Medal "30 years of the Soviet Army and Navy". History of the award

2024 Author: Sierra Becker | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-26 03:46

The medal "30 years of the Soviet Army and Navy" is well known especially to Russian falerists. The value of this award cannot be assessed only in direct monetary terms. Its significance has a completely different meaning. Only those who have lived in this country for a long time and felt the brunt of wartime can understand it. Only people born in the Soviet Union can understand the feeling of pride in the greatness and strength of their army that our citizens have.

A bit of history

Victory in the war of 1941-1945 was not easy for our people. Many soldiers remained on the battlefields. And those who returned were considered real heroes. By tradition, our state has always tried to single out people for their outstanding services. In this case, everyone won, without exception. Therefore, the Presidium of the USSR Armed Forces in February 1948, on the eve of the holiday, established a special medal "30 years of the Soviet Army and Navy".

This was a recognition of special heroism andselflessness in a difficult time for the country. The government decided to remind people of what they were defending in a long bloody struggle. The medal "30 Years of the Soviet Army and Navy" was a recognition of the huge contribution that the soldiers made to the cause of the common victory over the enemy. After awards for specific military merits, she became practically the first of those that were awarded in peacetime. This reminded the soldiers of their great feat. Of course, the heroism shown in a single battle is worthy of respect. But the essence of this award was to show all the surviving soldiers how much the whole people appreciates what they have done. A special honor to present the medal "30 Years of the Soviet Army and Navy" was given to the heads of relevant institutions and commanders of military units. Usually this happened at the place of their direct service. In the case when a citizen departed for another settlement, this honorable duty was transferred to the head of the commissariat at the place of residence.

Worthy List

All details regarding this award were set out in a separate Regulation, approved by the same Decree. In accordance with it, a list of persons for its delivery was determined. According to estimates made later in January 1995, there were just under four million of them. By decision of the Supreme Council, the anniversary medal "30 years of the Soviet Army and Navy" was awarded to almost everyone who, as of February 23 of the same year, was in the cadres of the Armed Forces, as well as the Ministry of State Security and the Ministry of Internal Affairs of our country.

Certain award rules have been established. First, an order was issued for an organization or military unit. A separate list was attached to it. The medal was awarded to soldiers of all ranks in the presence of the entire team on behalf of the Supreme Council of the country. A special note was made about this fact in the personal file of the awarded. After the death of a citizen, the medal had to be returned to the state. But in 1951, a corresponding change was made by Decree of February 5, which allowed the families of the dead to keep this award as a keepsake.

Detailed description

Now many falerists have a medal "30 years of the Soviet Army and Navy" in their collections. The photo of the award allows you to better view it from all sides. In addition, it is easier to notice some of the features allowed during its casting. The medal is a billet of the correct round shape, having an outer diameter of 32 mm, and made of brass. On the front side there is a relief image of the two most important personalities of the state: Lenin and Stalin. Below them is the inscription "XXX", indicating the numerical value of the anniversary. On the reverse side, at the very bottom, there is a five-pointed star.

Further in a circle - an inscription made in capital letters, which indicates the purpose of creating the product. Two more inscriptions are placed in the center: the name of the country's armed forces, as well as the time period "1918 - 1948", located in three lines. There is a small rim along the edge. On top of the workpiece there is a round eye, with which it is attached topentagonal block in the form of a festive red and white ribbon. Such an award should be worn on the chest on the left side. If a person has other commemorative medals, they should be in the order in which they were awarded.

Unique features

During production, two versions of this award were made. The difference lies in the casting of the ear. In one case, it is flat and evenly ground off. In the second, the fastener is also one-piece stamped, but already rounded and convex. A little later, they began to put the stamp of the mint of Leningrad "LMD" on it. In addition, when presenting the medal, a certificate is required. It was made three times and each time certain adjustments were made during printing:

1. The front side of the medal, depicted on the left side, had a black and white color, and the numbers “194” were printed in the text in place of the date of issue.
2. The award image has been changed to color.
3. The text on the right side has been changed again. In the indication of the year of issue, the numbers have been replaced by "19".

Such an award is estimated by falerists at auctions no more than 10 dollars in the presence of documents. It is clear that it is impossible to enrich oneself through such an acquisition. Therefore, some collectors acquire dummies for themselves. In principle, this is the same medal "30 years of the Soviet Army and Navy." The copy differs from the original only in the composition of the block and the absence of accompanying documents.

For the manufacture of dummies, material is used fromsynthetic silk, which is a fairly well-made copy of the original tape. It is often sold in the form of a blank 15 centimeters long for 110 rubles. If a person collects awards only to study the history of the country, then it does not really matter to him.