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(More customer reviews)To book's dust jacket, claims the book is "the first and only complete historical examination of all the personal awards, decorations and medals that may be awarded to Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard personnel for heroism, achievement, and service." Borch and McDowell brilliantly succeed in meeting the claims on the dust jacket.
The book is broken up into four sections: "Decorations for Valor in Combat"; "Decorations and Medals for Noncombat Valor"; "Dual-Purpose Decorations for Performance or Valor"; and "Awards and Decorations for Outstanding achievement of Meritorious Service." Readers should note that the "I was there" medals (Liberation of Kuwait; Southwest Asia Service; Global War on Terror") are not included in this book, as these decorations are awarded for contributions of military units - not for the actions of an individual.
Each chapter follows the order of precedence, beginning with the medal awarded for the highest achievement. Each section then explains the establishing authority for the medal; the date it was established; the designer of the medal; the heraldic symbolism of the medal; the medal's first recipient; and the historical background on the medal. Each section also includes an illustrative citation or two for recipients of the medal.
There is no better reference book on how these medals came to be. I found the historic analysis to be fascinating, especially the theory of how the Purple Heart got its name.
The book includes 50 color photographs of the obverse and reverse of these medals (including the infamous "Tiffany Cross"). The authors should be commended for including the reverses of unique medals -- for example, hand-engraved Medals of Honor. However, these photos are also the source of a significant editing error - the list of illustrations at the beginning of the book incorrectly lists the first twelve illustrations. In spite of this minor flaw, the photos are excellent.
"Sea Service Medals" lives up to the claim of being the authoritative book for this topic. It was a great read, and I highly recommend the book.
Click Here to see more reviews about: Sea Service Medals: Military Awards and Decorations of the Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard
As the first and only complete history of all personal awards and decorations of the United States' three sea services, this book serves as a valuable resource of Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard awards. It also provides little-known historical information on the background and development of each award and decoration, along with details of its design and award criteria. Some never-before-photographs of rare Navy Medals of Honor are featured.
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