At his headquarters in Newburgh, New York, on August 7, 1782, General George Washington devised two
new badges of distinction for enlisted men and noncommissioned officers. To signify loyal military service, he ordered a chevron to
be worn on the left sleeve of the uniform coat for the rank and file who had completed three years of duty "with bravery, fidelity,
and good conduct"; two chevrons signified six years of service. The second badge, for "any singularly meritorious Action," was the
"Figure of a Heart in Purple Cloth or Silk edged with narrow Lace or Binding." This device, the Badge of Military Merit, was affixed
to the uniform coat above the left breast and permitted its wearer to pass guards and sentinels without challenge and to have his
name and regiment inscribed in a Book of Merit. The Badge specifically honored the lower ranks, where decorations were unknown in
contemporary European Armies. As Washington intended, the road to glory in a patriot army is thus open to all."Three badges were awarded in the waning days of the Revolutionary War, all to volunteers from Connecticut. On May 3, 1783, Sergeant
Elijah Churchill and William Brown received badges and certificates from Washington's hand at the Newburgh headquarters. Sergeant
Daniel Bissell, Jr., received the award on June 10, 1783.
The award of the Purple Heart for wounds received in combat wasn't actually standardized until well into World War II.
Those wounded in combat in World War I received "wound stripes" on their uniform. Retroactively, after the re-institution of the Purple Heart in the early 1930s, soldiers were invited to apply for a Purple Heart in lieu of the stripes.
Thankfully, I've never earned the Purple Heart. Sadly, all too many of my countrymen have.
XBradTC 
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