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Above and Beyond POW NEWS
The Military Order of the
Purple Heart -What is it?
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The ORDER of the PURPLE HEART for MILITARY MERIT, commonly called “The
Purple Heart,” is an American decoration – the oldest military decoration
in the world in present use and the first award made available to a common
soldier. It was created by one of the world's most famed and best-loved
heroes – General George Washington.
General Washington is often pictured as a cold, stern soldier, a proud
aristocrat, a martinet. Perhaps he was all of these at times. Yet we know
he showed sympathy and concern for his troops, and was not too proud to
pray, humbly on his knees, for his beloved country and for the men who
served it, and him, so bravely and with such great loyalty. His keen
appreciation of the importance of the common soldier in any campaign
impelled him to recognize outstanding valor and merit by granting a
commission or an advance in rank for the person concerned. In the summer
of 1782 he was ordered by the Continental Congress to cease doing so –
there were no funds to pay the soldiers, much less the officers!
Deprived of his usual means of reward, he must have searched for a
substitute. Shortly after receiving the “stop” order from Congress, he
wrote his memorable General Orders of August 7, 1782, which read in part
as follows:
“The General, ever desirous to cherish virtuous ambition in his
soldiers as well as foster and encourage every species of military
merit, directs that whenever any singularly meritorious action is
performed, the author of it shall be permitted to wear on his facings,
over his left breast, the figure of a heart in purple cloth or silk
edged with narrow lace or binding. Not only instances of unusual
gallantry but also of extraordinary fidelity and essential service in
any way shall meet with due reward... The name and regiment of the
persons so certified are to be enrolled in a Book of Merit which shall
be kept in the orderly room... Men who have merited this distinction to
be suffered to pass all guards and sentinels which officers are
permitted to do... The order to be retroactive to the earliest stages of
the war, and to be a permanent one... The road to glory in a patriot
army and a free country is thus open to all.”
Lost or misfiled for almost 150 years among the War Department Records
at Washington, D.C., this important paper came to light during the search
for Washington's papers prior to the celebration of his Bi-Centennial in
1932. With it were the dramatic accounts of three soldiers who received
the decoration at Newburgh, N.Y., at Washington's Headquarters. The book
of Merit has not been found. The U.S. War Department revived the Purple
Heart decoration on February 22, 1932. The revived form is of metal,
instead of perishable cloth, made in the shape of a rich purple heart
bordered with gold, with a bust of Washington in the center and the
Washington coat-of-arms at the top. The latter is believed to have been
the source of the stars and stripes of the American Flag.
Intrinsically, the Purple Heart is the world's costliest military
decoration - nineteen separate operations are required to make it from the
rough heart stamped from bronze to the finished medal, plated with gold
and enameled in various colors, suspended from a purple and white ribbon.
The ORDER of the PURPLE HEART is awarded to members of the armed forces of
the U.S. who are wounded by an instrument of war in the hands of the enemy
and posthumously to the next of kin in the name of those who are killed in
action or die of wounds received in action. It is definitely a combat
decoration.
An organization now known as the “Military Order of the Purple Heart,” was
formed in 1932 for the protection and mutual interest of all who have
received the decoration. Composed exclusively of Purple Heart recipients,
it is the only strictly “combat” organization in existence.
Funds for welfare, rehabilitation and/or service work carried on by the
organization are derived almost entirely from the annual distribution of
its official flower, The Purple Heart Viola. These are assembled by
disabled and needy veterans, many of whom receive little or no
compensation from other sources. Thus your contribution for a Viola serves
a two-fold purpose – it helps the veteran who assembled it, and enables
the organization to do many things in behalf of hospitalized and needy
veterans and their families.
The Purple Heart Viola on your lapel is evidence that YOU have not
forgotten the price of liberty paid in the past and still being paid by
those who have borne the brunt of battle in defense of America.
Close relatives of Purple Heart recipients are eligible to belong to the
Ladies Auxiliary of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, which does
important work nationally and locally in Veterans' Hospitals. Further
information about the Order and its auxiliary may be obtained from the
National Headquarters as listed below.
The Military Order of the Purple Heart
5413-B Backlick Road
Springfield, Virginia 22151
(703) 642-5360
(703) 642-2054 (fax)
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