Half a million Purple Hearts

Half a million Purple Hearts

During World War II, nearly 500,000 Purple Heart medals were manufactured in anticipation of the estimated casualties resulting from the planned Allied invasion of Japan. In 2003, there remained 120,000 Purple Heart medals in stock. That surplus allowed combat units in Iraq and Afghanistan to keep Purple Hearts on-hand for immediate award to soldiers wounded in the field.
http://hnn.us/article/1801