Order of St. George

Order of Saint George
Order of Saint George;
	The Order of Saint George, fourth class
Awarded by Russian Federation ;
Type	Military order
Established	26 November 1769 (O. S.), revived on 20 March 1992 (the statute was approved on 8 August 2000)
Eligibility	Top and senior military officers
Awarded for	Distinction in combat
Status	Active
Classes	1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th
Precedence
Next (higher)	Order of Saint Andrew
Next (lower)	Order "For Merit to the Fatherland"
	; Ribbon of the Order of Saint George, first class; ;

The Order of Saint George (Russian: Орден Святого Георгия, romanized: Orden Svyatogo Georgiya) is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. It was originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian^[3] (7 December 1769 Gregorian) as the highest military decoration of the Russian Empire for commissioned officers and generals by Empress Catherine the Great.^[4] After the October Revolution in 1917, it was awarded by the White movement under Alexander Kolchak until their collapse in 1921.^[5] The order was revived in the Russian Federation on 20 March 1992 by Decree No.1463^[2]^[6] of the President of Russia. The current award criteria were amended on 7 September 2010 by Presidential Decree 1099.^[7]^[8]

Statute of the Order of St. George

The current Order of Saint George is awarded to highest and senior military officers for the conduct of military operations to protect the Motherland from attack by an external enemy which resulted in the complete defeat of the enemy, for the execution of combat and other operations in other states aimed at restoring international peace and security, or for being a model of military science with feats that exemplify military prowess; the Order is also conferred upon officers who were previously awarded state awards of the Russian Federation for distinction in combat.^[9]

Description

The Order of Saint George is divided into four classes, from the First Class to the Fourth class; the highest degree being the Order First class. The four classes are awarded sequentially from the fourth to the first. These four classes are individually identified by the size and manner of wearing the two principal insignia of the Order, the cross and the star.^[9]

Cross: A white enamelled cross pattée with a central medallion bearing the image of Saint George on horseback slaying the dragon. The cross measures 60mm across in the case of the Order first class and is worn on a sash in the colours of Saint George (orange and black). The same 60mm cross is worn around the neck on a 45mm wide ribbon also in the colours of Saint George for the Order second class. The cross is 50mm across for the Order third class and is also worn around the neck but from a 24mm wide ribbon in the same colours. The Order fourth class is a 40mm cross worn on the left breast hanging from a pentagonal mount covered with a 24mm wide ribbon of Saint George.^[9]

Star: A four-pointed silver gilt star with a gold central medallion bearing the cipher of Saint George "SG" topped by a crown and surrounded by a black enamelled band bearing the motto of the order "For Service and Bravery" ("Za Sluzhbu i Khrabrost"). The star is worn on the left breast for both the Order first and second classes.^[9]

Ribbon: The ribbon of the Order of Saint George is orange with three black stripes, commonly called "George's Ribbon". It symbolises fire and gunpowder: the Russian colours of military glory, and is also thought to be derived from the colours of the original Russian imperial coat of arms (black eagle on a golden background). It was subsequently associated with the colors of the Russian and Soviet Guard units.^[9] Unlike the other classes, the Order of Saint George fourth class can be awarded to junior officers while the rest is for senior and flag officers.

The ribbon bar for the Order first class is adorned with a miniature golden star.

The ribbon bar for the Order second class is adorned with a miniature silver star.

The ribbon bar for the Order third class is adorned with a miniature white cross.

The ribbon bar for the Order fourth class has no device.

Recipients (partial list)

Recipients of the Order first class

25 people were ever awarded The First class cross, one should be a King or win a war to receive it. The full list goes as follows in timeline order:

Recipients of the Order second class

For The Second class one should win a Campaign. The first recipient was Lieutenant-General Plemyannikov for the Battle of Kagul, the last of 124 or 125, depending on sources, was either Nikolai Yudenich or Marshal of France Ferdinand Foch.

Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (1856–1929)
Admiral of the Russian Empire Fyodor Ushakov
Field Marshal of the Russian Empire Mikhail Kutuzov
Field Marshal of the Russian Empire Barclay de Tolly
General of the Army Nikolay Yegorovich Makarov^[11]
Colonel General Alexander Zelin^[11]
General of the Army Vladimir Boldyrev^[11]

Recipients of the Order third class

King Leopold I of Belgium.
Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (1856–1929)
Field Marshal of the Russian Empire Mikhail Kutuzov
Field Marshal of the Russian Empire Barclay de Tolly
General Alexei Brusilov
General Yevgeni Iskritsky
General Samad bey Mehmandarov
General of the Army Sergey Surovikin
Private George Phillips (Newfoundland Regiment) Beaumont Hamel

Recipients of the Order fourth class

Nicholas II of Russia
General Alexei Brusilov
General Yevgeni Iskritsky
Vladimir Gittis, Imperial colonel and Red Army general
Colonel Lambros Katsonis, Greek 18th century revolutionary
Colonel General Sergei Makarov^[11]
Lieutenant General Vladimir Shamanov^[11]
Lieutenant Colonel Anatoly Lebed^[11]
British Captain Albert Ball, World War I fighter pilot
Dutch War Correspondent Louis Grondijs, World War I, White Army, Russian Civil War
Major General Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim, Imperial Russia, WWI
General Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel, Imperial Russia, World War I, White Army, Russian Civil War
Brigadier John Alexander Sinton, Indian Army, WWI
Field Marshal Franz Joseph, Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary
Major General Hermann Christoph Gamper, Imperial Russian cavalry commander during the Patriotic War of 1812
Sub-lieutenant Afrikan Spir (Battle of Malakoff, 1855)
Baron Roman von Ungern-Sternberg
Field Marshal of the Russian Empire Mikhail Kutuzov
Field Marshal of the Russian Empire Barclay de Tolly
Ilija Plamenac, vojvoda and military commander
Field Marshal Živojin Mišić
Sir John Elley, British officer in the Napoleonic Wars
Bogdan Zimonjić, Serbian Orthodox priest, vojvoda, senator and military commander
Anatoly Pepelyayev, White Russian general
Lieutenant General Grigory Mikhaylovich Semyonov, Cossack-Buriat White Army General
Royce Coleman Dyer, Canadian Army captain
Major General Pyotr Mikhailovich Skarzhinsky, 2nd Bug Cossack Regiment^[12]
Aslan ibn Shahmardan, khan of the Gazikumukh (Kura) Khanate
2nd Lieutenant Vladimir Kotlinsky, commander of the Osowiec Fortress during the Attack of the Dead Men
Marshall of the Soviet Union Georgy Zhukov (as a non-commissioned officer in the Imperial Russian Army in World War I)
Field Marshal Herbert Kitchener, Field Marshal of the British Army

References

^ Постановление Верховного Совета Российской Федерации от 20 марта 1992 года N0 2557-I Archived 2012-07-18 at the Wayback Machine
^ ^a ^b "Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of August 8, 2000 No 1463" (in Russian). Commission under the President of the Russian Federation on state awards. 2000-08-08. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012. Retrieved 2012-02-11.
^ 26 November Julian is one of days commemorating Saint George in the Russian Orthodox Church.
^ Hurley, C. Russian Orders, Decorations, and Medals Under the Monarchy. Harrison & Sons., Ltd., London. 1935.
^ "St George's Cross, 4th Class, awarded to 2nd Lt. John Mitchell 1919". Fitzwilliam Museum. University of Cambridge. Archived from the original on 23 October 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2017.
^ Decree 1463 of 2000 (pravo.gov.ru)
^ "Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of September 7, 2010 No 1099" (in Russian). Russian Gazette. 2010-09-07. Retrieved 2012-02-07.
^ Decree 1099 of 2010 (pravo.gov.ru)
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "Statute of the Order of St. George" (in Russian). Commission under the President of the Russian Federation on state awards. 2000-08-08. Retrieved 2012-02-11.
^ Barton, Sir Dunbar Plunket. (1925) "Bernadotte: Prince and King." P. 96. John Murray, London.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Compiled from the site of the President of the Russian Federation" (in Russian). Kremlin News. Retrieved 2012-02-07.
^ "Скаржинські". Resource.history.org.ua. Retrieved 2022-08-16.

External links

The Commission on State Awards to the President of the Russian Federation
Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Orders of St. George". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

[1] Постановление Верховного Совета Российской Федерации от 20 марта 1992 года N0 2557-I Archived 2012-07-18 at the Wayback Machine

[decree1463-2] "Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of August 8, 2000 No 1463" (in Russian). Commission under the President of the Russian Federation on state awards. 2000-08-08. Archived from the original on March 11, 2012. Retrieved 2012-02-11.

[3] 26 November Julian is one of days commemorating Saint George in the Russian Orthodox Church.

[Hurley-4] Hurley, C. Russian Orders, Decorations, and Medals Under the Monarchy. Harrison & Sons., Ltd., London. 1935.

[5] "St George's Cross, 4th Class, awarded to 2nd Lt. John Mitchell 1919". Fitzwilliam Museum. University of Cambridge. Archived from the original on 23 October 2017. Retrieved 4 June 2017.

[6] Decree 1463 of 2000 (pravo.gov.ru)

[decree1099-7] "Decree of the President of the Russian Federation of September 7, 2010 No 1099" (in Russian). Russian Gazette. 2010-09-07. Retrieved 2012-02-07.

[8] Decree 1099 of 2010 (pravo.gov.ru)

[commission-9] "Statute of the Order of St. George" (in Russian). Commission under the President of the Russian Federation on state awards. 2000-08-08. Retrieved 2012-02-11.

[10] Barton, Sir Dunbar Plunket. (1925) "Bernadotte: Prince and King." P. 96. John Murray, London.

[kremlin_news-11] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f "Compiled from the site of the President of the Russian Federation" (in Russian). Kremlin News. Retrieved 2012-02-07.

[12] "Скаржинські". Resource.history.org.ua. Retrieved 2022-08-16.

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