Navy Cross Medal
| Navy Cross | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Awarded by United States Department of the Navy | |
| Type | Medal (decoration) |
| Awarded for | Distinguishes himself or herself in action by extraordinary heroism in combat not justifying the Medal of Honor. |
| Status | Currently awarded |
| Statistics | |
| Established | Act of Congress (), approved on February 4, 1919. |
| First awarded | 1919 |
| Total awarded | c. 6,900 |
| Precedence | |
| Next (higher) | Medal of Honor |
| Equivalent | Army: Distinguished Service Cross Marine Corps: Navy Cross Air Force: Air Force Cross Coast Guard: Coast Guard Cross |
| Next (lower) | Distinguished Service Medals: Defense, Homeland Security |
 Service Ribbon |
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The Navy Cross is the United States military's second-highest decoration awarded for in combat. The Navy Cross is awarded primarily to a member of the United States Navy, U.S. Marine Corps, and the U.S. Coast Guard (when operating under the Department of the Navy) for extraordinary heroism. The medal is equivalent to the Army Distinguished Service Cross, the Air Force Cross, and the Coast Guard Cross.
The Navy Cross is bestowed by the Secretary of the Navy and may also be awarded to members of the other armed services, and to foreign military personnel while serving with the U.S. naval services. The Navy Cross was established by Act of Congress () and approved on February 4, 1919.
The Navy Cross was instituted in part due to the entrance of the United States into World War I. Many European nations had the custom of decorating heroes from other nations, but the Medal of Honor was the sole American award for valor at the time. The Army instituted the Distinguished Service Cross and Distinguished Service Medal in 1918, while the Navy followed suit in 1919, retroactive to 6 April 1917. Originally, the Navy Cross was lower in precedence than the Medal of Honor and the Navy Distinguished Service Medal, because it was awarded for both combat heroism and for "other distinguished service." Congress revised this on 7 August 1942, making the Navy Cross a combat-only decoration that follows the Medal of Honor in order of precedence. Since the medal was established, it has been awarded more than 6,300 times. It was designed by James Earle Fraser. Since the 11 September attacks the Navy Cross has been awarded forty seven times, with two of them having the name of the recipient held in secret. One of those secret awardings was due to actions during the 2012 Benghazi attack.
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