publ437.pdf Pub.L. 109-437, The Stolen Valor Act of 2005
127. Id..
128. Web site: S. 1998: Stolen Valor Act of 2005 . 109th U.S. Congress (2005–2006) . GovTrak.us . March 8, 2007 . September 27, 2007 . https://web.archive.org/web/20070927194047/http://www.govtrack.us/congress/bill.xpd?bill=s109-1998 . live .
129. https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/11pdf/11-210d4e9.pdf United States v. Alvarez (slip opinion)
130. https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/704 18 U.S.C. § 704
131. 18 U.S. Code § 704(b).
132. Web site: Obama Signs New Stolen Valor Act . Bryant . Jordan . June 3, 2013 . Military.com . June 28, 2014 . April 6, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20150406032546/http://www.military.com/daily-news/2013/06/03/obama-signs-new-stolen-valor-act.html . live .
133. 18 U.S. Code § 704(b)
134. Mary E. Johnston, Combating Thieves of Valor: The Stolen Valor Act of 2013 Is Constitutional Yet Unenforced, 25 Wm. & Mary Bill Rts. J. 1355 (2017), 1358–1359
135. DoD Manual 1348.33, November 10, 2010, Vol. 1, P. 29, 6., a., (1), (2) & P. 35, i.
136. Stealing the General: Great Locomotive Chase and The First Medal of Honor,, 2006, by Russell S. Bonds
137. Web site: History of the Medal | Medal of Honor Convention. www.mohconvention.com.
138. Web site: Tim . Comerford . A Matter of Honor – History of the Medal of Honor . 2019-11-05 . 2020-08-03 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200803220344/https://www.doncio.navy.mil/CHIPS/ArticleDetails.aspx?ID=7419 . live .
139. Web site: Cpl Mackie's Actions (G.O. 17: July 10, 1863. 2 Marines awarded the MOH) . U.S. Marine Corps, Marine Corps Recruiting Command, 1st Marine Corps District . April 10, 2019 . March 27, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190327091828/https://www.mcrc.marines.mil/1stmcd/Unit-Home/Cpl-John-F-Mackie/ . dead .
140. Dwight Mears, “’Neither an Officer nor an Enlisted Man’: Contract Surgeons’ Eligibility for the Medal of Honor,” Journal of Military History 85 (2021): 55.
141. Dwight Mears, “’Neither an Officer nor an Enlisted Man’: Contract Surgeons’ Eligibility for the Medal of Honor,” Journal of Military History 85 (2021): 57, 60.
142. US Navy General Order No. 32, April 16, 1864.
143. Web site: Hiroshi "Hershey" Miyamura . 2023-10-22 . Medal of Honor Valor Trail . en-US.
144. Web site: March 29, 2015 . About Whitman-Walker Clinic . Our History/Our Namesakes . Whitman-Walker Clinic . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20150701192148/http://www.whitman-walker.org/our-mission-values/our-history/our-namesakes/ . July 1, 2015 .
145. News: July 1, 2005 . Canada honours winners of top U.S. medal . CBC News. July 20, 2006. https://web.archive.org/web/20070529190113/http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/07/01/canadians-usmedal050701.html . May 29, 2007. dead.
146. News: Thousands of Canadians, including a Medal of Honor winner, served with the U.S. military in Vietnam . Veterans With a Mission . July 20, 2006. https://web.archive.org/web/20070529190113/http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/07/01/canadians-usmedal050701.html . May 29, 2007. dead . July 1, 2005.
147. "An Act Authorizing the President of the United States to present in the name of Congress a medal of honor to Colonel Charles A. Lindbergh", December 14, 1927, HR 3190, Public Law 1, 45 Stat. 1
148. William Putnam, Arctic Superstars: The Scientific Exploration and Study of High Mountain Elevations and of the Regions Lying Within or about the Arctic and Antarctic Circles (Boulder, CO: American Alpine Club, 2001), 171.
149. Web site: Medal of Honor Recipients – Authorized by Special Acts of Congress . History.army.mil . May 26, 2012 . August 14, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110814042719/http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/asaoc.html . dead .
150. War Department General orders, No. 59, December 13, 1921, Sec. I
151. Approved March 9, 1948, Public Law 438, Eightieth Congress
152. Approved August 31, 1957, Public Law 85-251 Eighty-fifth Congress
153. Approved May 25, 1984, Public Law 98-301, Ninety-eighth Congress
154. News: Medal of Honor Won't Join Once-unknown Pilot . Chicago Tribune . August 23, 1998.
155. Department of Defense, Military Awards for Valor - Top 3, https://valor.defense.gov/, verified May 16, 2023
156. Web site: Medal of Honor Society FAQ . 2021-05-22 . 2021-05-22 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210522214047/https://www.cmohs.org/medal/faqs . live .
157. This number is off by one--3d Class Boy George Hollat had his Civil War medal revoked for desertion
158. Joint Army and Air Force Adjustment Regulations No. 1-11-53, Dec. 20, 1948, para. 2(b)
159. Web site: Medal of Honor Recipients: Thomas W. Custer . United States Army Center of Military History . September 28, 2015 . June 29, 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190629125947/https://history.army.mil/moh/civilwar_af.html#CUSTER . live .
160. Web site: Medal of Honor Statistics . History.army.mil . May 12, 2012 . August 9, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110809030651/http://www.history.army.mil/html/moh/mohstats.html . dead .
161. Pub. L. 113–66 (2013), 127 Stat. 766
162. https://web.archive.org/web/20050204180918/http://stephenwscott.com/ "Scott, Stephen W."
163. Congressional Research Service, Medal of Honor Recipients: 1979–2014, Anne Leland, Information Research Specialist, December 2, 2014, https://www.fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL30011.pdf . The report lists the late awards until the end of 2014. seven additional late awards have been presented at the White House, three by President Obama in 2015 and 2016 and four by President Trump in 2017 and 2018. Not included as a late award is the award to the Vietnam Unknown in 1984 by President Reagan.
164. Web site: WWII black MOH recipients . . July 20, 2006 . November 10, 2010 . https://web.archive.org/web/20101110225927/http://www.history.army.mil//html/moh/mohb.html . dead .
165. Web site: 22 Asian Americans Inducted into Hall of Heroes . Rudi Williams . June 28, 2000 . American Forces Press Service . United States Department of Defense . March 9, 2013 . December 24, 2015 . https://web.archive.org/web/20151224041125/http://archive.defense.gov/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=45241 . live .
166. McNaughton, Edwards, Price, "'Incontestable Proof Will Be Exacted': Historians, Asian Americans, and the Medal of Honor," Public Historian 24 (Fall 2002), 19.
167. McNaughton, et. al, 'Incontestable Proof Will Be Exacted,' 29-30.
168. News: Today, an old wrong is righted as 22 Asian-American heroes are awarded the nation's highest honor for bravery in battle . Gregg K. Kakesako . Honolulu Star-Bulletin . June 21, 2000 . March 9, 2013 . October 27, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141027160403/http://archives.starbulletin.com/2000/06/21/special/ . live .
169. News: Medal of Honor recipient just did duty . Nguyen Huy Vu . Orange County Register . October 18, 2005 . March 9, 2013 . December 13, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20141213014427/http://www.ocregister.com/news/medal-207819-honor-rubin.html . live .
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170. Barack Obama . 2013 . Army Chaplain Gets Posthumous Medal of Honor . April 16, 2013 . Associated Press . April 20, 2013 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130420131311/http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PV-Y2N_z3FE . live .
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171. Web site: GI killed in Vietnam War receives Medal of Honor . CBS News . May 16, 2012 . May 16, 2012 . May 17, 2012 . https://web.archive.org/web/20120517055418/http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-201_162-57435607/gi-killed-in-vietnam-war-receives-medal-of-honor/ . live .
172. News: Marsh . Wendell . Two Korean War vets receive Medal of Honor posthumously . Reuters . May 2, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20110506031625/http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/05/02/us-obama-medals-idUSTRE7416NA20110502 . live . May 6, 2011.
173. • Web site: Valor 24 / Medal of Honor / World War II Korean War Vietnam War . U.S. Army Combined Arms Center . June 3, 2014 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140714172746/http://usacac.army.mil/CAC2/MilitaryReview/Archives/English/MilitaryReview_20140630_art019.pdf . July 14, 2014 . dead . March 18, 2014 . • List with basic details is at U.S. Army's List of Recipients .
174. Web site: Heiser . John . Lt. Alonzo Cushing at Gettysburg . nps.gov . National Park Service . December 27, 2020 . April 2, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210402141036/https://www.nps.gov/gett/learn/historyculture/cushing-at-gettysburg.htm . live .
175. Sec 584, Pub. L. 116-92, 133 Stat. 1412.
176. Park University, Valor Medals Review Project, https://gsr.park.edu/valor-medals-review-project/.
177. 66th Congress 1st Session, Document 58, General Staff and Medals of Honor, ordered to be printed July 23, 1919.