The original Purple Heart Medal, designated as the Badge of Military Merit, was established by order of George Washington on Aug. 7, 1782. 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. To the present date, all American military casualties of the 65 years following the end of World War II have not exceeded that number. As of 2003, there were still 120,000 Purple Heart medals in stock.