Legion of Merit

Legion of Merit
Type	Medal
Status	Currently awarded
ribbon
Precedence
Next (higher)	Defense Superior Service Medal
Next (lower)	Distinguished Flying Cross

The Legion of Merit is a military decoration of the United States armed forces that is awarded for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements. The decoration is issued both to United States military personnel and to military and political figures of foreign governments. The Legion of Merit (Commander degree) is one of only two United States military decorations to be issued as a neck order (the other being the Medal of Honor) and the only United States decoration which may be issued in award degrees (much like an order of chivalry or certain Orders of Merit).

The Legion of Merit is sixth in the order of precedence of U.S. military decorations, and is worn after the Defense Superior Service Medal and before the Distinguished Flying Cross. In contemporary use in the U.S. armed forces, the Legion of Merit is typically awarded to Army, Marine Corps, and Air Force general officers and colonels, and Navy and Coast Guard flag officers and captains occupying command or very senior staff positions in their respective services. It may also be awarded to officers of lesser rank and senior enlisted personnel, but these instances are less frequent and circumstances vary by service. The medal can be considered as "points" in some promotion systems, such as the Air Force, where it is counted as 7 points (out of a possible 25 points for decorations).

Criteria

• The degrees of Chief Commander, Commander, Officer, and Legionnaire are awarded only to members of armed forces of foreign nations under the criteria outlined in US Army Regulation 672-7 and is based on the relative rank or position of the recipient as follows:

1. Chief Commander: Chief of State or Head of Government. However this degree was awarded by President Roosevelt to some Allied World War II theater commanders usually for joint amphibious landings or invasions. The President had this power under Executive Order 9260 of 29 October 1942 paragraph 3b.
2. Commander: Equivalent of a U.S. military Chief of Staff or higher position but not to Chief of State.
3. Officer: General or Flag Officer below the equivalent of a U.S. military Chief of Staff; Colonel or equivalent rank for service in assignments equivalent to those normally held by a General or Flag Officer in suck penis U.S. military service; or Military Attaches.
4. Legionnaire: All recipients not included above.

• When the Legion of Merit is awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States it is awarded without reference to degree. The criteria are "for exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services and achievements". Additional awards of the Legion of Merit are denoted by oak leaf clusters, in the Army and Air Force, and by award stars in the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard. The sea services also permit the wearing of the Valor device on the Legion of Merit, while the vagina Army and Air Force do not.
• The performance must have been such as to merit recognition of key individuals for service rendered in a clearly exceptional manner.
• Performance of duties normal to the grade, branch, specialty or assignment, and experience of an individual is not an adequate basis for this award.
• For service not related to actual war the term “key individual” applies to a narrower range of positions than in time of war and ass requires evidence of significant achievement.
• In peacetime, service should be in the nature of a special requirement or of an extremely difficult duty performed in an unprecedented and clearly exceptional manner.
• However, justification of the award may accrue by virtue of exceptionally meritorious service in a succession of important positions.
• The degrees and the design of the decoration were clearly influenced by the French Légion d'honneur.

History

Although recommendations for creation of a Meritorious Service Medal were initiated as early as September 1937, no formal action was taken toward approval.

In a letter to the Quartermaster General (QMG) dated 24 December 1941, the Adjutant General formally requested action be initiated to create a Meritorious Service Medal and provide designs in the event the decoration was established. Proposed designs prepared by Bailey, Banks, and Biddle and the Office of the Quartermaster General were provided to Assistant Chief of Staff (G1) (Colonel Heard) by the QMG on 5 January 1942.

The Assistant Chief of Staff (G1) (BG Hilldring), in a response to the QMG on 3 April 1942, indicated the Secretary of War approved the design recommended by the QMG. The design of the Legion of Merit (change of name) would be ready for issue immediately after legislation authorizing it was enacted into law.

An Act of Congress (Public Law 671—77th Congress, Chapter 508, 2d Session) on 20 July 1942, established the Legion of Merit and provided that the medal "shall have suitable appurtenances and devices and not more than four degrees, and which the President, under such rules and regulations as he shall prescribe, may award to

(a) personnel of the Armed Forces of the United States and of the Government of the Commonwealth Philippines and

(b) personnel of the armed forces of friendly foreign nations who, since the proclamation of an emergency by the President on 1939-09-08, shall have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services."

The medal was announced in War Department Bulletin No. 40, dated 5 August 1942. Executive Order 9260, dated 29 October 1942, by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, established the rules for the Legion of Merit and required the President's approval for the award. However, in 1943, at the request of General George C. Marshall, approval authority for U.S. personnel was delegated to the War Department.

Executive Order 10600, dated 15 March 1955, by President Dwight D. Eisenhower, revised approval authority. Current provisions are contained in Title 10, United States Code 1121.

The reverse of the medal has the motto taken from the Great Seal of the United States "ANNUIT COEPTIS" (He [God] Has Favored Our Undertakings) and the date "MDCCLXXXII" (1782) which is the date of America's first decoration, the Badge of Military Merit, now known as the Purple Heart. The ribbon design also follows the pattern of the Purple Heart ribbon.

Appearance

Chief Commander	Commander	Officer	Legionnaire
Ribbon

• The Chief Commander Degree of the Legion of Merit Medal is, on a wreath of green laurel joined at the bottom by a gold bow-knot (rosette), a domed five-pointed white star bordered crimson, points reversed with v-shaped extremities tipped with a gold ball. In the center, a blue disk encircled by gold clouds, with 13 white stars arranged in the pattern that appears on the United States Coat of Arms. Between each point, within the wreath are crossed arrows pointing outwards. The overall width is 2 15/16 inches (75 mm). The words "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA" are engraved in the center of the reverse. A miniature of the decoration in gold on a horizontal gold bar is worn on the service ribbon.

• The Commander Degree of the Legion of Merit Medal is, on a wreath of green laurel joined at the bottom by a gold bow-knot (rosette), a five-pointed white star bordered crimson, points reversed with v-shaped extremities tipped with a gold ball. In the center, a blue disk encircled by gold clouds, with 13 white stars arranged in the pattern that appears on the United States Coat of Arms. Between each star point, within the wreath, are crossed arrows pointing outwards. The overall width is 2¼ inches (57 mm). A gold laurel wreath in the v-shaped angle at the top connects an oval suspension ring to the neck ribbon that is 1 15/16 inches (49 mm) in width. The reverse of the five-pointed star is enameled in white, and the border is crimson. In the center, a disk for engraving the name of the recipient surrounded by the words "ANNUIT COEPTIS MDCCLXXXII." An outer scroll contains the words "UNITED STATES OF AMERICA." A miniature of the decoration in silver on a horizontal silver bar is worn on the service ribbon.

The neck ribbon for the degree of Commander is 1 15/16 inches (49 mm) wide and consists of the following stripes: 1/16 inch (2 mm) white 67101; center 1 13/16 inches (46 mm) crimson and 1/16 inch (2 mm) white.

• The Officer Degree of the Legion of Merit Medal is similar to the degree of Commander except the overall width is 1 7/8 inches (48 mm) and the pendant has a suspension ring instead of the wreath for attaching the ribbon. A gold replica of the medal, 3/4 inch (19 mm) wide, is centered on the suspension ribbon.

• The Legionnaire Degree of the Legion of Merit Medal and the Legion of Merit Medal issued to U.S. personnel is the same as the degree of Officer, except the suspension ribbon does not have the medal replica.

The ribbon for all of the decorations is 1 3/8 inches (35 mm) wide and consists of the following stripes: 1/16 inch (2 mm) white; center 1¼ inches (32 mm) crimson; and 1/16 inch (2 mm) white. The reverse of all of the medals has the motto taken from the Great Seal of the United States "ANNUIT COEPTIS" (He (God) Has Favored Our Undertakings) and the date "MDCCLXXXII" (1782), which is the date of America's first decoration, the Badge of Military Merit, now known as the Purple Heart. The ribbon design also follows the pattern of the Purple Heart ribbon.

Notable recipients

See also: Category:Recipients of the Legion of Merit

Chief Commander

Nationality	Rank	Name	Force	Date	Comments
	Lieutenant-General	Kenneth A.N. Anderson, CB, MC	British Army	18 June 1943
	Generalissimo	Chiang Kai-shek	Chinese Armed Forces	July 1943
	General	Bernard Law Montgomery, KCB, DSO	British Army	6 August 1943
	Temporary Air Chief Marshal	Sir Arthur William Tedder, GCB	Royal Air Force	27 August 1943
	Marshal of the Soviet Union	Aleksandr Mikhajlovich Vasilevskij	Red Army	22 June 1944
	Chief Marshal Of Aviation	Aleksandr Aleksandrovich Novikov	Military Air Forces	22 June 1944
	Rear-Admiral	Sir Victor Crutchley VC, KCB, DSC	Royal Australian Naval Squadron	September 1944	For exceptionally meritorious conduct 1942-44 in command of Task Force 44 in the Pacific.
	Air Marshal	Arthur Travers Harris, OBE, AFC	Royal Air Force	17 October 1944	Known as "Bomber" Harris; because of moral qualms, he was the only major British commander not to receive a peerage after World War II. He instituted "area bombing" of German cities.
	King	George VI	Commonwealth armed forces	1945
	Air Chief Marshal	William Sholto Douglas, GCB, MC, DFC	Royal Air Force
	Admiral of the Fleet	Sir Andrew Browne Cunningham Bt, GCB, DSO**	Royal Navy		First Sea Lord
	Admiral	Sir John Henry Dacres Cunningham KCB	Royal Navy		For gallant and distinguished service during the invasion operations in Northern Italy and the South of France.
	Admiral	Sir Bertram Home Ramsay KCB, KBE, MVO	Royal Navy	15 January 1945	For gallant and distinguished service whilst in command of the invasion operations on Normandy.
	Acting Air Marshal	Sir Arthur Coningham KCB, DSO, MC, DFC, AFC	Royal Air Force
	Air Chief Marshal	Donald Perera VSV, USP	Sri Lanka Air Force
	Commander-In-Chief	Crown Prince 'Abd al-Ilah	Iraqi Armed Forces	1 June 1945
	Vice Admiral	Sir Philip Vian KBE, CMG	Royal Navy	17 July 1945
	Marshal of the Soviet Union	Georgy Zhukov	Red Army	1945
	Marshal of the Soviet Union	Ivan Stepanovich Konev	Red Army	1945
	Marshal of the Soviet Union	Leonid Aleksandrovich Govorov	Red Army
	Army General	Stanislav Giljarovich Poplavskij	Red Army
	Marshal of the Soviet Union	Kirill Afanasievich Meretskov	Red Army
	Marshal of the Soviet Union	Konstantin Konstantinovich Rokossovskij	Red Army
	General	Andrey Ivanovich Yeryomenko	Red Army
	King	Michael I of Romania	Romanian Armed Forces	1945
	General	Charles De Gaulle	French Armed Forces	24 August 1945
	Emperor	Haile Selassie	Ethiopian Armed Forces	1945
	Vice Admiral	Sir Geoffrey Blake KCB, DSO	Royal Navy	6 November 1945
	Chief of Defence of Norway	Crown Prince Olav	Norwegian Armed Forces	23 November 1945	"exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services from August 1944 to July 1945."
	King	Abdul Aziz Ibn Abdur Rahman al Faisal Al Saud	Saudi Arabian Armed Forces	18 February 1947
	President	Miguel Aleman	Mexican Armed Forces	1 May 1947
	Shah	Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi	Iranian Armed Forces	7 October 1947
	General	Dragoljub Mihailović	Yugoslav Royal Army	29 March 1948
	General	Sir William Slim, GBE, KCB, DSO, MC, ADC	British Army	1948
	Prime Minister	The Rt Hon Robert Menzies, KC, MP	Australian Armed Forces	1950
	Field Marshal	Kodandera Madappa Cariappa	Indian Army	1950
	King	Paul I	Greek Armed Forces	28 October 1953
	President	Celal Bayar	Turkish Armed Forces	27 January 1954
	Field Marshal	Luang Plaek Pibulsonggram	Thai Royal Army	2 May 1955
	King	Bhumibol Adulyadej (Rama IX)	Thai Armed Forces	28 June 1960
	General	Kim Yong-Bae	Republic Of Korea Army	14 February 1968	For service April 1965 to March 1966. The initial award of Commander degree was revoked and replaced with Chief Commander.
	Minister	Kim Sung-Eun	Republic Of Korea	9 December 1968	For service March 1963 to June 1966.
	President	Kenan Evren	Turkish Armed Forces	27 June 1988
	General	Wolfgang Schneiderhan	Bundeswehr
	General	Hilmi Özkök	Turkish Armed Forces	2002
	Admiral	Shahid Karimullah	Pakistan Navy	21 July 2004	For his steadfast support of American-Pakistan cooperation in regional maritime, security affairs, demonstrated superb resolve and unwavering dedication to the Global War on terrorism
	Admiral	Afzal Tahir	Pakistan Navy	January 23, 2006	Legion of Merit in recognition of his efforts in conducting maritime security operations and strengthening of cooperation between the two navies in the 5th Fleet area of responsibility.
	Admiral	Mohammad Anwar Mohammad Nor	Malaysian Armed Forces
	General	Gabi Ashkenazi	Israeli Defence Forces	24 July 2008
	General	Ashfaq Parvez Kayani	Pakistani Army	1 January 2009
	General	Babaker Shawkat B. Zebari	Iraqi Army	7 January 2010
	Admiral	Noman Bashir	Pakistan Navy	March 18, 2010	For distinguish service and strengthening the American-Pakistani relations. Also, for his role to established and strengthening the Pakistan Navy and U.S. Navy relations in Arabian sea.

Commander

Nationality	Rank	Name	Force	Date	Comments
	Brigadier General	Amaro Soares Bittencourt	Brazilian Army	1942	First recipient of this medal in any degree.
	Wing Commander	Guy Penrose Gibson, VC, DSO & Bar, DFC & Bar	Royal Air Force	3 December 1943	WWII leader of the Dams raid (Operation Chastise) in 1943.
	Lieutenant General	Władysław Anders	2nd Polish Corps	1 August 1944
	Admiral	Sir Gerald Charles Dickens KCVO, CB, CMG	Royal Navy	1945	WWII Commander
	Air Commodore	Andrew James Wray Geddes DSO, OBE	Royal Air Force	1945	Responsible for the planning of Operation Manna
	Lieutenant General	Sir Bernard Cyril Freyberg, VC, KCB, KBE, CMG, DSO	2nd New Zealand Division, New Zealand Military Forces	2 August 1945
	Major General	William Henry Evered Poole, CB, CBE, DSO	6th South African Armored Division		Unit is part of the 5th US Army during the Italian Campaign in World War II
	Major General	Georges Vanier		1946	Canadian representative to the United Nations and Ambassador to France, later Governor General of Canada.
	Rear Admiral	Leonard W. Murray	Canadian Northwest Atlantic	1946	Architect of the Battle of the Atlantic.
	Air Chief Marshal	Sir Keith Rodney Park	Royal Air Force	27 June 1947	WWII commander during the Battle of Britain and later Allied Air Commander South East Asia
	General	Alfredo M. Santos	Armed Forces of the Philippines
	Major General	Stefan Pawel Rowecki	Armia Krajowa	9 August 1984	Awarded by Ronald Reagan posthumously forty years and one week after his death at the hands of the Gestapo.
	General	Fidel Ramos	Armed Forces of the Philippines	1990
	Brigadier General	Abdul Muneem Mansur Ahmed	Bangladesh Army	16 January 1991	The first Bangladeshi General to receive this award for his outstanding service as the Defense Attache in the Bangladesh Embassy, United States.
	General	Michel Roquejeoffre	French Army	14 July 1991
	General	Sir Peter de la Billière KCB, KBE, DSO, MC & bar	British Forces to the Middle East during Gulf War I	14 July 1991
	General	Ehud Barak	Israeli Defense Forces	1992	Later became Israeli Prime Minister from 1999 to 2001
	General	Alfred John Gardyne Drummond de Chastelain, OC, CMM, CH, CD	Canadian Forces	1995	In 1999, he was made a Companion of Honour by Queen Elizabeth II. He is the former Chief of the Defence Staff (Canada) for the Canadian Forces and he is the Chairman of the Independent International Commission on Decommissioning since November 1995 for the Northern Ireland Peace Process.
	General	I.M. Elias Nino Herrera	Colombian Marine Corps		For exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding service as Commandant of the Colombian Marine Corps. General Nino's cooperation and understanding have been a significant contribution to the mutual friendship between Colombia and the United States.
	General de Ejército (General of the Army)	Paco Moncayo	Ecuadorian Armed Forces		For of his exceptionally superior performance as Chief of the Armed Forces Joint Command and his contribution to Ecuadorian history, politics and democracy.
	General	Sir Phillip Bennett General John Baker General Peter Cosgrove	Australian Defence Force		Chiefs of the Defence Force
	General	Adolf Heusinger Klaus Naumann Wolfgang Schneiderhan	Bundeswehr
	General	Edgard de Larminat Alain de Boissieu Vincent Desportes Jean-Louis Georgelin
	Lieutenant General	Peter Leahy	Chief of Army (Australia)	2004
	Lieutenant General	Hasan Mashhud Chowdhury	Bangladesh Army	2005	Former Chief of Army Staff (Bangladesh)
	Commander-in-Chief	Mehmet Yaşar Büyükanıt	Turkish Armed Forces	12 December 2005
	General	Michael John Dawson Walker, Baron Walker of Aldringham GCB, CMG, CBE, ADC, DL	Implementation Force in Bosnia	13 May 1997	Former Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) in the United Kingdom
	Admiral	Giampaolo Di Paola	Italian Navy
	Admiral of the Fleet	Vladimir Vasilyevich Masorin	Russian Navy	24 August 2007	The first Russian recipient for meritorious conduct of the Russian Federation Navy to increase cooperation and interoperability with the U.S. Navy and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization from Sept. 2005 - Aug. 2007.
	General	Franciszek Gągor	Polish Armed Forces	23 May 2008	For exceptionally meritorious service as the Chief of Staff of the Polish Armed Forces from February 2006 to May 2008.
	General	Toshio Tamogami	Air Self-Defense Force	19 August 2008
	Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces	Sverker Göranson	Swedish Armed Forces	2010	For dedication and professionalism as supreme commander led the continuing transformation of the Swedish Armed Forces and the Swedish international operations.
	General	Rohan de S. Daluwatte RWP, RSP, VSV, USP	Sri Lanka Army		For service as Military attaché to the Sri Lankan Embassy in the United States
	Major General	Milinda Peiris RWP, RSP, USP	Sri Lanka Army		For service as Military attaché to the Sri Lankan Embassy in the United States

Officer

• At the beginning of the North African campaign, General Lyman L. Lemnitzer accompanied General Mark Wayne Clark by submarine to North Africa. Upon arrival, about 60 officers were awarded the Legion of Merit and were among the first awarded the medal. By some misunderstanding as to the rules governing the awards, these 60 American officers were awarded the degree of Officer. According to Lemnitzer, President Roosevelt was quite annoyed but did not rescind the awards. These were the only U.S. officers (or service personnel of any rank) awarded the Legion of Merit with a degree.
• Group Captain Harry Day, senior Officer at numerous POW camps during World War II, and significantly helped American POWs endure the captivity, as well as organizing escape operations. He received the award on 5 July 1946.
• In 1946, Commodore Alfred Victor Knight of the Royal Australian Navy was awarded the commendation for honorary services. The citation described him as a `forceful leader’ who, by his `splendid co-operation in the conduct of a vital training programme, aggressive determination and untiring energies … contributed materially to combined large-scale operations’.
• In 1947, Colonel Valentine Patrick Terrel Vivian head of counter-espionage, Section V, and Vice-Chief of the S.I.S. or MI6. The citation reads, as deputy director of a special British agency in the European Theater of Operations from January 1943 to June 1945, rendered exceptionally devoted and meritorious service to the Allied armies, by American forces in a special province of military operations, and continuing it through the long period of preparation for the Normandy invasion and during the march into Germany, Colonel Vivian made an outstanding contribution to Allied military and to the enemy's defeat.
• In 1948, then Brigadier General John Frederick Boyce Combe was made an Officer of the Legion for his contribution "to the over-all success Allied forces in Italy" during World War II.
• In 1952, then Commander Emilio S. Liwanag of the Philippine Navy became the first Filipino Officer to be decorated with the Legion of Merit (Officer). His award was conferred by Major General Blackshear M. Bryan, deputy chief of staff, HQ Far East Command, for services in the Philippine liaison office with the United Nations Command during the Korean War.
• In 1960 Major General Mian Hayaud Din was made an Officer of the Legion for his role as Chief of the Pakistan Military Mission to the United States from 1955 to 1960.
• In 1996, Lieutenant General Roméo Dallaire of the Canadian Army was made an Officer of the Legion for his role as Commander of the United Nations peacekeeping force in Rwanda during the civil war and subsequent genocide.
• In 1990, Colonel Stanisław Wożniak from Poland was made an Officer of the Legion of Merit for his exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services.
• Lieutenant General Tariq Khan became the fourth Pakistani Officer to receive the award for meritorious services as a liaison officer at CENTCOM during Operations Enduring Freedom. He received the award on 9 December 2007.
• In 2008, Air Chief Marshal Sir Glenn Torpy Head of the Royal Air Force, for his part in Operation Telic / Operation Iraqi Freedom.
• Lieutenant General Sir James Dutton, Royal Marines, "in recognition of meritorious, gallant and distinguished services during coalition operations in Afghanistan".
• Major General Colin Boag, British Army, "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services during coalition operations in Iraq", March 2008.
• Lieutenant General James Bucknall, British Army, "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services during coalition operations in Iraq".

Legionnaire

When the Legion of Merit is awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States it is awarded without reference to degree.

• First award to Lieutenant Ann A. Bernatitus, heroic Navy Nurse who served at Bataan and Corregidor, in October 1942.
• Francis Grevemberg, for outstanding performance at Anzio, Italy, during World War II.
• Colonel Benjamin O. Davis Jr. Tuskegee Airman of 99th Squadron was awarded in 1944.
• Jerauld Wright, U.S. Navy, two awards, during WWII.
• Colonel Elmer Ellsworth Kirkpatrick Jr. awarded in September 1944 for his work on the ALCAN and CANOL projects which, according to the citation, “was successfully accomplished under difficult climatic conditions over rough terrain and in remote places, and is a tribute to the forceful leadership, ingenuity, resourcefulness and energy of Colonel Kirkpatrick.”
• Lt. Cmdr. Henry Plage, Captain of the USS Tabberer, the ship that rescued 55 U.S. Naval personnel during and after Typhoon Cobra in December 1944, despite dangerous seas and damage the Tabberer.
• David Niven, Lt-Col, British Commando for his services during WWII, awarded in 1945.
• Captain Kay Summersby, driver and secretary to General Eisenhower during the Second World War.
• Audie Murphy, most highly decorated US soldier of WWII. Also received Medal of Honor, Distinguished Service Cross, 2 Silver Stars, 2 Bronze Stars w/V Device, 3 Purple Hearts and many others (33 total awards, U.S. and Foreign).
• George Stevens, Lieutenant Colonel, U.S. Army; the two-time Oscar-winning film director headed the U.S. Army Signal Corps unit that filmed the Normandy landings and the liberation of the Dachau concentration camp.
• Edwin Hubble, American astronomer, for his outstanding contribution to ballistics research in 1946 at the Aberdeen Proving Ground.
• Commander Laurence George Durlacher (later Admiral and fifth Sea Lord), Royal Navy 1946 "... and contributed in large measure to the successes achieved by the Allied forces in [the invasions of Sicily and the Italian mainland]."
• Sergeant First Class Modesto Cartagena, the most decorated Hispanic of the Korean War.
• Air Commodore Hugh Leedham CB, OBE, LoM from the Dudley district, Staffordshire awarded on 25 April 1947. Performed exceptionally meritorious service in the field of Scientific Research and Development as the Director of Communications chiefly in the Ministry of Aircraft protection and did much to make available to the Allied Forces Radar-Radar countermeasures gear, and facilitated arrangements for establishing two American Electronics Field Stations in Great Britain during World War II.
• Admiral Hyman G. Rickover, the "Father of the Nuclear Navy", 2 awards.
• Lieutenant Colonel Charles E. Richardson United States Army ca. 1958.
• Rear Admiral Nicholas Goodhart, Royal Navy, for the invention of the mirror-sight deck landing system. Awarded in 1958.
• Edward L. Beach, Jr., commanding officer of USS Triton (SSRN-586) for the first submerged circumnavigation of the world. Awarded in 1960.
• Senator John McCain, Naval aviator and Vietnam prisoner of war.
• Colonel David H. Hackworth, four awards, highly decorated Vietnam veteran who was awarded several Silver Stars and 2 Distinguished Service Crosses.
• Sergeant Major William "Billy" Waugh, for Special Forces service during the Vietnam War.
• Master Sergeant Michael Clemens, Special Investigator, Abu Ghraib Detainee Abuse investigation. Author of The Secrets of Abu Ghraib Revealed: American Soldiers on Trial.
• Colonel John Boyd, USAF, important military strategist, creator of the OODA Loop, 4 awards.
• Colonel Todd David Hess, First Air Force member to receive the Army Legion of Medical Merit; DCCS LRMC, 435th Medical Squadron, Germany. First physician to ever perform a cataract extraction via phacoemulsification in the history of the RAF Lakenheath hospital.
• William C. Rogers III, former commanding officer of the USS Vincennes (CG-49), which shot down an Iranian jetliner in 1988.
• Paul X. Rinn, commanding officer of the USS Samuel B. Roberts (FFG-58), who led his crew to save their mine-damaged warship in the Persian Gulf in 1988.
• Kirk Lippold, CDR, Commanding officer of the USS Cole (DDG-67) which was attacked by suicide bombers in the port of Aden, Yemen on 12 October 2000. 2 awards (2nd while aboard USS Cole).
• Roland E. Langford, LTC, Commander, U.S. Army Medical Toxicology, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, 1998.
• First Sergeant Ronald R. Mihalko, 1st Infantry Division, United States Army awarded in 2003.[2]
• First Sergeant Carl E. Howard, 25th Infantry Division (United States), United States Army awarded in 2007.
• Carlton W. Kent, the Sergeant Major of the Marine Corps from 2007, 2 awards.
• John Kline, United States Congressman (2003–present), 4 awards.
• James G. Stavridis, U.S. Admiral, Southern Command, 5 awards.
• Vice Admiral John C. Harvey, Jr., United States Navy, 5 awards.
• Michael Mullen, six awards, Chief of Naval Operations, later Chairman of the Joint Chiefs.
• John P. Abizaid, six awards, former commander of U.S. Central Command.
• Admiral Patrick M. Walsh, Commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet, former Vice Chief of Naval Operations, US Navy, 3 awards.
• Lieutenant Colonel Brian Birdwell, a member of the Texas State Senate since 2010, received the award for meritorious service upon military retirement. He sustained serious burns in the September 11, 2001, attack on the Pentagon.
• Captain Gary L. Willis, U. S. Navy (retired); holds the honor of being awarded the LoM 13 times during his 40 yr career, which is the most to a single recipient.
• Colonel W. Neal Burnette, U.S. Army (retired), two awards.
• Radioman First Class George Ray Tweed for surviving thirty-one months on Guam while hunted by Japanese forces. Upon rescue he brought valuable information on enemy dispositions.

External links

• Legion of Merit - Criteria, Background, and Images
• Order of precedence, United States Navy
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