Not every hero earns a medal, let alone the Congressional Medal of Honor — America’s highest military award. Many heroes go unrecognized. But when someone is recognized with such a high honor, you know there is a story.
Here are the stories and details on the soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines of World War II who were recognized with the Medal of Honor. Altogether, 440 Medals of Honor were awarded for service in the war. 250 of them were awarded posthumously. 301 of the heroes were in the Army, 57 were in the Navy, 81 were in the Marine Corps, and one was a Coast Guardsman.
For fascinating, inspiring details on these heroes’ actions, click on any of the links below.
The War in Europe
- North African Campaign
Morocco and Tunisia, November 1942 to April 1943. - Sicilian Campaign
Sicily, July to August 1943. - Italian Campaign
Italy, September 1943 to May 1945. - D-Day
France, June 6, 1944. - Battles through France
France, June 1944 to March 1945. - Battle of the Bulge
Belgium, December 1944 to January 1945. - Final Offensive against Germany
Belgium, Holland, and Germany, September 1944 to May 1945.
The War in the Pacific
- Pearl Harbor
Hawaii, December 7, 1941. - Bataan and Corregidor
Philippine Islands, January to May 1942. - Battle of the Coral Sea
Southwest Pacific, May 1942. - Battle off Savo Island
Southwest Pacific, November 1942. - Buna
New Guinea, December 1942. - Guadalcanal
Solomon Islands, August 1942 to February 1943. - New Georgia
Solomon Islands, June to August 1943. - Bougainville
Solomon Islands, November 1943 to March 1944. - Other Heroes of the Solomons
On, over, and around Buka, Kolombangara, and other Solomon Islands, 1942 to 1944. - Tarawa
Gilbert Islands, November 1943. - Kwajalein and Eniwetok
Marshall Islands, February 1944. - Saipan
Marianas Islands, June to July 1944. - Guam
Marianas Islands, July to August 1944. - Tinian
Marianas Islands, July to August 1944. - New Guinea
Southwest Pacific, July 1944. - Peleliu Island
Palau Islands, September to October 1944. - Leyte
Philippine Islands, October to December 1944. - Luzon
Philippine Islands, December 1944 to July 1945. - Iwo Jima
Volcano Islands, February to March 1945. - Okinawa
Ryukyu Islands, April to June 1945. - Other Pacific War Heroes
On, over, and around the Aleutians, the Ryukus, Samar, Kobe, Halmahera, Makin Island, Sand Island, Wake Island, the Battle of Midway, the Bismarck Sea, the Philippine Sea, and elsewhere in the Pacific Ocean, 1941 to 1945.
Services
- Air Corps
- Airborne
- Cavalry
- Submariners
[To create this Medal of Honor information directory we used primary source materials from the U.S. Army Center for Military History. However, the official citations have been edited to make them more readable.]