Combat Wounded Military Merit Embroidered Patch - COMBAT WOUNDED - US Army- USMC for Sale

On eBay Now...

Combat Wounded Military Merit Embroidered Patch - COMBAT WOUNDED - US Army- USMC For Sale

When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Combat Wounded Military Merit Embroidered Patch - COMBAT WOUNDED - US Army- USMC:
$14.50

HIGHLY DETAILED 4

Combat Wounded Military Merit Embroidered Patch - COMBAT WOUNDED - US Army- USMC PURPLE HEART EMBROIDERED PATCH
4 1/2" DIAMETER - HIGHLY DETAILED EMBROIDERED PATCHWITH "COMBAT WOUNDED" TAB
WHITE MERROWED EDGE - WAX BACKING
Awarded by United States Armed ForcesTypeMilitary medal (Decoration)
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
First awarded February 22, 1932
Total awarded Approximately 1,910,162 (as of 5 June 2010)

COMBAT VETERAN - MILITARY MERIT - PURPLE HEART

The Purple Heart is a UnitedStates military decoration awarded in the name of the President to thosewounded or killed, while serving, on or after April 5, 1917, with the U.S.military. With its forerunner, the Badge of Military Merit, which took theform of a heart made of purple cloth, the Purple Heart is the oldestmilitary award still given to U.S. military members; the only earlier awardbeing the obsolete Fidelity Medallion. The National Purple Heart Hall ofHonor is located in New Windsor, New York.

History
The original Purple Heart, designated as theBadge of Military Merit, was established by George Washington—then thecommander-in-chief of the Continental Army – by order from his Newburgh, NewYork headquarters on August 7, 1782. The Badge of Military Merit was onlyawarded to three Revolutionary War soldiers. From then on as its legendgrew; so did its appearance. Although never abolished, the award of thebadge was not proposed again officially until after World War I.

On October 10, 1927,Army Chief of Staff General Charles Pelot Summerall directed that a draftbill be sent to Congress "to revive the Badge of Military Merit". The billwas withdrawn and action on the case ceased January 3, 1928; but the officeof the Adjutant General was instructed to file all materials collected forpossible future use. A number of private interests sought to have the medalre-instituted in the Army, this included the board of directors of the FortTiconderoga Museum in Ticonderoga, New York.

On January 7, 1931,Summerall’s successor, General Douglas MacArthur, confidentially reopenedwork on a new design, involving the Washington Commission of Fine Arts.Elizabeth Will, an Army heraldic specialist in the Office of theQuartermaster General, was named to redesign the newly revived medal, whichbecame known as the Purple Heart. Using general specifications provided toher, Will created the design sketch for the present medal of the PurpleHeart. The new design was issued on the bicentennial of George Washington'sbirth. Her obituary, in the February 8, 1975 edition of The Washington Postnewspaper, reflects her many contributions to military heraldry.

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

The criteria wereannounced in a War Department circular dated February 22, 1932, andauthorized award to soldiers, upon their request, who had been awarded theMeritorious Service Citation Certificate, Army Wound Ribbon, or wereauthorized to wear Wound Chevrons subsequent to April 5, 1917, the daybefore the United States entered World War I. The first Purple Heart wasawarded to MacArthur. During the early period of American involvement inWorld War II (December 7, 1941 – September 22, 1943), the Purple Heart wasawarded both for wounds received in action against the enemy and formeritorious performance of duty. With the establishment of the Legion ofMerit, by an Act of Congress, the practice of awarding the Purple Heart formeritorious service was discontinued. By Executive Order 9277, datedDecember 3, 1942, the decoration was applied to all services; the orderrequired reasonable uniform application of the regulations for each of theServices. This executive order also authorized the award only for woundsreceived. For both military and civilian personnel during the World War IIera, to meet eligibility for the Purple Heart, AR 600-45, dated September22, 1943, and May 3, 1944, required identification of circumstances.

Subject to approval ofthe Secretary of Defense, Executive Order 10409, dated February 12, 1952,revised authorizations to include the Service Secretaries. Dated April 25,1962, Executive Order 11016, included provisions for posthumous award of thePurple Heart. Dated February 23, 1984, Executive Order 12464, authorizedaward of the Purple Heart as a result of terrorist attacks, or while servingas part of a peacekeeping force, subsequent to March 28, 1973.

On June 13, 1985, theSenate approved an amendment to the 1985 Defense Authorization Bill, whichchanged the precedence of the Purple Heart award, from immediately above theGood Conduct Medal to immediately above the Meritorious Service Medals.Public Law 99-145 authorized the award for wounds received as a result offriendly fire. Public Law 104-106 expanded the eligibility date, authorizingaward of the Purple Heart to a former prisoner of war who was wounded beforeApril 25, 1962. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1998(Public Law 105-85) changed the criteria to delete authorization for awardof the Purple Heart to any civilian national of the United States, whileserving under competent authority in any capacity with the Armed Forces.This change was effective May 18, 1998.

During World War II,nearly 500,000 Purple Heart medals were manufactured in anticipation of theestimated casualties resulting from the planned Allied invasion of Japan. Tothe present date, total combined American military casualties of thesixty-five years following the end of World War II—including the Korean andVietnam Wars—have not exceeded that number. In 2003, there remained 120,000Purple Heart medals in stock. The existing surplus allowed combat units inIraq and Afghanistan to keep Purple Hearts on-hand for immediate award tosoldiers wounded in the field.

The "History" section ofthe November 2009 edition of National Geographic estimated the number ofpurple hearts given. Above the estimates, the text reads, "Any tally ofPurple Hearts is an estimate. Awards are often given during conflict;records aren't always exact" (page 33). The estimates are as follows:

World War I: 320,518
World War II: 1,076,245
Korean War: 118,650
Vietnam War: 351,794
Persian Gulf War: 607
Afghanistan War: 7,027 (as of 5 June 2010)
Iraq War: 35,321 (as of 5 June 2010)
Criteria

The Purple Heart isawarded in the name of the President of the United States to any member ofthe Armed Forces of the United States who, while serving under competentauthority in any capacity with one of the U.S. Armed Services after April 5,1917, has been wounded or killed. Specific examples of services whichwarrant the Purple Heart include any action against an enemy of the UnitedStates; any action with an opposing armed force of a foreign country inwhich the Armed Forces of the United States are or have been engaged; whileserving with friendly foreign forces engaged in an armed conflict against anopposing armed force in which the United States is not a belligerent party;as a result of an act of any such enemy of opposing armed forces; or as theresult of an act of any hostile foreign force. After 28 March 1973, as aresult of an international terrorist attack against the United States or aforeign nation friendly to the United States, recognized as such an attackby the Secretary of the Army, or jointly by the Secretaries of the separatearmed services concerned if persons from more than one service are woundedin the attack. After 28 March 1973, as a result of military operations whileserving outside the territory of the United States as part of a peacekeepingforce.

The Purple Heart differs from all otherdecorations in that an individual is not "recommended" for the decoration;rather he or she is entitled to it upon meeting specific criteria. A PurpleHeart is awarded for the first wound suffered under conditions indicatedabove, but for each subsequent award an oak leaf cluster is worn in lieu ofthe medal. Not more than one award will be made for more than one wound orinjury received at the same instant. A "wound" is defined as an injury toany part of the body from an outside force or agent sustained under one ormore of the conditions listed above. A physical lesion is not required;however, the wound for which the award is made must have required treatmentby a medical officer and records of medical treatment for wounds or injuriesreceived in action must have been made a matter of official record. Whencontemplating an award of this decoration, the key issue that commandersmust take into consideration is the degree to which the enemy caused theinjury. The fact that the proposed recipient was participating in direct orindirect combat operations is a necessary prerequisite, but is not solejustification for award. The Purple Heart is not awarded for non-combatinjuries.

Enemy-related injuries which justify the award ofthe Purple Heart include: injury caused by enemy bullet, shrapnel, or otherprojectile created by enemy action; injury caused by enemy placed land mine,naval mine, or trap; injury caused by enemy released chemical, biological,or nuclear agent; injury caused by vehicle or aircraft accident resultingfrom enemy fire; and, concussion injuries caused as a result of enemygenerated explosions.

Injuries or wounds whichdo not qualify for award of the Purple Heart include frostbite or trenchfoot injuries; heat stroke; food poisoning not caused by enemy agents;chemical, biological, or nuclear agents not released by the enemy; battlefatigue; disease not directly caused by enemy agents; accidents, to includeexplosive, aircraft, vehicular, and other accidental wounding not related toor caused by enemy action; self-inflicted wounds (e.g., a soldieraccidentally fires their own gun and the bullet strikes his or her leg),except when in the heat of battle, and not involving gross negligence;post-traumatic stress disorders; and jump injuries not caused by enemyaction.

It is not intended that such a strictinterpretation of the requirement for the wound or injury to be caused bydirect result of hostile action be taken that it would preclude the awardbeing made to deserving personnel. Commanders must also take intoconsideration the circumstances surrounding an injury, even if it appears tomeet the criteria. In the case of an individual injured while making aparachute 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 enemyfire, the decision will be made in favor of the individual and the awardwill be made. As well, individuals wounded or killed as a result of"friendly fire" in the "heat of battle" will be awarded the Purple Heart aslong as the "friendly" projectile or agent was released with the full intentof inflicting damage or destroying enemy troops or equipment. Individualsinjured as a result of their own negligence, such as by driving or walkingthrough an unauthorized area known to have been mined or placed off limitsor searching for or picking up unexploded munitions as war souvenirs, willnot be awarded the Purple Heart as they clearly were not injured as a resultof enemy action, but rather by their own negligence.

From 1942 to 1997,civilians serving or closely affiliated with, the armed forces—as governmentemployees, Red Cross workers, war correspondents, and the like—were eligibleto receive the Purple Heart. Among the earliest civilians to receive theaward were nine firefighters of the Honolulu Fire Department, killed orwounded, while fighting fires at Hickam Field during the attack on PearlHarbor. About 100 men and women received the award, the most famous beingnewspaperman Ernie Pyle, who was awarded a Purple Heart posthumously, by theArmy, after being killed by Japanese machine gun fire in the PacificTheater, near the end of World War II. Before his death, Pyle had seen andexperienced combat in the European Theater, while accompanying, and writingabout, infantrymen, for the folks back home.

The most recent PurpleHearts presented to civilians occurred after the terrorist attacks at KhobarTowers, Saudi Arabia, in 1996—for their injuries, about 40 U.S. civilservice employees received the award.

However, in 1997, at theurging of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, Congress passedlegislation prohibiting future awards of the Purple Heart to civilians.Today, the Purple Heart is reserved for men and women in uniform. Civilianemployees of the U.S. Department of Defense who are killed or wounded as aresult of hostile action may receive the new Defense of Freedom Medal. Thisaward was created shortly after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001.

Appearance
The Purple Heart award is a heart-shaped medalwithin a gold border, 1 3/8 inches (35 mm) wide, containing a profile ofGeneral George Washington. Above the heart appears a shield of the coat ofarms of George Washington (a white shield with two red bars and three redstars in chief) between sprays of green leaves. The reverse consists of araised bronze heart with the words FOR MILITARY MERIT below the coat of armsand leaves. The ribbon is 1 and 3/8 inches (35 mm) wide and consists of thefollowing stripes: 1/8 inch (3 mm) white 67101; 1 1/8 inches (29 mm) purple67115; and 1/8 inch (3 mm) white 67101.

Devices
Additional awards of the Purple Heart are denotedby oak leaf clusters in the Army and Air Force, and additional awards of thePurple Heart Medal are denoted by 5/16 inch stars in the Navy, Marine Corps,and Coast Guard.

Presentation
Current active duty personnel are awarded thePurple Heart upon recommendation from their chain of command, stating theinjury that was received and the action in which the service member waswounded. The award authority for the Purple Heart is normally at the levelof an Army Brigade, Marine Corps Division, Air Force Wing, or Navy TaskForce. While the award of the Purple Heart is considered automatic for allwounds received in combat, each award presentation must still be reviewed toensure that the wounds received were as a result of enemy action. Modern dayPurple Heart presentations are recorded in both hardcopy and electronicservice records. The annotation of the Purple Heart is denoted both with theservice member's parent command and at the headquarters of the militaryservice department. An original citation and award certificate are presentedto the service member and filed in the field service record.

During the Vietnam War, Korean War, and World WarII, the Purple Heart was often awarded on the spot, with occasional entriesmade into service records. In addition, during mass demobilizationsfollowing each of America's major wars of the 20th century, it was commonoccurrence to omit mention from service records of a Purple Heart award.This occurred due to clerical errors, and became problematic once a servicerecord was closed upon discharge. In terms of keeping accurate records, itwas commonplace for some field commanders to engage in bedside presentationsof the Purple Heart. This typically entailed a general entering a hospitalwith a box of Purple Hearts, pinning them on the pillows of wounded servicemembers, then departing with no official records kept of the visit, or theaward of the Purple Heart. Service members, themselves, complicated mattersby unofficially leaving hospitals, hastily returning to their units torejoin battle so as to not appear a malingerer. In such cases, even if aservice member had received actual wounds in combat, both the award of thePurple Heart, as well as the entire visit to the hospital, was unrecorded inofficial records.

Service members requesting retroactive awards ofthe Purple Heart must normally apply through the National Personnel RecordsCenter. Following a review of service records, qualified Army members areawarded the Purple Heart by the U.S. Army Human Resources Command inAlexandria, Virginia. Air Force veterans are awarded the Purple Heart by theAwards Office of Randolph Air Force Base, while Navy, Marine Corps, andCoast Guard, present Purple Hearts to veterans through the Navy LiaisonOfficer at the National Personnel Records Center. Simple clerical errors,where a Purple Heart is denoted in military records, but was simply omittedfrom a (WD AGO Form 53-55 (predecessor to the) DD Form 214 (Report ofSeparation), are corrected on site at the National Personnel Records Centerthrough issuance of a DD-215 document.

Requests
Because the Purple Heart did not exist prior to1932, decoration records are not annotated in the service histories ofveterans wounded, or killed, by enemy action, prior to establishment of themedal. The Purple Heart is, however, retroactive to 1917 meaning it may bepresented to veterans as far back as First World War. Prior to 2006, servicedepartments would review all available records, including older servicerecords, and service histories, to determine if a veteran warranted aretroactive Purple Heart. As of 2008, such records are listed as "Archival",by the National Archives and Records Administration, meaning they have beentransferred from the custody of the military, and can no longer be loanedand transferred for retroactive medals determination. In such cases,requestors asking for a Purple Heart (especially from records of the FirstWorld War) are provided with a complete copy of all available records (orreconstructed records in the case of the 1973 fire) and advised the PurpleHeart may be privately purchased if the requestor feels it is warranted.
Aclause to the archival procedures was revised in mid-2008, where if aveteran, themselves or (if deceased), an immediate member of the family,requested the Purple Heart, on an Army or Air Force record, the medal couldstill be granted by the National Archives. In such cases, where adetermination was required made by the military service department,photocopies of the archival record, (but not the record itself), would beforwarded to the headquarters of the military branch in question. Thisstipulation was granted only for the Air Force and Army; Marine Corps, Navy,and Coast Guard archival medals requests are still typically only offered acopy of the file and told to purchase the medal privately. For requestsdirectly received from veterans, these are routed through a Navy LiaisonOffice, on site at 9700 Page Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63132-5100 (the locationof the Military Personnel Records Center).

Due to the 1973 NationalArchives Fire, a large number of retroactive Purple Heart requests aredifficult to verify because all records to substantiate the award may havebeen destroyed. As a solution to deal with Purple Heart requests, whereservice records were destroyed in the 1973 fire, the National PersonnelRecords Center maintains a separate office. In such cases, NPRC searchesthrough unit records, military pay records, and records of the Department ofVeterans Affairs. If a Purple Heart is warranted, all available alternaterecords sources are forwarded to the military service department for finaldetermination of issuance.
The loaning of fire related records to themilitary has declined since 2006, because a large number of such records nowfall into the "archival records" category of military service records. Thismeans the records were transferred from the military to the NationalArchives, and in such cases, the Purple Heart may be privately purchased bythe requestor (see above section of retroactive requests for furtherdetails) but is no longer provided by the military service department.
Notable recipients

James Arness, actor
Manny Babbitt, convicted murderer
Peter Badcoe, Victoria Cross recipient
Rocky Bleier, football player
Charles Bronson, actor
J. Herbert Burke, U.S. Representative fromFlorida
LlewellynChilson, U.S. Army
Wesley Clark, former SACEUR
Cordelia E Cook, first woman to receive both theBronze Star Medal and the Purple Heart
Steponas Darius, aviator
Charles Durning, actor
Dale Dye, actor
Samuel Fuller, director
James Garner, actor
Salvatore Giunta, Medal of Honor, AfghanistanWar.
Joe Haldeman,writer
CarlosHathcock, United States Marine Corps
Charles Franklin Hildebrand, journalist andpublisher
JamesJones, writer
JohnF. Kennedy, 35th President of the United States
John Kerry, United States Secretary of State
Ron Kovic, writer
Chris Kyle, U.S Navy
Robert Leckie U.S. Marine
Victor Maghakian, also known as Captain Victor"Transport" Maghakian
Lee Marvin, actor
John McCain, U.S. Senator from Arizona
Audie Murphy, actor
Robert M. Polich, Sr., pilot, featured inMinnesotas Greatest Generation (2008) short Film Festival
Colin Powell, General, former United StatesSecretary of State.
Charles P. Roland, American historian
Norman Schwarzkopf, Jr., Commanding General ofallied forces during Desert Storm
Rod Serling, American screenwriter
Eric Shinseki, former Army Chief of Staff andSecretary of the Veterans Administration
W. E. "Pete" Snelson, American politician
Warren Spahn, baseball player
Oliver Stone, director
Sergeant Stubby, war dog
Bruce Sundlun, former Governor of Rhode Island.
Pat Tillman, football player
Gilbert R. Tredway, American historian
Matt Urban, infantry officer
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr., writer
Richard Winters, Major
Chuck Yeager, Brigadier General
Most Purple Heart awards

The most Purple Heartsawarded to a single individual is nine. Marine Sgt. Albert L. Ireland holdsthat distinction, being awarded five Purple Heart Medals in World War II andfour more in the Korean War. Seven soldiers, including two Medal of Honorrecipients, were awarded eight Purple Hearts:

Richard J. Buck: Fourawards, Korean War / Four awards, Vietnam War
Robert T. Frederick: Eight awards, World War II
David H. Hackworth: Three awards, Korean War /Five awards in the Vietnam War
Joe Hooper: Eight awards, Vietnam War
Robert L. Howard: Eight awards, Vietnam War
William Waugh: Eight awards, Vietnam War

In May 2006, a soldiermade national headlines after giving his Purple Heart to a girl who hadwritten many letters to troops.

In May 2007, Vietnamveteran Jerrell Hudman announced that he planned to give one of his threePurple Hearts to George, a Jack Russell terrier. George died from injuriessustained when he saved a group of five children from being mauled by twopit bull terriers in New Zealand.