Stalingrad (now Volgograd) was an important frontier in the Great Patriotic War. Victory here meant an almost automatic advantage in the struggle. Hitler understood very well the importance of the city and fought desperately for it. However, the Soviet troops did not surrender this settlement, and, despite the exhausting months of fighting, they still held their positions and drove the enemy back. The heroic defense of the city was immortalized in a state award, which is called just that - the medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad".
Establishment of the award
The Battle of Stalingrad is rightly called by historians one of the most important battles in the Great Patriotic War. These were fierce battles for every inch of land, not only for every street, but for every house. The result of the stoic endurance of the Soviet troops in this struggle was the liberation of the city from enemy invaders and the capture of the sixth army of General Friedrich Paulus, which was a real blow to Hitler.
The Supreme leadership of the USSR in December 1942 adoptedthe decision to celebrate the heroic deed of the defenders of the city with a state award and established the medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad".
Today, the awards of the Great Patriotic War are especially popular with collectors. There are a lot of black markets that sell medals with real certificates confirming the award. And although one of the most significant in a series of other awards is the medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad", its price varies from 20 to 100 dollars.
Description
The medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad", the photo of which is presented in the article, has a standard shape and size for such awards. The diameter of the insignia, smelted from brass, is 3.2 centimeters. The obverse depicts a group of Red Army soldiers with outstretched rifles in their hands. To the right above them is a waving battle banner. On the left, tanks and flying planes are shown in the background. In the upper part of the medal above the fighters in the center is a five-pointed star, which divides the inscription "For the Defense of Stalingrad" engraved in a semicircle. On the reverse in the center is the inscription "For our Soviet Motherland". Above these words are a sickle and a hammer. All inscriptions and images on the medal are embossed.
Pentagonal block to which the medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad" is attached with a ring and eyelet. Covered with an olive-colored moire ribbon with a red line located longitudinally in the middle. The medal is worn on the left. If there is an award "For the Defense of Sevastopol", it is located after it.
Author of the award
The insignia was established on the initiative of the People's Commissariat of Defense of the USSR, as well as for the defense of Sevastopol, Odessa, Leningrad. On November 24, Stalin issued a decree on the development of a project for medals. The creation of sketches was entrusted to the artist Nikolai Moskalev, who began designing award badges in the 1930s.
Among others, he was the author of the medals "For the Defense of Moscow", "For the Defense of Leningrad", "For the Defense of Sevastopol", "For the Defense of Odessa", "For the Defense of the Caucasus" and others.
It is worth noting that Volgograd residents have great respect for the memory of those heroic events. They immortalized the medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad" in a modern way, a photo of which was installed on the entire wall on the building of one of the military units.
Chevaliers of the badge
In total, those awarded the medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad" at the beginning of 1995 amounted to about seven hundred and sixty thousand people. During the war and after it, this insignia was awarded to all participants in the defense of the city, which lasted from July to November 1942. These were servicemen of all types of troops of the Red Army, as well as those who served in the Navy and the NKVD. In addition to them, all civilians who actively participated in the defense of the most important object were awarded.
However, it should be noted that in those years there were many missing, dead and hastily buried. In modern history, there are many searchdetachments finds fallen heroes, and other attempts are being made to find as many as possible of those who fought. The medal "For the Defense of Stalingrad", like many other awards, continues to find its heroes.
