Parade awards
In the US Armed Forces, the next promotion was considered the main encouragement.
The USA as a state arose in the struggle against the metropolis — England. Americans have not inherited its traditions in the field of the award system. Therefore, orders and medals in the United States are relatively few, they are given almost exclusively for military exploits.
By the time America entered the war after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the country's highest award was the Medal of Honor (MP). It was established only in 1862 year, during the Civil War. After the end of the First World Criteria for the presentation of the medal significantly tightened. With the beginning of the Second World War, such kind of encouragement began to be made only for exceptional valor displayed in a combat situation. The MP became an analogue of the “Golden Star” of the Hero of the Soviet Union, with the difference that six out of ten awardees received it posthumously. In the USSR, during the years of the Great Patriotic War, the overwhelming majority of the Heroes of the Soviet Union became such during their lifetime.
Medal of Honor and the "Golden Star"
The MP is the only reward that requires the submission of military personnel not only by the command (normal procedure), but also by one of the members of the congress - as a rule, from the district where the applicant lives. As you know, in order to become a Hero of the Soviet Union, an additional petition from members of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR was not required. The re-delivery of the MP was usually carried out only for heroic acts committed in different wars. Over the entire existence of the medal, 19 people have been awarded this honor.
A separate MP for the Air Force was established only in 1947, when this type of armed forces stood out from the army. In total, for the valor shown during the Second World War, the MP awarded 464 people, 266 military personnel received it posthumously. 324 represented the army (including 36 - the army Aviation), 57 - fleet (5 - aviation fleet), 82 - the Marine Corps (11 - from the Marine Corps) and 1 - the coast guard. 15 MPs were awarded for Pearl Harbor, and 27 for the capture of Iwo Jima in 1945. There were 223 awards in the Pacific Theater of Theater (48,1%). The remaining 51,9 percent came from European theater of operations, including North Africa.
This reflects a roughly equal distribution of US forces between the Asia-Pacific and the Europe-Middle East theater. On the first, the main forces of the fleet and the marine corps acted, on the second, the army, including army aviation.
Like the Heroes of the Soviet Union (GSS) in the USSR, in the USA, the holders of the Medal of Honor were granted pensions, as well as transportation and other benefits. But in the USSR, the rank of GSS in the years of the Great Patriotic War, as well as the Soviet-Finnish war and battles at Khalkhin Gol, until March 1948 received an order of magnitude more soldiers and officers than the MP in the USA - 12 058 people, including 3050 - posthumously. Also posthumously awarded the second “Golden Star” 7 from 111 to twice Heroes of the Soviet Union. As you can see, the share of posthumous awards was only 25,3 percent, while among the American gentlemen MP - 57,3 percent. Among the GSS about 8000 were the ground forces, about 2400 - the Air Force, 513 - the Navy and more 150 - frontier guards, soldiers of the internal troops and security. In addition, the GSS became 234 guerrillas, including two generals twice (Sidor Kovpak and Alexey Fedorov).
The share of pilots among owners of MPs was 11,2 percent, and among GSS - about 20 percent. In the USSR, pilots were awarded much more generously than in the United States. At the same time, the American fleet without naval pilots accounted for 11,2 percent of all MPs, and the Soviet fleet, including marines, 4,25 accounted for the percentage of those who received the Golden Star. Together with the Marine Corps, even excluding the KMP pilots, the share of the American fleet rises to 26,5 percent. This reflects the greater role of the fleet among the Americans in comparison with the Soviet.
But among the GSS, there were about 3,2 percent of border guards, NKVD fighters and partisans, while only Douglas A. Munro, a signalman of the Coast Guard 1 class (awarded posthumously for the heroism shown in the battle for Guadalcanal), became the owner of the MP. Undoubtedly, the border guards (coast guard fighters), not to mention the partisan detachments, played a very modest role in the combat operations of the US Armed Forces, and units of the US Interior Ministry did not participate in the battles at all.
With the rarest exception among the honored MPs, there were no generals, since she was awarded only for personal feats on the battlefield, and not for planning operations. During the Second World War, only six generals received it. Douglas MacArthur - for participating in the defense of the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines. Theodore Roosevelt Jr. - for landing in Normandy (personally supervised units of the 4 Infantry Division on the battlefield, awarded posthumously). Alexander A. Vandegrift - for the battle for Guadalcanal (landed in the first wave of the landing of his 1 division of the marines). Jonathan M. Wineright for commanding the Correhidor garrison. Kenneth N. Walker, who led the 5 Bomber Command and lost 5 on January 1943 in the bombardment of the Japanese positions on Rabaul, was awarded a posthumous medal, like Frederick W. Kastl, who was in command of 4-martial bomber, was hit by the circuit, in order to throw it at the line, in order, in the same time, the circuit was disconnected to the counter, in the same time, in order to run on the circuit, in order to run on the circuit, in order to run by the control panel, to get rid of the bomber, commander of 24, bombardment of the Japanese positions on Rabaul, he was awarded a medal posthumously, as well as in line, in the run, in the run, the circuit breaks the circuit, in the same time, in the same time, it was not enough), in the same time, the circuit was disconnected from the runner’s line, and Frederick W. .
Since MacArthur did not accomplish direct combat exploits, the presentation of the MP to him was criticized, in particular, by General Dwight Eisenhower. Eisenhower himself won no medal.
In the USSR, one three times Hero was awarded for leadership of troops, 22 twice Hero and several hundred GSS in the ranks of generals and marshals. The share of generals among owners of MP did not exceed 1,3 percent. The share of Soviet commanders among the twice Heroes was 20 percent (and we excluded those generals-pilots, like the commander of the 6 Guards bomber aviation corps, Major General Ivan Polbin, who died directly in battle), and among the GSS, they were probably not less than five percent, and possibly 10 percent.
Crosses and Medal of Merit
The second most important award in the USA in 1941 – 1945 is the Naval Cross (VMK). It was established on 7 August 1942, although it existed since 4 February 1919, without high status. In his new incarnation, he began to be awarded for participation in activities involving a high risk to life and demanding a high level of skill, experience and responsibility. In total, about 6300 people were counted as such during the Second World War. Rear Admiral Roy M. Davenport and Lt. Gen. Marine Corps Lewis B. Puller nicknamed Honor was awarded the ISC five times, and the submarine commanders Samuel David Dili and Eugene B. Flaky four times.
The military analogue of the VMK - the cross For Outstanding Merits was established on February 2 1918. During World War II, it was handed over to approximately 5000 servicemen. Sergeant Level Levelin Chilson of the 179 Infantry Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel John Meyer and Major General James Van Flit earned three crosses each. Incidentally, Samuel D. Dili had one such cross. Quite a few veterans of the First World War earned the second and third crosses “For Outstanding Merit” already during the Second World War.
The VMK and the cross For Outstanding Merit are akin to our Order of Lenin, which was heard much more generously. Over the years of the Great Patriotic War, thousands of people have earned him more than 41, not counting those who received it with the GSS Golden Star or the Hero of Socialist Labor. After the decree of 25 in September of 1944, the Order of Lenin also began to be awarded for 25-year service, which significantly reduced his prestige.
The next most important American award was the medal "For merits" of the fleet and army. In the fleet, it was established in 1919 and until August 1942 was considered superior to the VMK. In the army, this medal appeared in the 1918 year, and it was honored by military personnel who achieved particularly effective results in their activities, occupying an important post. As a rule, these were officers and generals, in rare cases - sergeants in the rank not lower than the chief of the fleet and similar in the army and the ILC. In the USSR, the commanders of the order of Suvorov, Kutuzov and Alexander Nevsky (for officers and generals of the Land Forces and Air Force) and Ushakov and Nakhimov (for officers and admirals of the fleet) are comparable with this. The Soviet award system in this case correlates with the American one in that there are separate orders for the army and the Air Force (we and the Americans then united into one type of Armed Forces) and for the fleet. But in the USSR, everything was more differentiated. Thus, the Order of Alexander Nevsky was intended primarily for officers, not generals. Order of Suvorov and Kutuzov had three degrees, the first was awarded for success in offensive operations, and the second - in defensive. The orders of Ushakov and Nakhimov have two degrees: the first was awarded for success in offensive operations, and the second was distinguished in defense. The presence of orders of lower degrees was not a prerequisite for obtaining higher. The order of the same degree could be obtained several times.
In the United States during the Second World Medal of Merit with three gold stars (which corresponds to four awards), the Fleet Admiral William F. Halsey, Jr., the former commander of the Third Fleet in the Pacific, was awarded. The commander-in-chief of the Pacific Fleet, Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, also had such a medal with three gold stars and a similar army one. Army General George Marshal, who led the army headquarters during the war, was the winner of the Army For Merit medal with one bronze oak leaf (which meant a double award). General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in the South-West Pacific, who received more than 100 American and foreign awards in his career, was awarded the Army For Merit medal with four bronze oak leaves (five awards), as well as a similar fleet medal . Army General Dwight Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe, as well as MacArthur, received the Army Medal "For Merits" with four bronze oak leaves (five awards), as well as a related medal of the fleet. But he did not catch up with the MacArthur Orders, becoming the owner of only 65 awards.
The medals of the army or navy "For merits" with one silver oak leaf or one silver star (six awards) were not a single American general or admiral.
Price "Victory" and winners
In the USSR, the Order of Suvorov, the 1 degree, the highest commander with the exception of the Order of Victory (the equivalent of the latter in the American award system did not exist), was received three times by Chief Air Marshal Konstantin Vershinin, Marshal of Artillery Vasily Kazakov, Army General Alexander Luchinsky and Colonel-General Ivan Lyudnikov . All of them also had one Order of Suvorov 2 degree. Only three orders of Suvorov were awarded the 1 degree to Army General Pavel Batov, Colonel General Pavel Belov, Chief Marshal of Artillery Nikolai Voronov, Chief Air Marshal Alexander Golovanov, Colonel General Vasily Gordov, Marshal Andrei Eremenko, Army General Vladimir Kolpakchi, Aviation Chief Marshal Alexander Novikov, Colonel-General Nikolai Pukhov, Marshal of the Armored Forces Pavel Rybalko, Marshal Vasily Sokolovsky, Marshal Semyon Timoshenko, Colonel-General Vyacheslav Tsvetaev and Marshal Vasily Chuykov.
Marshals and Army General Alexei Antonov, awarded the Order of Victory, as a rule, had only two orders of Suvorov 1 degree. The only exception is the marshal Timoshenko, who, with three orders of Suvorov 1 of the degree 4 of June 1945, was nevertheless presented to the Order of Victory along with Antonov. This turned out to be the penultimate awarding of this higher order to Soviet military leaders. The last 8 of September was received by Meretskov. The third, “comforting” Order of Suvorov, Semen Timoshenko was granted 27 on April 1945. Perhaps Stalin experienced some hesitations about whether to include Tymoshenko in the narrow circle of the Holders of the Victory. But in the end relented. Probably, the decisive circumstance was the fact that Catherine Timoshenko’s daughter was the wife of Vasily Stalin, who, by the way, ended the war as an aviation colonel, commander of the 286 Fighter Division and holder of the 2 degree of Suvorov. Or maybe Stalin took into account the rapid capture of Vienna on April 13 by the fronts that Tymoshenko oversaw.
But in the club of gentlemen of the Order of Victory Tymoshenko did not play a prominent role. If we take the gentlemen of the three orders of Suvorov of the 1 degree, then the overwhelming majority of them ended the war with army commanders (Vershinin, Luchinsky, Lyudnikov, Belov, Gordov, Kolpakchi, Pukhov, Rybalko, Tsvetaev, Chuykov). Kazakov became the chief of the artillery of the front, and Voronov became the chief of artillery of the Red Army, but due to the shaky health he largely retired and in the last year and a half of the war he did not leave the headquarters representative for the front. Golovanov commanded long-range aviation, Yeremenko the 4 of the Ukrainian front, Novikov was the commander-in-chief of the Air Force, Sokolovsky the deputy commander of the troops of the 1 of the Belarusian front, and Tymoshenko the representative of the Supreme Commander. In this capacity, he was nevertheless considered to be the commander of the 1 series by Stalin, and therefore received the Order of Victory. The gentlemen of the three orders of Suvorov of the 1 degree were, albeit promising and, from the point of view of Stalin, outstanding commanders, but they nevertheless were the 2 row. And from repression were not guaranteed.
Vasily Nikolayevich Gordov, in conversations with his wife and colleagues, spoke sharply about Stalin and his policies. The MGB recorded these conversations and reported to Stalin. At the beginning of 1947, Gordov was arrested, and on August 24, 1950 was convicted of carrying out terrorist plans against members of the Soviet government. Aviation Chief Marshal Novikov was arrested at the beginning of 1946 of the year and 11 of 1946 was sentenced to five years in a so-called aviation case for supplying defective aircraft to the troops. He remained in prison until the death of Stalin.
All gentlemen of the three orders of Suvorov of the 1 degree, with the exception of the Chief Marshals Voronov and Golovanov, became Heroes of the Soviet Union, and Novikov, Batov and Rybalko were awarded this title twice. Perhaps in the eyes of Stalin, the title of Chief Marshal seemed to replace the “Star” of the Hero.
The Order of Ushakov of the 1 degree was a much rarer reward than its land equivalent, the Order of Suvorov of the 1 degree. In total, the Order of Ushakov of the 1 degree was in 26 people, including 11 - two each. These 11s made up the elite of the Navy, since no admiral received the Order of Victory. The two orders of Ushakov 1 of the second degree went to the People's Commissar of the Navy Admiral of the Fleet Nikolai Kuznetsov, o4, and his first deputy admiral of the fleet, Ivan Isakov, the commander of the aviation of the fleet, the Marshal of Aviation Sergey Zhavoronkov, the Deputy Commissar for Shipbuilding, Admiral Lev Galler, the assistant of the Narkov, the assistant to the People's Commissar for Shipbuilding, Admiral Lev Galler, the Deputy Narkomonov, the Deputy Commissar for Shipbuilding, Admiral Lev Galler, the Assistant Narkomonov, the Deputy Commissar for Shipbuilding, Admiral Lev Galler, the Deputy Narkomonov, the Deputy Commissar for Navigation Arseny Golovko, Admiral Philip Oktyabrsky, Commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral Vladimir Tributs, Commander of the Baltic Fleet (he, by the way, was awarded the Order of Ushakov XNU MX degree No. 1), commander of the Baltic Fleet aviation, Colonel-General Aviation Mikhail Samokhin, i-commander of the Black Sea Fleet aviation, Colonel-General Aviation Vasiliy Yermachenkov, and Commander of the Danube Military Flotilla, Vice Admiral Georgy Holostyakov (he had a i-a – case –– ––– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– 2014 –– –– –– –– –– – а – а – а – а – а – а – а – – – –– – а – а –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– ––-been-been been been been been drawn been been been beenred been been beenredred been been been been taken from systems of a <num>> 1> for battles on the Little Earth).
Like the Order of Suvorov, the Order of Ushakov did not give any immunity from prosecution. Admiral Kuznetsov in 1948 was convicted by the “court of honor” and the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court in a fabricated case of illegally transferring drawings and descriptions of the high-altitude parachute torpedo to the allies. He was removed from the post of Commissar and demoted to rear admirals. However, already in 1951-m, he again headed the Navy, but only in the rank of vice-admiral and without removing a criminal record. But Admiral Haller in the same case was sentenced to four years in prison. He died at the 12 Kazan prison psychiatric hospital on July 1950.
Other analogues and originals
Silver Star was established by the US Department of Defense 16 July 1932. During World War II, it was presented for courage and bravery shown in battle, which was established by the US congress act of 7 on August 1942 for the fleet and the ILC, and the congress act from December of 15 by 1942 for the army. According to various estimates (there is no exact statistics), for the entire time of its existence, up to the present day, thousands of people received it from 100 to 150, including several tens of thousands - during the Second World War.
The approximate Soviet equivalent of the Silver Star is the Order of the Red Banner. Since November 1944, it began to be given for 20- and 30-year service. In the United States for long service during the Second World War was not awarded. Over the years of the Great Patriotic Order of the Red Banner, 305 035 people were awarded.
The next American award (the fifth largest in World War II, and now the sixth) should be considered the Legion of Honor order, established on July 20 1942 of the year and largely copying the French Order of the Legion of Honor. It is intended mainly for foreigners. Of the Americans, it could get generals and senior officers. The degree of commander in chief was assigned only to the heads of foreign states or governments, as well as to the commander-in-chief of the allied forces. Generals in the posts of chiefs of main headquarters and above could be awarded the commander's degree. The degree of officer is generals and senior officers, as well as military attaches at the embassies. The degree of legionary - all other ranks that do not fall under the criteria of senior degrees.
The first American to receive the Legion of Honor was the fleet nurse Anne Bernatitus, the only woman who participated in the defense of Correagidor. Of the American generals received it, in particular, Dwight Eisenhower.
Among the Soviet marshals, the Legion of Honor Order was commanded by Vasilevsky, Govorov, Zhukov, Konev, Malinovsky, Meretskov, Rokossovsky, and Colonel-General Stanislav Poplavsky, who was in the rank of General of the Army Eremenko and Chief Marshal, who was in charge of General Marshall Eremenko and Chief Marshal of the Army Marshal. Novikov.
In the Soviet Union, the Order for foreigners, mainly military, was the same Order of Victory, as well as the commanders of the Order of Suvorov, Kutuzov, Alexander Nevsky, Ushakov and Nakhimov. They were suitable for this purpose due to their political neutrality. After all, the “Golden Star” of the Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of Lenin, the Red Banner, the Red Star are closely connected with the communist ideology. It is interesting that all of them were established before the Second World War, while the orders that appeared during the Great Patriotic War had a neutral ideological burden.
The Order of Victory was handed to Dwight Eisenhower, Allied Commander of the Land Services of the East Europe, British Field Marshal Bernardo Montgomery, the Yugoslav communist leader Marshal Josip Broz Tito, Marshal of Poland Michal Ralja-Zimmersky and the Rohman of the Army, in charge of the Romanian Josip Broz Tito, Marshal of Poland Michal Ralja-Zimersky and the King of the Red Army. “For the courageous act of decisively turning the policy of Romania towards a break with Hitler’s Germany and an alliance with the United Nations at a time when the defeat of Germany was not yet clearly defined” .
Mihai Stalin allowed to freely leave Romania after the Communists came to power. Role-Zhimersky was arrested and sent to prison for two years only in May 1953, after Stalin's death. And on Tito, with whom there was a complete break in 1948, Stalin tried to organize an assassination attempt, but unsuccessfully.
The Purple Heart Medal was established in 1942 and was intended for all US military personnel who were injured. In the USSR, there were stripes for injuries: red for light, yellow for heavy. In the United States during the Second World War 671 000 people became owners of the Purple Heart. It turned out to be the most massive reward in the US Armed Forces, not counting the medal for winning the war.
There are a number of American military awards that have no direct Soviet counterparts. These are the Flight Honor Cross (for feats in air operations), the Soldier's Medal and the Bronze Star, established only on February 4 of the year 1944, but presented it for heroic acts committed since December 7 of 1941. Also, the Americans existed the medal "For Victory in the Second World War" - the obvious equivalent of the Soviet medals "For Victory over Germany" and "For Victory over Japan." But the American medals for participating in separate campaigns - “For participation in the American campaign”, “For the defense of America”, “For participation in the Asia-Pacific campaign”, “For participation in the European-African-Middle Eastern campaign” are similar not only to Soviet medals for the defense or the liberation (capture) of individual cities, but also for the medals "For the victory over Germany" and "For the victory over Japan." If in the United States, differentiation was only in individual theaters of hostilities, in the USSR it was exclusively in individual cities, for which particularly fierce battles were fought.
In general, the American system was distinguished by a significantly smaller number of both the awards themselves and those awarded. In the US Armed Forces, the production of the next rank was considered a much more important encouragement, which led to a significant increase in the pay and social status of the serviceman, including after the resignation.
The USA as a state arose in the struggle against the metropolis — England. Americans have not inherited its traditions in the field of the award system. Therefore, orders and medals in the United States are relatively few, they are given almost exclusively for military exploits.
By the time America entered the war after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, the country's highest award was the Medal of Honor (MP). It was established only in 1862 year, during the Civil War. After the end of the First World Criteria for the presentation of the medal significantly tightened. With the beginning of the Second World War, such kind of encouragement began to be made only for exceptional valor displayed in a combat situation. The MP became an analogue of the “Golden Star” of the Hero of the Soviet Union, with the difference that six out of ten awardees received it posthumously. In the USSR, during the years of the Great Patriotic War, the overwhelming majority of the Heroes of the Soviet Union became such during their lifetime.
Medal of Honor and the "Golden Star"
The MP is the only reward that requires the submission of military personnel not only by the command (normal procedure), but also by one of the members of the congress - as a rule, from the district where the applicant lives. As you know, in order to become a Hero of the Soviet Union, an additional petition from members of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR was not required. The re-delivery of the MP was usually carried out only for heroic acts committed in different wars. Over the entire existence of the medal, 19 people have been awarded this honor.
A separate MP for the Air Force was established only in 1947, when this type of armed forces stood out from the army. In total, for the valor shown during the Second World War, the MP awarded 464 people, 266 military personnel received it posthumously. 324 represented the army (including 36 - the army Aviation), 57 - fleet (5 - aviation fleet), 82 - the Marine Corps (11 - from the Marine Corps) and 1 - the coast guard. 15 MPs were awarded for Pearl Harbor, and 27 for the capture of Iwo Jima in 1945. There were 223 awards in the Pacific Theater of Theater (48,1%). The remaining 51,9 percent came from European theater of operations, including North Africa.
This reflects a roughly equal distribution of US forces between the Asia-Pacific and the Europe-Middle East theater. On the first, the main forces of the fleet and the marine corps acted, on the second, the army, including army aviation.
Like the Heroes of the Soviet Union (GSS) in the USSR, in the USA, the holders of the Medal of Honor were granted pensions, as well as transportation and other benefits. But in the USSR, the rank of GSS in the years of the Great Patriotic War, as well as the Soviet-Finnish war and battles at Khalkhin Gol, until March 1948 received an order of magnitude more soldiers and officers than the MP in the USA - 12 058 people, including 3050 - posthumously. Also posthumously awarded the second “Golden Star” 7 from 111 to twice Heroes of the Soviet Union. As you can see, the share of posthumous awards was only 25,3 percent, while among the American gentlemen MP - 57,3 percent. Among the GSS about 8000 were the ground forces, about 2400 - the Air Force, 513 - the Navy and more 150 - frontier guards, soldiers of the internal troops and security. In addition, the GSS became 234 guerrillas, including two generals twice (Sidor Kovpak and Alexey Fedorov).
The share of pilots among owners of MPs was 11,2 percent, and among GSS - about 20 percent. In the USSR, pilots were awarded much more generously than in the United States. At the same time, the American fleet without naval pilots accounted for 11,2 percent of all MPs, and the Soviet fleet, including marines, 4,25 accounted for the percentage of those who received the Golden Star. Together with the Marine Corps, even excluding the KMP pilots, the share of the American fleet rises to 26,5 percent. This reflects the greater role of the fleet among the Americans in comparison with the Soviet.
But among the GSS, there were about 3,2 percent of border guards, NKVD fighters and partisans, while only Douglas A. Munro, a signalman of the Coast Guard 1 class (awarded posthumously for the heroism shown in the battle for Guadalcanal), became the owner of the MP. Undoubtedly, the border guards (coast guard fighters), not to mention the partisan detachments, played a very modest role in the combat operations of the US Armed Forces, and units of the US Interior Ministry did not participate in the battles at all.
With the rarest exception among the honored MPs, there were no generals, since she was awarded only for personal feats on the battlefield, and not for planning operations. During the Second World War, only six generals received it. Douglas MacArthur - for participating in the defense of the Bataan Peninsula in the Philippines. Theodore Roosevelt Jr. - for landing in Normandy (personally supervised units of the 4 Infantry Division on the battlefield, awarded posthumously). Alexander A. Vandegrift - for the battle for Guadalcanal (landed in the first wave of the landing of his 1 division of the marines). Jonathan M. Wineright for commanding the Correhidor garrison. Kenneth N. Walker, who led the 5 Bomber Command and lost 5 on January 1943 in the bombardment of the Japanese positions on Rabaul, was awarded a posthumous medal, like Frederick W. Kastl, who was in command of 4-martial bomber, was hit by the circuit, in order to throw it at the line, in order, in the same time, the circuit was disconnected to the counter, in the same time, in order to run on the circuit, in order to run on the circuit, in order to run by the control panel, to get rid of the bomber, commander of 24, bombardment of the Japanese positions on Rabaul, he was awarded a medal posthumously, as well as in line, in the run, in the run, the circuit breaks the circuit, in the same time, in the same time, it was not enough), in the same time, the circuit was disconnected from the runner’s line, and Frederick W. .Since MacArthur did not accomplish direct combat exploits, the presentation of the MP to him was criticized, in particular, by General Dwight Eisenhower. Eisenhower himself won no medal.
In the USSR, one three times Hero was awarded for leadership of troops, 22 twice Hero and several hundred GSS in the ranks of generals and marshals. The share of generals among owners of MP did not exceed 1,3 percent. The share of Soviet commanders among the twice Heroes was 20 percent (and we excluded those generals-pilots, like the commander of the 6 Guards bomber aviation corps, Major General Ivan Polbin, who died directly in battle), and among the GSS, they were probably not less than five percent, and possibly 10 percent.
Crosses and Medal of Merit
The second most important award in the USA in 1941 – 1945 is the Naval Cross (VMK). It was established on 7 August 1942, although it existed since 4 February 1919, without high status. In his new incarnation, he began to be awarded for participation in activities involving a high risk to life and demanding a high level of skill, experience and responsibility. In total, about 6300 people were counted as such during the Second World War. Rear Admiral Roy M. Davenport and Lt. Gen. Marine Corps Lewis B. Puller nicknamed Honor was awarded the ISC five times, and the submarine commanders Samuel David Dili and Eugene B. Flaky four times.
The military analogue of the VMK - the cross For Outstanding Merits was established on February 2 1918. During World War II, it was handed over to approximately 5000 servicemen. Sergeant Level Levelin Chilson of the 179 Infantry Regiment, Lieutenant Colonel John Meyer and Major General James Van Flit earned three crosses each. Incidentally, Samuel D. Dili had one such cross. Quite a few veterans of the First World War earned the second and third crosses “For Outstanding Merit” already during the Second World War.
The VMK and the cross For Outstanding Merit are akin to our Order of Lenin, which was heard much more generously. Over the years of the Great Patriotic War, thousands of people have earned him more than 41, not counting those who received it with the GSS Golden Star or the Hero of Socialist Labor. After the decree of 25 in September of 1944, the Order of Lenin also began to be awarded for 25-year service, which significantly reduced his prestige.
The next most important American award was the medal "For merits" of the fleet and army. In the fleet, it was established in 1919 and until August 1942 was considered superior to the VMK. In the army, this medal appeared in the 1918 year, and it was honored by military personnel who achieved particularly effective results in their activities, occupying an important post. As a rule, these were officers and generals, in rare cases - sergeants in the rank not lower than the chief of the fleet and similar in the army and the ILC. In the USSR, the commanders of the order of Suvorov, Kutuzov and Alexander Nevsky (for officers and generals of the Land Forces and Air Force) and Ushakov and Nakhimov (for officers and admirals of the fleet) are comparable with this. The Soviet award system in this case correlates with the American one in that there are separate orders for the army and the Air Force (we and the Americans then united into one type of Armed Forces) and for the fleet. But in the USSR, everything was more differentiated. Thus, the Order of Alexander Nevsky was intended primarily for officers, not generals. Order of Suvorov and Kutuzov had three degrees, the first was awarded for success in offensive operations, and the second - in defensive. The orders of Ushakov and Nakhimov have two degrees: the first was awarded for success in offensive operations, and the second was distinguished in defense. The presence of orders of lower degrees was not a prerequisite for obtaining higher. The order of the same degree could be obtained several times.
In the United States during the Second World Medal of Merit with three gold stars (which corresponds to four awards), the Fleet Admiral William F. Halsey, Jr., the former commander of the Third Fleet in the Pacific, was awarded. The commander-in-chief of the Pacific Fleet, Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, also had such a medal with three gold stars and a similar army one. Army General George Marshal, who led the army headquarters during the war, was the winner of the Army For Merit medal with one bronze oak leaf (which meant a double award). General Douglas MacArthur, Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in the South-West Pacific, who received more than 100 American and foreign awards in his career, was awarded the Army For Merit medal with four bronze oak leaves (five awards), as well as a similar fleet medal . Army General Dwight Eisenhower, the Supreme Commander of the Allied forces in Europe, as well as MacArthur, received the Army Medal "For Merits" with four bronze oak leaves (five awards), as well as a related medal of the fleet. But he did not catch up with the MacArthur Orders, becoming the owner of only 65 awards.
The medals of the army or navy "For merits" with one silver oak leaf or one silver star (six awards) were not a single American general or admiral.
Price "Victory" and winners
In the USSR, the Order of Suvorov, the 1 degree, the highest commander with the exception of the Order of Victory (the equivalent of the latter in the American award system did not exist), was received three times by Chief Air Marshal Konstantin Vershinin, Marshal of Artillery Vasily Kazakov, Army General Alexander Luchinsky and Colonel-General Ivan Lyudnikov . All of them also had one Order of Suvorov 2 degree. Only three orders of Suvorov were awarded the 1 degree to Army General Pavel Batov, Colonel General Pavel Belov, Chief Marshal of Artillery Nikolai Voronov, Chief Air Marshal Alexander Golovanov, Colonel General Vasily Gordov, Marshal Andrei Eremenko, Army General Vladimir Kolpakchi, Aviation Chief Marshal Alexander Novikov, Colonel-General Nikolai Pukhov, Marshal of the Armored Forces Pavel Rybalko, Marshal Vasily Sokolovsky, Marshal Semyon Timoshenko, Colonel-General Vyacheslav Tsvetaev and Marshal Vasily Chuykov.
Marshals and Army General Alexei Antonov, awarded the Order of Victory, as a rule, had only two orders of Suvorov 1 degree. The only exception is the marshal Timoshenko, who, with three orders of Suvorov 1 of the degree 4 of June 1945, was nevertheless presented to the Order of Victory along with Antonov. This turned out to be the penultimate awarding of this higher order to Soviet military leaders. The last 8 of September was received by Meretskov. The third, “comforting” Order of Suvorov, Semen Timoshenko was granted 27 on April 1945. Perhaps Stalin experienced some hesitations about whether to include Tymoshenko in the narrow circle of the Holders of the Victory. But in the end relented. Probably, the decisive circumstance was the fact that Catherine Timoshenko’s daughter was the wife of Vasily Stalin, who, by the way, ended the war as an aviation colonel, commander of the 286 Fighter Division and holder of the 2 degree of Suvorov. Or maybe Stalin took into account the rapid capture of Vienna on April 13 by the fronts that Tymoshenko oversaw.
But in the club of gentlemen of the Order of Victory Tymoshenko did not play a prominent role. If we take the gentlemen of the three orders of Suvorov of the 1 degree, then the overwhelming majority of them ended the war with army commanders (Vershinin, Luchinsky, Lyudnikov, Belov, Gordov, Kolpakchi, Pukhov, Rybalko, Tsvetaev, Chuykov). Kazakov became the chief of the artillery of the front, and Voronov became the chief of artillery of the Red Army, but due to the shaky health he largely retired and in the last year and a half of the war he did not leave the headquarters representative for the front. Golovanov commanded long-range aviation, Yeremenko the 4 of the Ukrainian front, Novikov was the commander-in-chief of the Air Force, Sokolovsky the deputy commander of the troops of the 1 of the Belarusian front, and Tymoshenko the representative of the Supreme Commander. In this capacity, he was nevertheless considered to be the commander of the 1 series by Stalin, and therefore received the Order of Victory. The gentlemen of the three orders of Suvorov of the 1 degree were, albeit promising and, from the point of view of Stalin, outstanding commanders, but they nevertheless were the 2 row. And from repression were not guaranteed.
Vasily Nikolayevich Gordov, in conversations with his wife and colleagues, spoke sharply about Stalin and his policies. The MGB recorded these conversations and reported to Stalin. At the beginning of 1947, Gordov was arrested, and on August 24, 1950 was convicted of carrying out terrorist plans against members of the Soviet government. Aviation Chief Marshal Novikov was arrested at the beginning of 1946 of the year and 11 of 1946 was sentenced to five years in a so-called aviation case for supplying defective aircraft to the troops. He remained in prison until the death of Stalin.
All gentlemen of the three orders of Suvorov of the 1 degree, with the exception of the Chief Marshals Voronov and Golovanov, became Heroes of the Soviet Union, and Novikov, Batov and Rybalko were awarded this title twice. Perhaps in the eyes of Stalin, the title of Chief Marshal seemed to replace the “Star” of the Hero.
The Order of Ushakov of the 1 degree was a much rarer reward than its land equivalent, the Order of Suvorov of the 1 degree. In total, the Order of Ushakov of the 1 degree was in 26 people, including 11 - two each. These 11s made up the elite of the Navy, since no admiral received the Order of Victory. The two orders of Ushakov 1 of the second degree went to the People's Commissar of the Navy Admiral of the Fleet Nikolai Kuznetsov, o4, and his first deputy admiral of the fleet, Ivan Isakov, the commander of the aviation of the fleet, the Marshal of Aviation Sergey Zhavoronkov, the Deputy Commissar for Shipbuilding, Admiral Lev Galler, the assistant of the Narkov, the assistant to the People's Commissar for Shipbuilding, Admiral Lev Galler, the Deputy Narkomonov, the Deputy Commissar for Shipbuilding, Admiral Lev Galler, the Assistant Narkomonov, the Deputy Commissar for Shipbuilding, Admiral Lev Galler, the Deputy Narkomonov, the Deputy Commissar for Navigation Arseny Golovko, Admiral Philip Oktyabrsky, Commander of the Black Sea Fleet, Admiral Vladimir Tributs, Commander of the Baltic Fleet (he, by the way, was awarded the Order of Ushakov XNU MX degree No. 1), commander of the Baltic Fleet aviation, Colonel-General Aviation Mikhail Samokhin, i-commander of the Black Sea Fleet aviation, Colonel-General Aviation Vasiliy Yermachenkov, and Commander of the Danube Military Flotilla, Vice Admiral Georgy Holostyakov (he had a i-a – case –– ––– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– 2014 –– –– –– –– –– – а – а – а – а – а – а – а – – – –– – а – а –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– –– ––-been-been been been been been drawn been been been beenred been been beenredred been been been been taken from systems of a <num>> 1> for battles on the Little Earth).
Like the Order of Suvorov, the Order of Ushakov did not give any immunity from prosecution. Admiral Kuznetsov in 1948 was convicted by the “court of honor” and the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court in a fabricated case of illegally transferring drawings and descriptions of the high-altitude parachute torpedo to the allies. He was removed from the post of Commissar and demoted to rear admirals. However, already in 1951-m, he again headed the Navy, but only in the rank of vice-admiral and without removing a criminal record. But Admiral Haller in the same case was sentenced to four years in prison. He died at the 12 Kazan prison psychiatric hospital on July 1950.
Other analogues and originals
Silver Star was established by the US Department of Defense 16 July 1932. During World War II, it was presented for courage and bravery shown in battle, which was established by the US congress act of 7 on August 1942 for the fleet and the ILC, and the congress act from December of 15 by 1942 for the army. According to various estimates (there is no exact statistics), for the entire time of its existence, up to the present day, thousands of people received it from 100 to 150, including several tens of thousands - during the Second World War.
The approximate Soviet equivalent of the Silver Star is the Order of the Red Banner. Since November 1944, it began to be given for 20- and 30-year service. In the United States for long service during the Second World War was not awarded. Over the years of the Great Patriotic Order of the Red Banner, 305 035 people were awarded.
The next American award (the fifth largest in World War II, and now the sixth) should be considered the Legion of Honor order, established on July 20 1942 of the year and largely copying the French Order of the Legion of Honor. It is intended mainly for foreigners. Of the Americans, it could get generals and senior officers. The degree of commander in chief was assigned only to the heads of foreign states or governments, as well as to the commander-in-chief of the allied forces. Generals in the posts of chiefs of main headquarters and above could be awarded the commander's degree. The degree of officer is generals and senior officers, as well as military attaches at the embassies. The degree of legionary - all other ranks that do not fall under the criteria of senior degrees.
The first American to receive the Legion of Honor was the fleet nurse Anne Bernatitus, the only woman who participated in the defense of Correagidor. Of the American generals received it, in particular, Dwight Eisenhower.
Among the Soviet marshals, the Legion of Honor Order was commanded by Vasilevsky, Govorov, Zhukov, Konev, Malinovsky, Meretskov, Rokossovsky, and Colonel-General Stanislav Poplavsky, who was in the rank of General of the Army Eremenko and Chief Marshal, who was in charge of General Marshall Eremenko and Chief Marshal of the Army Marshal. Novikov.
In the Soviet Union, the Order for foreigners, mainly military, was the same Order of Victory, as well as the commanders of the Order of Suvorov, Kutuzov, Alexander Nevsky, Ushakov and Nakhimov. They were suitable for this purpose due to their political neutrality. After all, the “Golden Star” of the Hero of the Soviet Union and the Order of Lenin, the Red Banner, the Red Star are closely connected with the communist ideology. It is interesting that all of them were established before the Second World War, while the orders that appeared during the Great Patriotic War had a neutral ideological burden.
The Order of Victory was handed to Dwight Eisenhower, Allied Commander of the Land Services of the East Europe, British Field Marshal Bernardo Montgomery, the Yugoslav communist leader Marshal Josip Broz Tito, Marshal of Poland Michal Ralja-Zimmersky and the Rohman of the Army, in charge of the Romanian Josip Broz Tito, Marshal of Poland Michal Ralja-Zimersky and the King of the Red Army. “For the courageous act of decisively turning the policy of Romania towards a break with Hitler’s Germany and an alliance with the United Nations at a time when the defeat of Germany was not yet clearly defined” .
Mihai Stalin allowed to freely leave Romania after the Communists came to power. Role-Zhimersky was arrested and sent to prison for two years only in May 1953, after Stalin's death. And on Tito, with whom there was a complete break in 1948, Stalin tried to organize an assassination attempt, but unsuccessfully.
The Purple Heart Medal was established in 1942 and was intended for all US military personnel who were injured. In the USSR, there were stripes for injuries: red for light, yellow for heavy. In the United States during the Second World War 671 000 people became owners of the Purple Heart. It turned out to be the most massive reward in the US Armed Forces, not counting the medal for winning the war.
There are a number of American military awards that have no direct Soviet counterparts. These are the Flight Honor Cross (for feats in air operations), the Soldier's Medal and the Bronze Star, established only on February 4 of the year 1944, but presented it for heroic acts committed since December 7 of 1941. Also, the Americans existed the medal "For Victory in the Second World War" - the obvious equivalent of the Soviet medals "For Victory over Germany" and "For Victory over Japan." But the American medals for participating in separate campaigns - “For participation in the American campaign”, “For the defense of America”, “For participation in the Asia-Pacific campaign”, “For participation in the European-African-Middle Eastern campaign” are similar not only to Soviet medals for the defense or the liberation (capture) of individual cities, but also for the medals "For the victory over Germany" and "For the victory over Japan." If in the United States, differentiation was only in individual theaters of hostilities, in the USSR it was exclusively in individual cities, for which particularly fierce battles were fought.
In general, the American system was distinguished by a significantly smaller number of both the awards themselves and those awarded. In the US Armed Forces, the production of the next rank was considered a much more important encouragement, which led to a significant increase in the pay and social status of the serviceman, including after the resignation.
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