Perhaps the most respected award in the Russian army was the military order of the Holy Great Martyr and Victorious George. It was established by Empress Catherine II at the end of November 1769. Then the founding day of the order was solemnly celebrated in St. Petersburg. From now on, it was to be celebrated every year not only at the Highest Court, but also where the holder of the Grand Cross would be. It is worth noting that formally the Order of St. George was lower than the Order of St. Andrew, but for some reason the generals valued the first of them more.
Patron Saint
Peter the Great once spoke about the establishment of a purely military award, but, as you know, Catherine II carried out his idea. Saint George became the patron of the order. His life and deeds are described in numerous tales and legends, including the well-known legend about the liberation of a beautiful princess from a terrible and evil dragon or serpent. Interestingly, not only in Kievan Rus, but throughout Europe in the eraDuring the Crusades, this saint was extremely revered by the military.
For the first time, the image of George the Victorious appeared on the seal of the founder of Moscow - Prince Yuri Dolgoruky, since this great martyr was considered his patron. Later, this image in the form of a horseman striking a serpent with his spear began to decorate the coat of arms of the Russian capital.
Reason for the award
It is worth noting that initially the Order of St. George the Victorious was intended exclusively for the hierarchical top of the Russian Empire. Later, Catherine II decided to somewhat expand the circle of persons awarded by him, so this badge of honor was divided into 4 degrees. He was given the motto "For Service and Courage". Subsequently, the Order of St. George the Victorious was awarded only for military services to the Fatherland to officers who accomplished a feat that brought great benefit and crowned with complete success.
Description
These badges were different from each other. The Order of St. George the Victorious, 1st Class, Grand Cross was a four-pointed gold star, made in the form of a rhombus. It was attached to the left half of the chest. The 1st class cross was worn on the same side, at the hip, on a special striped orange and black ribbon. It was worn over the uniform only on especially solemn occasions, and on weekdays it had to be hidden under the uniform, while the ends of the ribbon with the cross were let out with the help of a special cut made on the side.
The badge of the St. George Order of the 2nd degree is a cross that had to be worn around the neck, onnarrow ribbon. In addition, like the award of the previous degree, he had a four-pointed star. The order of the 3rd class was the Small Cross, which was supposed to be worn around the neck. The award of the 4th degree was attached to a ribbon and a buttonhole.
The gold star in the form of a rhombus has a black hoop in the middle with the words "For service and courage" written on it, and inside it is a yellow field with the image of the monogram of the name of St. George. This order also relied on an equal-ended cross with an extension at the ends. Its coating is white enamel, and along the edges - a golden border. The coat of arms of Moscow is placed in the central medallion: St. George the Victorious in silver armor, sitting on a horse and striking a serpent with a spear, and on the reverse side there is a white field and the same monogram as on the star.
First Class Award
The Order of the Holy Great Martyr and Victorious George was so honorable that for the entire time of its existence, signs of the 1st degree were awarded to only 25 people. The first gentleman, not counting Catherine II, was Field Marshal P. Rumyantsev. He was awarded the order in 1770 for his victory in the battles of Larga. The last - Grand Duke N. N. Senior in 1877 for the capture of Plevna and the defeat of the army of Osman Pasha. When presenting this award to the upper class, the lower class was no longer awarded.
For services to the Russian Empire, the Order of St. George the Victorious of the 1st degree was given not only to our own, but also to foreign citizens. So, the honorary badge of the highest class in different years was received by the King of Sweden Charles XIV, a former marshal of the NapoleonicArmy Jean-Baptiste Bernadotte, British Field Marshal Wellington, French Prince Louis of Angouleme, Austrian Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky, German Emperor Wilhelm I and others.
Order of the Second Class
125 people received it. The very first recipient of this award was Lieutenant General P. Plemyannikov in 1770, and the last was General of the French Army Ferdinand Foch in 1916 for success in the Verdun operation.
Interestingly, during the First World War, the Order of St. George the Victorious of the 1st degree was never awarded. But the 2nd class of the award was able to earn only four Russian servicemen. They were the Grand Duke N. N. the Younger, who at that time held the post of Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Army, as well as the heads of the fronts - Generals N. Ivanov, N. Ruzsky and N. Yudenich. The most famous was the last of them, who, after the revolution of 1917, led the white movement in the northwestern part of Russia.
In World War I, Yudenich fought against the Turkish army on the Caucasian front. He earned his first Order of St. George the Victorious, 4th degree, during the Sarykamysh operation, which ended in January 1915. The general also received his following awards for the fight against the Turks: 3rd class - for the defeat of part of the enemy army, and 2nd class - for the capture of Erzurum and the Deve-Beinskaya position.
By the way, N. Yudenich turned out to be the penultimate cavalier of this order of the 2nd degree and the last recipient among Russian citizens. As for foreigners, only two people were awarded the St. George Orders:French General Joseph Joffre and Ferdinand Foch, mentioned above.
Order of the Third Class
More than six hundred people received this award. Lieutenant Colonel F. Fabrician in 1769 became the first cavalier of this order. During the First World War, the 3rd degree was awarded to 60 distinguished people, among whom were such well-known generals as L. Kornilov, N. Yudenich, F. Keller, A. Kaledin, A. Denikin and N. Dukhonin.
During the civil war, the Order of St. George of the 3rd degree marked the feat of ten servicemen who distinguished themselves fighting in the ranks of the white movement against the Bolshevik army. These are Admiral A. Kolchak, Major General S. Voitsekhovsky and Lieutenant Generals V. Kappel and G. Verzhbitsky.
Order of the fourth degree
The statistics of issuing this award only until 1813 have been preserved. During this period, the Order of St. George the Victorious was awarded to 1195 people. According to various sources, over 10,500-15,000 officers received it. Basically, he was given out for a certain period of service in the army, and since 1833 for participating in at least one of the battles. After another 22 years, the awarding of the St. George Order of the 4th degree for impeccable service was completely canceled. The first cavalier to receive this badge was a Russian citizen, Prime Minister R. L. von Patkul, in 1770 for suppressing the Polish rebellion.
This military men's award was awarded, in addition to Empress Catherine II, as the founder of the order, and two women. Firstof them - Maria Sophia Amalia, Queen of the Two Sicilies. She participated in the military campaign against Garibaldi and was awarded the Order of the 4th degree in 1861 for her services.
The second woman awarded was R. M. Ivanova. She served in the Russian army as a sister of mercy during the First World War. Her feat was that after the death of the entire command staff, she took over the leadership of the company. She was awarded posthumously, as the woman soon died from her injuries.
In addition, representatives of the military clergy were also awarded the Order of St. George of the 4th degree. The first knight-priest was Vasily Vasilkovsky, awarded for personal courage shown in the battles near Maloyaroslavets and Vitebsk. During the 19th and early 20th centuries, the order was awarded 17 more times, with the last award occurring in 1916.
Chevaliers of the Order of George the Victorious
The first to receive this high award was Colonel F. I. Fabrician, who served in the 1st Grenadier Regiment. He distinguished himself during the assault on Galati, which took place in early December 1769. He was awarded an extraordinary 3rd degree.
There were also full cavaliers of the Order of St. George the Victorious, awarded all four classes. These are princes M. B. Barclay de Tolly and M. I. Golinishchev-Kutuzov-Smolensky and two counts - I. I. Dibich-Zabalkansky and I. F. Paskevich-Erivansky. Among those awarded this distinction were Russian autocrats. In addition to Catherine II, who founded it, these orders of variousall subsequent emperors had degrees, with the exception of Paul I.
Privileges
It is worth noting that the awarded Order of the Great Martyr George the Victorious gave its owners considerable rights and benefits. They were allowed not to make lump-sum payments to the treasury, as was customary when receiving other high awards. They had the right to wear a military uniform even if they did not serve the ten-year term.
Cavaliers of any degree of these orders necessarily received hereditary nobility. From April 1849, all their names were entered on special marble boards, which were hung out in the Georgievsky Hall of the Kremlin Palace. In addition, in those educational institutions where the gentlemen previously studied, their portraits should be hung in a place of honor.
Heroes were also provided with life-long pension payments. Senior gentlemen of all degrees received from 150 to 1 thousand rubles a year. In addition, the privileges extended to their widows: women could receive the pensions of their dead husbands for another whole year.
