As Tsar Alexander the Third once said , Russia has only two allies: the army and navy. And indeed, ever since Peter the Great turned our country into a great sea power, military sailors, warrant officers, admirals and captains of all ranks have played a huge role in its history. In order to appreciate their merits during the Second World War, special awards were established: the Nakhimov medal and the Ushakov medal. Today they are kept in many Russian families and in private collections of sisters around the world.
A few words about the admiral
Before considering Ushakovâs medals, itâs worth briefly telling about the person in whose honor they were established, especially since this is one of the most extraordinary personalities among Russian military leaders and naval commanders.
Fedor Ushakov began his career with participation in the Russian-Turkish war, which led to the independence of Crimea from Turkey and to the conquest by Russia of the fortresses of Azov and Kerch. He won many naval battles in which he proved himself to be an excellent strategist. In addition, Ushakov left a good memory of the Greek and Bulgarian peoples and acted as a skilled diplomat in creating an independent republic on the Greek islands, as well as during the liberation of Italy.
Having retired, he took up charity work. In particular, at his own expense, Ushakov built a hospital for veterans of the Patriotic War of 1812 and strongly supported the Sanaksar monastery, where he even had his own cell, in which he lived during the time of fasting. Such piety allowed the Russian Orthodox Church to rank him among the saints along with such righteous warriors as Alexander Nevsky and Dmitry Donskoy.
Ushakov Medal: to whom is assigned
The decree establishing this award was issued on March 3, 1944. It was intended to reward sailors and soldiers, sergeants and foremen, as well as midshipmen and warrant officers of the Navy and naval units of the border troops for the personal courage and bravery that were manifested in the defense of the Fatherland at sea both during military operations and in peacetime.
Description
Ushakov's medal (USSR) is made of silver in the form of a circle having a diameter of 3.6 cm, superimposed on the anchor. On its obverse, surrounded by a convex rim, is placed a bosom relief image of Admiral F.F. Ushakov. Above it, a convex inscription âAdmiral Ushakovâ is applied around the circumference, and under the portrait there are 2 laurel branches connected by a crossed ribbon. As for the reverse, the medal number is simply knocked out on it. The award with a ring and a small eyelet is connected to a 5-sided block, which is covered with a blue silk ribbon. Its width is 2.4 cm, and white and blue stripes are applied to it along the edges.
Ushakov's medal has a cardinal difference from other Russian awards. The fact is that her shoe is decorated with an anchor chain that fastens over the tape and connects the upper shoe corners with the eye. No other Soviet medal has such a design.
Russian award
The medal was re-established by decree of the President of the Russian Federation in March 1994. Outwardly, it is an exact copy of the Ushakov medal from the time of the Second World War, and today it is awarded to military personnel of the Navy and the maritime security bodies of the Border Service of the FSB of the Russian Federation. It should be worn on the left side of the chest, and if the recipient has other medals of the Russian Federation, she is located after the Suvorov medal.
Nakhimov Medal
This award was established at the same time as Ushakovâs medal and was also intended for neo-officer personnel of the Naval Forces and naval units of the border troops who showed courage and courage in the performance of military duty.
It is made of bronze in the form of a circle with a diameter of 3.6 mm. On the obverse of the Nakhimov medal is a convex image of the admiral in profile, below which there are crossed laurel branches connected by a five-pointed star. Along the convex rim, duplicated by relief points in the upper part of the coin, the inscription âADMIRAL NAKHIMOVâ is inscribed. This award has a reverse design, which is not typical for medals during the Second World War. In particular, it depicts a circle, and inside it is a sailing ship sailing along the waves, behind which two sea anchors are crossed. At a certain distance from the rim in a circle, a relief is drawn in the form of a ship chain.
The first Nakhimov medal was awarded to the Northern Fleet on April 10, 1944. It was received by Sergeant M. A. Kolosov, as well as sailors E. V Tolstov and F. G. Moshkov. By 1981, in the USSR, 13,000 people were awarded the Nakhimov Medal.
Medal for Veterans of the USA and Great Britain
In 2012, in honor of the 70th anniversary of the beginning of the Arctic convoys, the Russian government decided to note the merits of their participants. Ushakovâs medal was chosen as a reward. The award list was sent to the United States and Great Britain, where it was supposed to organize ceremonies with the participation of Russian diplomats. In the same year, April 27, in the United States, 56 veteran sailors were awarded Ushakovâs medals. More difficult was the case with participants in Arctic convoys from the UK. The fact is that according to the laws of this country, subjects of Her Majesty are forbidden to accept foreign awards, so the request of the Russian side was rejected. At the same time, the British established their own award for their veterans, calling it the âArctic Starâ. However, after its delivery, the British government changed its mind, and Russian medals were nevertheless delivered to London, as well as to Edinburgh. There were solemn awards ceremonies for brave sailors who delivered important military and food supplies to Murmansk and Arkhangelsk 70 years ago.
Ushakov Medal: price
Faleristics is a popular hobby around the world, so Russian awards often end up in different parts of the world. Among them, Admiral Ushakovâs medal is not the last, which has an unusual design developed by architect M. A. Shepilevsky. The price of this award ranges from 120,000 to 130,000 rubles. About the same cost is the Nakhimov medal. As for their copies, their price is about 1000 rubles.
Now you know what Ushakovâs medals look like and who the person in whose honor they were founded was.