How many Orders of Victory were issued and how many people were awarded them? The highest military order "Victory" and the Order of Glory I, II and III degrees Order of Victory where worn

The Order of Victory was established on November 8, 1943. On August 18, 1944, the sample and description of the ribbon of the Order of Victory, as well as the procedure for wearing the bar with the ribbon of the order, were approved.

The Order of the USSR "Victory" is the highest. This military order was established at the same time as the soldier's Order of Glory. The highest command personnel of the Red Army were awarded for the successful conduct of combat operations on the scale of one or several fronts.

For those awarded the Order of Victory, as a sign of special distinction, a memorial plaque was established to include the names of the holders of the Order of Victory, which was installed in the Grand Kremlin Palace. This order was awarded exclusively by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.

This award of the Great Patriotic War is a convex five-pointed ruby star bordered with diamonds. In the intervals between the ends of the star there are diverging rays with diamonds. The middle of the star is a circle covered with blue enamel, bordered by a laurel-oak wreath. In the center of the circle is a golden image of the Kremlin wall with the Lenin Mausoleum and the Spasskaya Tower in the center. Above the image is the inscription in white enamel letters “USSR”. At the bottom of the circle on a red enamel ribbon is the inscription in white enamel letters “VICTORY”.

The badge of the Order of the Great Patriotic War "Victory" was made of platinum. The decoration of the order uses platinum, gold, silver, enamel, five artificial rubies in the rays of a star and 174 small diamonds.
The size of the star between opposite vertices is 72 mm. The diameter of the circle with the image of the Spasskaya Tower is 31 mm. The total weight of the order is 78 g. The content of platinum in the order is 47 g, gold – 2 g, silver – 19 g. The weight of each of the five rubies is 5 carats. The total weight of diamonds on the sign is 16 carats.
Worn on the left side of the chest 12-14 cm above the waist.

Twice Knight of the Order of Victory Marshal Soviet Union G.K. Zhukov.

One of the first, in July 1943, a draft order called “For Loyalty to the Motherland” was proposed for consideration by an officer of the headquarters of the rear department Soviet Army Colonel Neelov N.S. But Stalin did not approve of this project and work on creating a sketch for this award continued. Of the many options for the Order of Victory submitted to the competition, preference was given to the sketch of the artist A.I. Kuznetsov, who was also the author of the Order of the Patriotic War. Initially, Kuznetsov planned to mark chest-length profile bas-reliefs of Lenin and Stalin in the center of the sign (as was the case in Neelov’s previous project), then the option of placing the Order of the State Emblem of the USSR in the center was considered. In the final version, it was decided to change the image of the coat of arms in the center of the sign to the image of the Kremlin’s Spasskaya Tower.

On April 10, 1944, Order No. 1 was awarded to the commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union, G.K. Zhukov. for the liberation of right-bank Ukraine. Zhukov received the 2nd Order of Victory as commander of the 1st Belorussian Front on March 30, 1945 (for the capture of Berlin).

In addition to him, the following marshals were awarded this award (in order of award):
Chief of the General Staff (later commander of the 3rd Belorussian Front) Vasilevsky A.M. (April 10, 1944 and April 19, 1945) - for the liberation of right-bank Ukraine and for the capture of Koenigsberg and liberation East Prussia.
Supreme Commander-in-Chief Stalin I.V. (July 29, 1944 and June 26, 1945) - for the liberation of right-bank Ukraine and victory over Germany.
Commander of the 2nd Belorussian Front Rokossovsky K.K. (March 30, 1945) - for the liberation of Poland.
Commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front I.S. Konev (March 30, 1945) - for the liberation of Poland and crossing of the Oder.

Marshal of Poland Michał Rola-Żymierski, 1890-1989.

Commander of the 2nd Ukrainian Front Malinovsky R.Ya. (April 26, 1945) - for the liberation of the territories of Hungary and Austria.
Commander of the 3rd Ukrainian Front Tolbukhin F.I. (April 26, 1945) - for the liberation of the territories of Hungary and Austria.
Commander of the Leningrad Front Govorov L.A. (May 31, 1945) - for the liberation of the Baltic states.
Representative of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief Timoshenko S.K. (June 4, 1945) - for planning combat operations and coordinating the actions of the fronts throughout the war.
Chief of the General Staff Antonov A.I. (Army General) (June 4, 1945) - for planning combat operations and coordinating the actions of the fronts throughout the war.
Commander of the Far Eastern Front Meretskov K.A. (September 8, 1945) - based on the results of the war with Japan.

Memorial plaque in the Kremlin with the names of holders of the Order of Victory.

Of the foreign citizens this order was awarded to:
Army General D. Eisenhower (June 5, 1945).
Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces in Western Europe, Field Marshal B. L. Montgomery (5 June 1945).
King Mihai I of Romania (July 6, 1945).
Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Polish Army (on the territory of the USSR) General M. Rolya-Zhimierski (August 9, 1945).
Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Yugoslav People's Liberation Army, Marshal Joseph Broz Tito (9 September 1945).

Memorial plaque in the Kremlin with the names of holders of the Order of Victory.

On February 20, 1978, the General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, Marshal of the Soviet Union L.I. Brezhnev was awarded the Order of Victory. After Brezhnev's death, the award was canceled.
Thus, it is clear that only 12 Soviet military leaders (Zhukov, Vasilevsky and Stalin - twice) and 5 foreign citizens became holders of the Order of Victory.
All insignia of the order awarded to Soviet military leaders, as well as the insignia of the order awarded to Marshal Rolya-Zhimersky, are in the Diamond Fund of Russia. Eisenhower's award is housed in his memorial museum in Abilene, Kansas. Marshal Tito's award is on display at the 25 May Museum in Belgrade. Field Marshal Montgomery's award is on display at the Imperial War Museum in London. Only one Order of Victory, which previously belonged to King Michael I, is in a private collection. According to some reports, it was sold at auction by one of the family members of dictator Ceausescu.

In total, 20 awards were made with the Order of Victory (one of which was subsequently cancelled).

The Order of Victory was established by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on November 8, 1943. The decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR dated August 18, 1944 approved the sample and description of the ribbon of the Order of Victory, as well as the procedure for wearing the bar with the ribbon of the order.

Statute of the order.
The Order of Victory is the highest military order. It is awarded to senior commanders of the Red Army for the successful conduct of such military operations on the scale of one or several fronts, as a result of which the situation radically changes in favor of the Red Army.
For those awarded the Order of Victory, a memorial plaque is established, as a sign of special distinction, to include the names of the holders of the Order of Victory. A memorial plaque is installed in the Grand Kremlin Palace. This order is awarded only by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
The Order of Victory is worn on the left side of the chest 12-14 cm above the waist.

On April 10, 1944, the names of the first three holders of the Order of Victory became known. The owner of badge No. 1 was the commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union G.K. Zhukov. Badge No. 2 was received by the Chief of the General Staff, Marshal of the Soviet Union A.M. Vasilevsky. The Order of Victory* No. 3 was awarded to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, Marshal of the Soviet Union I.V. Stalin. All these awards were awarded for the liberation of Right Bank Ukraine.

Over the entire existence of the order, 20 copies of it were awarded to 17 military leaders. On March 30, 1945, the commander of the 2nd Belorussian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union K.K., became holders of the order. Rokossovsky for the liberation of Poland, commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union Konev for the liberation of Poland and crossing the Oder. On April 26, the list of recipients was replenished with two more names - the commander of the 2nd Ukrainian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union R. Ya. Malinovsky and the commander of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union F. I. Tolbukhin. Both were awarded for the liberation of Hungary and Austria. On May 31, the commander of the Leningrad Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union L. A. Govorov, became a holder of the order - for the liberation of atony. By the same decree, the commander of the 1st Belorussian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union G. K. Zhukov, and the commander of the 3rd Belorussian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union A.M. Vasilevsky was awarded the Order of Victory a second time: the first - for the capture of Berlin, the second - for the capture of Koenigsberg and the liberation of Inaccurate Prussia. On June 4, the Order of Victory was awarded to two “Moscow” military leaders, the representative of the Headquarters of the Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Union, Marshal 1R Timoshenko, who on the eve of the war was the People's Commissar of Defense of the USSR, and the Chief of the General Staff, Army General A.I. Antonov is the only holder of the Order of Victory who did not have the rank of marshal. Both of them were awarded the highest military order for planning military operations and coordinating the actions of the fronts during the war.

By decree of June 26, 1945, the Order of Victory was awarded to I.V. Stalin for the second time (on that day he became a Hero of the Soviet Union, and the next day - Generalissimo of the Soviet Union). As a result of the war with Japan, Marshal of the Soviet Union K. A. Meretskov, commander of the Far Eastern Front, became a holder of the Order of Victory. Thus, the Order of Victory in the USSR was awarded to 10 marshals of the Soviet Union (three of them twice) and an army general.

In 1945, 5 foreign citizens became holders of the order: Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the People's Liberation Army of Yugoslavia, Marshal Josip Broz Tito; Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Polish Army (on the territory of the USSR) Marshal of Wormwood Michal Rolya-Zimierski; Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionary Forces in Western Europe, Army General Dwight David Eisenhower (USA): Commander of the Allied Army Group in Western Europe, Field Marshal Bernard Law Montgomery (UK); King of Romania Mihai 1 (after the overthrow of the fascist Antonescu regime in Romania, the troops of Mihai 1 fought on the side of the Allies).
At this point, the awards stopped, and the Order of Victory became history. But more than thirty years after the war, another, seventeenth holder of the order appeared: on February 20, 1978, on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Soviet Army and Navy, this order was received by the General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee L.I. Brezhnev. Although he bore the rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union and served as Chairman of the USSR Defense Council, his “deeds” did not in any way correspond to the Statute of the Order of Victory.

A very important and significant award for those who resisted fascism during the Second World War was the Order of Victory. Few have received this award, some of them twice in their lifetime. With the help of this insignia, it was decided to celebrate the feat of outstanding personalities from the high command of the Red Army and not only. Five foreign allies who made a significant contribution to the victory over Nazi Germany were also worthy of the awards.

History of the award

In November 1943, a decree was signed on the foundation of this highest insignia. Several people worked on its creation, and the first draft was presented by officer Neelov. For some reason, Stalin did not accept the proposed name and sketch. The second attempt was given to Kuznetsov. This artist already had experience creating similar awards. He presented several options, from which the one was chosen that depicted the Spasskaya Tower of the Moscow Kremlin with the inscription “Victory”.

The Order of Victory in this version was accepted. At Stalin's suggestion, the presented sketch was further modified (background, scale of the tower itself, etc.). After all the wishes were taken into account, a test copy was made, which was approved. Thus, in November 1943, at the Supreme Council, the procedure for awarding the order was described, its signs were described, and a statute was adopted.

The statute stated that the Order of Victory (its photo can be seen below) was an award for the high command of the army. It was awarded for special merits, actions that led to an inevitable victory or an improvement in the situation for the Soviet army.

What does this tall insignia look like?

The Order of Victory is the most expensive award (in monetary terms) of the Soviet Union. Precious metals such as platinum and gold, as well as precious stones - diamonds, were used to make it. Initially, they were going to use real rubies for these purposes, but the jewelers were faced with the following problem: it was impossible to select stones in the same color scheme; they all had different shades. As a result of this, it was decided to replace real stones with artificial ones.

Each Order of Victory, the photo of which very clearly demonstrates its beauty, was made by hand by craftsmen at a jewelry and watch factory in Moscow. This, by the way, was a unique case in the entire history of the USSR, since all other orders and medals were produced at the Mint with the appropriate stamping. It was not available on these models.

So what was this ultimate reward? The order looked like a five-pointed ruby star, it was convex in the center. Closer to the center of the order, the rays of the star were decorated with triangles of rubies, and along its edges there was a line of diamonds. Between them there were small rays (five in each gap), which were also decorated with small transparent precious stones.

In the middle of the order there was a circle with an image of the Kremlin on a blue background, where the mausoleum is located, as well as the Spasskaya Tower. At the bottom, on a red background, was written the word “Victory,” from which a wreath rose upward. It was done in gold color.

For each order, forty-seven grams of platinum, two grams of gold, and nineteen grams of silver were used. Also, each star had five rubies (five carats each) and 174 small diamonds weighing a total of sixteen carats.

Today, the Order of Victory is considered a unique work of jewelry, and not just a symbol of military glory and courage.

An integral part of the order is the ribbon

Those awarded this award, in addition to the order itself, had to wear the ribbon that came with it. It was much wider than the ribbons that come with other awards. So, its width was 46 millimeters. The six-color ribbon combined colors from other orders that were used among the awards of the Soviet Union.

So, the color scheme was as follows: in the center there was a wide strip of red, on the sides of it there were stripes of green, dark blue, burgundy, light blue and orange with a black insert.

Cavaliers of the Order of Victory had to wear their award on the left side of the chest, below all other orders and medals (about 12-14 centimeters above the belt). The bar with the ribbon had to be one centimeter higher than other awards.

How many orders are there in total and how many awarded?

If we talk about how many orders of “Victory” were made, then we can say that there were twenty of them in total. However, to date, there are only nineteen awardees who are indicated on the memorial plaque. Of these, three citizens of the Soviet Union were awarded the award twice.

Eight more Soviet military leaders became holders of the order once each during World War II. There is also foreign citizens, who were also awarded.

As for another, twentieth order, it was awarded in February 1978 to the then Secretary General and Marshal of the USSR Brezhnev. After his death, the award was canceled as not in accordance with the statute of the award. This happened in September 1989.

Knights of the Order, awarded twice

Among those who received the Order of Victory, there are those who were awarded twice. It was just three people. Let's consider each of them.

Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov

He was truly a great commander of that time. He did not have a higher military education, but the lack of a theoretical basis was replaced by the practical experience that he received during the Civil War. In addition, Zhukov had a natural talent for leading and making the right decisions in difficult times.

During World War II, he was awarded the rank of Marshal of the USSR. He was also one of the very first to receive the Order of Victory. This happened on April 10, 1944 because he carried out a successful operation to liberate right-bank Ukraine.

The second order was received by Zhukov in 1945, on the thirtieth of March. This award was given to him because he carried out command assignments very well, leading the troops.

Alexander Mikhailovich Vasilevsky

This man went down in history as the greatest strategist of World War II. Even Zhukov noticed his unsurpassed talent as a military leader. Together they led the liberation of right-bank Ukraine, and it was for this that Vasilevsky received the second-ranked Order of Victory. This also happened on the tenth of April 1944.

Almost a year later, on April 19, 1945, Vasilevsky was nominated for the award a second time. At this time, he led operations in East Prussia and won victories.

Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin

The commander-in-chief of the USSR at that time himself received the third order. The first time this happened was on July 29, 1944. The award was also presented for the liberation of the right bank of Ukraine from Nazi Germany.

The second time Stalin received the order was on the twenty-sixth of June 1945, as a reward for the final victory over Nazi Germany.

Let us now list the Soviet military leaders who received the Order of Victory. Those awarded this high distinction made an invaluable contribution to the victory of the Soviet Union over fascism.

Kirill Afanasyevich Meretskov. This Marshal of the Soviet Union was awarded his medal in 1945, on September 8th. His merits included successful military operations during the hostilities with Japan.
Alexey Innokentievich Antonov. The occasion of his award is unique. The fact is that at the time of signing the decree, Antonov was only a general, while other holders of the Order of Victory had the rank of marshals and were also Heroes of the Soviet Union. And yet, in 1945, on the fourth of June, he was awarded this award for the completed tasks that were assigned to him by the high command. These were successful military operations on a large scale.
Semyon Konstantinovich Timoshenko. He became a holder of the order in 1945, on the fourth of June. He was given the award for his planning of battle operations, as well as for his skillful coordination of actions on the fronts.
Leonid Aleksandrovich Govorov. Soviet marshal who participated in the liberation of Leningrad, as well as in the defeat of fascist troops in the Baltic region. He was awarded this high award in 1945, May thirty-first.
Fedor Ivanovich Tolbukhin. Soviet marshal who participated in the liberation of Austrian and Hungarian lands. For his services in 1945, on April twenty-sixth, he was awarded this distinction.
Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky. He also participated in the liberation of Hungary and Austria from the fascist invaders. Awarded in 1945, April twenty-sixth.
Konstantin Konstantinovich Rokossovsky. The Soviet marshal received the award on March thirtieth, 1945. He was awarded this honor due to his tangible contribution to the liberation of Poland.
Ivan Stepanovich Konev. He held the rank of marshal at the time of receiving the award. He became a knight on March 30, 1945, also for the liberation of Polish lands from the Nazis.

Each of the listed commanders was worthy of this award, each deserved it with his fortitude and courage.

Among those who received the Order of the Great "Victory" were foreign citizens. We propose to find out who received this honor.

Josip Broz Tito. This is one of the Yugoslav leaders who led the country's resistance during World War II. In 1945, on September 9, for his services in the victory over Germany and for successful military operations, he was awarded the Order of Victory. He was a very strong personality. In the post-war period, Tito was elected president of Yugoslavia, who saw his own way in governing the state.
Michal Rolya-Zimierski. Polish marshal, who during the Second World War was an ardent opponent of the aggressive Germany. He was a member of the resistance movement. He received his order in 1945, on August 9, for the successful organization of Polish troops, as well as for conducting various military operations. After the war, Rolya-Zhimersky served as a minister and also spent some time in prison on false charges.
Bernard Montgomery. This is an outstanding person who participated in many battles during the Second World War, and also carried out military operations on the side of the opponents of Nazi Germany. Montgomery was also one of the founders of the creation of NATO. For his services in the fight against the Nazis in 1945, on June 5, he received the Order of Victory.
Dwight Eisenhower. He was a general in the US forces during World War II. For his services in carrying out various operations he was awarded an honorary award from the Soviet Union. This happened in 1945, on the fifth of June. In the post-war years, Eisenhower served as President of the United States.

Each of these people made their own special contribution to the fight against Nazi Germany, as a result of which they were awarded such an honorary award.

Awarding the Order to the King of Romania

Among the foreign allies was the king, who was awarded the Order of Victory. Today he is the only surviving holder of the order. The award took place in July 1945, for the fact that Mihai I was able to show determination and turn Romanian policy towards a break with Nazi Germany. At the time of the award he was only twenty-three years old.

The king, awarded the Soviet Order of Victory, showed true heroism and fortitude. In August 1944, when the final victory over fascism was not yet certain, he spoke out against Germany and ordered the arrest of many members of the government (among them was Antonescu, the de facto ruler of Romania). After this, this country stopped hostilities on the side of the fascist invaders.

The Order of "Victory" of the Great Patriotic War is a very significant symbol of what happened in the distant years 1941-1945. This is a sign of the indestructibility of the Russian people, faith in victory over the Nazis, as well as faith in their command. Of course, the war itself was cruel, and sometimes the decisions made by the commanders of those times were also cruel. However, not a single soldier doubted their correctness. This expressed the patriotism of the Russian people of that time, their ability to stand to the last for the good of the Motherland.

Today, despite the fact that the Order of Victory is no longer awarded, it is the most honorable award in Russia, as well as one of the highest awards that has not yet been abolished.

Conclusion

The Soviet Order of Victory is now history. Naturally, they are no longer awarded, and almost all copies are kept in museums.

According to some reports, one of the orders, namely the one that was awarded to the Romanian King Mihai I, was sold and is now in one of the private collections. Although the former owner himself denies this, he never wore it to various celebrations, although there were other orders and medals on his chest.

Awards that were presented to the Soviet command and the Marshal of Poland, on at the moment are located on Russian territory. Five orders are kept in the Central Museum of the Armed Forces, and the rest in Gokhran.

If we talk about the USSR Order of Victory, which was awarded to Eisenhower, it is now located in the state of Kansas in the city of Abilene, namely in the Memorial Library.

The order that was awarded to Marshal Tito is currently located in the capital of Serbia - the city of Belgrade. It is kept in the “25 May” museum.

The award, which was presented to British Field Marshal Montgomery, is also in his homeland. It is kept in the Imperial War Museum in London.

We can say that every military leader who was awarded this order was worthy of it. This order symbolizes their enormous contribution to the victory over fascism, fortitude and courage in confronting what was disastrous for their people.

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One photo was taken in 1973. There are forty-one awards on it. The other one was in 2000. But this time there are only nineteen awards on the uniform. Where did the other twenty-two go?
But the strangest thing happens with the Order of Victory: for some reason it is not in the “old” photo, but in the “new” one it is. Maybe it’s not for nothing that there are alarming rumors about the mysterious disappearance of military orders: they say they are stolen and replaced with fakes? Maybe these were the orders that were going to be put up for auction at Sotheby's in London?

To figure it out, correspondents " Russian newspaper"We went to the Central Museum of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, where awards, uniforms, weapons and personal belongings of commanders are kept.
The secret of the marshal's uniforms was revealed to us by the keeper of the awards fund, Galina Tiryudkina.
“The photograph from 2006 was taken at an exhibition at the State Historical Museum, and the photo from 1973 is in our exhibition,” explained Galina Zaurbekovna. - The fact that each of them has a different number of awards is quite understandable. The State Historical Museum twice - in 2000 and 2005 - approached us with a request to allocate the orders of military leaders, including Marshal Rokossovsky, for its exhibitions. A list of orders is attached. They did not ask for all awards, but only those in which Konstantin Konstantinovich commanded the Victory Parade.
Of course, just a request from colleagues from the State Historical Museum would not be enough to receive the award, at least temporarily. Galina Tiryudkina showed us everything, so to speak, business correspondence about this. Here is the permission from the Ministry of Defense, here is the Ministry of Culture. Here is the act of transfer and the act of acceptance, with all the list and necessary signatures. Now all forty-one awards are in the Victory Hall of the museum on the marshal's uniform. This is what RG correspondents were personally convinced of.

What about the Order of Victory?
It turns out that the Order of Victory of Marshal Rokossovsky is kept in the Russian Presidential Administration for Personnel Issues and State Awards. Previously, this was the awards department of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. It was there that, until 1977, all awards of deceased military leaders were handed over. And there it was decided where to store these awards - whether to give them to a museum or keep them in their own funds. Rokossovsky’s “Victory” was left in the awards department even then. What then was hung on the marshal's uniform? As the custodian of the award fund said, to ensure the authenticity of the exhibition, the museum specially ordered a dummy from jewelers. Also made of precious metals, but instead of 16 carats of diamonds they used cubic zirconia. This is what visitors to the exhibition saw.
In total, the main military museum of the country houses five authentic Orders of Victory: two from Marshal Zhukov, two from Marshal Vasilevsky and one from Marshal Malinovsky. Moreover, they are hidden in museum storerooms.
Our doubts about the authenticity of the awards were dispelled by Anna Morozova, deputy head of the scientific and exhibition department. Each order, medal, token, sign that comes to the museum for storage is not only photographed, but she also personally describes it: where the enamel is chipped, a ray is bent, there is a dent or a chip... Each item acquires its own personal individuality, and it is already can't be confused with anything.
And as for copies - yes, Anna Morozova admits, in our troubled times there is such an idea: to display high-quality dummies in the exhibition, and keep the originals behind seven locks in secret vaults. They will be healthier. The question, as always, comes down to money: making a truly good copy is not cheap.
Excuse me, we were surprised, the average person may not care whether he sees the original behind museum glass or almost a molecular copy. But the relatives of the order bearers are not indifferent to whether the awards of their grandfathers and great-grandfathers are in place.

The museum doesn’t see any particular problem with this either: from time to time, the descendants of the heroes visit the Central Museum and are given orders and medals. By the way, people come not for control, not because of mistrust, but simply out of spiritual need: to hold a relic in their hands, to remember a loved one, a glorious warrior ancestor. More than once Budyonny’s daughter, Malinovsky’s wife, and the relatives of Konev and Zakharov descended into the holy of holies of the award fund.
Many military leaders, veterans and order bearers increasingly come to the Central Museum of the Armed Forces themselves and deposit their military awards - there is a firm guarantee that after death their memory will be preserved and a trace will remain in history. And the orders washed in blood will not end up on market stalls.
This means that in London they tried to display awards that had nothing to do with Rokossovsky. Then whose?

Price of rewards on the black market
Order of Victory (16 carats of diamonds) - $4-10 million.
Orders of Kutuzov, Suvorov, Nevsky, Nakhimov, Ushakov, Khmelnitsky - 10-30 thousand dollars (depending on the degree). However, for the Order of Ushakov, 2nd degree, they offer 100 thousand dollars.
Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union - 2-10 thousand dollars.
Order of Glory - 900-3 thousand dollars
Order of Lenin - 800-6 thousand dollars
Order October Revolution- 500-900 dollars
Order of the Red Star - 20-10 thousand dollars
Order of the Red Banner - 50-10 thousand dollars
Order of the Patriotic War - $50-300

Medals:
"For courage" - 50-300 dollars
"For military merit" - 10-250 dollars
"For victory over Germany..." - $5-30
"Partisan of the Patriotic War" - 10-50 dollars
The investigation suggests that the most highly valued military orders among the Falerists, put up for sale at the Sotheby's auction, were stolen from the apartments of Soviet military leaders. Perhaps the trail will lead to a large organized crime group carrying out sensitive assignments for underground collectors.
Let me remind you: at the end of November the British intended to put up for auction eleven lots with Soviet awards - collections of the Orders of Lenin, the Red Banner, Suvorov, Kutuzov, Ushakov, and Bogdan Khmelnitsky. Awards can be exported from Russia either by the order bearers themselves or by holders of permission for such export from Rosokhrankultura. Here it suddenly became clear that this Russian department did not give such permissions. Consequently, the British hammer was about to sell at least contraband. Or even worse - stolen or robbed. Respectable Englishmen immediately removed the dubious awards from the auction. And Russia began to study the origin of the “lots”.

From archival dust
Russian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Sergei Ivanov immediately ordered an internal investigation.
“We welcome Britain’s decision to remove unique Soviet orders from sale,” Sergei Ivanov told a Rossiyskaya Gazeta correspondent. “The government of this country has shown that it understands the essence of the issue and the importance of such awards for the preservation of historical memory. We, in turn, will assist Britain in identifying who these orders belonged to and how they ended up at the Sotheby's auction.
Thus began one of the most unusual investigations in the Armed Forces, in which the leading role is played not by professional detectives, but by historians. However, the police detectives also found something to do.
The investigation algorithm is as follows. The first word should be said by employees of the Central Archive of the Ministry of Defense, located in Podolsk. It is here that information about each military personnel is stored, starting with the creation of the Red Army. Using the order numbers, archivists can find out the names of their owners.
And then the most difficult thing begins - you need to follow future fate stolen reward and eventually find someone who wanted to sell it. The Ministry of Defense told an RG correspondent about several options that scientists are currently working on.
If the order bearer reached Victory and died before 1977, his awards can still be found in some military museum or in the awards department of the Main Personnel Directorate of the Ministry of Defense - then relatives were obliged to hand over all orders after the death of the front-line soldier, except for the October Revolution and the Patriotic War. That is, in this case, the award came to London from some museum.
After 1977, all awards remained in the family. What if the old man had no family? Whose hands did the awards fall into? It’s fine if the veteran lived and died in Russia. But how to calculate the further path of the order in any other former republic of the USSR?

Falera over Paris

Phaleristics - collecting orders, medals, badges and badges - differs unfavorably from, say, numismatics or philately in its proximity to crime. This proximity is determined by Article 324 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which prohibits trade in Soviet and Russian state awards. And what remains for collectors - to be content with only royal crosses? It is enough to take a walk along the pedestrian Arbat in Moscow, go to the Numismat store or Izmailovsky Park to see what collectors are “satisfied with”.
About four hundred awards are confiscated annually at the border alone, which criminals try to take abroad. However, the flow of smuggled “falera” does not dry up, and antique shops in Helsinki, Hamburg, Paris, and Amsterdam are filled with Soviet orders and medals. According to the most conservative police estimates, about $50 million is circulating on the Russian “black market” of awards.

Police say they simply don’t get around to “ordinary” street trading. To prove the illegality of the sale or acquisition of any award, it is necessary to carry out a lot of investigative actions and expensive examinations. And for what? To fine or imprison a hawker for three months? Moreover, it is not a fact that it will be possible to bring the case to court. The police “monkey houses” and all kinds of detention centers are already filled with types that are much more dangerous to society. And who are these collectors bothering? In general, the Ministry of Internal Affairs agreed that Article 324 is one of the most dysfunctional in the Criminal Code.
Although the falerist sellers said that the police do not deprive them of attention: from time to time someone is detained and, so to speak, “fined” without a receipt.
True, this time, after the shameful story for the country at the Sotheby's auction, police detectives seriously took up street trading. We have already found out through whose hands some of the orders put up for sale passed. Interestingly, some of the suspects are already serving sentences, albeit for other crimes. Now they may face new charges.
Hence the mystery of the investigation - there is a version that the trail will lead to an organized criminal group, and an international one. Moreover, the police hope to reach large underground collectors, who are often the main customers of high-profile thefts, robberies and even murders.

Order on Blood
Order hunters are not as harmless as they might seem. Thefts from museums are just a drop in the bucket that fuels the black market for awards. According to police experts, the lion's share of orders and medals comes directly from the apartments of front-line soldiers.
The greatest value is considered to be the awards of famous people.
In the MUR, among the relatively “fresh” cases, they recall the detention of a certain Alexander Karmanov. Operatives confiscated 25 orders and 68 medals from him. Karmanov introduced himself as the director of a non-existent military museum, which he himself invented. Some scammers pretend to be journalists, archive employees, researchers, social workers, and search engines. They ingratiate themselves with old people, enter apartments and steal or replace awards with dummies.
The first high-profile “award case” happened in Moscow in 1983 - the murder of Hero of the Soviet Union Admiral Georgy Kholostyakov in his apartment. Then the investigation was personally supervised by the General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, Yuri Andropov. The Murovites took a gang of twenty people who had already robbed many front-line soldiers in two dozen cities. At the time, such a murder seemed horrifying nonsense. Today it is almost a common thing.
Here is one of many examples of modern crime chronicles. In 2003, Yuri Gagarin's teacher, Major General Alexander Krasovsky, died: a robber locked him in a toilet, from which the elderly man could not get out.
RG's sources in the Ministry of Internal Affairs hint that the orders from London are not at all of "museum" origin. Some of them have blood on them.
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What they fought for
Often, “grateful” children and grandchildren trade in the military glory of their grandfathers. Is it possible to fill the “black market” to such a volume with only stolen awards? Why are there almost no, say, American, British or French military orders?
It is unlikely that the West, with its free trade, is much better than us in matters of morality. Moreover, in Europe there are no laws prohibiting trading in any rewards. But who in France would think of selling their grandfather’s Order of the Legion of Honor? Or in England - the Order of the Garter? After all, these awards bring and will always bring significant dividends, including money, to the family and descendants. And it doesn’t matter that other orders were established under completely different political regimes, almost in the Middle Ages. The order's statute is always unchanged.
In our country, any awards are devalued with each successive change of power. A very recent example is the cancellation by the Khasbulatov Supreme Council of all awards of the former Soviet Union. And therefore, the benefits granted to their owners.

Of the 17 holders of the highest military award of the USSR - the Order of Victory, two are directly related to the Vologda region. Marshal of the Soviet Union Ivan Konev was not only born on our land, but in 1918 he was the district military commissar in Nikolsk. Marshal of the Soviet Union Konstantin Rokossovsky fought in Vologda in 1918 against deserters and anarchists.

How “For Loyalty to the Motherland” became “Victory”

A year and a half before the end of the war, on November 8, 1943, an award appeared in the award system of the Soviet Union, which then had a very bold name - the Order of Victory. Was still too strong fascist Germany, The USSR had just seized the strategic initiative.

During the celebration of the 26th anniversary of the October Revolution, the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR was issued on the establishment of a soldier's Order of Glory of three degrees and the highest military award of the Motherland for the supreme generals of the Red Army. Almost a year later - in August 1944 - the sample and description of the ribbon of the Order of Victory, as well as the procedure for wearing the bar with the ribbon of the order, were approved.

A total of 20 Orders of Victory were awarded. 17 people became its cavaliers, three of whom were awarded the highest military award twice. One person was posthumously deprived of the Order of Victory.

In mid-1943, the country's leadership came up with the idea of establishing an award for the most distinguished commanders. Several artists were assigned to work on the sketch. Initially, the award was supposed to be called “For Loyalty to the Motherland.”

Preference was given to the sketch of the chief artist of the technical committee of the Main Quartermaster Directorate of Logistics A.I. Kuznetsov, author of the Order of the Patriotic War. The first example of the order, which was a five-pointed star with profile bas-reliefs of Lenin and Stalin in the central circle, was presented by I.V. Stalin October 25, 1943. The Supreme Commander-in-Chief expressed a wish to place an image of the Kremlin's Spasskaya Tower in the center of the medallion.

On October 29, Kuznetsov presented several new sketches, of which Stalin chose one - with the inscription “Victory”. The artist was instructed to enlarge the size of the Spasskaya Tower and a fragment of the Kremlin wall, make the background blue, and also change the size of the diverging rays between the tops of the red star. On November 5, a trial copy of the order, made of platinum, diamonds and rubies, was ready, which was finally approved.

Not an award - a work of art!

Since platinum and gold, diamonds and rubies were needed for the production of the order, the execution of the order for the production of insignia of the order was entrusted to the craftsmen of the Moscow Jewelry and Watch Factory. “Victory” was the only one of all Russian orders not made at the Mint. It was planned to produce 30 badges of the order. By order of the Council of People's Commissars, Glavyuvelirtorg was given 5,400 diamonds, 1,500 roses and 9 kilograms of pure platinum.

The total weight of the Order of Victory is 78 grams. Platinum content in the order -
47 grams, gold - 2 grams, silver -
19 grams. Each of the five rubies weighs 5 carats. The total weight of diamonds on the sign is 16 carats.

The order ribbon combines the colors of six other Soviet orders, separated by white spaces half a millimeter wide: orange with black in the middle - the Order of Glory, blue - the Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky, burgundy - the Order of Alexander Nevsky, dark blue - the Order of Kutuzov, green - the Order of Suvorov, red - Order of Lenin.

All holders of the Order of Victory

The first award took place on April 10, 1944. The holder of Order No. 1 was the commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union G.K. Zhukov. Order No. 2 was received by the Chief of the General Staff, Marshal of the Soviet Union A.M. Vasilevsky. Order "Victory"

No. 3 was awarded to the Supreme Commander-in-Chief, Marshal of the Soviet Union I.V. Stalin. All of them were awarded this award for the liberation of Right Bank Ukraine.

The following awards took place only a year later: on March 30, 1945, the commander of the 1st Belorussian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union G.K., became holders of the order. Zhukov - for skillfully fulfilling the tasks of the Supreme High Command (second order), commander of the 2nd Belorussian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union K.K. Rokossovsky - for the liberation of Poland and commander of the 1st Ukrainian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union I.S. Konev - for the liberation of Poland and the crossing of the Oder.

By decree of April 19, 1945, the commander of the 3rd Belorussian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union A.M., was awarded the second order. Vasilevsky - for the capture of Konigsberg and the liberation of East Prussia.

On April 26 of the same year, the commander of the 2nd Ukrainian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union R.Ya., was awarded. Malinovsky and the commander of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union F.I. Tolbukhin. Both were honored for their liberation in the hard, bloody battles of Hungary and Austria.

On May 31, 1945, for the defeat of German troops near Leningrad and in the Baltic states, the commander of the Leningrad Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union L.A., became a holder of the order. Govorov.

On June 4, 1945, the Order of Victory for planning combat operations and coordinating the actions of the fronts during the war was awarded to the representative of the Headquarters of the Supreme High Command, Marshal of the Soviet Union S.K. Timoshenko and the Chief of the General Staff, Army General A.I. Antonov. Alexey Innokentyevich, by the way, is the only holder of the order in the USSR who did not have the rank of marshal.

Following the war with Japan, on September 8, 1945, the commander of the Far Eastern Front, Marshal of the Soviet Union K.A., became a holder of the Order of Victory. Meretskov.

After the end of the war, it was decided to award the Order of Victory to the military leaders of the Allied forces. By decree of June 5, 1945, US Army General Dwight Eisenhower and Field Marshal Sir Bernard Law Montgomery were awarded “for outstanding achievements in conducting large-scale military operations that resulted in the victory of the United Nations over Nazi Germany.”

On July 6, 1945, with the wording “for the courageous act of a decisive turn in the policy of Romania towards a break with Nazi Germany and an alliance with the United Nations at a time when the defeat of Germany had not yet been clearly determined,” King of Romania Mihai I of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen was awarded the Order of Victory . On August 23, 1944, he arrested members of the Romanian government who collaborated with Nazi Germany.

Marshal of Poland Michal Rolya-Zimierski was awarded the order on August 9, 1945 “for outstanding services in organizing the armed forces of Poland and for the successful conduct of military operations of the Polish Army in decisive battles against the common enemy - Nazi Germany.”

The last foreign holder of the Order of Victory was on September 9, 1945, Marshal of Yugoslavia Josip Broz Tito.

Ilyich was left without “Victory”

In 1966, the Order of Victory was supposed to be awarded to French President Charles de Gaulle during his visit to the USSR, but the award never took place.

But 12 years later - on February 20, 1978 - the award was presented to the General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, Chairman of the Defense Council of the USSR, Marshal of the Soviet Union L.I. Brezhnev. The wording from the Decree of the Supreme Council of the USSR - “for the great contribution to the victory of the Soviet people and its Armed Forces in the Great Patriotic War, outstanding services in strengthening the country’s defense capability, for the development and consistent implementation of the foreign policy of the world of the Soviet state, which reliably ensures the development of the country in peaceful conditions.”

September 21, 1989 M.S. Gorbachev signed a Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on the abolition of awarding Brezhnev the Order of Victory with the wording “as contrary to the statute of the order.” Leonid Ilyich, indeed, did not take part in the development of operations that influenced the outcome of the war. He celebrated Victory Day with the rank of major general.

The fate of the awards

Today, all orders awarded to Soviet military leaders, as well as Marshal of Poland M. Rolya-Zhimierski, are in Russia. The Central Museum of the Armed Forces houses five Orders of Victory: two by Zhukov, two by Vasilevsky and one by Malinovsky. In the Victory Hall of this museum, copies of orders are displayed; the orders themselves are in storage. The remaining copies of the Order of Victory are in Gokhran. Order of K.K. Rokossovsky and M. Rolya-Zhimersky - in the Diamond Fund.

Eisenhower's award is kept in the 34th President of the United States Memorial Library in his hometown of Abilene, Kansas.

Field Marshal Montgomery's decoration is on display at the Imperial War Museum in London.

The fate of the Order of Victory, owned by King Michael I, is unclear (he arrived without the order to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Victory). According to one version, he sold it more than 30 years ago for $4 million. According to the official version, the Order of Victory is located on the estate of King Michael I in the town of Versoix, in Switzerland.

Prepared by Evgeny Starikov