If it wasn’t all true, you’d think it was a Hollywood movie.

An epic about young men who fought in World War II amid doubts of their loyalty. A story in which battlefield courage happened so often, it became commonplace.

Soldiers who charged enemy positions in a storm of German bullets, who fought even after they were wounded, who never quit.

Some of their stories have been Army legend for decades, but the public likely has never heard the names of the 22 soldiers who inspired them.

Today, these heroes are getting one final tribute: the Medal of Honor, the United States’ highest award for valor.

The citations that nominate the men for the Medal of Honor bear witness to their bravery and the blood they shed for the cause of freedom.