Release:
2024. Vol. 10. № 3 (39)About the authors:
Stanislav N. Sinegubov, Dr. Sci. (Hist.), Professor, University of Tyumen, Tyumen, Russia; s.n.sinegubov@utmn.ru, https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7458-5062Abstract:
The phaleristics research literature actively discusses the Soviet awards and related topics. However, one of them — awarding the USSR medals to the veterans of pre-revolutionary times — remains uncovered for different reasons, while in the Soviet historiography, there were, although, such publications, primarily by I. I. Ponomarev. Such situation seems erroneous and unacceptable from the scientific, moral, and ideological points of view. This article aims to fill in this gap, at least partially, by studying the awarding of Soviet orders and medals to the sailors of the Russian Imperial Navy. The authors describe the unique experience of the Soviet authorities in 1954-1956 in commemorating and glorifying then-living veterans who served in the Tsarist Russia Navy and proved themselves in difficult and often critical situations. In particular, the article shows how the Soviet leaders and top officials paid closest attention to and supported the people’s initiative to reward the heroic sailors who had served to the stigmatized tsarist regime. More importantly, this work reveals the unique motives behind this entire phenomenon, which never again happened in the Soviet history. In addition, the authors characterize the heroic deeds of the honorary receivers of the soviet medals and orders in the mid-1950s: A. D. Voitsekhovsky, V. L. Yakovets and other sailors from Varyag and Potemkin; F. E. Samonchuk, who showed heroism in the first half of October 1917 during the Operation Albion. The results show that the award Decrees of 1954-1956 were initiated by the ordinary Soviet citizens who worked in various fields, primarily military journalists, namely I. I. Ponomarev. The country’s leadership supported this initiative, which was reflected in the special legal acts, which awarded many veteran sailors of the Russian Fleet with medals and orders. While the authorities’ main motivation was the ideological component, the initiators themselves followed tamer human and moral principles.Keywords:
References:
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