Medal of Honor recipients include those U.S. military personnel who have received the Medal of Honor, the nation’s highest decoration for valor in combat. Medal of Honor recipients are presented a medal which is indicative of the recipient’s branch of service and worn at the throat, suspended from a pale blue ribbon. The criteria for Medal of Honor recipients has evolved through the years since the award was established during the Civil War.
Medal of Honor Recipients
In the closing months of World War II, Staff Sergeant Henry E. “Red” Erwin, Sr., picked up a burning phosphorus flare inside the cramped fuselage of his Boeing B-29 Superfortress bomber high over Japan. Read more
Medal of Honor Recipients
On July 26, 1948, President Harry Truman issued Executive Order No. 9981, which stated in part, “It is hereby declared to be the policy of the President that there shall be equality of treatment and opportunity for all persons in the armed services without regard to race, color, religion, or national origin.” Read more
Medal of Honor Recipients
On July 18, 2016, President Barack Obama awarded the Medal of Honor to retired U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Charles Kettles, whose actions in the Vietnam War saved dozens of American lives. Read more
Medal of Honor Recipients
The most decorated naval aviator of the war, David McCampbell entered the Battle of the Sibuyan Sea with the reputation as an ace. Read more
Medal of Honor Recipients
Born in 1887 in Virginia, Alexander Archer Vandegrift was commissioned a second lieutenant in the Marine Corps in 1909. Read more
Medal of Honor Recipients
He killed 40 Germans in less than an hour. The next day, he earned the Medal of Honor for killing more. Read more
Medal of Honor Recipients
On February 7, 1943, while on patrol in the Southwest Pacific Ocean, U.S. Navy Commander Howard W. Gilmore, commander of the USS Growler (SS-215), and his crew carved out a place for themselves in Navy legend and set a standard of duty that is remembered in the submarine service today. Read more
Medal of Honor Recipients
On October 4, 2013, Nicholas Oresko passed away in an Englewood, New Jersey hospital at the age of 96. Read more
