The President of the United States, in the name of the U.S. Congress, has awarded more than 3,400 Medals of Honor to America’s bravest Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, Marines and Coast Guardsmen since the decoration’s creation in 1861. The medal is awarded for, in part: Conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity at the risk of life above and beyond the call of duty. This is the story of the medal and the acts of bravery and heroism that the medal honors as told by eyewitnesses and by many of the men who wear the Medal of Honor.