Ushakov's medals. For what was awarded the Ushakov Medal

As Tsar Alexander the Third once said , Russia has only two ally: the army and the navy. Indeed, ever since Peter the Great turned our country into a great sea power, military sailors, midshipmen, admirals and captains of all ranks played a huge role in its history. In order to appreciate their merits during the Great Patriotic War, special awards were established: the Nakhimov medal and the Ushakov medal. Today they are kept in many Russian families and in private collections of Falerists around the world.

A few words about the Admiral

Before considering Ushakov medals, it is worthwhile to tell briefly about the person, in honor of which they are established, especially since this is one of the most extraordinary personalities among Russian commanders and naval commanders.

Fedor Ushakov began his career with participation in the Russian-Turkish war, which led to the independence of the Crimea from Turkey and the conquest of fortresses of Azov and Kerch by Russia. They won a lot of sea battles, in which he showed himself as an excellent strategist. In addition, Ushakov left a good memory of the Greek and Bulgarian peoples and acted as a skilled diplomat in the creation of an independent republic on the Greek islands, as well as with the liberation of Italy.

After retiring, he took up charity. In particular, at his own expense Ushakov built a hospital for the veterans of the Patriotic War of 1812 and in every possible way supported the Sanaxar monastery, where he even had his cell, in which he lived during his posts. This piety allowed the Russian Orthodox Church to rank it among the saints along with such righteous warriors as Alexander Nevsky and Dmitry Donskoy.

Medal of Ushakov: to whom is appropriated

Decree on the establishment of this award was issued on March 3, 1944. It was intended to reward sailors and soldiers, sergeants and foremen, as well as midshipmen and warrant officers of the Navy and naval units of the border troops for personal courage and bravery that were shown during the defense of the Fatherland on the sea both in the period of military operations and in peacetime.

Description

Medal Ushakov (USSR) is made of silver in the form of a circle, which has a diameter of 3.6 cm, placed on the anchor. On her obverse, surrounded by a convex rim, there is a breast relief image of Admiral FF Ushakov. Above it there is a convex inscription "Admiral Ushakov" on the circumference, and under the portrait there are 2 laurel branches connected by a crossed ribbon. As for the reverse, the medal number is simply knocked out. The award with a ring and a small eye is connected to a 5-corner shoe, which is covered with a silk ribbon of blue color. Its width is 2.4 cm, and along the edges it is marked with white and blue stripes.

The Ushakov Medal has a cardinal difference from other Russian awards. The fact is that its shoe is decorated with an anchor chain that is fastened over the ribbon and connects the upper shoe corners with the eyelet. This design is not found in any other Soviet medal.

The Russian award

The medal was re-established by the decree of the President of the Russian Federation in March 1994. Outwardly, it is an exact copy of the Ushakov medal of the Great Patriotic War, and today it is awarded to servicemen of the Navy and maritime security organs of the Border Guard Service of the Russian Federal Security Service. It should be worn on the left side of the chest, and if the awardee has other medals of the Russian Federation, she is located after the medal of Suvorov.

Medal of Nakhimov

This award was established at the same time as the Ushakov Medal and was also intended for the non-officers of the Naval Forces and the naval units of the border troops who showed courage and bravery in carrying out their military duty.

It is made of bronze in the form of a circle with a diameter of 3.6 mm. On the obverse of Nakhimov's medal the convex image of the admiral in profile is placed, below which there are crossed laurel branches connected by a five-pointed star. Along the convex border, duplicated by relief points in the upper part of the medal, is inscribed "ADMIRAL NAKHIMOV". This reverse has a reverse design, which is not typical for the medals of the WWII period. In particular, it depicts a circle, and inside it is a sailboat floating along the waves, behind which are crossed two sea anchors. At some distance from the rim a relief in the form of a ship's chain is marked in a circle.

The first awarding of the Nakhimov medal took place on the Northern Fleet on April 10, 1944. It received Sergeant MA Kolosov, as well as sailors E. Tolstov and F. G. Moshkov. In total, by 1981, Nakhimov's medal was awarded to 13,000 people.

Medal for veterans of the United States and Great Britain

In 2012, in honor of the 70th anniversary of the beginning of the Arctic convoys, the government of Russia decided to celebrate the merits of their participants. As a reward, the Ushakov Medal was chosen. The list of awardees was sent to the United States and Great Britain, where it was planned to organize ceremonies with the participation of Russian diplomats. In the same year, April 27, in the United States, 56 sailors-veterans were awarded medals Ushakov. It was more difficult to deal with participants of Arctic convoys from Great Britain. The fact is that according to the laws of this country her Majesty's subjects are forbidden to take foreign awards, so the request of the Russian side was rejected. At the same time, the British established their own reward for their veterans, calling it the "Arctic Star". However, after her presentation, the British government changed its mind, and Russian medals were still delivered to London, as well as to Edinburgh. There were solemn awards ceremony for brave sailors who 70 years ago delivered important military and food supplies to Murmansk and Arkhangelsk.

Ushakov Medal: price

Faleristics is a popular hobby all over the world, so Russian awards often find themselves in different parts of the world. Among them, the medal of Admiral Ushakov, which is distinguished by an unusual design, developed by the architect MA Shepilevsky, is not the last. The price of this award ranges from 120,000 to 130,000 rubles. Approximately the same number and worth Nakhimov's medal. As for their copies, their price is about 1000 rubles.

Now you know what the Ushakov medals look like and who the person was after whom they were established.