Order of St. Catherine the Great Martyr: history

Among the few awards of Tsarist Russia, revived in the post-Soviet period, special attention deserves the Order of St. Catherine the Great Martyr, whose description and history became the topic of this article. As in previous years, and nowadays it is established to reward women who have special merits before Russia. However, there was one exception, which will be discussed below.

The saving generosity of Catherine I

The history of how among the other awards of the Petrine era the Order of St. Catherine the Great appeared, is very unusual and in its traditional presentation causes historians certain doubts. It is connected with the Prut campaign of Peter I, undertaken by him in 1711 against the Turkish army and ended very unsuccessfully for him.

Circumstances developed in such a way that the Russian troops, among whom the Emperor was with his wife Catherine I, were surrounded by superior enemy forces. The situation was critical, but the empress found a way out of it, sacrificing all her numerous jewels for bribing the Ottoman commander-in-chief. In gratitude for such an act, which saved the army from destruction, and both of them from captivity and possible death, the king set up the Order of St. Catherine the Great Martyr specially for his wife.

Behavior worthy of the Empress

Apparently, this is just a legend, because on the basis of archival documents it is known that a bribe to the Turkish corrupt official from the treasury was allocated one hundred and fifty thousand rubles in gold, which at that time was a colossal sum. In addition, the Danish diplomat who participated in the Prut campaign recollected in his memoirs that the empress did not at all sacrifice her jewels, but after she was handed over to the nearest officers, she got back on leaving the encirclement.

Perhaps, perishable gold and with nothing, but demonstrating in a moment of danger the highest example of courage and self-control, she, according to the participants of those events, provided the Emperor with much-needed moral support in such cases and received the Order of St. Catherine the Great for her behavior worthy of the Empress. In any case, she was worthy of this high honor.

Order of St. Catherine the Great Martyr: characteristics and features

In the period from 1714 to 1917, this order was the second most important among other awards of Russia and had two degrees. The first, called the "Great Cross", was intended solely for the awarding of the persons of the reigning House. The second degree, known as the "Small or Cavalry Cross", was established for the representatives of the higher nobility. Those awarded this award were entitled to be called ladies of a large or cavalier cross, which was extremely honorable.

Each degree of the order corresponded to its signs and stars, which had similarities and significant differences among themselves. In 1856, Tsar Alexander II issued a decree, according to which, first-degree medal crosses were decorated with diamonds, and the second - with diamonds.

During the following period, in the center of the cross, adorned with golden rays, was a medallion with the image of the seated Great-Martyr Catherine. In the hands of the saint there was a large cross with a small cross in the middle, as well as a palm branch.

Above her head was inscribed the abbreviation SVE, which meant - Holy Great Martyr Catherine. Another abbreviation, consisting of the Latin letters DSFR, was depicted on a large cross and consisted of the initial letters of the Latin phrase Domine, salvum fac regum, which means "Lord save the king."

The reverse side of the cross was also interesting. It contained an image of an eagle and eagles, exterminating snakes at the foot of the tower, on top of which was a nest with chicks. There was also a Latin inscription in the translation, which sounded like "In works compares with the spouse". She had to emphasize the personal merits of the awarded.

In the center of the silver eight-pointed medal star was a round medallion, on the red field of which was depicted a cross framed with the inscription "For Love and Fatherland". These words were a symbol of the order itself.

The tradition established by Catherine I

Until the death of Peter I, which followed in 1725, this award was not awarded. This tradition was established by Catherine I, who inherited the throne and granted the order to the daughters of her deceased husband - Anna and Elizabeth (who later also received the Russian crown). In total for the period of her reign she bestowed this high honor on eight persons from the higher court circle.

In the period of her reign, which lasted for two years, the Order of St. Catherine the Great Martyr was the highest award for the high society ladies who received him not only (and not so much) for their services, but also as a reward for the labors of their husbands who held the highest state posts. A similar tradition was maintained in the following years.

Awards received by birth and special merit

The emperor Paul I raised the status of the order even more, issuing in 1797 a decree, according to which, each great princess who was born was awarded to him, that is, another daughter of the ruling monarch. Since the Russian sovereigns in most of them differed enviable fertility, then subsequently the number of awardees increased significantly. All sons of monarchs, having received the birth of the title of Grand Dukes, were awarded the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called.

By the way, this decree marked the beginning of the current tradition of bandaging newborn girls with pink ribbons, and boys - blue, which corresponds to the colors of the orders of the Grand Dukes and the princess.

The regulation on awarding the Order - its status - did not specify specifically for which merits it was to be awarded, so the right to elect candidates was granted to the tsar. Usually they were honored by persons who distinguished themselves in the field of public education or charity. Often it was received for large donations, made for the ransom of Christians from barbarous captivity, as well as recognition of merits in the care of the capital's College of Noble Maidens.

Abolition and the subsequent revival of the Order

This practice continued until dramatic events unfolded in 1917. Less than a month after the seizure of power, the Bolsheviks abolished this award, since it was intended exclusively for representatives of a hostile class. The Order of St. Catherine the Great Martyr was revived already in our days by decree issued in May 2012 by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev. Medvedev. Today, as before, he is among the highest awards of the country.

Order of St. Catherine the Great Martyr (Russian Federation)

Let us dwell in more detail on what today is a reward established by Peter I. This new Order of the Holy Great Martyr Catherine (RF), similar to its historical prototype, has a star and a sign made in the form of an oval medallion located in the center of silver with gilding Cross. Each end of the cross is made in the form of four golden rays, decorated with ornament and separated by two diamonds. The central medallion, surrounded by ornamentation of small embossed rings, is covered with blue enamel with the image of St. Catherine the Great Martyr painted on it with enamel.

At the top, the medal of the order is provided with a ring, on top of which a narrow vertical frame is adorned, decorated with seven diamonds, forming a vertical line. Through the ring, a ribbon is laid, laid in the form of a bow and having on the reverse side a device that allows it to be fastened to clothing. The medal has a size of 45 x 40 millimeters and can be attached to a silk moire ribbon of red color, which has a silvery intermittent border.

The eight-pointed silver star corresponds to the sign of the Order of St. Catherine, in the center of which is a round medallion of red color with the image of the state emblem of the Russian Federation, surrounded by a border with the inscription "For mercy".

An exception

In September 2012, the Order of St. Catherine the Great Martyr, whose photo is presented in the article, was first presented to a man. The decision of the government of this honor was awarded to the sovereignty of Liechtenstein Fal-Fein Eduard Alexandrovich for his outstanding contribution to the preservation of monuments of Russia's cultural heritage, as well as charitable, humanitarian and peacekeeping activities.