WW1 US ARMY TRENCH MORTAR PURPLE HEART W/ PATCH

WW1 US Army purple Heart identified to Captain Charles J. Kraft, Commander of the 108th Trench Mortar battery, 58th Artillery Brigade of the 33rd Division who served in France during WWI On the night of the 26th of October 1918, on bald hill near Riomagne in the Meuse Sector, Capt. Kraft along with two officer's were wounded in a Gas and Shell attack. For his wounds Capt. Kraft received this Purple Heart in 1933. The medal is engraved with Capt. Kraft's name of the reverse of the medal. Along with his officially named engraved Purple Heart, transmittal letter informing Capt. Kraft that he was to receive the Purple Heart. Insignia taken from his uniform including a single Captain Bars. U.S. collar insignia, Crossed cannons with the initials TM standing for Trench Mortar. Finally a bullion trench mortar. This patch was worn on the sleeve to indicate Trench Mortar service. Combat use In World War I, the Stokes mortar could fire as many as 25 bombs per minute and had a maximum range of 800 yards firing the original cylindrical un-stabilized projectile. British Empire units had 1,636 Stokes mortars in service on the Western Front at the Armistice. By World War II, it could fire as many as 30 bombs per minute and had a range of over 2,500 yd (2,300 m) with some shell types.[5] A 4 in (100 mm) version was used to fire smoke, poison gas and thermite (incendiary) rounds but this should be considered a separate weapon to the standard 3 in (76 mm) version firing high explosive rounds described in this article. The Stokes mortar was used in the Banana Wars and helped American forces defeat Sandinista rebels during the Second Battle of Las Cruces on January 1, 1928. The Paraguayan Army made extensive use of the Stokes mortar during the Chaco War, especially as a siege weapon in the Battle of Boquerón in September 1932. Stokes mortars were widely used by the Republican Army during the Spanish Civil War. In September 1936, 44,000 Stokes rounds arrived to Spain.