In the 20th century in our history, only Stalin had the epaulettes of a generalissimo. The workers of one of the Soviet factories “asked” for this title after the victory over Germany in 1945. Of course, all the inhabitants of the Union learned about this "petition" of the proletariat.
Few people remember, but Stalin was given the highest military rank of the tsarist empire. This was the final turning point in the minds of the Bolsheviks, since before that the ideology swept aside all attempts at the continuity of generations. Stalin realized that in a difficult hour for the country, the continuity and traditions of the victorious spirit of the Russian Empire, so hated by the communists, should save the country. Shoulder straps are introduced - a distinctive symbol of the "imperial punishers", the status of an officer, which had only a derogatory meaning before, some new ranks.
These reforms in a difficult hour for the country were supposed to rally all the disparate forces of the civil war. The Germans understood that the weakness of the USSR was a gapgenerations. They skillfully used this, recruiting numerous battalions from the Red Army. Stalin understood this with his military encirclement.
It is in the critical years for the country that the continuity of generations is being established. Speaking about these events, we will remember how many generalissimos there were in our history. We will also tell you some interesting facts about Stalin related to this title.
Generalissimo in world history
The term "generalissimo" comes to us from Latin. In translation, it means "the most important." This is the highest rank that has ever been introduced in the army of any state. The uniform of the generalissimo gave not only military status, but also civil law, political. Only truly special people were awarded this title.
This title was until recently worn by Chiang Kai-shek (pictured above), an opponent of the Chinese Communists. But today there are no acting generalissimos in the world. This rank is also absent in the system of our army. The last in the world who had such a high rank was Kim Jong Il, the leader of the DPRK, who was only posthumously awarded it in 2011. For North Koreans, this is not just a person, it is God, a symbol of the nation. In this country, a calendar is maintained that is directly related to this political figure. It is unlikely that anyone else with such a high rank could appear in the DPRK.
History knows little of the generalissimo. In France, for 400 years, only two dozen figures have been awarded this title. In Russia, to count them forthe last three hundred years, the fingers of one hand are enough.
Who was the first generalissimo? Version one: "funny commanders"
The first to receive this title in Russian history were the associates of Peter the Great - Ivan Buturlin and Fyodor Romodanovsky. However, in a similar way, every boy playing in the yard with friends can assign it. In 1864, twelve-year-old Peter awarded them the title of "generalissimo of amusing troops" during the game. They stood at the head of two newly formed "amusing" regiments. There were no correspondences with the real titles of that time.
Version two: Alexey Shein
Officially, the high ranks of the "amusing commanders" were not supported by written acts and orders. Therefore, as the main contender for the role of the first generalissimo, historians call the governor Alexei Shein. During the Azov campaign, he commanded the Preobrazhensky and Semenovsky regiments. Peter the Great appreciated Shein's competent leadership, tactics and military dexterity, for which he awarded him this high title on June 28, 1696.
Version Three: Mikhail Cherkassky
Peter I loved to give high government titles and awards "from the master's shoulder". Often these were chaotic and sometimes rash decisions that violated the usual and logical course of things. Therefore, it was during the time of Peter I that the first generalissimo of the Russian state appeared.
One of these, according to historians, was the boyar Mikhail Cherkassky. He was in charge of administrative affairs, was popular in society. With his own money he built a combatship for the Azov campaign.
Peter I highly appreciated his contribution to the country. Other, less significant, but useful things for society were not left without attention. For all this, Peter awarded the boyar Cherkassky with the highest military rank. According to historians, this happened on December 14, 1695, that is, six months before Shein.
Fatal Title
In the future, those who wore the shoulder straps of the Generalissimo were not lucky. There were three of them: Prince Menshikov, Duke Anton Ulrich of Brunswick and Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov, who will have titles and regalia for more than one article.
Prince Menshikov, a true friend and comrade-in-arms of Peter the Great, was endowed with this title by the young Peter the Second. The young emperor was supposed to marry the daughter of the prince, but palace intrigues tipped the scales in the other direction. In fairness, let's say that young Peter did not have time to get married. At the last moment, he died of smallpox, after which Prince Menshikov was stripped of all titles and awards and exiled to his possessions in Berezniki, away from the capital.
The second holder of the highest military rank is the husband of Anna Leopoldovna, Duke Anton Ulrich of Brunswick. However, he was not for long. A year later, he was also deprived of this title after the overthrow of his wife from the throne.
The third person who was awarded a high rank in the empire was A. V. Suvorov. His victories were legendary throughout the world. This title was never called into question. But the tragedy is that he stayed as Generalissimo for less than six months, after which he died.
After Suvorovin the Russian Empire, no one received this high rank. Thus, one can calculate how many generalissimos there were in Russian history before the USSR. We'll talk about the title of Stalin a little later.
Instead of titles - positions
After the revolution, the Bolsheviks were negative about any reminders of the tsarist regime. The concept of "officer" was abusive. As a rule, the holder of this status, who did not have time to immigrate in time, fell under the persecution of the authorities. Often this ended in execution.
Instead of titles, there was a certain system of positions in the country. For example, the famous Chapaev was a divisional commander, that is, a division commander. The official appeal to such a position is “Comrade Divisional Commander”. Marshal was considered the highest rank. And the statutory address to him is “comrade marshal”, or by his last name: “comrade Zhukov”, “comrade Stalin”, etc. That is, the title of Stalin throughout the war was precisely marshal, and not generalissimo.
It is noteworthy that the ranks of general and admiral appeared later, only in 1940.
Organizing the system
During the difficult days of the war, the Soviet leadership embarked on serious military reforms in the army system. The old posts have been abolished. In their place, "royal" military distinctions and titles were introduced, and the army itself became not "red worker-peasant", but "Soviet", the prestige of the status of officers was introduced.
Many people, especially mature and elderly, negatively perceived this reform. You can understand them: an officer for them was a synonym for “oppressor”, “imperialist”, “bandit”, etc. However, on the whole, this reform strengthened the morale in the army,made the management system logical, complete.
The entire military leadership of the country and Stalin personally understood that these measures would help achieve victory, streamline the structure and hierarchy. Many people think that it was at this time that the highest rank of generalissimo was introduced. However, this is also misleading. Stalin was a marshal throughout the war, until victory.
Victory Award
So, until 1945, Marshal was the highest rank in the USSR. And only after the Victory, on June 26, 1945, the title of Generalissimo of the Soviet Union was introduced. And the next day, on the basis of the “request” of the workers, it was assigned to I. V. Stalin.
The introduction of a separate title for Joseph Vissarionovich has been talked about for a long time, but the leader himself constantly rejected all these proposals. And only after the war, succumbing to the persuasion of Rokossovsky, he agreed. It is worth noting that until the end of his days, Stalin wore the uniform of a marshal, albeit a little deviated from the charter. The appeal “Comrade Stalin” was considered a violation of the charter, since this appeal was just to the marshal, but the leader himself did not mind. After June 1945, he should have been called "Comrade Generalissimo".
After Stalin, there were proposals to give the highest rank to two other leaders of the USSR - Khrushchev and Brezhnev, but this never happened. After 1993, this title was not included in the new army hierarchy of the Russian Federation.
Shoulder straps of the Generalissimo
The development of a uniform for the new rank began immediately after it was awarded to Stalin. This work was carried out by the rear service of the Red Army. Longtime all the materials were classified as "secret", and only in 1996 the data was made public.
When creating the uniform, we tried to take into account the current uniforms of the chief marshal of the armed forces, but at the same time create something special, unlike everyone else. After all the work, the shoulder straps of the Generalissimo resembled the uniform of Count Suvorov. Perhaps the developers were trying to please Stalin, who had a weakness for the style of the uniforms of the Russian Empire with epaulettes, aiguillettes and other paraphernalia.
Stalin subsequently said more than once that he regretted agreeing to give him this highest military rank. He will never put on a new uniform of the Generalissimo, and all developments will fall under the heading "secret". Stalin will continue to wear a marshal's uniform - a white tunic with a stand-up collar or a gray pre-war cut - with a turned-down collar and four pockets.
Possible reason for new form rejection
However, what is the reason why Stalin refused to wear a special uniform? There is an opinion that the leader had a number of complexes regarding his appearance and believed that such a curvaceous figure would look ridiculous and ridiculous on a short, unprepossessing elderly man.
It was according to this version, according to some, that Stalin refused to lead the magnificent Victory Parade and sign the act of surrender of Germany. However, this is just a theory. So it was or not, we, the descendants, can only guess.
