The Order of Saint George (russian: Орден Святого Георгия, Orden Svyatogo Georgiya) is the highest military decoration of the

Russian Federation Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. Originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) as the highest military decoration of the Russian Empire for commissioned officers and generals by Empress

Catherine the Great , en, Catherine Alexeievna Romanova, link=yes , house = , father = Christian August, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst , mother = Joanna Elisabeth of Holstein-Gottorp , birth_date = , birth_name = Princess Sophie of Anhal ...

.Hurley, C. ''Russian Orders, Decorations, and Medals Under the Monarchy''. Harrison & Sons., Ltd., London. 1935. After the

October Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key moment ...

in 1917, it was awarded by the White movement under

Alexander Kolchak Alexander Vasilyevich Kolchak (russian: link=no, Александр Васильевич Колчак; – 7 February 1920) was an Imperial Russian admiral, military leader and polar explorer who served in the Imperial Russian Navy and fought ...

until their collapse in 1921. The order was revived in the Russian Federation on 8 August 2000 by Decree №1463 of the

President of Russia The president of the Russian Federation ( rus, Президент Российской Федерации, Prezident Rossiyskoy Federatsii) is the head of state of the Russian Federation. The president leads the executive branch of the federal ...

. The current award criteria were amended on 7 September 2010 by

Presidential Decree A decree is a legal proclamation, usually issued by a head of state (such as the president of a republic or a monarch), according to certain procedures (usually established in a constitution). It has the force of law. The particular term used for ...

1099.

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.

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. ''Cross'': A white enamelled

cross pattée A cross pattée, cross patty or cross paty, also known as a cross formy or cross formée (french: croix pattée, german: Tatzenkreuz), is a type of Christian cross with arms that are narrow at the centre, and often flared in a curve or straight ...

with a central medallion bearing the image of

Saint George Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldier ...

on horseback slaying the

dragon A dragon is a reptilian legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures worldwide. Beliefs about dragons vary considerably through regions, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as ...

. 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. ''Star'': A four-pointed silver gilt star with a gold central medallion bearing the

cipher In cryptography, a cipher (or cypher) is an algorithm for performing encryption or decryption—a series of well-defined steps that can be followed as a procedure. An alternative, less common term is ''encipherment''. To encipher or encode i ...

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. ''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 "colors 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 to the colors of the Russian Guard units. 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 A medal ribbon, service ribbon or ribbon bar is a small ribbon, mounted on a small metal bar equipped with an attaching device, which is generally issued for wear in place of a medal when it is not appropriate to wear the actual medal. Each cou ...

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: *

Pyotr Rumyantsev Count Pyotr Alexandrovich Rumyantsev-Zadunaisky (russian: Пётр Алекса́ндрович Румя́нцев-Задунайский; – ) was one of the foremost Russian generals of the 18th century. He governed Little Russia in the name ...

Alexei Grigoryevich Orlov Count Alexei Grigoryevich Orlov (russian: Алексей Григорьевич Орлов; – ) was a Russian soldier and statesman, who rose to prominence during the reign of Catherine the Great. Orlov served in the Imperial Russian A ...

Petr Ivanovich Panin General Count Pyotr Ivanovich Panin () (1721 – April 15, 1789), younger brother of Nikita Ivanovich Panin, fought with distinction in the Seven Years' War and in the Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774, capturing Bender on September 26, 17 ...

Vasily Dolgorukov-Krymsky Prince Vasily Mikhailovich Dolgorukov-Krymsky (Russian: Князь Васи́лий Миха́йлович Долгору́ков-Кры́мский; 1 July 1722 – 30 January 1782) was a general of the Russian Empire and Governor-General of Mosc ...

Grigory Potemkin Prince Grigory Aleksandrovich Potemkin-Tauricheski (, also , ;, rus, Князь Григо́рий Алекса́ндрович Потёмкин-Таври́ческий, Knjaz' Grigórij Aleksándrovich Potjómkin-Tavrícheskij, ɡrʲɪˈɡ ...

Alexander Suvorov Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov (russian: Алекса́ндр Васи́льевич Суво́ров, Aleksándr Vasíl'yevich Suvórov; or 1730) was a Russian general in service of the Russian Empire. He was Count of Rymnik, Count of the Holy ...

Vasily Chichagov Vasili Yakovlevich Chichagov (russian: Василий Яковлевич Чичагов; 28 February 1726 – 4 April 1809) was an admiral in the Russian Navy and an explorer. He was the father of Pavel Chichagov, a Russian admiral during the ...

* Nikolai Vasilyeich Repnin *

Mikhail Kutuzov Prince Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov ( rus, Князь Михаи́л Илларио́нович Голени́щев-Куту́зов, Knyaz' Mikhaíl Illariónovich Goleníshchev-Kutúzov; german: Mikhail Illarion Golenishchev-Kut ...

Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly Prince Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly (german: Fürst Michael Andreas Barclay de Tolly; baptised – ) was an Imperial Russian soldier of Baltic German and Scottish origin, who was commander-in-chief and Minister of War of the Russian Empire ...

* King Charles XIV John of Sweden *

Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher Gebhard Leberecht von Blücher, Fürst von Wahlstatt (; 21 December 1742 – 12 September 1819), ''Graf'' (count), later elevated to ''Fürst'' (sovereign prince) von Wahlstatt, was a Prussian ''Generalfeldmarschall'' (field marshal). He earned ...

Karl Philipp, Prince of Schwarzenberg Karl Philipp, Fürst zu Schwarzenberg (or Charles Philip, Prince of Schwarzenberg; 18/19 April 1771 – 15 October 1820) was an Austrian Generalissimo. He fought in the Battle of Wagram (1809) but the Austrians lost decisively against Napoleo ...

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish soldier and Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of 19th-century Britain, serving twice as prime minister o ...

Levin August von Bennigsen , native_name_lang = , birth_name = , nickname = , birth_date = , birth_place = Braunschweig, Electorate of Hanover, Holy Roman Empire , death_date = , death_place = Banteln, Kingdom of Hanover, German Confederation ...

Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême Louis Antoine of France, Duke of Angoulême (6 August 1775 – 3 June 1844) was the elder son of Charles X of France and the last Dauphin of France from 1824 to 1830. He was disputedly King of France and Navarre for less than 20 minutes befo ...

Ivan Paskevich Count Ivan Fyodorovich Paskevich-Erevansky, Serene Prince of Warsaw (russian: Ива́н Фёдорович Паске́вич-Эриванский, светлейший князь Варшавский, tr. ; – ) was an Imperial Russian mi ...

Hans Karl von Diebitsch Hans Karl Friedrich Anton Graf von Diebitsch und Narten (russian: Ива́н Ива́нович Ди́бич-Забалка́нский, tr. ; 13 May 1785 – 10 June 1831) was a German-born soldier serving as Russian field marshal. Career ...

Joseph Radetzky von Radetz Johann Josef Wenzel Anton Franz Karl, Graf Radetzky von Radetz ( en, John Joseph Wenceslaus Anthony Francis Charles, Count Radetzky of Radetz; cz, Jan Josef Václav Antonín František Karel hrabě Radecký z Radče; sl, Janez Jožef Vencelj ...

Alexander II of Russia Alexander II ( rus, Алекса́ндр II Никола́евич, Aleksándr II Nikoláyevich, p=ɐlʲɪˈksandr ftɐˈroj nʲɪkɐˈlajɪvʲɪtɕ; 29 April 181813 March 1881) was Emperor of Russia, Congress Poland, King of Poland and Gra ...

William I, German Emperor William I or Wilhelm I (german: Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig; 22 March 1797 – 9 March 1888) was King of Prussia from 2 January 1861 and German Emperor from 18 January 1871 until his death in 1888. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he was th ...

Archduke Albrecht, Duke of Teschen Archduke Albrecht Friedrich Rudolf Dominik of Austria, Duke of Teschen (3 August 1817 – 18 February 1895), was an Austrian Habsburg general. He was the grandson of Emperor Leopold II and one of the chief military advisors of Emperor Francis ...

Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia (25 October 1832 – 18 December 1909) was the fourth son and seventh child of Emperor Nicholas I of Russia and Charlotte of Prussia. He was the first owner of the New Michael Palace on the Palace Quay in ...

* Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia

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 Battle of Cahul (russian: Сражение при Кагуле, ) occurred on 1 August 1770 (21 July 1770 in Julian Calendar) during the Russo-Turkish War of 1768–1774. It was the decisive and most important land battle of the war and one o ...

, the last of 124 or 125, depending on sources, was either

Nikolai Yudenich Nikolai Nikolayevich Yudenich ( – 5 October 1933) was a commander of the Russian Imperial Army during World War I. He was a leader of the anti-communist White movement in Northwestern Russia during the Civil War. Biography Early life Yuden ...

or Marshal of France

Ferdinand Foch Ferdinand Foch ( , ; 2 October 1851 – 20 March 1929) was a French general and military theorist who served as the Supreme Allied Commander during the First World War. An aggressive, even reckless commander at the First Marne, Flanders and Art ...

. *

Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (1856–1929) Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (Russian: Николай Николаевич Романов (младший – ''the younger''); 18 November 1856 – 5 January 1929) was a Russian general in World War I (1914–1918). The son of ...

* Field Marshal of the Russian Empire

* Field Marshal of the Russian Empire Barclay de Tolly * General of the Army

Nikolay Yegorovich Makarov Army General Nikolai Yegorovich Makarov ( rus, Никола́й Его́рович Мака́ров, p=nʲɪkɐˈlaj jɪˈgorəvʲɪtɕ mɐˈkarəf; born 7 October 1949) served as Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Russia and Firs ...

* Colonel General

Alexander Zelin Alexander Nikolayevich Zelin (russian: Александр Николаевич Зелин; born 6 May 1953) served as Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Air Force from 9 May 2007 until 27 April 2012. Zelin holds the Air Force rank of colonel-ge ...

* General of the Army

Vladimir Boldyrev General of the Army Vladimir Anatolyevich Boldyrev (Russian: Владимир Анатольевич Болдырев; born January 5, 1949) was Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Ground Forces (2008–2010). Biography Boldyrev was born on 5 J ...

Recipients of the Order third class

*King

Leopold I of Belgium * nl, Leopold Joris Christiaan Frederik * en, Leopold George Christian Frederick , image = NICAISE Leopold ANV.jpg , caption = Portrait by Nicaise de Keyser, 1856 , reign = 21 July 1831 – , predecessor = Erasme Loui ...

. *

* Field Marshal of the Russian Empire

* Field Marshal of the Russian Empire Barclay de Tolly * General

Alexei Brusilov Aleksei Alekseyevich Brusilov ( rus, Алексе́й Алексе́евич Бруси́лов, p=ɐlʲɪkˈsʲej ɐlʲɪkˈsʲejɪvʲɪdʑ brʊˈsʲiɫəf; – 17 March 1926) was a Russian and later Soviet general most noted for the developme ...

* General

Yevgeni Iskritsky Yevgeni Andreyevich Iskritsky (August 15, 1874 – July 27, 1949) was a Russian Empire and Soviet military commander, author, teacher, a hero of the First World War, lieutenant general in the Imperial Russian army, who fell in with the winning ...

* General

Samad bey Mehmandarov Samad bey Sadykh bey oghlu Mehmandarov ( az, Səməd bəy Sadıx bəy oğlu Mehmandarov; October 16, 1855 – February 12, 1931) was an Azerbaijani General of the Artillery in the Imperial Russian Army and served as Minister of Defense o ...

Recipients of the Order fourth class

Nicholas II of Russia Nicholas II or Nikolai II Alexandrovich Romanov; spelled in pre-revolutionary script. ( 186817 July 1918), known in the Russian Orthodox Church as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer,. was the last Emperor of Russia, King of Congress Pola ...

* General

Vladimir Gittis Vladimir Mikhailovich Gittis (Russian: Влади́мир Миха́йлович Ги́ттис; 24 June 1881 – 22 August 1938) was a Soviet military commander and komkor. He fought in the Imperial Russian Army during World War I before going o ...

, Imperial

colonel Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations. In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge of ...

and Red Army general * Colonel

Lambros Katsonis Lambros Katsonis ( el, Λάμπρος Κατσώνης; russian: Ламброс Кацонис; 1752–1805) was a Greek privateer of the 18th century who would ultimately sail under the Russian flag with the rank of colonel. He became a knight o ...

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

18th century

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...

* Colonel General Sergei Makarov * Lieutenant General

Vladimir Shamanov Vladimir Anatolyevich Shamanov (russian: Владимир Анатольевич Шаманов, born 15 February 1957) is a retired Colonel General of the Military of Russia, Russian Armed Forces who was Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Airborne ...

* Lieutenant Colonel Anatoly Lebed * British Captain

Albert Ball Albert Ball, (14 August 1896 – 7 May 1917) was a British fighter pilot during the First World War. At the time of his death he was the United Kingdom's leading flying ace, with 44 victories, and remained its fourth-highest scorer b ...

, World War I fighter pilot * Dutch War Correspondent Louis Grondijs, World War I, White Army, Russian Civil War * Major General

Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim Baron Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim (, ; 4 June 1867 – 27 January 1951) was a Finnish military leader and statesman. He served as the military leader of the Whites in the Finnish Civil War of 1918, as Regent of Finland (1918–1919), as comma ...

, Imperial Russia, WWI * General

Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel Baron Pyotr Nikolayevich Wrangel (russian: Пётр Никола́евич барон Вра́нгель, translit=Pëtr Nikoláevič Vrángel', p=ˈvranɡʲɪlʲ, german: Freiherr Peter Nikolaus von Wrangel; April 25, 1928), also known by his ni ...

, Imperial Russia, World War I, White Army, Russian Civil War * Brigadier John Alexander Sinton, Indian Army, WWI * Field Marshal

Franz Joseph Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I (german: Franz Joseph Karl, hu, Ferenc József Károly, 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 2 December 1848 until his ...

, Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary * Major General Hermann Christoph Gamper, Imperial Russian cavalry commander during the

Patriotic War of 1812 The French invasion of Russia, also known as the Russian campaign, the Second Polish War, the Army of Twenty nations, and the Patriotic War of 1812 was launched by Napoleon Bonaparte to force the Russian Empire back into the continental block ...

African Spir Afrikan Aleksandrovich Spir (1837–1890) was a Russian neo-Kantian philosopher of German-Greek descent who wrote primarily in German. His book ''Denken und Wirklichkeit'' (''Thought and Reality'') exerted a "lasting impact" on the writings of F ...

(

Battle of Malakoff The Battle of Malakoff (french: Bataille de Malakoff, russian: Бой на Малаховом кургане) was a French attack against Russian forces on the Malakoff redoubt and its subsequent capture on 8 September 1855 as a part of the ...

, 1855) * Baron

Roman von Ungern-Sternberg Nikolai Robert Maximilian Freiherr von Ungern-Sternberg (russian: link=no, Роман Фёдорович фон Унгерн-Штернберг, translit=Roman Fedorovich fon Ungern-Shternberg; 10 January 1886 – 15 September 1921), often refer ...

* Field Marshal of the Russian Empire

* Field Marshal of the Russian Empire Barclay de Tolly * Ilija Plamenac, '' vojvoda'' and military commander * Field Marshal

Živojin Mišić Field Marshal Živojin Mišić ( sr-cyrl, Живојин Мишић; 19 July 1855 in Struganik – 20 January 1921 in Belgrade) was a Field Marshal who participated in all of Serbia's wars from 1876 to 1918. He directly commanded the First ...

* Sir

John Elley Lieutenant-General Sir John Elley KMT OS (9 January 176423 January 1839) was a British soldier who joined the cavalry as a private and rose to general officer rank. He fought with distinction during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic War ...

, British officer in the

Napoleonic Wars The Napoleonic Wars (1803–1815) were a series of major global conflicts pitting the French Empire and its allies, led by Napoleon I, against a fluctuating array of European states formed into various coalitions. It produced a period of Fren ...

Bogdan Zimonjić Bogdan Zimonjić, ( sr-cyr, Богдан Зимоњић; 1813 – 21 January 1909) was a Serbian Orthodox priest and Vojvoda (military commander) in two major uprisings against the Ottoman Empire in 19th-century Herzegovina: in 1852–62, an ...

, Serbian Orthodox priest, '' vojvoda'', senator and military commander *

Anatoly Pepelyayev Anatoly Nikolayevich Pepelyayev (russian: Анатолий Николаевич Пепеляев; , in Tomsk – 14 January 1938) was a White Russian general who led the Siberian armies of Admiral Kolchak during the Russian Civil War. His ...

, White Russian general * Lieutenant General

Grigory Mikhaylovich Semyonov Grigory Mikhaylovich Semyonov, or Semenov (russian: Григо́рий Миха́йлович Семёнов; September 25, 1890 – August 30, 1946), was a Japanese-supported leader of the White movement in Transbaikal and beyond from December ...

, Cossack-Buriat White Army General * Royce Coleman Dyer, Canadian Army

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

* Major General Pyotr Mikhailovich Skarzhinsky

References

External links

The Commission on State Awards to the President of the Russian Federation
* {{Russian Awards Awards established in 2000 Orders of chivalry of the Russian Empire Orders of chivalry of Russia 1760s establishments in the Russian Empire 1769 establishments in the Russian Empire

Statute of the Order of St. George

Description

Recipients (partial list)

Recipients of the Order first class

Recipients of the Order second class

Recipients of the Order third class

Recipients of the Order fourth class

See also

References

Further reading

External links