Each state has a number of awards that encourage citizens of a given country. The USA is no exception, in this state a certain award system has been developed, which we will consider today. Of particular interest to us was the highest award of the United States, leading its history from the time of the Civil War.
US Reward System
Historically, the US state award system is built around military awards. Civilians can receive rewards from various foundations, organizations and companies. The state quite rarely includes its citizens in the list of individuals who receive awards for their contribution to the peaceful life of America.
This fact distinguishes the United States from many other countries where the award system is more focused on ordinary citizens. All awards are not divided into orders and medals. They constitute a structure that has division only according to the internal hierarchical system.
Military awards
In addition to American soldiers, foreign citizens who have especially shown themselves in military operations aimed at the good of the country can also receive America’s state award. There have been no more than three such cases in the entire history of the state’s existence.
All US military awards can be divided into the following categories according to the characteristics of the decision-making body for the award:
- federal;
- by type of armed forces.
Naturally, in the hierarchy of awards, federal insignia are more significant. In addition, all awards can be divided into:
Personal awards are awarded to a soldier for personal services to the country; he is the only representative of his unit who has such an encouragement. Collective awards are worn by all military units, as they are the property of the entire unit as a whole.
It is interesting that in cases where an American soldier is awarded several times with the same insignia, he wears only one award, and stripes with an indication of a number are located nearby. It denotes the number of rewards.
If a soldier has several different military awards, then they should be arranged according to seniority:
- personal
- collective;
- Campaign specific awards
- foreign.
The highest award of the USA is the most important and significant in the hierarchy. I want to talk about it in more detail.
Medal of Honor: Top US Award
It is not only the highest possible, but also the very first award of a similar level in the history of the state. Now it is being honored by servicemen who, during the performance of combat missions, were able to significantly exceed their duty. Their actions are classified as heroic.
For the first time, the question of creating awards was raised during the war of independence. During this period, there was a need to encourage distinguished soldiers in battle. In addition, the creation of the first award would indicate that the English colony gains the status of a separate state with its own heraldry and award system.
But until the Civil War of the sixties of the nineteenth century, awards were limited to a small icon. The original version of the Medal of Honor provided for rewarding only members of the Navy. Two years later, a draft award was developed for the ground forces. The US government planned to award this insignia only for participating in the battles of the Civil War, but later the medal became the highest state. The highest award of the USA at the moment has several design options depending on the type of troops to which it will be intended.
Due to its characteristic, which provides incredible heroism, more than half of the soldiers presented for the award had the status "posthumously." The medal is a gold star with the head of Minevra, it is mounted on a blue ribbon decorated with silver stars.
Purple Heart Medal (US Award)
There are awards in the system of this state, of which all Americans have a common opinion. Purple Heart is a reward that appeared during the years of the Revolutionary War. George Washington invented and developed it , honoring the three officers with this badge.
In wartime, the medal was a piece of purple fabric that was sewn onto the uniform of a soldier. But after the war ended, this award was forgotten for more than a hundred years. Only in the thirties of the last century they returned to her and developed a new design. Now the medal looks like a bronze heart with a Washington profile, mounted on a purple ribbon.
The "Purple Heart" is awarded posthumously or after a severe wound in battle.
Civil Awards
The highest and almost the only state civilian awards in America include the US Congress Gold Medal. It was invented by George Washington in 1776 and was a military award. But already in the second half of the nineteenth century it became civilian. Now she is awarded for special services to the people of the United States.
In parallel with this award, there is the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It is presented personally by the president and is a recognition of merit in the field of security and peacekeeping around the world. She is also considered the highest award.