Purple Heart

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jump to: navigation, search

For other uses, see Purple
Heart (disambiguation).

Purple Heart

Awarded by United States
of America

Type

Medal

Eligibility

Military Personnel

Awarded for

"Being wounded or killed in any action against an enemy of the United
States or as a result of an act of any such enemy or opposing armed
forces"

Status

Currently Awarded

Statistics

First awarded

22 February 1932

Precedence

Next (higher)

Bronze Star
Medal

Next (lower)

Meritorious Service Medals:
Joint
Service, Branch
Service

Purple Heart Ribbon

The Purple Heart is a United States military
decoration awarded in the name of the President
to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after 5 April 1917 with the U.S.
military. The National
Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in Newburgh, New York. The Purple
Heart is the oldest symbol and award that is still given to members of the U.S.
military, surpassed in history only by the long obsolete Fidelity Medallion.
It is also arguably one of the most respected of all military decorations.

Contents

1 Appearance

2 History

3 Criteria

4 Presentation
procedures

4.1 Modern day
presentations

4.2 Unrecorded
presentations

4.3 Retroactive
presentations

4.4 Retroactive
requests

4.5 Destroyed record
requests

4.6 Last resort
requests

5 Legal

6 See also

7 Trivia

8 References

9 External links

[edit]
Appearance

A Purple Heart is a heart-shaped medal
within a gold border, 1 3⁄8 inches
(35 mm) wide, containing a profile of General George Washington.
Above the heart appears a shield of the Washington
coat of arms (a white shield with two red bars and three red stars in chief)
between sprays of green leaves. The reverse consists of a raised bronze heart
with the words FOR MILITARY MERIT below the coat of arms and
leaves. The ribbon is 1 and 3⁄8 inches
(35 mm) wide and consists of the following stripes: 1⁄8 inch (3
mm) white 67101; 1 1⁄8 inches
(29 mm) purple 67115; and 1⁄8 inch (3
mm) white 67101. As with other combat medals, multiple awards are denoted by award
stars for the Navy, Marine Corps,
or Coast Guard,
or oak leaf clusters for
the Army and Air Force.

[edit]
History

The original Purple Heart, designated as the Badge of Military
Merit, was established by George Washington—then
the commander-in-chief of
the Continental Army—by
order from his Newburgh,
New York headquarters on 7 August 1782. The actual order includes the
phrase, "Let it be known that he who wears the military order of the purple
heart has given of his blood in the defense of his homeland and shall forever be
revered by his fellow countrymen."

The Badge of Military Merit was only awarded to three Revolutionary
War soldiers and fell into disuse following the War of Independence.
Although never abolished, the award of the badge was not proposed again
officially until after World War I.

On 10
October 1927, Army
Chief of Staff General Charles Pelot
Summerall directed that a draft bill be sent to Congress "to revive the
Badge of Military Merit". The bill was withdrawn and action on the case ceased
on 3
January 1928, but
the office of the Adjutant General was
instructed to file all materials collected for possible future use.

A number of private interests sought to have the medal reinstituted in the
Army. One of these was the board of directors of the Fort Ticonderoga Museum
in Ticonderoga, New
York.

On 7
January 1931,
Summerall’s successor, General Douglas MacArthur,
confidentially reopened work on a new design, involving the Washington
Commission of Fine Arts. This new design was issued on the bicentennial of
George Washington's birth.

Reverse of the Purple Heart

Elizabeth Will, an Army heraldic specialist in the
Office of the Quartermaster
General, was named to redesign the newly revived medal, which became known
as the Purple Heart. Using general specifications provided to her, Will created
the design sketch for the present medal of the Purple Heart. Her obituary, in the
8
February 1975
edition of the Washington Post
newspaper, reflects her many contributions to military heraldry.

The Commission of Fine Arts solicited plaster models from three leading
sculptors for the medal, selecting that of John R. Sinnock of the
Philadelphia Mint in
May 1931. By Executive Order of the President of
the United States, the Purple Heart was revived on the 200th Anniversary of
George Washington's birth, out of respect to his memory and military
achievements, by War Department General Orders No. 3, dated 22
February 1932.

The criteria was announced in War
Department circular dated 22 February 1932 and authorized award to
soldiers, upon their request, who had been awarded the Meritorious
Service Citation Certificate, Army Wound Ribbon, or
were authorized to wear Wound Chevrons subsequent
to 5 April 1917, the day before the
United States entered World War I. The first
Purple Heart was awarded to MacArthur.

George Washington

During the early period of American involvement in World War II (7 December
1941-22
September 1943),
the Purple Heart was awarded both for wounds received in action against the
enemy and for meritorious performance of duty. With the establishment of the Legion of Merit, by an
Act of Congress, the practice of awarding the Purple Heart for meritorious
service was discontinued.

By Executive Order 9277, dated 3 December 1942, the decoration was extended
to be applicable to all services and the order required that regulations of the
Services be uniform in application as far as practicable. This executive order
also authorized award only for wounds received.

Executive Order 10409, dated 12 February 1952, revised authorizations to
include the Service Secretaries subject to approval of the Secretary
of Defense.

Executive Order 11016, dated 25 April 1962, included provisions for
posthumous award of the Purple Heart.

Executive Order 12464, dated 23 February 1984, authorized award of the
Purple Heart as a result of terrorist attacks or while serving as part of a
peacekeeping force subsequent to 28 March 1973.

The Senate approved an amendment to the 1985 Defense Authorization Bill on 13 June 1985 which changed the
precedent from immediately above the Good Conduct Medal to
immediately above the Meritorious
Service Medals. Public Law 99-145 authorized the award for wounds received
as a result of friendly fire. Public Law
104-106 expanded the eligibility date, authorizing award of the Purple Heart to
a former prisoner of war who was
wounded before 25 April 1962.

The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1998 (Public Law
105-85) changed the criteria to delete authorization for award of the Purple
Heart Medal to any civilian national of the United States while serving under
competent authority in any capacity with the Armed Forces. This change was
effective 18
May 1998.

[edit]
Criteria

This section may require cleanup to meet
Wikipedia's quality
standards.
Please improve this article if you can (June
2007).

Paragraph 2-8, Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) 25 February
1996

The Purple Heart was established by General George Washington at Newburgh,
New York, on 7 August 1782, during the Revolutionary War. It was reestablished
by the President of the United States per War Department General Orders 3, 1932
and is currently awarded pursuant to Executive Order 11016, 25 April 1962,
Executive Order 12464, 23 February 1984 and Public Law 98-525, 19 October
1984.

A. The Purple Heart is awarded in the name of the President of the United
States to any member of the Armed Forces of the United States who, while serving
under competent authority in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services
after 5 April 1917, has been wounded or killed, or who has died or may hereafter
die after being wounded-

1. In any action against an enemy of the United States.

2. In any action with an opposing armed force of a foreign country in
which the Armed Forces of the United States are or have been engaged.

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.

4. As a result of an act of any such enemy of opposing armed forces.

5. As the result of an act of any hostile foreign force

6. After 28 March 1973, as a result of an international terrorist attack
against the United States or a foreign nation friendly to the United States,
recognized as such an attack by the Secretary of the Army, or jointly by the
Secretaries of the separate armed services concerned if persons from more than
one service are wounded in the attack.

7. After 28 March 1973, as a result of military operations while serving
outside the territory of the United States as part of a peacekeeping force.

B. While clearly an individual decoration, the Purple Heart differs from all
other decorations in that an individual is not "recommended" for the decoration;
rather he or she is entitled to it upon meeting specific criteria.

1. A Purple Heart is authorized for the first wound suffered under
conditions indicated above, but for each subsequent award an Oak Leaf Cluster
will be awarded to be worn on the medal or ribbon. Not more than one award
will be made for more than one wound or injury received at the same instant or
from the same missile, force, explosion, or agent.

2. A wound is defined as an injury to any part of the body from an outside
force or agent sustained under one or more of the conditions listed above. A
physical lesion is not required, however, the wound for which the award is
made must have required treatment by a medical officer and records of medical
treatment for wounds or injuries received in action must have been made a
matter of official record.

3. When contemplating an award of this decoration, the key issue that
commanders must take into consideration is the degree to which the enemy
caused the injury. The fact that the proposed recipient was participating in
direct or indirect combat operations is a necessary prerequisite, but is not
sole justification for award.

4. Examples of enemy-related injuries which clearly justify award of the
Purple Heart are as follows:

(a) Injury caused by enemy bullet, shrapnel, or other
projectile created by enemy action.

(b) Injury caused by enemy placed mine or trap.

(c) Injury caused by enemy released chemical, biological, or nuclear
agent.

(d) Injury caused by vehicle or aircraft accident resulting from enemy
fire.

(e) Concussion injuries caused as a result of enemy generated
explosions.

5. Examples of injuries or wounds which clearly do not qualify for award
of the Purple Heart are as follows:

(a) Frostbite or trench
foot injuries.

(b) Heat stroke.

(c) Food poisoning not
caused by enemy agents.

(d) Chemical, biological, or nuclear agents not released by the enemy.

(e) Battle fatigue.

(f) Disease not directly caused by enemy agents.

(g) Accidents, to include explosive, aircraft, vehicular, and other
accidental wounding not related to or caused by enemy action.

(h) Self-inflicted wounds, except when in the heat of battle, and not
involving gross negligence.

(i) Post-traumatic
stress disorders.

(j) Jump injuries not caused by enemy action.

6. It is not intended that such a strict interpretation of the requirement
for the wound or injury to be caused by direct result of hostile action be
taken that it would preclude the award being made to deserving personnel.
Commanders must also take into consideration the circumstances surrounding an
injury, even if it appears to meet the criteria. Note the following examples:

(a) In a case such as an individual injured while making a parachute
landing from an aircraft that had been brought down by enemy fire; or, an
individual injured as a result of a vehicle accident caused by enemy fire,
the decision will be made in favor of the individual and the award will be
made.

(b) Individuals wounded or killed as a result of "friendly fire" in the
"heat of battle" will be awarded the Purple Heart as long as the "friendly"
projectile or agent was released with the full intent of inflicting damage
or destroying enemy troops or equipment.

(c) Individuals injured as a result of their own negligence; for
example, driving or walking through an unauthorized area known to have been
mined or placed off limits or searching for or picking up unexploded
munitions as war souvenirs, will not be awarded the Purple Heart as they
clearly were not injured as a result of enemy action, but rather by their
own negligence.

C. A Purple Heart will be issued to the next of kin of each person entitled
to a posthumous award. Issue will be made automatically by the Commanding
General, PERSCOM, upon receiving a report of death indicating entitlement.

D. Upon written application to Commander, ARPERCEN, ATTN: DARP-VSE-A, 9700
Page Boulevard. St. Louis, MO 63132-5200, award may be made to any member of the
Army, who during World War I, was awarded a Meritorious Service Citation
Certificate signed by the Commander in Chief, American Expeditionary Forces, or
who was authorized to wear wound chevrons. Posthumous awards to personnel who
were killed or died of wounds after 5 April 1917 will be made to the appropriate
next of kin upon application to the Commanding General, PERSCOM.

E. Any member of the Army who was awarded the Purple Heart for meritorious
achievement or service, as opposed to wounds received in action, between 7
December 1941 and 22 September 1943, may apply for award of an appropriate
decoration instead of the Purple Heart.

F. For those who became Prisoners of War after 25 April 1962, the Purple
Heart will be awarded to individuals wounded while prisoners of foreign forces,
upon submission by the individual to the Department of the U.S. Army of an
affidavit that is supported by a statement from a witness, if this is possible.
Documentation and inquiries should be directed to Commander, PERSCOM, ATTN:
TAPC-PDA, Alexandria, VA 22332-0471.

G. Any member of the U.S. Army who believes that he or she is eligible for
the Purple Heart, but through unusual circumstances no award was made, may
submit an application through military channels, to Commander, PERSCOM, ATTN:
TAPC PDA, Alexandria, VA 22332-0471. Application will include complete
documentation, to include evidence of medical treatment, pertaining to the
wound.

H. As noted above, the Purple Heart may be awarded to civilian nationals of
the United States. These individuals must be serving under competent authority
with the Army when wounded. Serving under competent authority with the Army will
include those eligible persons who are employees of the U.S. Government in a
duty (pay or official travel) status when wounds are sustained. Examples of
eligible individuals are as follows:

1. Any Army employee who is traveling outside of the continental limits of
the United States on PCS or temporary duty (TDY) aboard a commercial aircraft
and wounded by international terrorists in an attempted or actual hijacking
incident.

2. An Army employee in an Army office building performing his or her job
who is wounded by an explosive device detonated by international terrorists.

3. A civil or foreign service employee from a U.S. Government Agency or
Department attached to an Army element performing intelligence,
counter-terrorist, or other duties with the Army wounded by international
terrorists.

4. An Army employee wounded in an international terrorist incident in
which a soldier or soldiers are also wounded.

[edit]
Presentation procedures

[edit]
Modern day presentations

Current active duty personnel are awarded the Purple Heart upon
recommendation from their chain of command, stating the injury that was received
and the action in which the service member was wounded. The award authority for
the Purple Heart is normally at the level of an Army Brigade, Marine Corps
Division, Air Force Wing,
or Navy Task Force.
While the award of the Purple Heart is considered automatic for all wounds
received in combat, each award presentation must still be reviewed to ensure
that the wounds received were as a result of enemy action.

Modern day Purple Heart presentations are recorded in both hardcopy and
electronic service records. The annotation of the Purple Heart is denoted both
with the service member's parent command and at the headquarters of the military
service department. An original citation and award certificate are presented to
the service member and filed in the field service record.

[edit]
Unrecorded presentations

During the Vietnam War, Korean
War, and World War II, the Purple
Heart was often awarded "on the spot," with occasional entries made into service
records, but this was often not the case. In addition, during the mass
demobilizations that followed each of America's major wars of the 20th century,
it was a common occurrence for the Purple Heart to be omitted from service
records, due to clerical errors, once the service record was closed upon
discharge.

An added complication is that a number of field commanders would engage in
"bedside presentations" of the Purple Heart which would typically entail a general entering a
hospital with a box of Purple Hearts, pinning them on the pillows of wounded
service members, and then departing with no official records kept of the visit
or the award of the Purple Heart. Service members, themselves, could complicate
the issue by leaving hospitals unofficially, returning to their units in haste
to rejoin a battle or to not appear as a malingerer. In such cases, even if a
service member had received actual wounds in combat, both the award of the
Purple Heart, as well as the entire visit to the hospital which treated the
enemy wound, would never be recorded in official records.

[edit]
Retroactive presentations

Service members requesting retroactive awards of the Purple Heart must
normally apply through the National
Personnel Records Center. Following a review of service records, those Army
members so qualified are awarded the Purple Heart by the U.S. Army Human
Resources Command in Alexandria,
Virginia. Air Force veterans are awarded the Purple Heart by the Awards
Office of Randolph Air Force
Base while the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard presents Purple Hearts to
veterans through the Navy Liaison Officer at the National Personnel Records
Center.

Simple clerical errors, where a Purple Heart is denoted in military records
but was simply omitted from a DD Form 214 (Report of
Separation), are corrected on site at the National Personnel Records Center
through issuance of a document known as a DD-215.

[edit]
Retroactive requests

As the Purple Heart did not exist prior to 1932, records of the decoration
are not annotated in service histories of those veterans who were wounded or
killed by enemy action prior to the establishment of the medal. The Purple
Heart, however, is retroactive to 1917 meaning that it may be presented to
veterans as far back as the First World War. In such
cases, service departments will review service histories and all available
records to determine if a veteran may be retroactively awarded the Purple
Heart.

[edit]
Destroyed record requests

Due to the 1973 National
Archives Fire, a large number of retroactive Purple Heart requests are
difficult to verify since all records to substantiate the award may very well
have been destroyed. As a solution to this, the National Personnel Records
Center maintains a separate office to deal with Purple Heart requests where
service records have been destroyed in the 1973 fire. In such cases, NPRC
searches through unit records, military pay records, and records of the Department
of Veterans Affairs. If a Purple Heart is warranted, all available alternate
records sources are forwarded to the military service department for final
determination of issuance.

[edit]
Last resort requests

Some veterans who have exhausted all available sources, often still feel that
they should be awarded a Purple Heart, even if there are no records of the
decoration. In such cases, service members may appeal directly to the military
service department by way of a Defense Department Form 149, which requests an
official change to military records. Usually, if the 149 is denied by the
service department, there is nothing more a veteran can do and will not be
awarded the Purple Heart. In some cases, however, veterans have been recommended
for the Purple Heart, after the fact, by a United States
Senator or Congressman.
Such cases are treated as brand new award recommendations and the process for
presenting the Purple Heart begins again with a review of records and interview
of witnesses to the action in which a service member was wounded.

[edit]
Legal

Any false verbal, written or physical claim to the Purple Heart Medal, by an
individual to whom it has not been awarded, is a federal felony offence
punishable by jail time and\or a fine (See Stolen Valor Act of
2005).

[edit]
See also

Police Purple
Heart

[edit]
Trivia

Trivia
sections are discouraged under Wikipedia
guidelines.
The article could be improved by integrating
relevant items and removing inappropriate
ones.

During World War II, nearly 500,000 Purple Heart medals were manufactured in
anticipation of the casualties resulting from the abandoned invasion of Japan,
Operation Downfall.
However, all the American military casualties of the following sixty years,
including the Korean, Vietnam
War, and the Iraq War, appear to have
exhausted this stockpile by 2007. [1]

The most Purple Hearts received by one person is eight. Six U.S. Army
soldiers share that distinction:

Richard
J. Buck - Four Purple Hearts in the Korean War and four in the
Vietnam
War

Robert T.
Frederick - Eight Purple Hearts in World War II; also received two Distinguished
Service Crosses

David H. Hackworth
- Eight Purple Hearts in the Korean War and Vietnam War; also received two Distinguished
Service Crosses and ten Silver Stars

Robert L. Howard -
Eight Purple Hearts in the Vietnam War; also received the Medal of Honor

William
L. Russell - Eight Purple Hearts in World War II; Silver Star

William Waugh - Eight
Purple Hearts in the Vietnam War; also received the Silver Star.

In May 2006, a soldier made national headlines after giving his Purple Heart
to a girl who had written many letters to troops. [2]

In May 2007, Vietnam veteran Jerrell Hudman announced that he planned to give
one of his three Purple Hearts to George, a Jack Russell terrier. George died
from injuries sustained when he saved a group of five children from being mauled
by two pit bull terriers in New Zealand. [3]

[edit]
References

"Case Reference Guide regarding verification and issuance of the Purple
Heart Medal", Military
Personnel Records Center, St. Louis,
Missouri

[edit]
External links

Military Order of the Purple
Heart MA Department

Military Order of the Purple
Heart

Purple
Heart - Criteria, Background, and Images

"Short of Purple Hearts, Navy tells vet to buy own", Anne Marie
Kilday, Houston Chronicle, Aug. 17, 2007

Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purple_Heart"

Categories: Cleanup from
June 2007 | All pages
needing cleanup | Articles
with trivia sections from June 2007 | Military
awards and decorations of the United States | Recipients
of the Purple Heart medal

Views

Article

Discussion

Edit
this page

History

Personal tools

Sign
in / create account

Navigation

Main Page

Contents

Featured
content

Current events

Random article

interaction

About Wikipedia

Community
portal

Recent
changes

Contact Wikipedia

Donate to Wikipedia

Help

Search

Toolbox

What
links here

Related
changes

Upload file

Special pages

Printable
version

Permanent
link

Cite
this page

Languages

Anglo Saxon

Български

Català

Deutsch

Español

Français

Magyar

Nederlands

日本語

Polski

Português

Русский

Svenska

中文

This page was last modified 21:35, 31 December 2007.

All text is available under the terms of the GNU
Free Documentation License. (See Copyrights
for details.)
Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a
U.S. registered 501(c)(3)
tax-deductible
nonprofit charity.

Privacy policy

About Wikipedia

Disclaimers