Gettysburg officer finally gets his MOH

[Dread Knot]

A bit late for the hallow wedding, but better than never .http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/78812000/jpg/_78812903_cushing.jpg

1st Lieutenant Alonzo Cushing receives the Medal of Honor for his part in the 1863 battle today.

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-29941480


Cushing, wounded in the shoulder and stomach, refused to move to the rear and ordered his guns to the front lines of the fight before his death at the age of 22.

[nikimcbee]

Now I know why his name sounds so familiar....Cushing's Battery!:hmmm::salute:

http://www.gettysburg.stonesentinels.com/US/4USartA.php

[Dread Knot]

Now I know why his name sounds so familiar....Cushing's Battery!:hmmm::salute:

http://www.gettysburg.stonesentinels.com/US/4USartA.php

Yup. that's the one.

And his brother, William Cushing was the Union navy officer who sank the Confederate steam ram Albemarle with his own steam ram.

http://shipwreckology.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/albemarle-sinking_web.jpg

[Aktungbby]

They got it half right! his brother should have gotten one too! http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?p=2255841#post2255841 (http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/showthread.php?p=2255841#post2255841) http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2b/WilliamBCushing.jpg/220px-WilliamBCushing.jpg (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:WilliamBCushing.jpg) Lt. Wm B. Cushing. Third brother, Lt. Howard Cushing, died chasing renegade Apaches under Cochise and is buried at San Francisco National Cemetery http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a6/Cushing_Memorial_Park_Monument.jpg/800px-Cushing_Memorial_Park_Monument.jpgCushing Memorial Park Monument in Delafield, Wisconsin

[Cybermat47]

Is there a medal similar to the MoH for Confederate soldiers?

[August]

Is there a medal similar to the MoH for Confederate soldiers?

There were no medals at all in the Confederate army. The only recognition a soldier could get, aside from promotion, was to be "mentioned in dispatches".

I'm not sure what the reasoning was for the lack of valor medals but I suspect it was probably the ad hoc nature of the confederacy as well as its short life span meant there was little or no time for such things to be developed.

[Jimbuna]

There were no medals at all in the Confederate army. The only recognition a soldier could get, aside from promotion, was to be "mentioned in dispatches".

I'm not sure what the reasoning was for the lack of valor medals but I suspect it was probably the ad hoc nature of the confederacy as well as its short life span meant there was little or no time for such things to be developed.

A strange one that :hmmm:

[Dread Knot]

A strange one that :hmmm:

I'm fairly certain that by 1864, if you had offered a Confederate soldier a choice between being rewarded with a medal or a meal, he would have quickly chosen the latter and scarfed it down. Then he might inquire about the medal for dessert.

The Confederate Commissary-General, Lucius Northrop was considered one of the worst administrators on either side, but even an efficient leader in that position would have faced insurmountable logistical problems.

[Gargamel]

I could be wrong on this, cause I haven't done any research, but I would guess the same would be for the Continental army during the American Revolution. At least, not initially.

But then, to victor goes the spoils, so I would assume some medals were handed out.

[Aktungbby]

^ http://www.medalsofamerica.com/content--name-History-of-The-Revolutionary-War-Military-Medals (http://www.medalsofamerica.com/content--name-History-of-The-Revolutionary-War-Military-Medals) " Few inventions could be more happily calculated to diffuse the knowledge and preserve the memory of illustrious characters and splendid events, than medals.” These words written in 1787 expressed the feelings of the Continental Congress in March 1776 when they instituted the tradition of awarding military medals (http://www.medalsofamerica.com/Category--Military-Medals--m-593) as the highest distinction of national appreciation for our military heroes.
General Washington’s success in driving the British from Boston in 1776, General Horatio Gates’s victory at Saratoga in 1777, the storming of the British Forts at Stony Point and Paulus Hook in 1779, and General Greene’s Southern victories in 1781 all led to the final British surrender at Yorktown in 1781. These were great milestones in the United States’ War of Independence. The people and Congress were very proud of their heroes and wished to bestow a sign of national recognition especially upon those officers who had distinguished themselves in battle." http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/88/Morgan_Cowpens_medal_etching.jpg/220px-Morgan_Cowpens_medal_etching.jpg (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Morgan_Cowpens_medal_etching.jpg)< General Green's Gold medal Medal for victory at Cowpens.
As a result, Congress voted to award gold medals to outstanding military leaders. The first approved medal honored George Washington and similar medals were bestowed upon other victors such as General Horatio Gates and Captain John Paul Jones for his naval victory over the Serapis in 1779."
In August 1782, George Washington established the Badge of Military Merit (http://www.medalsofamerica.com/Item--i-F029_Full_Size_List), the first U.S. decoration which had general application to all enlisted men and one which he hoped would inaugurate a permanent awards system. At the same time, he expressed his fundamental awards philosophy when he issued an order from his headquarters at Newburgh, New York, which read:
“The General, ever desirous to cherish a virtuous ambition in his soldiers, as well as to foster and encourage every species of military merit, directs that, whenever any singularly meritorious action is performed, the author of it shall be permitted to wear on his facings, over his left breast, the figure of a heart in purple cloth or silk, edged with narrow lace or binding. Not only instances of unusual gallantry, but also of extraordinary fidelity, and essential service in any way, shall meet with a due reward...
there were only three known recipients of this badge, Sergeants Elijah Churchill, William Brown and Daniel Bissell. Unfortunately, after the Revolution, the award fell into disuse and disappeared for 150 years.
However, it did not die, primarily due to the efforts of the Army’s then Chief of Staff, General Douglas MacArthur, (and, by no accident, one of its first recipients). On the 200th anniversary of Washington’s birth, February 22, 1932, the War Department announced that: “By order of the President of the United States, the Purple Heart, established by Gen. George Washington at Newburgh, New York ....is hereby revived out of respect to his memory and military achievements.”" http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/82/Purpleheart.jpg/130px-Purpleheart.jpg (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Purpleheart.jpg) Officers of the Continental also formed a society and wore the Order of the Cincinnati ( for the Roman citizen general) http://www.societyofthecincinnati.org/images/collections/museum_collections/sotc/gallery/4.jpgWashington's own medal sold at auction for over $5.3 million!! When the Marquis de Lafayette made his famous return visit to America in 1824, Washington's heirs presented him the medal as a gift. It then remained in the Marquis’s family until his great-great-great-grandson put it up for auction last year. http://www.andrewcusack.com/net/wp-content/uploads/cinwash1.jpg

[nikimcbee]

Is there a medal similar to the MoH for Confederate soldiers?

There were no medals at all in the Confederate army. The only recognition a soldier could get, aside from promotion, was to be "mentioned in dispatches".

I'm not sure what the reasoning was for the lack of valor medals but I suspect it was probably the ad hoc nature of the confederacy as well as its short life span meant there was little or no time for such things to be developed.

I'll add to August's answer, that they more important things to focus on at the time, and better things to spend their money on.

They were already strapped for cash by 1862! (see Lee's invasion of the North, part I)

[nikimcbee]

On a side note, I was trying to find a physical description of William Pegram, Pegram's Battery.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Pegram

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/7/71/William_ransom_johnson_pegram.jpg

I'm curious how tall he was? He had very poor vision, so he wore his glasses into battle.:hmmm::haha: He battery was always going to see lots of action, because he had to ride close to the action to see what he was shooting at.:o:haha:

http://www.gettysburg.stonesentinels.com/Art/ConfederateArtMar/Crenshaw-0115.png http://www.gettysburg.stonesentinels.com/Art/ConfederateArtMar/Purcell-0120.pnghttp://www.gettysburg.stonesentinels.com/Art/ConfederateArtMar/Letcher-0121.pnghttp://www.gettysburg.stonesentinels.com/Art/ConfederateArtMar/Pee-Dee-Art-0119.png

[Gargamel]

Thank you for that AKT, very informative.

But I wonder, as I said, to the victor goes the spoils, if the Continetal army had lost, would any of those been awarded? I doubt it.

I wonder if there are any rebellious armies out there, that lost, that were able to award medals?