When Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev was at the head of the USSR, Victory Day over Nazi Germany began to turn into the second most important state holiday after the day of the October Revolution. May 9 officially became a day off in 1965. The holiday in those years gained a large number of traditions that are still being observed, for example, military parades on Red Square. Then the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was also discovered . From that time the history of anniversary medals dedicated to the anniversaries of Victory begins.
First anniversary medal
In 1965, the first anniversary medal of Victory was released, which was dedicated to the twentieth anniversary of the liberation of states from the Nazis. The obverse depicted a Soviet warrior-liberator from Treptower Park in Berlin, which was framed by two laurel branches. The author of the award was Eugene Vuchetich. Also on the sides were the dates of 1945 and 1965, respectively. On the reverse there are the words "Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945", the Roman numeral XX and a star, in diverging rays.
The jubilee medal was made of brass, and with the help of an eyelet it was attached to a pentagonal block, which was framed by a three-color (red, green and black) ribbon. According to the statute, this award should be on the chest on the left. It was awarded to all soldiers of the Red Army, as well as former partisans. As a result, about 16.4 million Soviet citizens received the award.
30th Anniversary Victory Award
On the thirtieth anniversary of the victory, which occurred in 1975, another medal was established. The anniversary award was presented to all the soldiers who were in the ranks of the Red Army during the war, the underground, partisans and rear workers. By the way, depending on who the person awarded during the war was, the inscriptions on the back of the coin differed. If a person took part in the battles, and the reverse was written to "Participant of the war", if he was a rear worker, then to "Participant of the labor front".
An interesting fact is that foreign citizens were awarded awards without these inscriptions. In total, approximately 14 million Soviet citizens received the award. On the obverse of the medal was again placed the image of the statue by Eugene Vuchetich. This time it was the famous "Motherland" from Volgograd. Behind her was an image of a salute, on the left - a laurel branch, a star, and also dates 1945 and 1975.
Anniversary award in honor of the fortieth anniversary of Victory
The last jubilee medal in the history of the USSR dedicated to the anniversary of the victory was the one that appeared in 1985. The award rules for her were the same as for the previous ones. The appearance has changed. The front side contains the figures of a worker, collective farmer and soldier, laurel branches, fireworks, years 1945 and 1985, and also shows the Spasskaya Tower of the Kremlin. About 11.3 million Soviet citizens received the medal.
50 years after the Victory
In 1993, the jubilee medal "50 Years of Victory" was established. The award this time was issued in four former Soviet republics, which were already sovereign states. This structure included Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Belarus. Formerly underage prisoners of concentration camps and ghettos were added to the list of awarded persons.
On the obverse of the medal were images of the Kremlin wall, Spasskaya tower, St. Basil's Cathedral and salute. Below, framed by laurel branches, the inscription "1945-1995" shone.
Anniversary medal "60 years of Victory"
In 2004, a presidential decree was issued according to which a medal was instituted. The anniversary award was created in honor of the upcoming sixtieth anniversary of the Victory in the war. She was also awarded in Ukraine and Belarus. On the obverse this time placed the Order of Victory and the inscription "1945-2005". The reverse side is framed in the same way as the previous medal: "Sixty (in numbers) of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945." framed by laurel branches.
Five years later, another award was issued dedicated to the Victory over Nazi Germany. The order of Glory of the 1st degree and the date "1945-2010" were placed on its obverse. In all other respects, it did not differ much from the previous medal: in the inscription on the reverse, of course, they changed the number 60 to 65, but now it is not framed by laurel branches.
Anniversary medal "70 years of Victory"
In 2013, the heads of state of the CIS decided to establish a single anniversary award, which was dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the overthrow of Nazism. It should have been celebrated in 2015. But some countries agreed to this only with certain reservations. In Moldova, where they decided to abandon the image of the hammer and sickle, the new design received a medal. The anniversary award in Ukraine would be devoid of color, but after the change of government they refused it and created their own.
This time, the obverse, in addition to the inscription "1945-2015", was decorated with the Order of the Patriotic War in color. The reverse is framed in the same way as the medal in honor of the 60th anniversary of the Victory.