The Order of Victory (ru: Орден Победы) is the highest military decoration in the Soviet Union, and one of the rarest orders in the world. The Order was awarded for a "successful operation within the framework of one or several fronts resulting in a radical change of the situation in favor of the Red Army."

Order History

The Order was proposed by Colonel N. S. Neyelov, who was serving at the Soviet Army (Rear) headquarters around June of 1943. The original name that Colonel Neyelov suggested was Order for Faithfulness to the Homeland, however, it was given its present name around October. The Order was officialy adopted on November 8, 1943. The first awarding of the Order was on April 10, 1944 and it was presented to Aleksandr Vasilevsky and Georgy Zhukov. Every Order was presented during World War II, except for Leonid Brezhnev's, which was awarded to him in 1978. However, it was stripped in 1989, since the criteria for the Order was not met when it was gaven to Brezhnev (who had passed away a few years before this action was taken). The Order was also bestowed to top commanders of the Allied forces. In total, the Order was presented twenty times to fourteen people (including Brezhnev's).

Order Construction Details

The Order is made out of platinum, which is shaped into a pentangle star measuring 72mm. The star is studded with 150 diamonds (16 carat total weight), while the arms of the star are made out of rubies. In the center of the star is a medallion of blue enamel, with the Kremlin wall, Lenin's Mausoleum and the Spasskaya tower in gold surrounded by bands of wheat also colored in gold. The words "USSR" (СССР) appear on the top of the medallion, while the words "Victory" (Победа) are at the bottom of the medallion. The main designer of the Order is unclear, however, the design shown to the right was chosen by Joseph Stalin on October 20 of 1943.

Order Ribbon

The ribbons of various Soviet orders have been combined to create the Order ribbon. The following featured ribbons are (seen from either left to right or right to left):

• Order of Glory (Орден Славы). Orange with black center stripe
• Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky (Орден Богдана Хмельницкого). Light blue
• Order of Alexander Nevsky (Орден Александра Невского). Dark red
• Order of Kutuzov (Орден Кутузова). Dark blue
• Order of Suvorov (Орден Суворова). Green
• Order of Lenin (Орден Ленина). Red (center section)

In between each ribbon, a .05 mm white section is present to separate the different ribbons. The Order of Lenin is the longest ribbon section, being 13 mm wide. The ribbon of the Order is one of the longest presented by the Soviet Government (twice the length of a normal ribbon), however, the Order was mostly seen worn in full (on a parade uniform). On the feild uniform, the ribbon place at the top and it is the first ribbon placed on the bar. An example for correct display of the ribbon is to the right (from the uniform of Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Zhukov).

Recipients

Twice recipients

• Joseph Stalin
• Aleksandr Vasilevsky
• Georgy Zhukov

Once recipients

• Aleksei Antonov
• Leonid Govorov
• Ivan Konev
• Rodion Malinovsky
• Kirill Meretskov
• Konstantin Rokossovsky
• Semyon Timoshenko
• Fyodor Tolbukhin
• Leonid Brezhnev (Awarded in 1978, revoked in 1989)

Foreign recipients

• Dwight Eisenhower (United States)
• Josip Broz Tito (Yugoslavia)
• Bernard Montgomery (United Kingdom)
• Michal Rola-Zymierski (Poland)
• Michael I of Romania

External links

• DECORATED WITH THE SUPREME MILITARY VICTORY ORDER
• ORDER of VICTORY - 1943
• The Order of Victory
• Highest Awards