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Posted By: shrapnel Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
Is it correct to call it:

Medal Of Honor

or

Congressional Medal Of Honor
Posted By: LRoyJetson Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
Medal of Honor is correct

( it is not won)
Posted By: muleshoe Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
I believe they are one and the same.
Posted By: efw Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
Originally Posted by muleshoe
I believe they are one and the same.


6/half dozen

Same/same
Posted By: flintlocke Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
Google it...they are NOT the same...one is a military honor only
Posted By: Dinny Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
MOH
Posted By: STRSWilson Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
This may help...

https://taskandpurpose.com/military-life/theres-no-such-thing-as-the-congressional-medal-of-honor/
Posted By: shrapnel Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
The reason I asked this is I was researching the Custer battle and found this medal of honor and if you notice it is marked "The Congress to" which would lead me to consider it to be "Congressional"...


[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]
Posted By: shrapnel Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
When Google or any other source has more definitive data, it raises an eyebrow as this is an actual medal...


[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]
Posted By: muleshoe Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
That’s pretty cool.
Posted By: LRoyJetson Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
Originally Posted by shrapnel
The reason I asked this is I was researching the Custer battle and found this medal of honor and if you notice it is marked "The Congress to" which would lead me to consider it to be "Congressional"...


Quote
The second reason for the “congressional” myth seems to stem from a line in the U.S. code outlining the award. The law says that the president awards the medal to the recipient “in the name of Congress.” That section of the law, 10 U.S. Code § 3741, also calls the award the “Medal of Honor” on all references. The “Congressional Medal of Honor” myth is so widely dispersed that a separate U.S. federal law passed just last year, 18 U.S. Code § 704, refers to it, but that’s a narrow law that doesn’t outline the Medal of Honor; indeed, it defines it via a series of federal statutes that refer only to the “Medal of Honor.” Congressional staffers are subject to myths, too.
Posted By: shrapnel Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
Originally Posted by LRoyJetson
Quote
The second reason for the “congressional” myth seems to stem from a line in the U.S. code outlining the award. The law says that the president awards the medal to the recipient “in the name of Congress.” That section of the law, 10 U.S. Code § 3741, also calls the award the “Medal of Honor” on all references. The “Congressional Medal of Honor” myth is so widely dispersed that a separate U.S. federal law passed just last year, 18 U.S. Code § 704, refers to it, but that’s a narrow law that doesn’t outline the Medal of Honor; indeed, it defines it via a series of federal statutes that refer only to the “Medal of Honor.” Congressional staffers are subject to myths, too.

That can be understood as it is written, but the source is where I pause.

Secondly, this image is of an actual medal, not something a great great grandson is claiming they have...
Posted By: JTrapper73 Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
Shrapnel,
That’s pretty neat.
I had the honor to meet an MOH recipient at the NRA convention by the name of SGT. Sammy Davis.
He’s a super nice guy and I enjoyed talking to him and also enjoyed his book.
I thought I would do a little research on MOH recipients in Indiana and was surprised to discover that I had one buried in my hometown in a cemetery that I drive by almost every day.
His name was CPT. Thomas Box and he was awarded the MOH for actions during the American Civil War.
IIRC, it was a battle outside of Atlanta.
I could be wrong, but in those days, if you were awarded a medal for bravery, it was the MOH.
There were no other awards for bravery as there were in the wars that followed in the twentieth century so it obviously couldn’t be downgraded to a DSC or something.
That is in NO way meant to disrespect anyone who was awarded an MOH at this point in history. I’m sure all were well deserved.
I mean anyone who gets on line to absorb a hailstorm of 58 caliber minie balls deserves some type of medal for bravery.
Of course being a history buff you probably already knew this. Fun conversation nonetheless.
Posted By: shrapnel Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
It was my understanding as well that after the Civil War and some of the Indian wars that they rearranged the value of what the Medal of Honor was. As I understand it it takes a lot more from an individual service man to get a Medal of Honor than it did back in those days.
Posted By: RufusG Re: Question For The Masses - 12/07/22
Originally Posted by shrapnel
It was my understanding as well that after the Civil War and some of the Indian wars that they rearranged the value of what the Medal of Honor was. As I understand it it takes a lot more from an individual service man to get a Medal of Honor than it did back in those days.

Pretty sure I read some citations once for several MOHs awarded for lifesaving after a boiler explosion on a ship during peacetime. This would have been sometime between the Civil War and 1900ish.
Posted By: MikeL2 Re: Question For The Masses - 12/08/22
Originally Posted by shrapnel
The reason I asked this is I was researching the Custer battle and found this medal of honor and if you notice it is marked "The Congress to" which would lead me to consider it to be "Congressional"...


[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]
The inscription on the medal is not the name of the medal.
Posted By: shrapnel Re: Question For The Masses - 12/08/22
Originally Posted by MikeL2
Originally Posted by shrapnel
The reason I asked this is I was researching the Custer battle and found this medal of honor and if you notice it is marked "The Congress to" which would lead me to consider it to be "Congressional"...


[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]
The inscription on the medal is not the name of the medal.

The inscription of "The Congress To" is the point is am curious about. I was always under the opinion that it is "The Medal Of Honor" as that seems to be the rule. However, Mechlin did receive the Medal of Honor along with several others for their acts of bravery as they transferred water from the Little Bighorn river to the parched troops on Reno/Benteen hill under severe enemy fire from the Indians.


So no one sees the reference to "Congress" on that medal as an association with Congressional?

I'm not saying it is so, it just appears to have some validity to the title "Congressional Medal Of Honor"
Posted By: MikeL2 Re: Question For The Masses - 12/08/22
Originally Posted by shrapnel
Originally Posted by MikeL2
Originally Posted by shrapnel
The reason I asked this is I was researching the Custer battle and found this medal of honor and if you notice it is marked "The Congress to" which would lead me to consider it to be "Congressional"...


[Linked Image from i.imgur.com]
The inscription on the medal is not the name of the medal.

The inscription of "The Congress To" is the point is am curious about. I was always under the opinion that it is "The Medal Of Honor" as that seems to be the rule. However, Mechlin did receive the Medal of Honor along with several others for their acts of bravery as they transferred water from the Little Bighorn river to the parched troops on Reno/Benteen hill under severe enemy fire from the Indians.


So no one sees the reference to "Congress" on that medal as an association with Congressional?

I'm not saying it is so, it just appears to have some validity to the title "Congressional Medal Of Honor"

Your picture is of the inscription to the recipient on the back side of the actual medal. I don't understand why there is any confusion over the official name of the medal - this particular example is the Army version of The Medal Of Honor.

The inscription says "From The Congress To" on the reverse of the bar - your picture cuts off the "from". It says that because that is the original intent of the medal - bestowed BY the President FROM the Congress. Correction - the Medal was redesigned several times - earlier Civil War era version did say "from the congress to", some later versions just said "the congress to" implying the "from".
Posted By: Joel/AK Re: Question For The Masses - 12/08/22
Congress just approves it to the recipient. It's the medal of honor.
Originally Posted by LRoyJetson
Medal of Honor is correct

( it is not won)

100% correct.
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