Congressional Gold Medal

==History==

Since the American Revolution, Congress has commissioned [[gold medal]]s as its highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions. The [[Washington Before Boston Medal|medal]] was first awarded in 1776 by the [[Second Continental Congress]] to General [[George Washington]].<ref name=list>{{Cite web|url=http://clerk.house.gov/art_history/house_history/goldMedal.html|title=Congressional Gold Medal Recipients}}</ref> Although the first recipients were military figures who participated in the [[American Revolution]], the [[War of 1812]] and the [[Mexican–American War]], Congress broadened the scope of the medal to include actors, authors, entertainers, musicians, pioneers in aeronautics and space, explorers, lifesavers, notables in science and medicine, athletes, humanitarians, public servants, and foreign recipients.<ref name=list /> The medal is normally awarded to persons, but in 1979 the [[American Red Cross]] became the first organization to be honored with a gold medal.<ref name=CRS />

{{As of|2021}}, at least 7 people had been awarded more than one gold medal: [[Winfield Scott]] (1814 for the [[War of 1812]] and 1848 for the [[Mexican–American War]]), [[Zachary Taylor]] (1846, 1847, and 1848 for the Mexican–American War), [[Lincoln Ellsworth]] (1928 and 1936 for polar exploration), [[Hyman G. Rickover]] (1958 for the "Nuclear Navy" and 1982 for his entire career), Staff Sergeant Warner Katz (Office of Strategic Services and Merrill's Marauders WW2 also the first Merrill's Marauder to kill a Japanese Soldier), Ranger Randall Ching and Ranger Raymond Lee (2020 for serving in WW2 as a Chinese-American and 2022 for serving as a US army ranger).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Randall Ching |url=https://wwiirangers.org/our-rangers/randall-ching/ |access-date=2024-04-01 |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Raymond Lee |url=https://www.military.com/daily-news/2022/06/13/long-forgotten-world-war-ii-ranger-will-receive-2-congressional-gold-medals.html?amp}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Library of Congress Interview with Warner Katz |url=https://www.loc.gov/item/afc2001001.29918/#item-service_history |website=Library of Congress}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Merrill's Marauder Hall of Fame Website – SSG Warner Katz |url=http://www.marauder.org/hofcytat.htm#KATZ |website=Merrill's Marauder Hall of Fame}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Together We Served – SSG Warner Katz |url=https://army.togetherweserved.com/army/servlet/tws.webapp.WebApp?cmd=ShadowBoxProfile&type=Person&ID=120144 |website=Together We Served – SSG Warner Katz}}</ref>