Order of the "Red Banners" are the firstawards of the Soviet state. They were established to reward the manifestation of special courage, dedication and courage in defending the Fatherland. In addition, the Order of the Red Banner was awarded to military units, ships, public and state organizations. Until 1930, the Order was the highest degree of encouragement in the Soviet Union.
In 1918, a few days before the celebrationThe first anniversary of the October Socialist Revolution, in the country of the Soviets, was approved the first badge - the Order of the Red Banner. There was this award in two versions: Combat and Labor. In September 1918, the statute of this sign was first approved, and then, a month later, he himself appeared.
The well-known fact is that the Bolsheviks,having come to power in 1917, they canceled all awards and insignia that existed in the pre-revolutionary period of the history of our country. Initially, all the incentives that marked any service to the Motherland were replaced by personalized gifts: cigarette cases, watches, and weapons. However, the longer the civil war in Russia lasted, the more clearly the need for the appearance of award insignia, which would clearly demonstrate the merits of one or another person to the new country and the new government. Thereby they would stimulate even more selfless activity of those who have already received such encouragement, and those who only aspired to it.
As a result, in 1918, on the initiative of SverdlovYa. M. VTsIK creates a special commission, which begins to develop the project of the first award insignia in the country for the soldiers and commanders of the Red Army. This group is headed by Abel Safronovich Enukidze, and the work on the sketch of the order is entrusted to the artist Denisov V.I. and his son Denisov V.V. Of the several options, choose the one that included all the elements symbolizing the young Soviet government. This is a red star, a developing red flag, a sickle and a hammer, a plow and a bayonet, acting as symbols of the union of peasants, workers and soldiers. The final design sketch was approved in October 1918 by the Presidium of the All-Russian Central Executive Committee. Thus, with the release of the Orders of the Labor and Combat Red Banner, the young state celebrated the first anniversary of the Great October Revolution.
Statute for Orders of Combat and Labor RedThe banner was very short. It contained a bit of specifics about what actions a person can be marked by this award. This is explained by the fact that the “Red Banners” were the only honorary signs of their kind and, in principle, in the system of the young state. In particular, this was mentioned in a special explanation. The Order of the Red Banner was the only reward that could be awarded to the soldiers of the Red Army for their military merit. They were noted for courage, special courage and dedication as individuals, and military units (companies, regiments, units, etc.), and public organizations. The gentlemen awarded with the Order of the Red Banner were called “Red Banners”, and the collectives were called “Red Banners”. In the future, the statute of this badge was edited and supplemented several times.
All the first "Red Banners" were supplemented with special ones.diplomas, in which it was said who, when and for what merit this award was presented. Such a certificate was a very important and necessary attribute, certifying the right to encourage such a sign. According to the original statute, only commissioners and commanders of the Red Army, volunteer units and the fleet had the right to submit to the order. However, over time, the list of promising gentlemen has been expanded.
The breastplates "Red Banners" were madefrom silver in the form of a laurel wreath (gilded), serving as its base. In its lower part there was a ribbon, on which was written in gold letters "USSR". The top of the order was closed by an unfolded red flag, on which was written “Proletarians of all countries, unite!” A little below the center of the flagpole the cross of the flag intersects with the torch. Their lower ends protrude slightly beyond the wreath. The flame of the torch on the order should symbolize the immortal feat of the heroes of the revolution. In the center of the icon on a white background are crossed hammer, plow and bayonet, which overlaps the five-pointed inverted red star. In its center there is a golden laurel wreath, inside of which a gilded sickle and hammer are placed on a white field.
On the repeated orders of the Red Bannerdirectly under the tape was placed a small white enamel shield, the numbers 2, 3, 4 were put on it and so on. They mean the number of awards with this sign. The banner, ribbon and the ends of the five-pointed star are covered with ruby-red enamel, and the images of the hammer and plow are oxidized, the rest of the images and inscriptions are gilded.
Order of the Red Banner of Labor, like hiscombat version, made of silver. Its content in this award is 22,719 grams ± 1,389. The total weight of the mark is 25.134 grams ± 1.8. The height of the order - 41 mm, width - 36.3 mm. With the aid of the ring and the ear, the reward is connected to a rectangular block that is covered with moire silk ribbon, 24 millimeters wide. At its center is a white longitudinal strip, the width of which is eight millimeters, closer to the edges are two white stripes seven millimeters wide each and two white stripes one millimeter wide. Cavaliers of this order wear it on the left side of the chest.
The first winner of this honorary award wasBlucher Vasily Konstantinovich, in 1918 he was chairman of the Chelyabinsk Revolutionary Committee. He received the Order of the Red Banner for having managed to unite under his command several armed detachments with which he made his legendary campaign against the Urals. This military operation was accompanied by fierce and heavy battles with White Guard units. The ten thousand army led by Blucher marched through the enemy’s rear and over the course of forty days traveled 1,500 kilometers, after which the partisans joined up with regular Soviet units. For the accomplishment of this feat on September 30, 1918, the All-Russian Central Executive Committee presents Blucher with a government award — the Order of the Red Banner — for the first number. Subsequently, for the entire period of the civil war, he was presented three more times to this honorable award. And Vasily Blucher receives his fifth order of the Red Banner for his work in China, where he was a military adviser to the revolutionary government. However, it is worth noting that all these merits did not save the Soviet marshal from repression and death.
During the Second World War "Red Banner of Victory" (so the Ordernicknamed the Red Army soldiers) were awarded 305,035 times. Many warriors deserve several such awards at once. It is worth thinking about this figure - more than three hundred thousand, and despite the fact that such a sign was one of the elite ones. Such a number, without any words, speaks of the high degree of heroism and self-sacrifice shown by Russian soldiers. Typically, the Red Victory Banner was received by commanders of various formations, as well as pilots for successfully conducting ground attack / bombing, and shooting down enemy vehicles. The younger commanders of the Red Army, and the more so, the rank-and-file and sergeant compositions were given this honor very rarely.
However, unique cases were also recorded.For example, the young partisan Volodya Dubinin was awarded this sign at the age of 13, though posthumously; and 14-year-old Igor Pakhomov had two orders at once. Another Kiev schoolboy at 12 received this award because he retained two regimental flags during the occupation.
Total from 1918 to 1991, this awardissued more than 580 thousand times, including the Order of the Red Banner of Labor. Moreover, some people became five-time, six-time, and some seven-time gentlemen. The first to receive the order with the number seven on the front side in 1967 was Major General M. I. Burtsev. Later, another sevenfold owner of this mark was the famous pilot-ace, Air Marshal I. N. Kozhedub. Today, this government award has been abolished, but the most famous units and formations of the armed forces still continue to be called the Red Banner.
