The United States Marine Corps Brevet Medal--One Day Wonder.

Until the outbreak of the American Civil War, the United States possessed no military medals or decorations to reward gallant or distinguished service. George Washington had established an award called the Badge of Military Merit in 1782 to reward gallant and distinguished service by members of the Continental Army. The award, which consisted of a heart shaped piece of purple cloth to be sewn to the jacket, was only awarded three times and fell into disuse following the end of the Revolutionary War (to be revived in 1932 in radically different format as the Purple Heart, a medal to recognise wounds received in action). An award known as the Certificate of Merit was established in 1847 but this award, which was for private soldiers only, was, as the names implies, simply a piece of paper and there was no badge or medal to indicate the award. The other methods used by the American services prior to the Civil War were the bestowing of inscribed `swords of honour' or battlefield promotions and, for officers, brevets. In the case of the United States Marine Corps, on 16 April 1814, Congress authorized the President to `confer brevet rank on such officers of the Marine Corps as shall distinguish themselves by gallant actions or meritorious conduct, or who shall have served ten years in any one grade.'

The Medal of Honor 

With the outbreak of the Civil War and the phenomenal expansion of the American armed forces, the government was finally forced to establish a medal to reward gallant and distinguished service. This was the Medal of Honor (generally quite incorrectly referred to as the `Congressional' Medal of Honor), the Navy version of the medal being established by Act of Congress on 21 December 1861 and the Army version on 12 July 1862.

Despite the establishment of the Medal of Honor, brevet promotions continued to be awarded throughout the war. For instance, George Armstrong Custer of Little Big Horn fame (or otherwise) started the war as a Second Lieutenant of Regulars and finished the war, via a series of brevet promotions, as a Major General of Volunteers. Brevet promotions were particularly popular in the United States Marine Corps as, due to a technicality of the legislation governing the award of the Medal of Honor, Marine officers were not eligible for award of the medal.

Following the Civil War, the Medal of Honor remained the only medal awarded by the United States to recognise gallantry and, in fact, was the only medal awarded at all until 1905 when a medal was established to accompany the award of the Certificate of Merit. Throughout these years, Marine officers continued to be ineligible for award of the Medal of Honor and the Marine Corps continued to use brevet promotions to recognise gallant and distinguished service by its officers and brevets were awarded to Marine officers during the Spanish-American War, the Boxer Rebellion and the Philippine Insurrection.

The 1916 Review of the Medal of Honor

In 1916, the statutes governing the award of the Medal of Honor were thoroughly reviewed and overhauled. A number of major initiatives grew out of this review and the ensuing legislation.

One of these was the withdrawal of the Medal of Honor from 911 recipients (none of whom were Marines) whose awards were deemed by the review board as not having been consistent with the qualifying criteria. A second major initiative was correction of the anomaly whereby Marine officers were ineligible for award of the medal. Following the enactment of the 1916 legislation, Marine officers were at last placed on a par with their brother officers in the Navy and Army.

The Genesis of a Brevet Medal

Some thought as to the creation of a badge or medal to visibly signify that the wearer was the recipient of a brevet promotion had been given by the Marine hierarchy as far back as 1907 but no concrete action had been taken, probably because the very small Marine Corps of the time had also been a very busy Marine Corps, with little time left over to devote to the subject of medals and awards. Some correspondence was entered into between the Commandant of the Corps and Secretary of the Navy over the years leading up to America's involvement in the First World War, but again, this came to nothing. With the outbreak of war, of course, the Marines had to turn their thoughts elsewhere.

The First World War saw a modest expansion in the honours and awards system of the United States, the Army establishing the Distinguished Service Cross and the Distinguished Service Medal and an embryonic form of the Silver Star in 1918 and the Navy following suit in 1919 with the Navy Cross and its own Distinguished Service Medal. Marines received both Army and Navy awards during the war and the subject of a brevet badge or medal was put on the backburner for the duration.

The subject was raised again in 1921 by the thirteenth Commandant of the Marine Corps, Major General John Archer Lejeune. In a letter dated 12 April 1921, Lejeune recommended to the Secretary of the Navy that an appropriate medal, badge or ribbon be prescribed as an article of uniform to denote that the wearer received a brevet promotion, issued by the President and confirmed by Congress. In his letter, the Commandant pointed out that the legality of utilising certain available funds for this purpose had been established by the Comptroller General in a decision on the subject dated 18 December 1907. The letter obviously found a receptive ear for on 13 May 1921, the Secretary of the Navy authorised the Commandant to forward the design of an appropriate medal. In due course, on 7 June 1921, the medal was officially approved.

The Marine Corps Brevet Medal 

The USMC Brevet Medal was specifically authorised for issue to any officer holding a brevet commission for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy' during the Mexican War, the Civil War, the Spanish-American War, the Philippine Insurrection, or the Boxer Rebellion. The medal was not to be awarded posthumously, thus assuring that it would only be given to a limited number of recipients. Because of this latter restriction, the USMC Brevet Medal was rendered obsolete on the day it was issued.

The Brevet Medal was designed by a serving Marine, Quartermaster Sergeant Joseph A Burnett of Marine Corps Headquarters. Sergeant Burnett worked under the supervision of the Quartermaster General of the Marine Corps, Brigadier General Charles L. McCawley who was himself to be a recipient of the Brevet Medal. The medal is described as a bronze cross pattee, with each arm extended in a semi-circular shape and, in the centre the word `BREVET' encircled by the words `UNITED STATES MARINE CORPS.' A small Marine Corps insignia (globe, anchor and eagle) is used to attach the medal to its suspension ring. The reverse of the medal is plain except for the legend `FOR DISTINGUISHED SERVICE IN THE PRESENCE OF THE ENEMY.' The medal is suspended from a ribbon of scarlet moire spangled with thirteen white stars. The design of the ribbon was an obvious imitation of the Medal of Honor and in fact the Brevet Medal was awarded second place, immediately after the Medal of Honor, in the Marine Corps precedence of honours and awards. The Brevet Medal was awarded to 20 recipients as follows:

BANNON, Philip M. Breveted to first lieutenant on 13 June 1898, for `distinguished service in the battle at Guantanamo, Cuba.'

BUTLER, Smedley D. Breveted to captain on 13 July 1900, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy near Tienstin, China, July 13 1900.'

GAMBORG, Andersen Carl. Breveted to captain on 13 July 1900, for `distinguished conduct and public servicein the presence of the enemy near Tienstin, China.'

HALL, Newt H. Breveted to major on 14 August 1900, for `distinguished conduct in the presence of the enemy at the siege of Peking, China.'

KELTON, Allan C. Breveted to major on 3 July 1898, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy at Guantanamo, Cuba.'

LONG, Charles G. Breveted to captain on 11 June 1898, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy at Guantanamo, Cuba.'

LUCAS, Lewis C. Breveted to captain on 13 June 1898, for `conspicuous conduct in battle at Guantanamo, Cuba.'

MAHONEY, James E. Breveted to captain on 11 June 1898, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy at Guantanamo, Cuba.'

McCAWLEY, Charles L. Breveted to major on 11 June 1898, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy at Guantanamo, Cuba.'

McKELVEY, William N., Sr. Breveted to captain on 11 June 1898, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy at Guantanamo, Cuba.'

MURPHEY, Paul St. Clair. Breveted to major on 3 July 1898, for `gallant service in the naval battle of Santiago, Cuba.'

MYERS, John T. Breveted to major on 20 July 1900, for `distinguished conduct in the presence of the enemey at the defence of the legations at Peking, China.'

NEVILLE, Wendell C. Breveted to captain on 13 June 1898, for `conspicuous conduct in battle at Guantanamo, Cuba.'

POPE, Percival C. Breveted to captain on 8 September 1863, for `gallant and meritorious in the night attack upon Fort Sumter.'

PORTER, David D. Breveted to captain on 8 October 1899, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy at Novalaeta, Philippine Islands.'

POWELL, William G. Breveted to captain on 21 June 1900, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy at Tientsin, China.'

RICHARDS, George. Breveted to lieutenant colonel on 13 July 1900, for `distinguished conduct in the prsence of the enemy at the battle of Tientsin, China.'

SHAW, Melville, J. Breveted to firs lieutenant on 11 June 1898, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy at Guantanamo, Cuba.'

THORPE, George C. Breveted to captain on 8 October 1899, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy at Novaleta, Philippine Islands.'

WALLER, Littleton W.T. Breveted to lieutenant colonel on 13 July 1900, for `distinguished conduct and public service in the presence of the enemy near Tientsin, China.'

Three other officers were scheduled to receive the Brevet Medal, however, they died before it was ready. Since the Brevet Medal could not be awarded posthumously, the next of kin of theses officers did not receive their medals. The three officers were James Forney (breveted three times - twice during the Civil War and once for service in Formosa in 1867), and Luis J Magill and Albert S McLemore, both of whom were breveted during the Spanish-American War.

The case of the award of the Brevet Medal to Brigadier General Charles L. McCawley is interesting in view of the fact that he was, as indicated above, Quartermaster General of the Marine Corps at the time of the establishment of the medal and thus was personally responsible for the design and production of the medal. There can be little doubt that Brigadier General McCawley had a vested interest in the final design of the award.

More interesting, however, is the award of the Brevet Medal to Brigadier General Smedley D Butler, as the Brevet Medal awarded to him was actually in recompense for a Medal of Honor which Butler missed out on due to a technicality. The then Lieutenant Butler had fought in the Boxer Rebellion and on 13 July 1900, was involved in a daring rescue operation. Of the five marines involved in the operation, four were to receive the Medal of Honor. Butler, however, was a Marine officer and therefore, under the then existing legislation, ineligible for award of the Medal of Honor. Instead of a Medal of Honor, Lieutenant Butler received the time honoured award of a brevet promotion to captain. The legislation was to be later amended to allow Marine officers to receive the Medal of Honor but by then the statutory period for recommendation and award of the Medal of Honor had lapsed and Butler could not receive his medal. That was the official story anyway. The fact that by that stage the almost unbelievably brave Butler had received not one but two Medals of Honor (one for service in Mexico in 1914, the other for Haiti in 1915) probably dissuaded the Honors and Awards Board from waiving the time limitation (as it was allowed to do) due no doubt to some fuzzy misconception that the award of a third Medal of Honor to Butler would somehow `cheapen' the medal. Butler was to receive his Brevet Medal instead and this can in fact be looked on as his third Medal of Honor. As an aside, another marine to receive two awards of the Navy Medal of Honor, Marine Sergeant Major Dan Daly (China 1900 and Haiti 1915), was also to miss out on a third medal for which he was cited after the Battle of Belleau Wood in France in 1918. Unlike Butler, the authorities were a little bit more direct with Dailey, coming straight out with the opinion that the award of a third Medal of Honor to the hard bitten sergeant would cheapen the award. Daly received instead the newly created (Army) Distinguished Service Cross and a little later the Navy Cross as well.

The Brevet Medal as an Object Lesson in Leadership

One of the aspects of the establishment of the USMC Brevet Medal which has always interested me is the leadership aspect of the award. `Leadership' is, of course, becoming something of a dirty word in the profession of arms. These days, the powers-that-be much prefer to hear such words and phrases as `facilitation', `human resource management', `corporate vision', `conflict mediation' and `group consultation'. But I am an unrepentant `old soldier' (I think a quarter of a century plus service qualifies me to call myself that) and I still believe in leadership and to me Major General Lejeune's establishment of the USMC Brevet Medal is very much an object lesson in leadership.

Lejeune, on becoming Commandant, found himself presented with a long standing problem with distinct morale implications. Deserving officers, for many years legislatively denied award of the nation's top medal for gallantry, quite rightly believed that their `second best' awards, i.e. their brevet promotions, should be recognised by some visible sign that they could wear on their uniforms. Rather than sweep the problem under the carpet, Lejeune made it a priority. He sought and obtained the support of the relevant civil authority, the Secretary of the Navy, having first ensured that funds were available and could be legitimately utilised. Having received approval and having identified funds, he went ahead with design, procurement and issue. The speed with which the whole exercise was carried out was one of the most impressive features of it. Lejeune first raised the suggested establishment of the award in April 1921 and the medals themselves were awarded in November of the same year. Note that their was no working group or committee of reference established, no trial period, no civilian consultants, no calls for public comment and discussion (and no Environmental Impact Study!).

The swift establishment and awarding of the USMC Brevet Medal by Commandant Lejeune was, in my opinion, an excellent example of firm and imaginative leadership. It is fashionable in Australian military circles to deride that spirit of `gun ho' which permeates the United States Marine Corps. However, in a world where we allow ourselves, as members of the profession of arms, to be derided as `harm workers' and where, in a difficult to understand rush to `out-civvy' the civvies, the very basis of the military ethos is attacked by those who should be upholding it, all I can say is that when it comes down to a choice between `facilitating a human resource management issue in order to ensure meeting the organisational objectives of the corporate vision' or old fashioned `gung ho' leadership of the type which led to the establishment of the USMC Brevet Medal, give me gung ho any day!

Bibliography

Dorling, Captain H Tapprell, DSO, RN (`Taffrail'), 1974, Ribbons and Medals The World's Military and Civil Awards, Doubleday & Co, Inc, London.

Kerrigan, Evans, 1990, American Medals and Decorations, Mallard Press, New York.

McDowell, Charles P, Military and Naval Decorations of the United States, Quest Publishing Company, Springfield.

Robles, Philip K, 1972, United States Military Medals and Ribbons, Charles E Tuttle Company, Inc., Rutland, Vermont.

Staunton, Anthony 1992, `US Medal of Honor: Recent Developments', Sabretache, vol xxxiii, No 3, pp 29-35.