The St. George ribbon, on which a cross with the image of a saint was fastened in the 19th - early 20th century, has been symbolizing the victory of our country in the Great Patriotic War for many decades. It is also the link between the heroes of the Russian Empire and the Soviet Union.
The full St. George cavaliers in our country enjoyed universal honor even in the twenties and forties, when they wanted to erase everything that was before the October Revolution from the people's memory. Among them there are those who later became the Hero of the Soviet Union, including repeatedly.
Background
The Order of St. George appeared on the list of awards of the Russian Empire in 1769. He had 4 degrees of distinction and was intended for officers. Full Knights of the Order of St. George became only 4 people:
- M.I. Kutuzov.
- M. B. Barclay de Tolly.
- I.F. Paskevich-Erivansky.
- I.I. Dibich-Zabalkansky.
Institution
At the moment, it is not known exactly who initiated the establishment of the Insignia of the Military Order or, as it was more often called, the George Cross. According to the surviving documents, in 1807, a note was filed in the name of Alexander the First, in which it was proposed to establish a soldier's award. She was to become a "special branch of the Order of St. George." The idea was approved, and in early February 1807, a corresponding manifesto was issued.
There are many cases of confusion associated with the fact that the order is confused with the soldier Yegoriy. For example, if it is claimed that Colonel Zorya Lev Ivanovich, who graduated from the Cadet School in 1881, is a full Cavalier of St. George, then one can immediately object that this is a mistake. Indeed, among the officers there was no one who was awarded this cross repeatedly, and the last one to have the order of all 4 degrees was I.I. Dibich-Zabaykalsky - died in 1831.
Description
The reward is a cross whose blades expanded towards the end. In its center is a round medallion. On the obverse was depicted St. George with a spear hitting a snake. On the reverse of the medallion there are letters C and G, connected in the form of a monogram.
The cross was worn on all today by the well-known tape "the color of smoke and flame" (black and orange).
Since 1856, the award began to have 4 degrees. The first and second were made of gold, and the other two were made of silver. The degree of the award and its serial number were indicated on the reverse.
There were also special “Muslim” insignia of the Military Order. Instead of a Christian saint, they depicted the Russian coat of arms. It is interesting that immigrants from the North Caucasus, when they awarded Yegoriy, demanded that they be given the option “with a horse”, instead of what was supposed to be.
In 1915, due to the difficulties caused by the war, crosses of the 1st and 2nd degrees began to be made of an alloy, which was 60% gold, 39.5 silver and half percent copper. Moreover, the signs of the 3rd and 4th degrees were not subjected to change.
Awarded
The first St. George Cross in the summer of 1807 was received by non-commissioned officer E.I. Mitrokhin. He was awarded for his courage in the battle with the French near Friedland.
Cases of rewarding and civilians are known. So, in 1810, the St. George Cross was awarded to the tradesman M. A. Gerasimov. Together with his comrades, this brave man arrested the English military who had captured the Russian merchant ship, and was able to bring the ship to the port of Varde. There, the prisoners were interned, and help was given to the merchants. In addition, for the heroism in the Patriotic War of 1812, St. George crosses without numbers received commanders of partisan detachments from among civilians of the lower class.
Among other interesting facts related to the rewarding of the St. George Cross, one can note its delivery to the famous General Miloradovich. This brave commander in a battle near Leipzig, in front of Alexander the First, got into action with the soldiers and led them in a bayonet attack, for which he received “Yegoria” from the emperor’s hands, which was not his status.
Full Cavaliers
The four-degree cross lasted 57 years. Over the years, about 2,000 people fell into the full St. George Knights (list). In addition, about 7,000 were awarded with crosses of the second, third and fourth degrees, approximately 25,000 with the 3rd and 4th, and 205,336 with the 4th degree.
At the time of the October Revolution, several hundred full St George cavaliers lived in Russia. Many of them joined the Red Army and rose to the highest military ranks of the USSR. Of these, 7 also became Heroes of the Soviet Union. Among them:
- Ageev G.I. (posthumous).
- Budenny S.M.
- Trump M.E.
- Lazarenko I.S.
- Meshchryakov M.M.
- Nedorubov K.I.
- Tyulenev I.V.
S. M. Budyonny
The name of this legendary personality thundered in parts of the Russian cavalry during the years of the First World War, and even earlier - Russian-Japanese. For courage on the Austrian, German and Caucasian fronts, Semyon Mikhailovich was awarded crosses and medals of all 4 degrees.
His first award was received for the capture of a German convoy and 8 soldiers accompanying him. However, Budyonny was deprived of her because he hit an officer. This did not stop him from getting into the list of “Full George Cavaliers”, since on the Turkish front Semyon Budyonny earned 3 George Crosses during the battles for Van and Mendelij, and the last (first degree) - for capturing 7 enemy soldiers. Thus, he became a man who received 5 awards.
During the Civil War, he initiated the creation of the First Cavalry Army, and in 1935 he and four other commanders of the USSR were awarded the rank of Marshal.
During the Second World War, Semyon Budyonny was not able to show his abilities, as he was removed from command of the South-Western direction of the front because of a telegram in which he honestly described the danger that threatened those who were in the so-called Kiev bag.
In the postwar years, the commander was three times awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union.
Kuzma Petrovich Trubnikov
This legendary person was a participant in three wars. For the exploits committed between 1914 and 1917, he received many awards. In particular, the list of "Full George Cavaliers" contains his last name. He proved himself no less heroic during the Second World War, organizing the defense of Tula, commanding troops during the Battle of Stalingrad, commanding the units entrusted to him during the liberation of Yelny, etc. At the Victory Parade Trubnikov, who at that time was already awarded the rank of colonel general, headed a box of a consolidated regiment of the 2nd Belorussian Front. For his long service, the military leader was awarded 38 orders and medals of Tsarist Russia, the USSR and several other countries.
Ivan Vladimirovich Tyulenev
The future Hero of the Soviet Union was born in the family of a participant in the Russian-Turkish war. He was drafted into the army at the beginning of the First World War and ended up in a regiment, where K. K. Rokossovsky also served at that time. Starting the war as a simple soldier, Ivan Vladimirovich Tyulenev rose to the rank of ensign. For heroism shown in the battles on the territory of Poland, he was awarded the St. George Cross four times. In the very first days of the Second World War, Tyulenev was appointed commander of the Southern Front, but in August he was badly wounded, and after the hospital he was sent to the Urals to form 20 divisions. In 1942, the military leader was sent to the Caucasus. At his request, the defense of the Main Range was strengthened, which in the future made it possible to stop the advance of the Nazis, with the aim of capturing oil fields in the Caspian Sea.
In 1978, I. V. Tyulenev was awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union for his merits in protecting the homeland and improving the country's defense capability and he became one of the seven outstanding military men who were awarded the highest USSR award with the title of “Full George Knight of the First World War” .
R. Ya. Malinovsky
The future marshal of the USSR, at the age of 11 years old, fled home due to his mother’s marriage and hired until he joined the army, assigning himself two years. The deception was uncovered, but the teenager was able to persuade the command to leave him to bring cartridges to machine gunners. In 1915, the 17-year-old soldier received his first Egoria. Then he was sent to France as part of the Expeditionary Force, where he was twice awarded the government of the Third Republic. In 1919, Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky enrolled in the Foreign Legion, and for his courage on the German front became a gentleman of the French Military Cross. In addition, by order of General Kolchak D. Shcherbachev, he was awarded the St. George Cross of the third degree.
In 1919, Rodion Yakovlevich Malinovsky returned to his homeland and became one of the active participants in the Civil War, and in the late 30s he was sent as a military adviser to Spain.
The merits of this commander during the Great Patriotic War are also invaluable. In particular, troops under his command liberated Odessa, played an important role in the Battle of Stalingrad, expelled the Nazis from Budapest and took Vienna.
After the war in Europe ended, Malinowski was sent to the Far East, where the actions of the Transbaikal Front led by him finally defeated the Japanese group. For the success of this operation, Rodion Yakovlevich received the title of Hero of the Soviet Union. Secondly, the Golden Star was awarded to him in 1958.
Other Soviet commanders noted for their courage with the St. George Cross
Before the revolution, other soldiers of the imperial army who were destined to become well-known commanders of the USSR were awarded the soldier's Egoriy before the revolution. Among them, Georgy Zhukov, Sidor Kovpak and Konstantin Rokossovsky awarded two crosses. In addition, three such awards had the famous hero of the Civil War V. Chapaev.
Now you know the details of the biographies of some outstanding military men, which can be attributed to the category of “Full George Cavaliers”. The list of their exploits is astounding, and they themselves deserve the respect and gratitude of posterity who care about the fate of their native country.