Global InformationList of Navy Cross recipients for World War II information
This is a list of Navy Cross recipients for actions of valor carried out during World War II, awarded by the United States Department of the Navy.
World War II was a global military conflict, the joining of what had initially been two separate conflicts. The first began in Asia in July 1937 as the Second Sino-Japanese War; the other began in Europe in September 1939 with the German and Soviet invasion of Poland.[1] This global conflict split the majority of the world's nations into two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis powers.
The United States was drawn into World War II on December 8, 1941, a day after the Axis-member Japan launched a surprise attack on Pearl Harbor in Honolulu.
While the U.S. Department of Defense website of Military Awards for Valor states that "Army Air Corps/Army Air Forces/U.S. Air Force members recognized for actions prior to 1 July 1948 are listed as Army members",[2] the list here attempts to give the specific detail for members of the Army Air Forces, which existed during World War II.
As of July 2022[update], this list is incomplete, showing 1,485 Navy Crosses awarded in all service branches for actions of valor during World War II: 489 to U.S. Navy recipients; 1,029 U.S. Marine Corps recipients; 11 U.S. Army Air Forces recipients; 6 U.S. Coast Guard recipients; 3 U.S. Army recipients; and 1 civilian recipient. By partial comparison, as of June 2022[update], the U.S. Department of Defense shows 3,008 awarded to Navy recipients[2] and 1,081 to Marines Corps recipients,[3] for acts of valor during World War II.
Awarded posthumously
- ^ Official military histories in Commonwealth nations refer to the conflict as the Second World War, while the United States' official histories refer to the conflict as World War II. English translations of the official histories of other nations tend to resolve into English as Second World War also, for example zweite weltkrieg in German. See C.P. Stacey Official History of the Canadian Army in the Second World War, for example. "Official" usage of these terms is giving way to popular usage and the two terms are becoming interchangeable even in formal military history.
- ^ "U.S. Marine Corps Navy Cross Recipients, World War II, 1941-1945" (PDF). U.S. Department of Defense. 2013-09-12. Retrieved 2022-06-24.