S. 743 

One Hundred Sixteenth Congress 

of the 

United States of America 

AT THE SECOND SESSION 

Begun and held at the City of Washington on Friday, 

the third day of January, two thousand and twenty 

An Act 

To award a Congressional Gold Medal to the soldiers of the 5307th Composite 

Unit (Provisional), commonly known as ‘‘Merrill’s Marauders’’, in recognition of 

their bravery and outstanding service in the jungles of Burma during World 

War II. 

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of 

the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Merrill’s Marauders Congressional Gold Medal Act’’. 

SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

Congress finds that— 

(1) in August 1943, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and 

other Allied leaders proposed the creation of a ground unit 

of the Armed Forces that would engage in a ‘‘long-range 

penetration mission’’ in Japanese-occupied Burma to— 

(A) cut off Japanese communications and supply lines; 

and 

(B) capture the town of Myitkyina and the Myitkyina 

airstrip, both of which were held by the Japanese; 

(2) President Roosevelt issued a call for volunteers for 

‘‘a dangerous and hazardous mission’’ and the call was 

answered by approximately 3,000 soldiers from the United 

States; 

(3) the Army unit composed of the soldiers described in 

paragraph (2)— 

(A) was officially designated as the ‘‘5307th Composite 

Unit (Provisional)’’ with the code name ‘‘Galahad’’; and 

(B) later became known as ‘‘Merrill’s Marauders’’ 

(referred to in this section as the ‘‘Marauders’’) in reference 

to its leader, Brigadier General Frank Merrill; 

(4) in February 1944, the Marauders began their approximately 1,000-mile trek through the dense Burmese jungle with 

no artillery support, carrying their supplies on their backs 

or the pack saddles of mules; 

(5) over the course of their 5-month trek to Myitkyina, 

the Marauders fought victoriously against larger Japanese 

forces through 5 major and 30 minor engagements; 

(6) during their march to Myitkyina, the Marauders faced 

hunger and disease that were exacerbated by inadequate aerial 

resupply drops; 

(7) malaria, typhus, and dysentery inflicted more casualties 

on the Marauders than the Japanese; 
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(8) by August 1944, the Marauders had accomplished their 

mission, successfully disrupting Japanese supply and communication lines and taking the town of Myitkyina and the 

Myitkyina airstrip, the only all-weather airstrip in Northern 

Burma; 

(9) after taking Myitkyina, only 130 Marauders out of 

the original 2,750 were fit for duty and all remaining Marauders 

still in action were evacuated to hospitals due to tropical diseases, exhaustion, and malnutrition; 

(10) for their bravery and accomplishments, the Marauders 

were awarded the ‘‘Distinguished Unit Citation’’, later redesignated as the ‘‘Presidential Unit Citation’’, and a Bronze Star; 

and 

(11) though the Marauders were operational for only a 

few months, the legacy of their bravery is honored by the 

Army through the modern day 75th Ranger Regiment, which 

traces its lineage directly to the 5307th Composite Unit. 

SEC. 3. CONGRESSIONAL GOLD MEDAL. 

(a) AWARD AUTHORIZED.—The Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President pro tempore of the Senate shall 

make appropriate arrangements for the award, on behalf of Congress, of a single gold medal of appropriate design to the soldiers 

of the 5307th Composite Unit (Provisional) (referred to in this 

section as ‘‘Merrill’s Marauders’’), in recognition of their bravery 

and outstanding service in the jungles of Burma during World 

War II. 

(b) DESIGN AND STRIKING.—For the purposes of the award 

referred to in subsection (a), the Secretary of the Treasury (referred 

to in this Act as the ‘‘Secretary’’) shall strike a gold medal with 

suitable emblems, devices, and inscriptions, to be determined by 

the Secretary. 

(c) SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.—Following the award of the gold medal 

referred to in subsection (a) in honor of Merrill’s Marauders, 

the gold medal shall be given to the Smithsonian Institution, 

where it shall be displayed as appropriate and made available 

for research. 

(2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Congress that 

the Smithsonian Institution should make the gold medal 

received under paragraph (1) available for display elsewhere, 

particularly at other locations and events associated with 

Merrill’s Marauders. 

SEC. 4. DUPLICATE MEDALS. 

Under such regulations as the Secretary may prescribe, the 

Secretary may strike and sell duplicates in bronze of the gold 

medal struck under section 3, at a price sufficient to cover the 

costs of the medals, including labor, materials, dies, use of 

machinery, and overhead expenses. 
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SEC. 5. STATUS OF MEDALS. 

Medals struck pursuant to this Act are national medals for 

purposes of chapter 51 of title 31, United States Code. 

Speaker of the House of Representatives. 

Vice President of the United States and

President of the Senate.