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Thursday, August 08, 2019
First Lady honors Purple Heart Day
Today is Purple Heart Day, marking the occasion 237 years ago when Gen. George Washington established the Badge of Military Merit. Washington designed that original badge by fashioning royal purple cloth into the shape of a heart.
In the early 1900s, Gen. Douglas MacArthur established the Purple Heart both to commemorate Washington and to revive his tradition of giving a badge to those service members who, in battle, gave an uncommon measure of devotion.
“Melania joins me in honoring all of our country’s Purple Heart recipients, their loved ones, and our Gold Star Families for their immeasurable sacrifice,” President Trump wrote in his official message for today. “We are forever grateful.”
See President Trump’s message on Purple Heart Day, 2019.
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1 comment:
As a history buff, obvious errors call out for correction. No slight is intended to those awarded the Purple Heart (exception: John Kerry).
George Washington established the forerunner of the Purple Heart but it fell into disuse. In the early 1900s Douglas MacArthur was a cadet at West Point (class of 1903) and then a junior officer; he wasn't in a position to create or establish any medals. After World War I he had been promoted to general, later in 1930 to Chief of Staff of the Army. It was in this capacity that he revived an earlier proposal by predecessors to formally create the Purple Heart medal we know today.
Whoever provided the cited story didn't bother with any research; that's unfortunate because the actual story is meritorious.
Thank, Purple Heart awardees for being there for us.
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