An award given to representatives of the lower ranks of the Imperial Army from 1807 to 1917. For a long time this name was unofficial, until in 1913 it was enshrined in the statute. The insignia assigned to the Order of St. George was the highest praise for soldiers and non-commissioned officers. It was awarded for military merit and bravery on the battlefield. Today we will get acquainted with the history of the establishment and use of the St. George Crosses of 4 degrees.

Idea

On January 6, 1807, in a note submitted to Alexander the First from an unknown author, the establishment of a soldier's award was initiated - the 5th class, or a special branch of the Order of St. George. The note also suggested that it be made in the form of a silver cross, not St. George's ribbon. The emperor liked this initiative, and already on February 13 of the same year, under his manifesto, an award for “undaunted courage” was established for lower military ranks. According to Article 4 of the manifesto, it had to be worn in the same colors as the Order of St. George. Cavaliers were ordered to wear this badge at all times, and to remove it only if they received the Order of St. George. In 1855, it was allowed to combine soldier and officer awards.

The first gentlemen

The first soldier awarded the St. George Cross was Yegor Ivanovich Mitrokhin, who distinguished himself in the battle with the French on June 2, 1807. Having served until 1817, he retired with the rank of ensign. Somewhat later, ensign Vasily Berezkin was awarded the soldier's George for his services in the battle with the French near Morungen, which took place on January 6, 1807, that is, before the establishment of the award.

Award practice

When 4 degrees were established, St. George's crosses did not have. The number of awards given to one soldier with the insignia was also not regulated. The cross itself was awarded only once, and with subsequent awards to the gentleman, his salary was increased by a third, up to double salary. The soldier's award was minted from silver and not covered with enamel, unlike the officer's award. On July 15, 1808, a decree was adopted freeing the holders of the St. George Cross from corporal punishment. The insignia could be confiscated from the recipient only after a corresponding court decision and with mandatory notification of the emperor.

The practice of awarding the Cross of St. George to the civilian population was also widespread, but its representatives were not given the right to be called a knight. Thus, in 1810, Matvey Gerasimov was awarded, who managed to save his ship, which was transporting flour, from being captured by English soldiers. After 11 days of captivity, Matvey Andreevich, together with his crew of 9 people, took the enemy’s prize team prisoner and forced them to surrender. There was also a case when General Miloradovich was awarded a soldier’s award for his services in the battle with the French near Leipzig.

At the beginning of 1809, numbering of awards and name lists were introduced. By that time, the soldiers had received about 10 thousand St. George's crosses. At first Patriotic War In 1912, the mint produced almost 17 thousand crosses. Unnumbered insignia were awarded until 1820. Such awards were awarded mainly to representatives of non-military ranks of the army and commanders of partisan detachments.

From 1813 to 1815 Soldiers could become knights of the St. George Cross allied armies Russia, opposing the French. These included: Prussians, Swedes, Austrians, British, and representatives of various German states.

In total, under Alexander the First, about 46.5 thousand people were awarded the Royal Cross of St. George.

Statute of 1833

In 1833, the updated statute of the Order of St. George also included provisions for the insignia. It was then that the wearing of the St. George's Cross with a bow made of an orange and black St. George's ribbon was introduced, and gentlemen were honored to receive a full additional salary for repeated feats.

In 1839, in honor of the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the Peace of Paris, an anniversary version of the cross was established. Externally, it was distinguished by the presence of the monogram of Alexander the First on the upper ray of the reverse. This award was given to soldiers of the Prussian army.

In August 1844, Nicholas the First issued a decree establishing a version of the Cross of St. George for Muslims and other representatives of non-Christian religions. On such awards, instead of St. George slaying the serpent, a double-headed black eagle was depicted.

In total, during the reign of Nicholas I, almost 59 thousand soldiers received the award. Most of the cavaliers were awarded during the Russian-Persian and Russian-Turkish wars, as well as during the suppression of the Polish rebellion and during the Hungarian campaign.

Since 1855, those holders of the insignia who were subsequently awarded the officer Order of St. George were allowed to wear a cross on their uniform along with the highest award.

Four degrees

In March 1856, the emperor signed a decree introducing 4 degrees of St. George's crosses. Thus, the first two degrees were made of gold, and the second - of silver. According to the design, the crosses differed only in the words “1st degree,” “2nd degree.” and so on. Separate numbering was started for each degree. The new level of military cross was awarded consistently. There were cases where the degree awarded depended on the level of valor demonstrated. For example, General I. Popovic-Lipovac was awarded the 4th degree award on September 30, 1877, and the St. George Cross, 1st degree, on October 23 of the same year.

From 1856 to 1913 about 7 thousand soldiers were awarded three degrees of insignia except the first. And the honor of being a full holder of the “soldier’s George” (the owner of all 4 degrees of the award) was received by about two thousand military personnel. The most a large number of awards were presented during the Russian-Japanese War, the Russian-Turkish War, the Caucasian Campaign and the Central Asian campaigns.

1913 Statute

In 1913, in the new statute of the insignia, the award began to be officially called the Cross of St. George. At the same time, a new numbering of characters began. Since 1913, St. George's crosses of 4 degrees were awarded only to Christians and had a characteristic image of St. George. Also in the new statute there was a provision allowing the award for military exploits to be presented posthumously.

It was also practiced to present a soldier with an award of the same degree several times. For example, warrant officer G.I. Solomin was awarded a total of 7 crosses and became almost twice full Knight of St. George.

After the adoption of the new statute, the first holder of the St. George Cross on August 1, 1914 was Kozma Kryuchkov, who showed himself brilliantly in an unequal battle against 27 German cavalrymen on July 30 of the same year. Subsequently, Kryuchkov received the other three degrees of the award. Despite all his merits, he did not become the owner of cross No. 1. The cross with this number was left at the discretion of the emperor and was awarded only on September 30, 1914 to Peter Cherny-Kovalchuk, who captured their banner in a battle with the Austrians.

Women were repeatedly awarded the insignia of the Military Order for bravery in battle. For example, Cossack M. Smirnova and sister of mercy N. Plaksina were awarded three St. George Crosses. Foreigners who supported the Russian army were awarded more than once. Thus, the French bomber Marcel Plea was awarded two crosses, and his fellow countryman Alphonse Poiret - four, as well as the Czech Karel Vashatko.

In 1915, due to the difficulties of the war, badges of the first and second degrees began to be made of low-grade gold, in which 39.5% was silver. In total, almost 80 thousand of the cheaper crosses were minted. On such crosses under the letter “C” they placed a mark depicting a head.

From 1914 to 1917 was awarded:

1. 1st degree insignia - 33 thousand.
2. Crosses of the 2nd degree - 65 thousand.
3. St. George's crosses of the 3rd degree - 290 thousand.
4. 4th degree insignia - 1.2 million.

To indicate the serial number after a million, the stamp “1/M” was used. The remaining numbers were placed on the sides of the cross. In September 1916, the Council of Ministers decided to remove precious metals from the St. George Cross. Signs began to be made from cheap “yellow” and “white” metals. Such crosses had the designation “ZhM” or “BM” under the serial number. In total, about 170 thousand non-precious crosses were issued.

In the history of the St. George Cross, there are known cases of awarding entire units:

1. The crew of the brig "Mercury", which in 1829 took on a battle with a pair of Turkish battleships and won it.
2. 4th hundred of the second Ural Cossack regiment, which survived an unequal battle against the Kokand people in 1865.
3. The crew of the cruiser "Varyag" together with the crew of the gunboat "Koreets", who died in an unequal battle against the Japanese squadron during Russo-Japanese War.
4. 2nd hundred of the first Uman Kuban regiment Cossack army, which carried out a difficult raid in 1916 as part of the Persian campaign.
5. Kornilovsky shock regiment, which broke through positions near the village of Yamshitsa in 1917.

Changes in the country

After the February coup, cases of awarding the St. George Cross for purely political reasons became more frequent. Thus, the award was awarded to non-commissioned officer Kirpichnikov, who was the leader of the mutiny of the Volyn Life Guards Regiment. And Prime Minister Kerensky received crosses of the 2nd and 4th degrees as “the intrepid hero of the Russian Revolution, who tore down the banner of tsarism.”

In June 1917, the Provisional Government allowed officers to be awarded the St. George Cross by decision of the soldiers' assembly. In such cases, a laurel branch made of silver was attached to the ribbons of signs of the 4th and 3rd degrees, and a laurel branch made of gold was attached to the ribbons of signs of the 2nd and 1st degrees. About two thousand such awards were presented.

December 16, 1917 St. George's Cross, as well as other awards of the Russian Empire, was abolished.

Civil War

Due to the lack of a unified command and the disunity of the army of the common award system during the period Civil War was not created. There was also no uniform approach to presenting pre-revolutionary awards. In all territories occupied by representatives of the White Army, St. George's crosses and medals were still awarded to ordinary soldiers, Cossacks, non-commissioned officers, cadets, volunteers and nurses.

In the south of Russia, as well as in the territories of the Don and All-Great troops, St. George the Victorious was depicted as a Cossack. In the Don Army, crosses were awarded not only to soldiers, but also to officers and even generals.

On February 9, 1919, on the Eastern Front, A. Kolchak was also awarded the St. George Cross. At the same time, the presentation of awards with a laurel branch to officers was prohibited.

In the Volunteer Army, awarding the insignia was allowed on August 12, 1918. It happened on the same grounds as in Imperial Army. The first award ceremony took place on October 4 of the same year. In Wrangel's Russian army, this practice was preserved.

Sergeant Pavel Zhadan became the last gentleman of the “soldier George” during the coup. He was awarded in June 1920 for his significant contribution to the defeat of D. Zhloba’s cavalry corps.

1930-1950

September 20, 1922 marks the last award of the insignia in the name of P. N. Wrangel. It is known that in November 1930, the St. George Cross, 4th degree, was awarded to Vladimir Degtyarev for successful reconnaissance missions. In addition, ranks of the Russian Security Corps were twice awarded the 4th degree insignia - doctor Nikolai Golubev and cadet Sergei Shaubu. Their awarding took place in December 1941. Schaub is considered the last WWII Knight of St. George.

Years of the USSR and the Russian Federation

Contrary to popular belief, an award such as the St. George Cross was not “legalized” by the government of the USSR or officially authorized to be worn by representatives of the Red Army. When the Second World War began, many older generation cavaliers who had participated in WWI were mobilized. They were allowed to wear the award “in person.”

When the Order of Glory, ideologically similar to the “soldier’s George,” was introduced into the system of Soviet awards, an opinion arose about the possibility of legitimizing the old award. As a result, the authorities decided to equate the holders of the St. George Cross with the holders of the Order of Glory and allow them to wear awards freely. Seven heroes of the USSR received the honorary title “Full Knight of St. George”.

In 1992, the Russian government restored the Order of St. George, and with it the St. George Cross.

Famous gentlemen

You and I already know who was awarded the Cross of St. George. Now let's note the most famous among his gentlemen:

1. N. A. Durova, known by the nickname “cavalry maiden”. In 1807, she saved the life of an officer in the battle of Gutstadt.
2. Non-commissioned officer Sophia Dorothea Frederica Kruger, representing the Prussian Borstell Brigade. He is also a holder of the Prussian Iron Cross, second class.
3. Future Decembrists warrant officers I. Yakushin and M. Muravyov, who fought at Borodino.
4. The St. George Crosses of the First World War were received by famous characters - Kozma Kryuchkov and Vasily Chapaev.
5. The following Soviet military leaders were full cavaliers of “Soldier George”: A. Eremenko, I. Tyulenev, K. Trubnikov, S. Budyonny. At the same time, Budyonny even received 5 awards. The fact is that the first cross of the 4th degree was taken away from him for assault on the sergeant, and then again given for his exploits on the Turkish front. Semyon Mikhailovich received the first degree insignia for 7 Turkish soldiers brought from enemy lines along with five comrades.
6. Of the future marshals, R. Malinovsky had three crosses, and G. Zhukov and K. Rokossovsky - two crosses each.
7. Sidor Kovpak, who during the Second World War was the commander of the Putivl partisan detachment and the Sumy partisan unit, was awarded two “soldier’s Georges”.
8. Maria Bochkareva, who distinguished herself with her exploits during the First World War, also became a famous holder of the St. George Cross.
9. Despite the fact that individual awards continued almost until the end of the 20th century, the last holder of the insignia of the Order of St. George is considered to be P.V. Zhadan, who during the Civil War, as an 18-year-old sergeant, saved the headquarters of the second cavalry division of General Morozov.

From the history of the award

This cross is the most famous award. A sign known in military history Russia as the "St. George Cross" is the most legendary, revered and widespread award of the Russian Empire.

Institution.

The original name of the award was “Insignia of the Military Order of the Holy Great Martyr and Victorious George.” It was established by the Highest order of Emperor Alexander I of February 13 (23), 1807. The task is to encourage and celebrate the courage of lower ranks. The name of the first recipient is known - Yegor Ivanovich Mitrokhin, non-commissioned officer of the Cavalry Regiment - for the battle at Friedland, in Prussia on December 14, 1809, “for skillful and brave execution of orders.” Friedland is the current city of Pravdinsk.

Award rules.

Unlike all other soldier’s medals, the cross was awarded exclusively for a specific feat, for “this insignia is acquired only on the battlefield, during the siege and defense of fortresses, and on the waters in naval battles.” The list was clearly and down to detail regulated by its Statute.
It is characteristic that not only a soldier could receive an award for the feat indicated there. The future Decembrists Muravyov-Apostol and Yakushkin, who fought at Borodino with the rank of ensign, which did not give the right to an officer's award, received St. George's crosses No. 16697 and No. 16698. There is a known case of the general being awarded a soldier's award - Count Mikhail Miloradovich in a battle with the French in a soldier's ranks in the battle near Leipzig received the St. George Cross, 4th degree. The vicissitudes of fate - in 1825 he was shot at Senate Square Decembrist Kakhovsky.

Privilege.

The lower rank - holder of the St. George Cross in the army was spared from corporal punishment. The soldier or non-commissioned officer awarded it received a salary one third more than usual, for each new cross the salary was increased by another third until the salary doubled. The additional salary remained for life after retirement; widows could receive it within a year after the death of the gentleman.

Award block from the time of the Crimean War: Insignia of the military order of the Holy Great Martyr and Victorious George, medals - “For the defense of Sevastopol” and “In memory of the Crimean War of 1853 - 1854 - 1855 - 1856.” The block was tied to the uniform with strings.

Degrees.

On March 19, 1856, four degrees of awards were introduced, and awards were made sequentially. The badges were worn on a ribbon on the chest and were made of gold (1st and 2nd) and silver (3rd and 4th). The numbering of characters was no longer general, but began anew for each degree. “Either his chest is covered in crosses, or his head is in the bushes” - that’s all about him.

Knight of St. George.

Full Knight of St. George - all four degrees of the cross, 1st and 3rd degree - block with a bow. The two medals on the right are “For Bravery”.

The only one who received crosses 5 times was Semyon Mikhailovich Budyonny, and because of his love for fighting. He was deprived of his first award, the St. George Cross of the 4th degree, in court for assault on a senior in rank. I had to receive the award again, this time on the Turkish front, at the end of 1914. He received the St. George Cross, 3rd degree, in January 1916 for participating in the battles near Mendelij. In March 1916 - awarded the cross of the 2nd degree. In July 1916, Budyonny received the St. George Cross, 1st degree, for the fact that five of them brought 7 Turkish soldiers from a sortie.

Women.

There are several known cases of women being awarded the cross: this is the “cavalry maiden” Nadezhda Durova, who received the award in 1807; in the lists of cavaliers she is listed under the name of cornet Alexander Alexandrov. For the battle of Dennewitz in 1813, another woman received the St. George Cross - Sophia Dorothea Frederica Kruger, a non-commissioned officer from the Prussian Borstell brigade. Antonina Palshina, who fought in the First World War under the name Anton Palshin, had St. George's crosses of three degrees. Maria Bochkareva, the first female officer in the Russian army, commander of the “women’s death battalion” had two Georges.

For foreigners.

For non-believers.

From the end of August 1844, a special cross was installed to reward military personnel of other religions; it was different from regular topics that in the center of the medallion the coat of arms of Russia was depicted - a double-headed eagle. The first full holder of the cross for non-believers was Labazan Ibrahim Khalil-ogly, a police cadet of the 2nd Dagestan Cavalry Irregular Regiment.

St. George's Cross.

The award began to be officially called the St. George Cross in 1913, when the new Statute of the “insignia of the Military Order” was approved, and the numbering of crosses began anew from that time. The new statute also introduced lifelong allowances: for the 4th degree - 36 rubles, for the 3rd degree - 60 rubles, for the 2nd degree - 96 rubles and for the 1st degree - 120 rubles per year, for gentlemen of several degrees an increase or the pension was paid only for the highest degree. A pension of 120 rubles in those days was quite a decent amount, the salary of a skilled worker in 1913 was about 200 rubles a year.

About numbering.

The first crosses of 1807 were not numbered. This was corrected in 1809, when it was ordered to compile precise lists of gentlemen, and the crosses were temporarily removed and numbered. Their exact number is known - 9,937.

Numbering allows you to determine who the award belonged to. This cross of the 4th degree - junior non-commissioned officer of the Grenadier Corps of the engineer battalion Mikhail Bubnov, order dated July 17, 1915 No. 180, distributed by Grand Duke Georgy Mikhailovich on August 27 of the same year (RGVIA archive, fund 2179, inventory 1, file 517 ).

The numbering of crosses was renewed several times - according to different designs The numbering font can be used to determine which period the award belongs to. When during the First World War the number of awards exceeded a million, the designation 1/M appeared on the reverse, on the upper ray of the cross.

St. George Ribbon.

It is traditionally believed that the colors of the ribbon - black and yellow - mean “smoke and flame” and are a sign of a soldier’s personal valor on the battlefield. Another version is that these colors are based on the life of St. George the Victorious and symbolize his death and resurrection: St. George went through death three times and was resurrected twice.
There is a simpler version. The colors of the ribbon when establishing the Order of the Holy Great Martyr and Victorious George in 1769 were established by Catherine II and for the color of the ribbon she took the colors of the imperial standard: black and yellow-gold, excluding white.

Certificate of acceptance of the St. George Cross into the Fatherland Defense Fund


Due to the shortage of precious metals, by decree of Nicholas II in 1915, the gold content in St. George's crosses of the 1st and 2nd degrees was first reduced to 600 thousandths - crosses of the 3rd and 4th degrees continued to be made from 990 silver. In 1917, the crosses began to be made from base metals, and the letters ZhM (yellow metal) and BM (white metal) began to be minted on the crosses themselves.
At this time, the government was collecting donations for the Fatherland Defense Fund. One of these collections was the collection of awards from precious metals to the state fund. In the army and navy, lower ranks and officers everywhere handed over their awards of silver and gold. The archives contain documents confirming these facts.

After February 17th.

Left: St. George's Cross with a laurel branch. This was awarded to officers who distinguished themselves in battle after February 1917. To receive an award, a decision of a meeting of lower ranks was required. Right: Posters 1914 - 17

After October, by the Decree of the Council of People's Commissars of December 16, 1917, signed by V.I. Lenin, “On the equal rights of all military personnel,” orders and other insignia, including the St. George Cross, were abolished. But at least until April 1918, holders of St. George's crosses and medals were given a “surplus salary”. Only with the liquidation of the Chapter of Orders did the issuance of money for these awards cease.

Against the Bolsheviks.

During the Civil War in the White Army, awarding military awards was rare, especially in the initial period - the White Guard considered it immoral to award military awards to Russians for their exploits in the war against the Russians. General Wrangel, in order not to award the Cross of St. George, established a special order of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker, which was equivalent to the St. George's.

Cross to the Great Patriotic War.

Legend claims that during the Great Patriotic War the possibility of restoring the award and resuming the award of the St. George Cross was considered, but was rejected due to its religious background. The Order of Glory, a soldier's award - a star on the block of the St. George Ribbon, has a very similar award status with the St. George Cross.

1945. Demobilized soldiers who arrived in Leningrad. On the right is a participant in three guard wars, Private F. G. Vadyukhin. A famous photograph testifying to an unusual rule for the Red Army that appeared during the war - holders of the Crosses of St. George were unofficially allowed to wear these awards.

Philip Grigorievich Vadyukhin born in 1897 in the village of Perkino, Spassky district, Ryazan province. Drafted into the Red Army on October 16, 1941 by the Vyborg RVK of the city of Leningrad. He was a rifleman, then a medical instructor in the 65th Guards Rifle Regiment of the 22nd Guards Rifle Division of Riga. In addition to the St. George Cross and the Guards Badge, the photo shows four stripes for wounds, the Order of the Red Star, the Order of Glory of the third degree (he was awarded for providing assistance to 40 wounded and evacuating 25 wounded under enemy fire on December 26-31, 1944 in the area of ​​​​the village of Muzikas in Latvia ) and two medals “For Courage”.

Nowadays.

The Russian military order of St. George and the sign "St. George's Cross" were restored in Russian Federation in 1992 by decree of the Presidium Supreme Council Russian Federation dated March 2, 1992 No. 2424-I “On state awards of the Russian Federation.” 11 people were awarded.

St. George's Cross at the Mint

The dream of every warrior, starting from a simple private and up to the commanders of entire armies, from the smallest cog in a complex machine that protects the homeland from enemy attack, right up to its most gigantic levers and hammers, is, upon returning home after a battle, to bring it as a material proof of personal bravery and military prowess, a silver or gold cross of St. George on a two-color, black and yellow ribbon.
Titanic wars like the current one bring many victims to the altar people's love and devotion to the fatherland. But the same war will give birth to many deeds, many truly heroic deeds will be crowned with the highest award for brave men - the Cross of St. George.
We are literally trying to do the impossible, Baron P.V. Klebek, head of the Petrograd Mint, in order to satisfy as quickly as possible the orders given to us by the Chapter of Orders for the production of St. George's crosses and medals. The premises of the Mint are so small, so inconsistent with the actual needs of the present time, that the only palliative was the introduction of almost continuous work for the whole day, with the exception of those intervals that are necessary for lubricating the machines and apparatus of the Mint.
Thanks to such intensive work, we were able to achieve that there were no delays in satisfying these enhanced orders for coins, St. George crosses and medals. During the last four months of the past year, the Mint minted one silver change coin worth 8,700,000 rubles or more than 54,000,000 circles; A million rubles worth of copper coins were minted during the same period; for this it was necessary to knock out about 60,000,000 copper circles.
For 1915, we have already received an order for the production of a silver coin for 25,000,000 rubles and a copper coin for 1,600,000 rubles, which will total over 406,000,000 circles. St. George's crosses and medals are produced in a special "medal" department of the Mint. Upon receipt of an order from the Chapter of Orders for the production of the required number of crosses and medals, the required number of gold and silver bars is released from the metal treasury of the Mint to the medal department. Upon receipt of the ingots in the medal department, the metals are sent to the smelter, where precious metals are alloyed with the required amount of pure copper in graphite crucibles.

The silver and gold from which St. George's crosses and medals are made are prepared very high quality, higher than the gold and silver used to make coins. For the latter, nine hundred parts of noble metal and one hundred parts of copper are taken per thousand parts. To make St. George's crosses and medals, only ten parts of copper and nine hundred and ninety parts of pure electrolytic gold or silver are taken per thousand parts.
The ligation process in the crucible occurs within three, three and a half hours. After this, the sufficiently melted and mixed mass of metal is poured into special forms, “molds”, in which, when cooled, the metal is obtained in the form of strips, about eight inches long, a square inch thick and weighing: silver strips 20 pounds, gold strips 35 pounds.

These strips are rolled through special rollers into ribbons slightly wider than the width of the cross and medal. The next stage in the production of crosses and medals is cutting the ribbon, i.e. cutting metal pieces from ribbons by machine equal to the contours of the cross and circles equal to the contours of the medal. The resulting crosses and circles are cleaned with files to remove burrs or burrs and go to a special department, where they are cleaned and polished with sand.

The crosses cleaned in this way go under the so-called pedal press, where the minting of St. George's crosses takes place, i.e. extrusion on both sides of the cross on one side of the image of St. George the Victorious, on the other side the cipher and designation of the degree. The medal is minted on one side with a portrait of the Sovereign Emperor, on the other “for bravery” and a designation of the degree. Both crosses and medals, as is known, have four degrees. The first and second degrees of both medals are gold, the third and fourth are silver.

When minting, the metal is flattened along the edges and therefore the crosses from the medal press are sent to a special machine for cutting, which gives the cross its final appearance. From under this machine, the cross comes in for final finishing and sanding of the edges with files, after which a special machine punches the eyelet, which completes the machine processing of the crosses. All that remains is to stamp a serial number on each cross and medal.

Before the current war, only orders awarded to officers were called Crosses of St. George. The lower ranks received silver and gold insignia of the military order. Medals were issued “for bravery” and the name “St. George Medals” was received only shortly before the start of the Second Patriotic War. Therefore, all crosses in medals made by the Mint for the real war are numbered from the first number.
The numbers are stamped out with special hand punches, and exceptional attention is required from the master, since an error in the number cannot be corrected and a damaged cross must, like a defect, go back into melting. The renumbered crosses and medals go to the last packaging compartment, in which the rings are first threaded into the ears of the crosses and medals and then these latter are packed into special bundles, 50 pieces each, for delivery to the Chapter of Orders. The rings threaded into the ears are made of gold and silver wire, also 990 standard, which is drawn on special machines also in the medal department of the Mint. It is also necessary to mention the side work closely related at the Mint to the production of St. George's crosses and medals. This is the testing of metals from which all ordered crosses and medals are made.

After the metal strips leave the melting department, small pieces of metal are taken from the first, last and middle strips of a given batch and sent to a special “assay” department of the Mint, in which department the determination of the metal sample is carried out using extremely precise instruments. Let us also mention automatic stamp-cutting machines that produce stamps for medals and crosses.

Manager of the medal department, mining engineer N.N. Perebaskin shared information about the progress of work with our employee.

During the entire Japanese campaign over the course of a year and a half, we only had to make up to one hundred and thirty thousand crosses. Now, for the period from July 24th (the day when we received the first order from the Chapter of Orders), we were ordered 266,000 St. George crosses until January 1st. and 350,000 St. George medals. Having energetically taken up the implementation of this order, we managed to deliver 191,000 St. George crosses by January 1 of this year. and St. George medals 238,000 pieces. We melt 12 poods a day to make crosses. silver and up to 8 poods. gold. A thousand gold crosses weigh 1 pood 11 pounds of metal, 1,000 silver crosses weigh 30 pounds, 1,000 gold medals weigh 1 pood 22 pounds, silver crosses weigh one pood.

Hello my dear readers. The celebration of Victory Day is just around the corner. Numerous residents of the country will hang St. George ribbons not only on their chests, but also on bags, cars, and even weave them into their hair instead of ribbons. Do you know what the St. George ribbon means? Where did it come from, the designation of stripes and colors? This is what I want to tell you about today.

How did the St. George ribbon appear?

The history of its appearance begins in the 18th century. The national colors of the Russian Empire were white, orange (yellow), and black. The country's coat of arms was decorated with these shades. On November 26, 1769, Catherine II established the Order of St. George the Victorious. It included a ribbon called “St. George” in honor of this order, which was awarded to generals and officers for military merit.

In 1807, another medal was approved - a badge of merit of the Military Order. This award was also dedicated to St. George the Victorious. Not official name- St. George's Cross. Since 1913, non-commissioned officers and soldiers were awarded the St. George Medal.

All these awards were received along with the St. George's Ribbon. If for some reason the gentleman was not awarded the order, he received the St. George Ribbon.

At the beginning of the 19th century, the St. George standards appeared. After the Marine Guards crew received this award in 1813, the sailors began wearing the St. George ribbon on their hats. For their differences, ribbons were awarded to entire military units by decree of Emperor Alexander II.

After October revolution In 1917, all tsarist medals were abolished by the Bolsheviks. But even after that, they were awarded with a ribbon for their merits.

In the post-revolutionary period, the most respected insignia were “For the Great Siberian Campaign” and “For the Ice Campaign.” These awards included St. George's ribbons.

What do the colors and stripes mean?

According to the statute, the St. George ribbon had two stripes yellow color and three – black. Although immediately instead of a yellow tint, orange was used.

Even Catherine the Great, when establishing the colors of the ribbon, relied on the meaning of yellow as a sign of fire, and black as a symbol of gunpowder. The black color is also interpreted as smoke, but this does not change the essence. Therefore, flames and smoke represent military glory and soldier's valor.

There is another version. I already said that we chose this one in particular color scheme(gold, black), like the coat of arms of Russia.

In heraldry, it is customary to symbolize the black shade with mourning, earth, sadness, peace, death. The golden hue symbolizes strength, justice, respect, power. Therefore, the color scheme of the St. George Ribbon combines respect for the heroes and participants in the battle, regret for its victims, glorification of the courage and strength of the fighters, at the cost of whose lives justice was restored.

Another version says that the color symbolism of these shades is associated with the face of St. George, where he defeats the snake.

There is also a consideration that the stripes on the St. George Ribbon represent the death and return to life of St. George the Victorious. He faced death three times and was resurrected twice.

It should be noted that the designation of colors is still debated to this day.

Symbol

The St. George Ribbon became a symbol of Victory on May 9, 1945. By a decree of the Presidium of the USSR Armed Forces on this date, the medal “For the victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945” was introduced. It is this ribbon that covers the medal block.

The medal was awarded not only for special merits, but also to all participants in hostilities. This honor was given even to those who left the service due to injury and were transferred to another job.

The approximate number of recipients is around 15 million people.

The Order of Glory was awarded only for personal merit. Commanders, home front workers, and developers of military equipment were not given such an honor. The medal was awarded only ordinary soldiers based on the statute of the order:

• Personal capture of a German officer.
• Personal destruction of a mortar or machine gun at an enemy position.
• Capturing the enemy's banner while ignoring one's own safety.
• Performance military task from a tank weapon, while being in a burning tank.
• Providing assistance to the wounded in a number of battles under enemy fire at the risk of life.
• Destruction of a bunker garrison (trench, bunker, dugout) regardless of the danger.
• Removal or capture of an enemy patrol (post, secret) at night.
• Destruction of an enemy warehouse with military equipment during a night raid.
• Saving the banner in a moment of danger from being captured by the enemy.
• Creating a passage through an enemy wire fence during combat operations.
• When a wounded soldier returns to the battlefield.

As you can see, my dear readers, the order was awarded to those who daily put their lives in danger and really tried to do everything in the name of a great victory.

How to wear the ribbon

The ribbon was worn in different ways. Everything depended on the class of the gentleman. There were three possible options:

• On the neck.
• In the buttonhole.
• Over shoulder.

Can you imagine how proud the owners of this award were? Also interesting is the fact that the warriors who received this award also received a lifetime reward from the treasury. After the death of the recipients, the ribbon passed to their heirs. But the award could be deprived if any act was committed that tarnished the reputation of the Knight of St. George.

St. George's ribbon today

Every year on May 9, we see this ribbon on many people as a sign of respect for fallen war heroes. This action originated in 2005. Its creator is Natalya Loseva, who works at RIA Novosti. This agency, in tandem with the ROOSPPM “Student Community”, are the organizers of the action. It is financed by local and regional authorities, supported by the media and businessmen. Volunteers hand out ribbons to everyone.

The purpose of the holiday is to express respect and gratitude to veterans who died on the battlefield. When we wear the St. George Ribbon, it means that we remember the Second World War and are proud of our valiant ancestors. The ribbon is distributed free of charge. Most often we see and wear it during the celebration of Victory Day.

As you can see, dear readers of my blog, the history and significance of the St. George Ribbon are still important today. Do you wear this Victory sign during the holiday? Share the article with your friends. And, of course, don’t forget to subscribe to blog updates.

Sincerely, Ekaterina Bogdanova

In fact, the ribbon that we consider St. George’s is the Soviet Guards ribbon, which was determined by the People’s Commissar of the Navy Kuznetsov after the adoption of the resolution of the USSR Armed Forces on the Guards badge on May 21, 1942. Infantrymen wore a badge, and sailors wore a bar with a moire ribbon (guards) and ribbons on their caps.

Who wants to know more - Google to help.

But no matter how the color scheme changed, the content remained unchanged: for almost 250 years, our grandfathers and great-grandfathers received the St. George Ribbon for courage in battle. So we won’t be wrong if we call her heroic. After all, it is a symbol of heroism.

The film received its name from St. George the Victorious. Established by Catherine II in 1769 during Russian-Turkish war- together with the military order of the Holy Great Martyr and Victorious George.

This was the highest military award of the Russian Empire, which was used to reward officers for their merits on the battlefield, as well as for loyalty and prudence. It was also used as an element of the banner.

The ribbon came with a lifetime salary. After the death of the owner, it was inherited, but could be confiscated due to the commission of a shameful offense.

Since 1917, the tape has been banned. It was only revived in 1941. The differences are only in color. Catherine II initially ordered the use of “a silk ribbon with three black and two yellow stripes.” Black means gunpowder and smoke, and yellow means fire. Yellow, however, meant a fairly wide range of colors - up to variations of gold. Orange is also mentioned in later documents.

Celebrating May 9th with such ribbons is no longer just an action. A generation of young people has grown up who cannot imagine the May holidays without black and orange ribbons. After all, these tapes have been around for as long as they can remember.

Over the course of 10 years, the action has become a tradition, and people with such ribbons on their chests can be seen in the Balkans, France, Italy, Germany, Great Britain, the USA and even in China and Afghanistan.

There are countries where people are persecuted for having a ribbon on their chest. In Moldova, liberal deputies demand the introduction of a fine for wearing the St. George ribbon: for individuals - from 2 thousand lei (6.5 thousand rubles), for legal entities - up to 5 thousand lei (16 thousand rubles). Explaining this by saying that “the St. George ribbon poses a danger to the integrity of Moldova.”

The initiative has not yet received support. Apparently, due to the fact that it is not entirely clear how to collect these fines. A considerable part of the working population of Moldova works in Russia.

Wearing the St. George's ribbon in the Baltic countries requires courage. But in Ukraine, people can be mutilated or killed for wearing a ribbon. Thus, in Odessa, a local was recently beaten not even for wearing a ribbon, but only for being near this symbol. 52-year-old Odessa resident Evgeniy Grinchenko says: “I was standing near someone’s car, people ran up to me and started demanding to remove the St. George’s ribbon from it and shouting “Glory to Ukraine!” I refused. The result was clothes torn to shreds and a broken nose.

Atrocities were also recorded in Georgia. When the radicals tore off the ribbons from motorcycles with Russian license plates, among them was Irakli Kantaria, the grandson of the legendary Soviet soldier Meliton Kantaria, who hoisted the Victory flag over the Reichstag.

In my opinion, all these people do not understand one thing: with their shares they only increase the value of this symbol.

By the way

Deputy head of the presidential administration of Belarus Igor Buzovsky said that the Belarusian authorities will not ban St. George ribbons. By May 9, an alternative project “Flowers” ​​was launched in Minsk Great Victory“, the symbol of which was an apple tree flower with a ribbon in the colors of the state flag. “But there will be no restrictions regarding the St. George ribbon,” Buzovsky assured.

Among all the military awards in Russian history The St. George Cross occupies a special place. This badge of military valor is the most famous award pre-revolutionary Russia. The Soldier's Cross of St. George can be called the most popular award of the Russian Empire, because it was awarded to the lower ranks (soldiers and non-commissioned officers).

Officially, this award was equivalent to the Order of St. George, established by Catherine the Great in the 18th century. The Cross of St. George had four degrees; according to the statute of the award, this badge of military distinction could only be received for courage on the battlefield.

This insignia lasted just over a hundred years: it was established during the Napoleonic Wars, shortly before the French invasion of Russia. The last conflict in which several million people received St. George's Crosses of various degrees was the First World War.

The Bolsheviks abolished this award, and the St. George's Cross insignia was restored only after the collapse of the USSR. IN Soviet period the attitude towards the St. George Cross was ambiguous, although a huge number of St. George cavaliers fought on the fronts of the Great Patriotic War - and they fought well. Among the holders of the St. George Cross are Marshal of Victory Georgy Zhukov, Konstantin Rokossovsky and Rodion Malinovsky. Full Knights of St. George were the Soviet Marshal Budyonny and military leaders Tyulenev and Eremenko.

The legendary partisan commander Sidor Kovpak was awarded the cross twice.

Knights of the St. George's Cross received monetary incentives and were paid a pension. Naturally, largest amount paid for the first (highest) degree of award.

Description of the St. George Cross

The order's insignia was a cross with blades widening towards the end. In the center of the cross was a round medallion, on the front side of which was depicted St. George slaying a serpent. On reverse side medallion, the letters C and G were applied in the form of a monogram.

The crossbars on the front side remained clean, and the serial number of the award was printed on the reverse. The cross had to be worn on a black and orange St. George's ribbon (“the color of smoke and flame”).

The St. George Cross was highly respected in the military environment: the lower ranks, even having received officer rank, proudly wore it among officer awards.

In 1856, this award badge was divided into four degrees: the first and second were made of gold, the third and fourth - of silver. The degree of the award was indicated on its reverse. The award of the distinction was carried out sequentially: from the fourth to the first degree.

History of the St. George Cross

The Order of St. George has existed in Russia since the 18th century, but this order should not be confused with the soldier's Cross of St. George - these are different awards.

In 1807, Russian Emperor Alexander I was presented with a note proposing the establishment of an award for lower ranks who distinguished themselves on the battlefield. The emperor considered the proposal quite reasonable. Just the day before, a bloody battle took place at Preussisch-Eylau, where Russian soldiers demonstrated remarkable courage.

However, there was one problem: it was impossible to award lower ranks with orders. At that time, they were given only to representatives of the nobility; the order was not just a “piece of iron” on the chest, but also a symbol of social status, it emphasized the “knightly” position of its owner.

Therefore, Alexander I resorted to a trick: he ordered that lower ranks be awarded not with an order, but with the “insignia of the order.” This is how the award appeared, which later became the Cross of St. George. According to the emperor’s manifesto, only lower ranks who showed “undaunted courage” on the battlefield could receive the St. George Cross. According to status, a reward could be received, for example, for capturing an enemy banner, for capturing an enemy officer, or for skillful actions during battle. Concussion or injury did not give the right to a reward if it was not related to the feat.

The cross had to be worn on the St. George ribbon, threaded through the buttonhole.

The first cavalier of the soldier's George was non-commissioned officer Mitrokhin, who distinguished himself in the battle of Friedland in the same 1807.

Initially, the St. George Cross did not have degrees and could be issued an unlimited number of times. True, the badge itself was not reissued, but the soldier’s salary increased by a third. Corporal punishment could not be applied to holders of the St. George Cross.

In 1833, the insignia of the Military Order was included in the statute of the Order of St. George. Some other innovations also appeared: commanders of armies and corps could now award crosses. This greatly simplified the process and reduced bureaucratic red tape.

In 1844, the St. George Cross was designed for Muslims, in which St. George was replaced by a double-headed eagle.

In 1856, the St. George Cross was divided into four degrees. The reverse of the sign indicated the degree of the award. Each degree had its own numbering.

Over the entire history of the St. George Cross with four degrees, more than two thousand people became full holders of it.

The next significant change in the statute of the Military Order Insignia occurred on the eve of the First World War, in 1913. The award received the official name "St. George's Cross", and the St. George's Medal (a numbered medal for bravery) was also established. The St. George Medal also had four degrees and was awarded to lower ranks, military personnel of irregular troops and border guards. This medal (unlike the St. George Cross) could be awarded to civilians, as well as military personnel in peacetime.

According to the new statute of the insignia, the St. George Cross could now serve as a posthumous award, which was transferred to the hero’s relatives. The numbering of the award began again from 1913.
In 1914 the First World War, millions of Russian citizens were drafted into the army. During the three years of the war, more than 1.5 million St. George Crosses of various degrees were awarded.

The first Knight of St. George of this war was Don Cossack Kozma Kryuchkov, who (according to official version) in an unequal battle destroyed more than ten German cavalrymen. Kryuchkov was awarded "George" of the fourth degree. During the war, Kryuchkov became a full Knight of St. George.

During the First World War, women were repeatedly awarded the Cross of St. George; foreigners fighting in the war became its recipients. Russian army.

Changed and appearance awards: hard war time higher degrees The crosses (first and second) began to be made of low-grade gold, and the third and fourth degrees of the award lost significant weight.

The 1913 statute significantly expanded the list of acts for which the St. George Cross was awarded. This largely neutralized the value of this insignia. During the First World War, more than 1.2 million people became Knights of Yegoria. Judging by the number of recipients, there was simply mass heroism in the Russian army. Then it is not clear why these millions of heroes soon shamefully fled to their homes.

According to the statute, the cross was to be issued only for exploits on the battlefield, but this principle was not always followed. Georgy Zhukov received one of his St. George Crosses for shell shock. Apparently, the future Soviet marshal already in those years knew how to find mutual language with your superiors.

After February Revolution the status of the Cross of St. George was changed again; now it could also be awarded to officers after the appropriate decision of the soldiers’ meetings. In addition, this military insignia began to be awarded for purely political reasons. For example, the cross was awarded to Timofey Kirpichnikov, who killed an officer and led a mutiny in his regiment. Prime Minister Kerensky became a holder of two degrees of the cross at once, for “tearing down the banner of tsarism” in Russia.

There are known cases when entire military units or warships. Among others, this badge was awarded to the crews of the cruiser “Varyag” and the gunboat “Koreets”.

During the Civil War, soldiers and non-commissioned officers in White Army units continued to be awarded the Cross of St. George. True, the attitude towards awards among the White movement was ambiguous: many considered it shameful to receive awards for participation in a fratricidal war.

On the territory of the Donskoy army, George the Victorious on the cross turned into a Cossack: he was wearing a Cossack uniform, a hat with a hood, from under which his forelock protruded.

The Bolsheviks canceled all awards Russian Empire, including the St. George Cross. However, after the start of the Great Patriotic War, the attitude towards the award changed. “George” was not allowed, as many historians claim, but the authorities turned a blind eye to wearing this sign.

Among the Soviet awards, the Order of Glory had an ideology similar to that of the soldier George.

Collaborators who served in the Russian Corps were also awarded the Cross of St. George. The last award took place in 1941.

The most famous Knights of St. George

Over the entire existence of this award, about 3.5 million St. George Crosses of various degrees have been issued. Among the holders of this insignia there are many famous personalities, which can safely be called historical.

Soon after the award appeared, the famous “cavalry maiden” Durova received it; the cross was awarded to her for saving the life of an officer.

The former Decembrists Muravyov-Apostol and Yakushkin were awarded the Crosses of St. George - they fought at Borodino with the rank of ensigns.

General Miloradovich also received this soldier's award for his personal participation in the Battle of Leipzig. The cross was presented to him personally by Emperor Alexander, who witnessed this episode.

Very famous character for his era was Kozma Kryuchkov - the first cavalier of the “George” of the First World War.

The famous division commander of the Civil War, Vasily Chapaev, was awarded three crosses and the St. George medal.

The holder of the St. George Cross was Maria Bochkareva, the commander of the women’s “death battalion” created in 1917.

Despite the huge number of crosses issued over the entire period of existence of this award, today this insignia is a rarity. It is especially difficult to buy the St. George Cross of the first and second degrees. Where did they go?

After the February Revolution, the Provisional Government issued a call to donate its awards to the “needs of the revolution.” This is how Georgy Zhukov lost his crosses. Many awards were sold or melted down during periods of famine (there were several during the Soviet period). Then a cross made of silver or gold could be exchanged for several kilograms of flour or even a couple of loaves of bread.

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