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Medal for Merit

December 31, 2023

For the Imperial German decoration colloquially known as the "Blue Max" and bearing a French-language inscription meaning "for merit", see Pour le Mérite. For the Romanian medal, see Medal for Merit (Romania).

The Medal for Merit was, during the period it was awarded, the highest civilian decoration of the United States in the gift of the president. It was awarded by the President of the United States to civilians who "distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services" in the war effort "since the proclamation of an emergency by the President on September 8, 1939". Awards to civilians of foreign nations were eligible "only for the performance of exceptionally meritorious or courageous act or acts in furtherance of the war efforts of the United Nations."[1]

Medal for Merit
Obverse and reverse of the Medal for Merit
TypeSingle grade decoration
Awarded forExceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services during World War II
Country United States
Presented byPresident of the United States
EligibilityCivilians of the United States and allied nations
StatusNo longer awarded
Established20 July 1942[1]
First awarded28 March 1944[2]
Last awarded1952
Ribbon bar of the medal
Precedence
Next (higher)None (At the time of its awarding)
Next (lower)Medal of Freedom

The medal is made of gold-finished bronze and enamel and is worn on the left chest from a ribbon.[3]

History edit

The Medal for Merit was created by Public Law 77-671 and its awarding codified by Executive Order 9286 - Medal for Merit on 24 December 1942, later amended and restated by Executive Order 9857A of 27 May 1947. Created during World War II, and awarded to "civilians of the nations prosecuting the war under the joint declaration of the United Nations and of other friendly foreign nations", the medal has not been awarded since 1952.[3]

The first medals were awarded to John C. Garand and Albert Hoyt Taylor on 28 March 1944.[2]

The Medal for Merit is currently listed as seventh in order of precedence of U.S. civilian decorations, below the Silver Lifesaving Medal and above the National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal.[4]

Civilians of foreign nations could receive the award for the performance of an exceptionally meritorious or courageous act or acts in furtherance of the war efforts of the Allies against the Axis Powers. The first person to receive this medal who was not an American citizen was Sir Edward Wilfred Harry Travis Director of the British Government Code and Cypher School in World War II, on 12 January 1946. The next foreign civilian to receive the medal was Edgar Sengier, the director of the Belgian Union Minière du Haut Katanga during World War II. Sengier was awarded the Medal for Merit on 9 April 1946.[5] The next foreign civilian to receive the medal was the Canadian spymaster William Stephenson in November 1946.[6] Stephenson had the code name "Intrepid" during World War II. Some writers consider Stephenson to be one of the real life inspirations for the fictitious character "James Bond". Another recipient was Sir Robert Watson-Watt, a British pioneer of radar, who created a chain of radar stations around the UK which enabled advance information to be available to the Royal Air Force of incoming German aircraft and was instrumental in the winning of the 1940 Battle of Britain. He was sent to the US in 1941 to advise on air defense, after Japan's attack on Pearl Harbor. He was awarded the US Medal for Merit in 1946.

All proposed awards were considered by the Medal for Merit Board, consisting of three members appointed by the president, of whom one was appointed as the chairman of the board. This medal cannot be awarded for any action relating to the prosecution of World War II after the end of hostilities (as proclaimed by Proclamation No. 2714 of 31 December 1946), and no proposal for this award for such services could be submitted after 30 December 1946. The last medal of this type was awarded in 1952 after a long delay in processing.

Notable recipients edit

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b 77th Congress of the United States. "Public Law 77-671 To create the decorations to be known as the Legion of Merit, and the Medal for Merit". Archived from the original on 2020-12-30. Retrieved 2019-02-28.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  2. ^ a b c d "Scientific Notes and News". Science. American Association for the Advancement of Science. 99 (2571): 276. 1944-04-07. Bibcode:1944Sci....99..276.. doi:10.1126/science.99.2571.276. from the original on 2022-02-26. Retrieved 2022-02-26.
  3. ^ a b The Code of Federal Regulations of the United States of America, p. 344, at Google Books
  4. ^ "5301 - 5319 Awards". MyNavy HR. United States Navy. from the original on 2021-12-28. Retrieved 2022-02-26.
  5. ^ "War Department: Recommendation for award of Medal for Merit to Edgar Edouard Sengier. Center for Research Libraries" (pdf). p. 68. from the original on 2014-02-03. Retrieved 2014-01-25.
  6. ^ "Briton receives medal for merit Sir William S. Stephenson (second from right), wartime British security coordinator for the Western hermisphere, receives the Medal for Merit, highest honor the United States can grant a non-citizen, Nov. 30, in a New York ceremony. Presentation of the medal is made by Major General William J. Donovan (left), wartime chief of the Office of Strategic Services, in the presence of Col. G. Edward Buxton, wartime assistant O.S.S. director (second from left), and Lady Stephenson, the former Mary Simmons, of Springfield, Tenn. Col. Buxton's home is in Providence, R.I." (still image). 1946. hdl:loc.pnp/ds.02087. from the original on 2019-06-24. Retrieved 2022-02-26.
  7. ^ "Citation Accompanying Medal for Merit Awarded to Dean Acheson". The American Presidency Project. 1947-06-30. from the original on 2022-02-26. Retrieved 2022-02-26.
  8. ^ Gibson, R. E. (1980). "Leason Heberling Adams 1887—1969, A Biographical Memoir" (PDF). National Academy of Sciences. p. 9. (PDF) from the original on 2016-03-03. Retrieved 2022-02-26.
  9. ^ a b c d "Presidential Medal for Merit. February 2, 1948. - Published Papers and Official Documents - Linus Pauling and the International Peace Movement". Oregon State University. from the original on 2018-07-18. Retrieved 2022-02-26.
  10. ^ a b c Written at Los Angeles. "Millikan, son, aide get medals of merit". New York Times. New York City (published 1949-03-22). 1949-03-21. from the original on 2023-09-02. Retrieved 2014-10-27.
  11. ^ Durand, William (1953). Adventures; In the Navy, In Education, Science, Engineering, and in War; A Life Story. American Society of Mechanical Engineers and McGraw-Hill. p. 153. ISBN 9780835752039. LCCN 53002031. OCLC 1216197. from the original on 2022-05-23. Retrieved 2022-02-26 – via Google Books.
  12. ^ Kelly's Handbook to the Titled, Landed and Official Classes. Vol. 81 (1955 ed.). London: Kelly's Directories. 1955. p. 802. LCCN 08005253. OCLC 660092690.
  13. ^ Fenner, Frank (1996). "Florey, Howard Walter (Baron Florey) (1898–1968)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 14. Melbourne University Press. pp. 188–190. ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 10 October 2008.
  14. ^ Getting, Ivan A.; Christie, John M. (1994). "David Tressel Griggs" (PDF). Biographical Memoirs. Vol. 64. Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press. pp. 112–133. (PDF) from the original on 2022-02-06. Retrieved 2015-10-27.
  15. ^ "Clarence Hickman and Charles Stoddard Papers, 1886-1999" (PDF). Indiana Historical Society. (PDF) from the original on 2021-09-02. Retrieved 2022-02-28.
  16. ^ Engel, Helen Butterfield; Smiley, Marilynn J., eds. (2013-03-05). Remarkable Women in New York State History. Charleston, South Carolina: The History Press. ISBN 978-1-60949-966-2. OCLC 823041790. from the original on 2022-05-23. Retrieved 2022-02-26 – via Google Books.
  17. ^ Read, Phyllis J.; Witlieb, Bernard (1992). The Book of Women's Firsts: Breakthrough Achievements of Almost 1,000 American Women. Random House Information Group. ISBN 978-0-679-40975-5. OCLC 1147994498 – via Google Books. Mary Shotwell Ingraham was the First woman to receive a U.S. Medal of Merit (1946); a founder of the United Service Organizations (USO) (1941). As a founder and former vice president of the USO (an organization that supplies social, recreational, and welfare facilities for the armed services), Ingraham was awarded the Medal for Merit by President Harry S. Truman.
  18. ^ "Official Congressional Directory: 83d Congress, 1st Session. Washington D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office. 1953". from the original on 2022-02-27. Retrieved 2022-02-27.
  19. ^ Slackman, Michael (1990). Target Pearl Harbor. University of Hawaii Press. p. 231. ISBN 9780824813789. Ben Kanahele.
  20. ^ Dicke, William (1982-10-25). "Dillon S. Myer, Who Headed War Relocation Agency, Dies". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. from the original on 2020-08-28. Retrieved 2022-02-26.
  21. ^ "Dr. Richard Roberts, 69, Pioneer As Physicist and Microbiologist". New York Times. 1980-04-07. from the original on 2023-09-02. Retrieved 2014-10-27.
  22. ^ https://news.mit.edu/1994/stratton-0629
  23. ^ "Thomas J. Watson Sr. Is Dead; I.B.M. Board Chairman Was 82". The New York Times. 1956-06-20. p. 1. from the original on 2023-09-02. Retrieved 2015-01-10.

External links edit

 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Medal for Merit.
  • NARA – Federal Register – Executive Order 9637 – Medal for Merit
  • , Philip J. Schlegel, 2012. Includes list of recipients (PDF).

December 31, 2023
medal, merit, imperial, german, decoration, colloquially, known, blue, bearing, french, language, inscription, meaning, merit, pour, mérite, romanian, medal, romania, during, period, awarded, highest, civilian, decoration, united, states, gift, president, awar. For the Imperial German decoration colloquially known as the Blue Max and bearing a French language inscription meaning for merit see Pour le Merite For the Romanian medal see Medal for Merit Romania The Medal for Merit was during the period it was awarded the highest civilian decoration of the United States in the gift of the president It was awarded by the President of the United States to civilians who distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services in the war effort since the proclamation of an emergency by the President on September 8 1939 Awards to civilians of foreign nations were eligible only for the performance of exceptionally meritorious or courageous act or acts in furtherance of the war efforts of the United Nations 1 Medal for MeritObverse and reverse of the Medal for MeritTypeSingle grade decorationAwarded forExceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services during World War IICountry United StatesPresented byPresident of the United StatesEligibilityCivilians of the United States and allied nationsStatusNo longer awardedEstablished20 July 1942 1 First awarded28 March 1944 2 Last awarded1952Ribbon bar of the medalPrecedenceNext higher None At the time of its awarding Next lower Medal of FreedomThe medal is made of gold finished bronze and enamel and is worn on the left chest from a ribbon 3 Contents 1 History 2 Notable recipients 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksHistory editThe Medal for Merit was created by Public Law 77 671 and its awarding codified by Executive Order 9286 Medal for Merit on 24 December 1942 later amended and restated by Executive Order 9857A of 27 May 1947 Created during World War II and awarded to civilians of the nations prosecuting the war under the joint declaration of the United Nations and of other friendly foreign nations the medal has not been awarded since 1952 3 The first medals were awarded to John C Garand and Albert Hoyt Taylor on 28 March 1944 2 The Medal for Merit is currently listed as seventh in order of precedence of U S civilian decorations below the Silver Lifesaving Medal and above the National Intelligence Distinguished Service Medal 4 Civilians of foreign nations could receive the award for the performance of an exceptionally meritorious or courageous act or acts in furtherance of the war efforts of the Allies against the Axis Powers The first person to receive this medal who was not an American citizen was Sir Edward Wilfred Harry Travis Director of the British Government Code and Cypher School in World War II on 12 January 1946 The next foreign civilian to receive the medal was Edgar Sengier the director of the Belgian Union Miniere du Haut Katanga during World War II Sengier was awarded the Medal for Merit on 9 April 1946 5 The next foreign civilian to receive the medal was the Canadian spymaster William Stephenson in November 1946 6 Stephenson had the code name Intrepid during World War II Some writers consider Stephenson to be one of the real life inspirations for the fictitious character James Bond Another recipient was Sir Robert Watson Watt a British pioneer of radar who created a chain of radar stations around the UK which enabled advance information to be available to the Royal Air Force of incoming German aircraft and was instrumental in the winning of the 1940 Battle of Britain He was sent to the US in 1941 to advise on air defense after Japan s attack on Pearl Harbor He was awarded the US Medal for Merit in 1946 All proposed awards were considered by the Medal for Merit Board consisting of three members appointed by the president of whom one was appointed as the chairman of the board This medal cannot be awarded for any action relating to the prosecution of World War II after the end of hostilities as proclaimed by Proclamation No 2714 of 31 December 1946 and no proposal for this award for such services could be submitted after 30 December 1946 The last medal of this type was awarded in 1952 after a long delay in processing Notable recipients editDean Acheson 30 June 1947 7 Leason H Adams 1948 8 Ernest Lawrence 1946 Homer Burton Adkins James Gilbert Baker 1948 Chester I Barnard Irving Berlin 1945 Barnett R Brickner 1947 Vannevar Bush 27 May 1948 G Edward Buxton Jr 30 November 1946 Samuel H Caldwell Arthur Compton 12 January 1946 James B Conant 27 May 1948 Granville Conway 16 July 1947 Albert de Vleeschauwer Joseph Desch 16 July 1947 Lee Alvin DuBridge 2 February 1948 9 Louis G Dunn 21 March 1949 10 John R Dunning 1946 William Frederick Durand 1946 11 Enrico Fermi 1946 Alexander Fleming 12 Howard Florey 1948 13 William Alfred Fowler 2 February 1948 9 Edwin Broun Fred 1945 William F Friedman 1946 Jack Frye 18 December 1946 John C Garand 28 March 1944 2 Ivan A Getting David T Griggs 15 April 1946 14 Leroy Randle Grumman 1948 Gaylord P Harnwell W Averell Harriman 1946 Clarence N Hickman 1948 15 J Edgar Hoover 8 March 1946 Bob Hope Cordell Hull 15 April 1947 Jerome Clarke Hunsaker 1946 Frederick Vinton Hunt Mary Shotwell Ingraham 1946 16 17 Robert H Jackson 7 February 1947 18 Louis Johnson 1 October 1947 Eric Johnston 1947 Al Jolson 1950 Ben Kanahele 1941 19 Paul E Klopsteg 1948 Edward F Knipling 1947 Frank Knox 31 May 1945 Julius A Krug 1 May 1946 William L Langer 18 July 1946 Charles Christian Lauritsen 1948 George William Lewis 1948 Alfred Lee Loomis William L Marbury Jr late 1940s Max Mason 2 February 1948 9 Thomas B McCabe 1946 Paul V McNutt 27 November 1946 George W Merck 1946 Clark B Millikan 21 March 1949 10 Robert A Millikan 21 March 1949 10 Raymond D Mindlin Henry Morgenthau Jr 12 December 1945 Philip McCord Morse December 1946 William Beverly Murphy 1946 Dillon S Myer 20 David K Niles 20 August 1947 Brian O Brien J Robert Oppenheimer 1946 Linus Carl Pauling 2 February 1948 9 William D Pawley 13 May 1946 Howard C Petersen 1947 Byron Price 15 January 1946 I I Rabi 1948 Eddie Rickenbacker Richard B Roberts 1947 21 Donald Roebling 1948 Samuel I Rosenman 24 January 1946 Leonard Rowntree 1946 Edgar Sengier 9 April 1946 James Augustine Shannon 1948 William Shockley 1946 Cyril Stanley Smith John Wesley Snyder 14 May 1947 William Stephenson 1946 Julius Adams Stratton 1946 22 Herbert Bayard Swope 1947 Myron C Taylor 20 December 1948 Albert Hoyt Taylor 28 March 1944 2 Frederick Emmons Terman Charles Allen Thomas 30 January 1946 Sir Edward Wilfred Harry Travis 12 January 1946 Juan T Trippe 27 September 1946 Fred M Vinson 3 October 1947 Theodore von Karman 1946 John von Neumann 1947 Sir Robert Watson Watt 1946 Thomas J Watson Sr 19 May 1947 23 Sidney James Weinberg 19 September 1946 Eugene Wigner 1946 Charles Erwin Wilson 1946 Thomas E Wilson 1946 Stephen J ZandSee also editPresident s Certificate of MeritReferences edit a b 77th Congress of the United States Public Law 77 671 To create the decorations to be known as the Legion of Merit and the Medal for Merit Archived from the original on 2020 12 30 Retrieved 2019 02 28 a href Template Cite web html title Template Cite web cite web a CS1 maint numeric names authors list link a b c d Scientific Notes and News Science American Association for the Advancement of Science 99 2571 276 1944 04 07 Bibcode 1944Sci 99 276 doi 10 1126 science 99 2571 276 Archived from the original on 2022 02 26 Retrieved 2022 02 26 a b The Code of Federal Regulations of the United States of America p 344 at Google Books 5301 5319 Awards MyNavy HR United States Navy Archived from the original on 2021 12 28 Retrieved 2022 02 26 War Department Recommendation for award of Medal for Merit to Edgar Edouard Sengier Center for Research Libraries pdf p 68 Archived from the original on 2014 02 03 Retrieved 2014 01 25 Briton receives medal for merit Sir William S Stephenson second from right wartime British security coordinator for the Western hermisphere receives the Medal for Merit highest honor the United States can grant a non citizen Nov 30 in a New York ceremony Presentation of the medal is made by Major General William J Donovan left wartime chief of the Office of Strategic Services in the presence of Col G Edward Buxton wartime assistant O S S director second from left and Lady Stephenson the former Mary Simmons of Springfield Tenn Col Buxton s home is in Providence R I still image 1946 hdl loc pnp ds 02087 Archived from the original on 2019 06 24 Retrieved 2022 02 26 Citation Accompanying Medal for Merit Awarded to Dean Acheson The American Presidency Project 1947 06 30 Archived from the original on 2022 02 26 Retrieved 2022 02 26 Gibson R E 1980 Leason Heberling Adams 1887 1969 A Biographical Memoir PDF National Academy of Sciences p 9 Archived PDF from the original on 2016 03 03 Retrieved 2022 02 26 a b c d Presidential Medal for Merit February 2 1948 Published Papers and Official Documents Linus Pauling and the International Peace Movement Oregon State University Archived from the original on 2018 07 18 Retrieved 2022 02 26 a b c Written at Los Angeles Millikan son aide get medals of merit New York Times New York City published 1949 03 22 1949 03 21 Archived from the original on 2023 09 02 Retrieved 2014 10 27 Durand William 1953 Adventures In the Navy In Education Science Engineering and in War A Life Story American Society of Mechanical Engineers and McGraw Hill p 153 ISBN 9780835752039 LCCN 53002031 OCLC 1216197 Archived from the original on 2022 05 23 Retrieved 2022 02 26 via Google Books Kelly s Handbook to the Titled Landed and Official Classes Vol 81 1955 ed London Kelly s Directories 1955 p 802 LCCN 08005253 OCLC 660092690 Fenner Frank 1996 Florey Howard Walter Baron Florey 1898 1968 Australian Dictionary of Biography Vol 14 Melbourne University Press pp 188 190 ISSN 1833 7538 Retrieved 10 October 2008 Getting Ivan A Christie John M 1994 David Tressel Griggs PDF Biographical Memoirs Vol 64 Washington D C National Academies Press pp 112 133 Archived PDF from the original on 2022 02 06 Retrieved 2015 10 27 Clarence Hickman and Charles Stoddard Papers 1886 1999 PDF Indiana Historical Society Archived PDF from the original on 2021 09 02 Retrieved 2022 02 28 Engel Helen Butterfield Smiley Marilynn J eds 2013 03 05 Remarkable Women in New York State History Charleston South Carolina The History Press ISBN 978 1 60949 966 2 OCLC 823041790 Archived from the original on 2022 05 23 Retrieved 2022 02 26 via Google Books Read Phyllis J Witlieb Bernard 1992 The Book of Women s Firsts Breakthrough Achievements of Almost 1 000 American Women Random House Information Group ISBN 978 0 679 40975 5 OCLC 1147994498 via Google Books Mary Shotwell Ingraham was the First woman to receive a U S Medal of Merit 1946 a founder of the United Service Organizations USO 1941 As a founder and former vice president of the USO an organization that supplies social recreational and welfare facilities for the armed services Ingraham was awarded the Medal for Merit by President Harry S Truman Official Congressional Directory 83d Congress 1st Session Washington D C U S Government Printing Office 1953 Archived from the original on 2022 02 27 Retrieved 2022 02 27 Slackman Michael 1990 Target Pearl Harbor University of Hawaii Press p 231 ISBN 9780824813789 Ben Kanahele Dicke William 1982 10 25 Dillon S Myer Who Headed War Relocation Agency Dies The New York Times ISSN 0362 4331 Archived from the original on 2020 08 28 Retrieved 2022 02 26 Dr Richard Roberts 69 Pioneer As Physicist and Microbiologist New York Times 1980 04 07 Archived from the original on 2023 09 02 Retrieved 2014 10 27 https news mit edu 1994 stratton 0629 Thomas J Watson Sr Is Dead I B M Board Chairman Was 82 The New York Times 1956 06 20 p 1 Archived from the original on 2023 09 02 Retrieved 2015 01 10 External links edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Medal for Merit NARA Federal Register Executive Order 9637 Medal for Merit Exploring the Medal for Merit Philip J Schlegel 2012 Includes list of recipients PDF Portals nbsp Numismatics nbsp United States nbsp World War II Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Medal for Merit amp oldid 1188956478, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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