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Purple Heart Stamp

Press Release
Page 1

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Media Relations 202-268-2155 April 30, 2003 Stamp Release No. 021 www.usps.com PURPLE HEART POSTAGE STAMP HONORS SACRIFICES OF THOSE WHO SERVED

WASHINGTON – The oldest military decoration in the world will be commemorated with the issuance of the new Purple Heart postage stamp issued by the United States Postal Service on May 30.

The official first day of issuance ceremony will take place at 10:30 AM at George Washington’s Mount Vernon Estate and Gardens, located at the southern end of the George Washington Memorial Parkway in Mt. Vernon, Va. Registration will be required at the front gate for admission to the event.

The new stamp will be available at post offices nationwide beginning May 30.

"General George Washington created the Purple Heart decoration as a way to honor and thank the brave soldiers who fought under his command," said Postmaster General John E. Potter who will dedicate the stamp. "Now, it is our turn to do the same and continue Washington’s patriotic tradition. With the issuance of this stamp, the Postal Service, along with the rest of America, can pay tribute to the men and women whose sacrifices have given all of us a country that is truly the ‘land of the free and the home of the brave.’ "

"We are thrilled to be hosting this important ceremony at Mount Vernon," said James Rees, Executive Director of Historic Mount Vernon. "Since George Washington created the medal to recognize his brave soldiers during the Revolutionary War, his home is the perfect place to celebrate the introduction of this new stamp, and to remind all Americans of the courage and sacrifice of our men and women in uniform."

Joining Potter will be William A. Wroolie, National Commander of the Military Order of the Purple Heart.

With the issuance of the Purple Heart stamp, the Postal Service honors the sacrifices of the men and women who serve in the U.S. military. The Purple Heart is awarded in the name of the President of the United States to members of the U.S. military who have been wounded or killed in action. According to the Military Order of the Purple Heart, an organization for combat-wounded veterans, the medal is "the oldest military decoration in the world in present use and the first award made available to a common soldier."

On August 7, 1782, during the Revolutionary War, General George Washington issued an order that established a badge of distinction for meritorious action. The badge, which consisted of a heart made of purple cloth, is known to have been awarded to three sergeants from Connecticut regiments: Elijah Churchill and William Brown on May 3, 1783, in Newburgh, New York, and Daniel Bissell, Jr., on June 10, 1783.

Known as the Badge of Military Merit, the award was distinctive because it was available to the lower ranks at a time when only officers were eligible for decoration in European armies. "The road to glory in a patriot army," Washington wrote, "is thus open to all."

The decoration was not continued after the Revolutionary War, but its reinstatement was announced by the U.S. War Department (now the Department of Defense) on February 22, 1932, the 200th anniversary of Washington’s birthday. The redesigned decoration consists of a purple heart of metal bordered by gold and suspended from a purple and white ribbon. In the center of the medal is a profile bust of George Washington beneath his family coat of arms.

Since World War II, U.S. presidents have expanded the eligibility requirements for the Purple Heart. On December 3, 1942, President Franklin D. Roosevelt issued an executive order that extended the award to the Navy, Marines and Coast Guard and made the change retroactive to December 6, 1941. President Harry S. Truman later extended the date of eligibility retroactively to April 5, 1917, to include those who were injured or killed during World War I.

From 1962 to 1998, civilian personnel wounded or killed while serving under military command were also eligible for the Purple Heart, in accordance with a 1962 executive order by President John F. Kennedy. That order also prompted a policy change to include prisoners of war wounded during captivity. (A 1996 law authorized awarding the Purple Heart to POWs wounded before April 25, 1962.) Kennedy’s 1962 executive order was amended in 1984 by President Ronald Reagan to include both military personnel and civilians under military authority who were killed or wounded in an international terrorist attack after March 28, 1973.