Sergei Kolomnin "riddles of awards of Marshal Brezhnev." roo "academy of russian symbolism" mars

December 19, 1906 Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev was born. In the 70s and 80s, the birthday of the Secretary General of the CPSU was a very significant event, and Brezhnev himself was awarded orders, medals and other awards, the amount of which he became one of the most striking stereotypes about Soviet leaders.

Today we would like to examine in more detail what awards Brezhnev was awarded, which copies in his "collection" are the most interesting and exotic, as well as other interesting facts about the first person awards of the Soviet Union in 1964-1982.

Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev.   Photo: RIA Novosti www.ria.ru

1.   Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev not only received a significant number of awards, but even managed to get with them in the Guinness Book of Records as "the most awarded person in the world." In the 1991 edition, his list featured 15 orders and 18 medals of the USSR, as well as 29 medals and 49 orders of foreign countries. The accuracy of these figures is subject to some doubts (in the Soviet years, complete lists were not published, hence the possible inaccuracies), but the fact of such a record is impressive.

2.   It is curious that with all the abundance of lifetime awards, posthumously Brezhnev was no longer awarded. Moreover: during the "perestroika" of some awards, he posthumously lost. This is the Order of Victory - the highest military award of the USSR, as well as the Polish Order of Military Valor (Virtuti Militari).

3.   There is a popular bike, according to which Brezhnev had to wear a tunic that weighed 6 kilograms because of awards. In fact, no one weighed his rewards. But such a tunic itself would indeed be more than weighty. It was physically impossible to wear it, so that Leonid Ilyich did not wear all his medals at the same time. As a rule, he limited himself to the "Golden Stars", "Hammer and Sickle", signs of Lenin awards and sometimes planks of orders.

  Brezhnev's awards presented at his funeral. Photo: Vladimir Akimov / RIA News www.ria.ru

4. Brezhnev also had such awards that were established specifically for him. In October 1981, to the 50th anniversary of Leonid Ilyich’s stay in the CPSU, a sign was introduced with the name, as you might guess, “50 years of stay in the CPSU”. The Central Committee solemnly handed the sign to the Secretary General, which he himself commented as follows: "As for me, when I receive this honorary sign, I feel understandable excitement. And not just excitement, but a feeling of deep gratitude to the great party of Lenin."

5.   Two months later, a peculiar record happened. Brezhnev celebrated his 75th birthday, and for this holiday he received thirteen different awards of eight states at once.

6.   In addition to state awards, Brezhnev received many departmental. In 1977, he received a membership card of the Union of Journalists of the USSR. Together with him, Brezhnev got another badge: Leonid Ilyich got the right to wear the badge confirming membership.

7.   Leonid Ilyich received a number of awards more than once, and much more often than others. For example, four times, only Marshal Zhukov became the Hero of the Soviet Union except Brezhnev. And along with the award of the Hero of Socialist Labor, he turned out to be the owner of five Golden Stars at once, and no one was awarded such an honor.

8. The number of Brezhnev’s foreign awards, according to various estimates, ranges from five to seven dozen. Among them are orders and medals of Argentina, Afghanistan, Guinea, Vietnam, Bulgaria, Hungary, Indonesia, East Germany, Cuba, Laos, North Korea, Yemen, Mongolia, Peru, Poland, Yugoslavia, Ethiopia, Czechoslovakia, Finland, Romania. Some of them were established several centuries ago, many are awarded now.

On November 10, 1982, the General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee, Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Council Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev passed away.

Brezhnev became famous for the suppression of dissent, the fight against so-called parasitism, the accumulation of an unprecedented military arsenal of the country (which led to a depressing shortage of consumer goods), a permanent governing apparatus (which caused massive corruption and depressing political stagnation), and also an addiction to rewards and passionate kisses with associates.

Before stagnation and deficit, there was a short period of developed socialism - in the absence of abundance, citizens received goods and affordable entertainment and recreation at low prices, and medical services, education, public housing for use were completely free. What ensured such extravagance is a separate acute question, but the mass of ordinary citizens was extremely pleased.

Leonid Ilyich was born on December 19, 1906, graduated from a labor school, Kursk Land Management and Land Reclamation College, Dneprodzerzhinsky Metallurgical Institute. His career was stubbornly and progressively: from an ordinary land surveyor to election to the Central Committee of the CPSU (1956), membership in the Presidium of the CPSU Central Committee, chairmanship of the Presidium of the Supreme Council, active participation in the conspiracy to remove General Secretary Nikita Khrushchev and occupy his post in 1964. However, the farce that has unleashed on cultivating the cult of the new leader of socialism is more likely to show the puppet of such a ruler, many historians talk about the de facto omnipotence of the party apparatus, the KGB and the army elite.

Under Brezhnev, who served as secretary general for 18 years, the country's political life was mothballed, confirmed by the unshakable stability of the unusually conservative composition of the leadership of the USSR. Then they abandoned the early construction of communism in favor of the idea of \u200b\u200bdeveloped socialism. The result of some Brezhnev reforms was a temporary increase in the standard of living of the population. Almost 50 percent of the housing stock of the USSR was built, and people received apartments for free, albeit uncomfortable and very cramped. The aerospace, automotive, oil and gas and military industries have developed well.

By the mid-70s of the 20th century, stagnation had become apparent: the nomenclature of the party grew inconceivably due to its unchanged composition, small dissidents appeared and the party members' obsession with complete control over the intelligentsia manifested itself in response. Dissent was suppressed by Brezhnev both in the USSR and in all the states of the socialist camp. Was Leonid Ilyich really receiving prestigious medals from the governments of all social countries?

Dialogue continued with the West, which became tense after the USSR's participation in African military events and the direct invasion of Afghanistan in 1979. In those years, the defense capability of the Soviet Union reached such a level that the country's armed forces could alone confront the combined armies of the entire NATO bloc. But getting involved in the arms race in the 1980s, the USSR began to spend enormous funds on it to the detriment of the civilian sectors of the economy, and a total deficit began.

Leonid Ilyich fell ill long before his death, suffered a coma, strokes and heart attacks. Then they started talking openly about the eccentricities of the Secretary General - it’s hot to kiss politicians and “hang their own orders”. Rumor exaggerated the facts: Brezhnev was awarded all orders of the USSR, except for the order "Mother Heroine", his tunic with awards weighed six kg (I wonder who weighed it). On November 26, 1986, Leonid Ilyich’s awards were transferred from his dacha to the order storeroom of the Presidium of the Supreme Council.

Having a list of deposited awards, an entry from the Guinness Book of Records (Progress Publishing House, 1991) and the results of investigations by amateur historians, Vecherka compiled a list of Leonid Ilyich's awards.

1. Soviet orders

On September 21, 1989, the Decree "On the abolition of the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the USSR of February 20, 1978" on the rewarding of the Secretary General of the Central Committee of the CPSU, the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the USSR, and the Chairman of the Council of Defense of the USSR Marshal of the Soviet Union was signed by the Chairman of the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet Mikhail Gorbachev. Brezhnev L. I. Order of Victory. After all, they were awarded with the status of only commanders for major victories on the front scale, to which Brezhnev had nothing to do, although in peacetime he was considered a marshal. During his life, Leonid Ilyich had 16 Soviet orders:

Eight Orders of Lenin, the Order of Victory (the award was canceled after death), two orders of the October Revolution, two orders of the Red Banner, the order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky 2nd degree, the Order of World War II 1st degree, the Order of the Red Star.

It is a mistake to believe the myth that Leonid Brezhnev is the holder of the largest number of orders of Lenin. In the USSR, several military leaders and politicians also had 8 orders, and some 9 orders of Lenin.

2. Gold Soviet medals of the Hero

Gold medals along with the Order of Lenin reinforced the title of Hero of the Soviet Union and Hero of Socialist Labor. Four times Heroes of the Soviet Union were only Marshal Georgy Zhukov and Marshal Brezhnev. But the owner of five Gold medals of the Hero was only Leonid Ilyich - together with four titles of the Hero of the Soviet Union and one - the Hero of Socialist Labor.

4 Golden Stars of the Hero and 1 Golden "Hammer and Sickle".

3. Soviet medals

In the inventory before the transfer of awards to the order storeroom of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, there are only 18 medals. However, in the photographs, meticulous researchers found several medals unaccounted for in the act of passing the medals. If you count them, you get 22 medals in total, and minus five Golds - 17:

A complete list of Soviet Brezhnev medals:

“For military merits”, “For the defense of Odessa”, “For the defense of the Caucasus”, “For the liberation of Warsaw”, “For the capture of Vienna”, “For valiant labor in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945”, “For the victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941 - 1945 "," For the restoration of ferrous metallurgy enterprises in the South "," For the development of virgin lands "," In memory of the 250th anniversary of Leningrad "," In memory of the 1500th anniversary of Kiev "," 40 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR "," 50 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR "," 60 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR "," 20 years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941 - 1945 "," 30 years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941 - 1945 "," For Valiant Labor. In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin "

4. Foreign awards.

It was no accident that Leonid Ilyich did not wear them on a tunic. Not only from convictions or political views - from such a pile of metal awards chain mail would have been obtained, or even not one. We will arrange them alphabetically in the award countries. We publish a list of orders and medals that were awarded to Leonid Ilyich during his lifetime. In 1990, Poland canceled the award of Brezhnev with one order and a star, and possibly other similar acts were passed without publicity.

From argentina  Order of the May Revolution, 1st class; from the Republic of Afghanistanorder of the "Sun of Liberty"; from the People's Republic of Bulgaria: three Golden Stars of the Hero of the NRB, three orders of George Dimitrov, medal "100 years of the liberation of Bulgaria from the Ottoman yoke", medal "30 years of the Socialist Revolution in Bulgaria", medal "90 years since the birth of G. Dimitrov", medal "100 years since birthday of G. Dimitrov "; from the Hungarian People's Republic  two orders of the Banner of Hungary with diamonds; from the Socialist Republic of Vietnam: Gold Medal of the Hero of Labor SRV, Order of Ho Chi Minh 1st degree, Order of the Golden Star; from the Republic of Guinea  Order of Independence; from the German Democratic Republic: three Golden Stars of the Hero of the German Democratic Republic, three orders of Karl Marx, the Order of the Great Star of Friendship of Peoples with diamonds, the medal "For Merit in Strengthening the German Democratic Republic", from Indonesia two stars and two signs of the Order of the Star of Indonesia 1st class; from the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen Order of the Revolution of October 14, from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Order of the State Banner of the 1st degree; from the Republic of Cuba: Gold Star of the Hero of Cuba, order of Jose Marti, order of Carlos Manuel de Cespedes, order of Playa Chiron, medal "20 years of assault on the Moncado Barracks", medal "20 years of the Revolutionary Armed Forces", from the People's Democratic Republic of Laos: Gold Star of the Hero of NDRL, Gold Medal of the Nation; from the Mongolian People's Republic: Gold Star of the Hero of Mongolia, Gold Star of the Hero of Labor of the MPR, four orders of Suche-Bator, medal "30 years of Victory at Khalkhin-Gol", medal "40 years of Victory at Khalkhin-Gol", medal "50 years of Victory at Khalkhin-Gol", medal "50 years of the Mongolian People's Army," medal "30 years of Victory over Japan"; from the Republic of Peru: Order of the "Sun of Peru" 1st degree; from the Polish People's Republic: star and badge of the Order of Virtuti Military of the 1st class (the award was canceled in 1990), star and badge of the Order of the Renaissance of Poland 1st class, star and badge of the Order of Merit NDP of the 1st class, Grunwald cross of the 2nd degree, medal " For the Oder, Neisse, Baltic "medal" Victory and Freedom "; from the Socialist Republic of Romania: Order of the “Star of Romania” 1st degree, Order of Victory of Socialism, from Finland: star and badge of the Order of the White Rose of the 1st class, Order of the White Rose with a chain; from the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic: three Golden Stars of the Hero of Czechoslovakia, four orders of Clement Gottwald, Order of the White Lion "For Victory" 1st degree, star and badge of the Order of the White Lion with a chain, two military crosses of 1939, medal "For Courage Before the Enemy", military commemorative medal (1946), Dukel commemorative medal (1960), medal "20 years of the Slovak National Uprising", medal "50 years of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia", medal "30 years of the Slovak National Uprising", medal "For Strengthening Friendship in Arms" 1st degree; from the Socialist Republic of Ethiopia: Order of the Star of Honor; from the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia: Order of the Star of Yugoslavia 1st degree, Order of Liberty with diamonds

5. Awards of various classifications.

Leonid Brezhnev was awarded the Lenin Prize in Literature for three brochures: "Small Earth", "Renaissance" and "Tselina", issued in a circulation of more than 15 million copies each. They were written by professional authors, journalists. Brochures were recommended for compulsory study in the school curriculum.

BREZHNEV. I thank my comrades from the heart for the confidence that I have been shown in conferring the military rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union. I will do everything to justify this high rank and the confidence that the Politburo gives me as Secretary General and as Chairman of the Defense Council. I just want to ask comrades how this will be from an international point of view, will not cause any misunderstanding?
EVERYONE says that this is a completely normal thing, since you are the Chairman of the Defense Council and have the military rank of army general.
BREZHNEV. We will not publish this in print, just as the decision to award me the rank of army general was not published.
DECISION on conferring the military rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union t. L.I. Brezhnev is accepted unanimously.

Hello dear.
Last night, watching the next series of Parfyonovsky (not to be confused with Parfyansky :-)))) The other day, he saw the rewarding of the "expensive Leonid Ilyich" with the fourth star of the Hero of the Soviet Union. I immediately remembered the numerous jokes regarding the number of awards of the elderly Secretary General. According to the vast majority of residents of the former USSR, Comrade Brezhnev is the undisputed number 1 among the most awarded people on the planet, with at least 95% of these awards received by him absolutely undeservedly. Is it really? Let's try to figure it out. In general, I really love faleristics (the science of awards), I respect Leonid Ilyich with respect and deep sympathy (in particular for his love of life, positive outlook and lack of bloodthirstiness), so I will try to be impartial. As far as I succeed, you judge.
So, I propose to highlight two important aspects.
1) L.I. Brezhnev "the most awarded person on the planet."
2) The awards that were awarded to the Secretary-General, he did not deserve.

L.I. Brezhnev with awards

Let's start with the main one - with the number of awards. To do this, we need to divide the awards into 2 groups - Domestic and Foreign. Accordingly, each of these groups can be formally divided into 3 subgroups: 1) Orders, 2) Medals 3) other awards (prizes, grants, etc.)
Let's start with the domestic Orders. This is the easiest section to count and analyze.
Brezhnev currently has 15 domestic Orders: 8 Orders of Lenin, 2 Orders of the October Revolution, 2 Orders of the Red Banner, Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky 2 degrees, Order of the Patriotic War I degrees, Order of the Red Star. There was also 16 - the Order of Victory, but this award was canceled back in 1989 by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR.
If you look at the total number of Orders, Brezhnev can in no way be a leader. The marshals of the Soviet Union Zakharov, Sokolov and Meretskov have 16, the Rokossovsky, Budyonny, Kulikov and Konev have 17 orders, the Chuikov, Voroshilov and Sokolovsky have 18, and Moskalenko (by the way, it is not clear for what merits) they have 20 !!!

Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky II degree

Let's go further. Leonid Ilyich has as many as 8 Orders of Lenin. This is a lot, but by no means a record. 10 orders of Lenin, for example, have such an ambiguous historical character as the first secretary of the Uzbek USSR Rashidov Sh.R., 11 - with Ustinov, and the absolute record holder is the Minister of Foreign Trade Nikolai Semenovich Patolichev, with 12 such orders.
Quite rare is the double awarding of the Order of the October Revolution. However, here Leonid Ilyich is not alone. Besides him, there are 10 twice awarded this order, for example, the designer of tanks Kotin and the astronomer Severny.
I don’t feel like disassembling other orders. As the saying goes, niac. For example, 6 orders of the Red Banner had more than 30 people (such military leaders as Rokossovsky or Army General Getman).
So, both in the number of Orders in general and in the number of specific awards, Leonid Ilyich is not a champion. I will say more - he is not even a leader.

Patolichev N.S.

Now that we have sorted out the domestic orders, I think it would be appropriate to go to the domestic medals.
I counted 22 Soviet medals from him. First of all, it is necessary to single out 4 Golden Star medals of the Hero of the Soviet Union and the Hammer and Sickle medal of the Hero of Socialist Labor. This is a serious claim for success :-))) Four times the heroes of the Soviet Union in history there were only two - G.K. Zhukov and L.I. Brezhnev.
The heroes of Socialist Labor were many. Three heroes were 16 people, among them Kurchatov, Keldysh, Ilyushin, Sakharov and the same Khrushchev. 11 people wore the high title of Heroes of the Soviet Union and Socialist Labor, but Brezhnev was out of competition in the total number of these medals (4 + 1). “Dear Nikita Sergeyevich”, who has one Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union and as many as 3 Heroes of Socialist Labor, got closest to him.
In terms of the number of other medals, Brezhnev’s result is not impressive. A huge number of people have similar or much more similar awards.

Order of Karl Marx (GDR)

Now let's move on to a more complex topic - foreign awards. If it is more or less clear with domestic awards, then with the insignia of foreign states everything is much more complicated. Let's start with the Orders. I counted a total of 43 pieces of them by Leonid Ilyich (there were 44, but the Poles in 1990 canceled the awarding of the Order of Virtuti Militari with the Big Cross). The Mongols who distinguished the Soviet leader with the Order of Suche-Bator as much as 4 times and the Czechs who gave the same number of Orders of the Clement Gottwald were especially distinguished in the field of awarding. The East Germans - 3 Orders of Karl Marx and the Bulgarians - 3 Orders of George Dimitrov a little behind them. He is not a champion among the Mongols, since the famous Marshal Khorlogiin Choibalsan had as many of these Orders, and as many as 5 are former secretary of the Central Committee of the Mongolian Communist Party Yumzhagiin Tsedenbal. But 4 Czech orders are a breakthrough! Even Gustav Husak and Ludwig Freedom had only 3 copies of this award. The same goes for 3 Bulgarian ones - no one except Brezhnev had more than 3 Orders of G. Dimitrov.

  Order of the Sun of Peru (Peru)

The most beautiful foreign award of the leader of the Soviet state, in my humble conviction, is the "Sun of Peru", and the most exotic "Order of Independence" of the Republic of Guinea.
Many or few 43 foreign orders. It depends on what to compare. On the one hand, it seems a lot, and on the other hand, if we consider the awards of any European monarch, then this list is much longer. Yes, even if you take Josip Broz Tito, he has at least 53 foreign Orders.
Now let's move on to foreign medals. Leonid Ilyich has 36 of them. He is the only thrice hero of the Republic of Bulgaria, and thrice Hero of the GDR and also one of the three thrice heroes of Czechoslovakia (along with G. Gusak and L. Svoboda). 36 medals is very good. I, perhaps, agree that the total number of medals is the first in the world.
The most exotic of his available medals, in my opinion, is the Golden Star of the Hero of the Lao People's Democratic Republic.

Order of K. Gotwald (Czechoslovakia)

Consider other awards. Leonid Ilyich also has a lot of them and they are not amenable to accurate calculation. Among the most famous, I would single out 2 Marshall stars - a small one (for the rank of Army General) and a large one (for, in fact, the marshal's title itself). In addition, the medal The Gold Medal of Peace named after F. Joliot-Curie, the Golden Medal of the United Nations named after O. Ghan, the gold medal of the USSR Academy of Sciences, the Lenin Prize, the Peace Prize "Golden Mercury", G. Dimitrov Prize. We add another honorary weapon, honorary citizenship of cities such as Baku, Kiev, Dnepropetrovsk and Tbilisi.

Order of Playa Chiron (Cuba)

I nevertheless propose not to consider these very different awards and preferences in our ranking. If only because absolutely everything is impossible to take into account, and it does not make any sense. Let's count only domestic and foreign Orders and medals. I got this:
Domestic awards - 15 orders and 22 medals, a total of 37 awards.
Foreign awards - 43 Orders and 36 medals, totaling 79 awards.
In total, it turns out that Leonid Ilyich was awarded only 116 times. And this is apparently a truly world record, as for the English Queen Elizabeth II, for example, I counted only 89 awards, Broz Tito 82, Ustinov 73.

Order "Star of Yugoslavia" I degree (SFRY)

Now we will consider such a sensitive topic as the deservedness of these very awards. It is really difficult, in view of the fact that the head of state is very often awarded with foreign orders and medals not for any specific merits, namely, for being the head of state. I will not give examples - for there really are a lot of them.
Let's look at those awards that Leonid Ilyich was awarded with a well-deserved honor, as he really fought, raised the economy and led almost from the bottom link. There are not many of them. First of all, it is: the Order of the Red Star, the Order of the Patriotic War of the 1st degree, the Order of the October Revolution (one), one or even 2 Orders of Lenin, possibly the Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky of the 2nd degree and even theoretically Hero of Socialist Labor. Well, of course, all the Soviet medals, because they deserved the military ones in the case, and the anniversary ones in status. I would also calmly relate to foreign awards, if not for one BUT ... there should be only one award, and not 2-3, as the Bulgarians or the Mongols did.

Order "Banner of Hungary" (Hungary)

IMHO, it should be absolutely undeserved that Brezhnev be awarded the title of 4th Hero of the Soviet Union, since according to the statute of the award he could not even get 1 Hero, not to mention 4. Further, at least 6 orders of Lenin were off topic, the second Order of the October Revolution, too does not fit, the stars of the Hero of NRB, Hero of Labor of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, Hero of Cuba, Hero of the Lao PDR, Hero of the Democratic Republic of Germany, one "Star of Indonesia", the stars of the Hero of Mongolia and the Hero of Labor of the MPR, Hero of Czechoslovakia. In addition, both orders of the Banner of Hungary, at least 2 out of 3 Orders of George Dimitrov, at least 2 out of 3 Orders of Karl Marx, at least 3 of 4 Orders of Suche Bator and at least 3 of 4 Orders of Clement Gottwald.
Which of the foregoing can we draw conclusions, dear comrades and comrades? J The conclusions are simple - according to the total number of awards, the former head of the Soviet state and the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Leoni Ilyich Brezhnev is indeed ONE of the record holders. One of them was 2 such remarkable dictators as Jean Bedel Bokassa and Idi Amin, who, according to some sources, have collected a collection of more than 200 orders and medals each. Many awards received by Leonid Ilyich unjustly, but by no means 95%, as rumors say, for a person is truly deserved and respected, and that is what he deserved honestly. And with other awards, too, everything is not easy. Is there any doubt that the award Mauser received by Leonid Ilyich in 1943 was unfairly received? I have no doubt - earned the case and honor. So in your assessments you have to be very careful.
Hope not bored you.
respectfully

Since the era of perestroika, the “iconostasis” of the Secretary-General of the period of “stagnation” was answered only mockingly. Comments and jokes were in the style of Fedot the archer: "On the back, and then there are six of them."

At the same time, the jokers were absolutely sure that Leonid Ilyich was the absolute world leader in the number of awards, but could not say how many awards Brezhnev had for sure. They were also completely unaware of exactly when and in connection with which specific orders and medals were awarded. Perhaps knowledge would somewhat diminish their fun. Why was Leonid Brezhnev honored with so many honors? The awards and titles of this significant personality in the history we will consider in the article.

Task with the unknown

Not only the compilers of jokes, but also reputable experts do not dare to name the exact number of Brezhnev awards. The problem is in foreign orders and medals, which the leaders of the countries of the Soviet bloc and other allied states generously endowed. Their complete list has not been published anywhere, the available data have significant discrepancies. Therefore, it is not worth disassembling them - you cannot rely on inaccurate information.

With Soviet rewards easier. Leonid Ilyich had 16 of them posthumously noted) and 22 medals. By the way, a photo of Brezhnev with all the awards (or at least from the topic that fit on his jacket) is posted in the article.

In labor and in battle

But Soviet awards are far from everything can be classified as military. So, Brezhnev was a Hero of Socialist Labor - this, as they say, from another opera. Also, Leonid Ilyich had several, including, for example, dedicated to the 1500th anniversary of Kiev. But such at that time gave all the more or less significant people in the country, but it was impossible to get around the top leadership!

At the same time, it is simply unreasonable to say that Brezhnev received his awards only because he had a weakness for them and, as the General Secretary, could afford to satisfy this weakness. This is not true if only because a considerable part of orders and medals was received by him long before ascending to the highest post in the country, and Brezhnev's career began from the very bottom. He really fought, and really worked a lot.

Four star

Of the military awards of Leonid Ilyich, the first to attract the attention of 4 Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union (and the Order of Lenin to them). But here they can just be recognized as a manifestation of personal passion for "trinkets" and a subjugation of subordinates. All Stars were received by Brezhnev in the very post-war period (respectively in 1966, 1976, 1978 and 1981) and already when he was Secretary General.

Yes, it happened that the heroes found the awards after a considerable period after the achievement of their feat, and in peacetime you can also show heroism. But Leonid Ilyich was not seen either in the cosmonaut squad or among the rescuers. According to the charter of the award, there wasn’t much to give him the only copy.

In addition to Brezhnev, in the USSR there was another “four-star” Hero. But it was the “Marshal of Victory” G.K. Zhukov, and no questions arise for his awards.

For taking everything

The rewards of Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich for the capture of Warsaw and Vienna (to which he had nothing to do), as well as For the Defense of Odessa (though, he can be attracted here even through his work in the political department of the Southern Front) also attract attention. But they cannot be explained in any way by the influence of the post of the Secretary General, since they were received before 1964, therefore, at the time when Brezhnev was a rather prominent party and economic worker, but not an omnipotent leader of a huge country.

Most likely the medals were received as almost memorable. Such a practice existed in those years, and were given to honored war veterans (and Brezhnev was one!) In honor of anniversary dates or in connection with important events in the life of the country.

Many anniversaries

This category falls medals dedicated to the anniversaries of Victory and the Armed Forces. Leonid Ilyich had every right to them as a front-line soldier, major general, participant in the Victory Parade. Too many participants in the war were noted in this way, and this is only fair.

Writing Paradox

Before proceeding to the military awards of Brezhnev that he received during the war years, it should be noted that he himself in some way contributed to the formation of a skeptical attitude towards them in society. The reason is the literary work of the Secretary General.

From the memoirs of Brezhnev's acquaintances who knew him in his youth, it is known that he tried to compose, but did not like to read, did not suffer from the beauty of the syllable, and even his grammar was noticeably lame. Of course, being in ideological positions on the military and party lines, he could not help but learn a little coherent presentation of thoughts, but it is clear that literature was not an element of Leonid Ilyich.

Nevertheless, several books were published under the name of Brezhnev. Immediately rumors spread about who exactly and under what conditions worked for the Secretary-General as a "literary Negro," and the works were skeptical. But among them was “Small land” - a description of the heroic story of the unconquered bridgehead near Novorossiysk!

After the start of perestroika, there was even talk that the hostilities near Novorossiysk were embellished to please Brezhnev, and Malaya Zemlya actually cost little. So a little-esteemed desire to denigrate the name of the one who can no longer give change led to an even worse result - a direct falsification of history.

1941-1945

Yes, Brezhnev did not go into dashing bayonet attacks, did not throw enemy pillboxes with grenades, and did not personally capture particularly valuable prisoners. But he should not have done it! In the war, he was a brigade commissar, then colonel and major general, served in the political department of the Black Sea Group (North Caucasian Front), and then - the political department of the Southern Front.

Colonels and generals are not supposed to personally sit in trenches and rush at the enemy with shouts of "Hurray!" Their task is to organize the matter so that the rank and file, who just have to go to the attack, do it effectively.

Brezhnev was at war since the fall of 1941, and he performed his duties honestly. This is another perestroika injustice - the assertion that political workers only spied on the soldiers, handed party cards and proclaimed inspired speeches away from the front line. Their task was to constantly be among the fighters, explain to them within the framework of a possible military task, raise their spirits, motivate for excellent service. And Brezhnev did it all, not swinging.

Brezhnev's Awards: List (Short)

Rather, during the war, Brezhnev was even circumvented with awards. At the Victory Parade, he was one of the least awarded generals. He did not have high patrons in the army, and he himself did not show a special careerism and did not climb into the foreground. Therefore, all his awards during the war period are extremely respectful.

Brezhnev had:

• 2 orders of the Red Banner;
• Red Star;
• medal "For Military Merit";
• the order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky (it was customary to mark high-ranking officers with this award, and Major General is a suitable candidate for it).

The situation is more serious with the Caucasus and the Lesser Land. Leonid Ilyich had a medal “For the Defense of the Caucasus”, and who can say that she was not deserved by the deputy chief of the political unit of the Black Sea military group? And for the liberation of Novorossiysk political instructor Brezhnev was awarded the Order of the Patriotic War (1st degree). And is there anything to argue here if he was transported dozens of times under sea shelling to a bridgehead isolated from land to fulfill his duties as an ideological leader! It is known that once his seiner even ran into a mine, and it cost the colonel-political officer of an unplanned bath. But even after this incident, he continued to regularly visit the Small Earth.

Defeated Germany

Leonid Ilyich received another military award after a considerable period of time after the end of the war. This is the medal "For the victory over Germany." But here it is difficult to see servitude or injustice. Brezhnev had not yet become Secretary General by that time, and this medal was handed over to many front-line soldiers who went through the entire war some time after the Victory.

Brezhnev did not go to the front in the very first days of the war just because, as the third secretary of the regional committee in Dnepropetrovsk, he was engaged in ensuring the mobilization and evacuation of strategic industries - a more than justifiable reason! But already in the fall he was in the army, and until the end of the war did not leave the service. The medal was rightfully due to him.

Selected Victory

But with one military order, embarrassment came out. In 1978, Brezhnev was awarded the Order of Victory. They were counted in units in the USSR, this award was relied to outstanding commanders for the successful organization of several operations on a scale not less than the front. It is clear that there was no reason to hand it to Brezhnev - this was a case of service to the head of the country.

In 1989, the Presidium of the Supreme Council canceled this award. Everything would be true, if it were not for one “but” - it is very easy to take away the rewards from the dead ... By that time, Brezhnev had not been there for almost 7 years, and you could do anything with him.

Red Army Brezhnev

You can award not only medals and orders. Among other things, Brezhnev was the owner of a nominal weapon - a Mauser and checkers. As for the second, questions may arise (handed in 1978). Although why not - a military man. Mauser was received in 1943 and undoubtedly deserved.

Foreigners will figure it out

As for the foreign awards of Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich, among them were those with military status. But these awards are on the conscience of the leaders of the respective states. They know better who deserved their state orders and medals and how many times. Claims for this can only be brought by their own peoples.

For eternal storage

No one was able to provide convincing evidence that 44 officers carried during the pillow with his awards - this is all newspaper gossip, televisions do not allow us to judge for sure. But it is reliable that the widow of the Secretary General handed over all of his awards to the Order Chamber for storage - the family considered them the property of the state.

Top rank

And there are such awards of Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich, which neither the authorities, nor the ridicule of the ignorant, nor the time can take away.

Marines Maria Aleksandrovna Galushkina, a volunteer sergeant, during the war performed the duties of not only a nurse, but also a liaison officer and even a sniper. She is the owner of the Red Star and three medals "For Courage". The word of such a person is expensive.

So, in her memory there was a “good, desperate man” Lenka Brezhnev. Exactly. And nothing else is needed.

Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev — Secretary General of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union, Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR, Marshal of the Soviet Union.

He was born on December 6 (19), 1906 in the village of Kamenskoye, Yekaterinoslav Uyezd in the Yekaterinoslav Province, now the city of Kamenskoye (Dneprodzerzhinsk in 1936-2016) in the Dnipropetrovsk Region of Ukraine, in the family of a metallurgical worker. Russian. From the age of 15 he began working life. After graduating from the Kursk Land Management and Land Reclamation College in 1927, he worked as a land surveyor in the Kokhanovsky district of the Orsha district of Belarus, in the Kursk province and in the Urals, as the head of the regional land department and deputy chairman of the executive committee of the Bisert district council, first deputy head of the Ural regional land administration. In 1923 he joined the Komsomol. Member of the CPSU (b) / CPSU since 1931. After graduating from the Dneprodzerzhinsky Metallurgical Institute in 1935, he was an engineer at the Dneprodzerzhinsky Metallurgical Plant.

In October 1935 - October 1936 L.I. Brezhnev was in active military service: a cadet of the Trans-Baikal armored school, political instructor of the tank company of the 14th mechanized corps in the Trans-Baikal military district.

From October 1936 to May 1937 he worked as the director of the Dneprodzerzhinsky Metallurgical College. In May 1937, L.I. Brezhnev was elected deputy chairman of the executive committee of the Dneprodzerzhinsky city council for construction and urban economy. From May 1938, he was the head of the department of Soviet trade, and from February 1939, he was the secretary for propaganda of the Dnepropetrovsk regional committee of the Communist Party (b) of Ukraine.

Since the beginning of World War II, L.I. Brezhnev - in the army, is aimed at political work. Deputy Head of the Political Administration of the Southern Front (06/28/1941-16.09.1942), Deputy Head of the Political Administration of the Black Sea Group of Forces (October 8, 1942-1.04.1943), Head of the Political Department of the 18th Army (April 1, 1943-May 5, 1944), Deputy Head of the Political Administration 4th Ukrainian Front (05/09/1944 - 12/05/1945), head of the political department of the 4th Ukrainian Front (12/05/1945 - 07/07/1945). He led a great deal of organizational and political work directly in the formations, units and subunits to mobilize personnel for solving combat missions.

At the Victory Parade on Red Square in Moscow on June 24, 1945, Major General L. Brezhnev took part as the commissar of the combined regiment of the 4th Ukrainian Front (commander of the combined regiment - guard, Lieutenant General, Hero of the Soviet Union A.L. Bondarev). Initially, he continued to serve in the Red Army: the head of the political department of the Carpathian military district (07/09/1945-18.07.1946). On July 18, 1946, he was transferred to the reserve.

Since August 30, 1946 L.I. Brezhnev - 1st Secretary of Zaporizhzhya, from November 22, 1947 - 1st Secretary of the Dnepropetrovsk Regional Committee of the Communist Party of Ukraine. Since June 26, 1950 - 1st Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Moldova. From October 25, 1952 to March 5, 1953 - Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee.

Since August 1953 - again in military service. From March 5 to May 21, 1953 Brezhnev L.I. - Head of the Political Department of the Naval Ministry of the USSR. From May 21, 1953 to February 27, 1954, he was deputy head of the Main Political Directorate of the Soviet Army and Navy. Since February 1954 - in stock.

From February 6, 1954 - the 2nd, and from August 6, 1955 - the 1st Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Kazakhstan. On March 6, 1956, the Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee and a candidate member of the Presidium of the CPSU Central Committee. Since June 29, 1957 - Member of the Presidium of the Central Committee of the CPSU. During this period, on behalf of the Central Committee, he was involved in the development of heavy industry and construction, the development and production of the latest military equipment and weapons, their equipping of the Soviet Armed Forces, and the development of astronautics.

By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of June 17, 1961, "for outstanding services in creating samples of rocket technology and ensuring the successful flight of Soviet man into outer space" Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich  awarded the title Hero of Socialist Labor with the awarding of the Order of Lenin and the Gold Medal "Hammer and Sickle".

From May 7, 1960 to July 15, 1964 L.I. Brezhnev — Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. At the same time since June 22, 1963 - Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee.

At the plenum of the Central Committee of the CPSU on October 14, 1964, L.I. Brezhnev was elected First Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee and approved by the Chairman of the Bureau of the CPSU Central Committee for the RSFSR.

Since April 8, 1966 L.I. Brezhnev — Secretary General of the Central Committee of the CPSU and member of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the CPSU; at the same time since June 16, 1977 — Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the USSR.

By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of December 18, 1966, "for outstanding services to the Communist Party and the Soviet state in communist construction, in strengthening the country's defense capabilities and great services in the fight against Nazi invaders on the front during the Great Patriotic War in connection with the 60- birthday anniversary " Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich  awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union with the award of the Order of Lenin and the Gold Star medal.

By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of December 18, 1976, "for outstanding services to the Communist Party and the Soviet state in communist construction, active, fruitful work to strengthen peace and security of peoples, for his great personal contribution to the cause of victory over the Nazi invaders in the Great Patriotic War war, in strengthening the economic and defense power of the Soviet Union and in connection with the 70th anniversary of the birth of "Marshal of the Soviet Union was awarded the Order of Lenin and the second medal" Gold I'm a star".

By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of December 19, 1978 "for outstanding services to the Communist Party and the Soviet state in strengthening the economic and defense power of the Soviet Union during the Great Patriotic War and in the post-war period, for tireless work in the struggle for peace and in connection with the day birth "was awarded the Order of Lenin and the third medal" Golden Star ".

By a decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of December 18, 1981, "for outstanding services to the Communist Party and the Soviet state in strengthening the economic and defense power of the Soviet Union, a great personal contribution to achieving victory over the Nazi invaders during the Great Patriotic War, restoration and further the development of the national economy of the USSR in the post-war period, tireless activity in the struggle for peace, for the fruitful leadership of communist construction and in connection with the 75th anniversary a birthday "was awarded the Order of Lenin and the fourth medal" Gold Star. "

L.I. Brezhnev L.I. was elected as a deputy of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of the 3-10th convocations (1950-1982).

L.I. Brezhnev died on November 10, 1982. He was buried in Moscow on Red Square near the Kremlin wall. A granite bust is installed on the grave.

Military ranks:
  Brigadier Commissioner (June 1941),
  Colonel (12/15/1942),
  Major General (11/2/1944),
  Lieutenant General (08/04/1953),
  Army General (03/22/1974),
  Marshal of the Soviet Union (05/07/1976).

He was awarded eight orders of Lenin, two orders of the October Revolution, two orders of the Red Banner, orders of Bogdan Khmelnitsky of the 2nd degree, World War I of the 1st degree, Red Star, medals, numerous foreign orders. Honorary citizen of the city of Dnepropetrovsk (1979).

February 20, 1978 was awarded the highest Soviet military order "Victory", but the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR by its Decree of September 21, 1989 canceled the 1978 Decree on awarding Brezhnev L.I. Order of Victory, as contrary to the statute of this order.

He was awarded the international Lenin Prize "For the consolidation of peace between peoples" (1973), the Lenin Prize for Literature (1979).

Bronze bust L.I. Brezhneva L.I. installed in the city of Dneprodzerzhinsk. September 16, 2004 in the hero city of Novorossiysk a monument to L.I. Brezhnev. Monuments were also erected in Moscow and Vladimir. Name L.I. From 1982 to 1988, Brezhnev wore the city of Naberezhnye Chelny (Tatar Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic), areas in Moscow and Dneprodzerzhinsk. His name was given to the Oskol Electrometallurgical Combine, the Southern Machine-Building Plant production association, the Novorossiysk Cement Combine, and the Atommash Volgodonsk Production Association. All names were canceled in 1988. In Moscow, memorial plaques are installed on the house in which he lived, and in Kursk on the building in which he studied.

Works:
  Lenin course: Speeches and articles. T. 1-9. M., 1973-1983;
  Memories. M., 1983.

Full list of awards L.I. Brezhnev.

State awards of the USSR:

4 Gold Star medals of the Hero of the Soviet Union (12/18/1966 - No. 11320, 12/18/1976 - No. 97 / II, 12/19/1978 - No. 5 / III, 12/18/1981 - No. 2 / IV)
  Sickle and Hammer Medal of the Hero of Socialist Labor (06/17/1961)
  8 Orders of Lenin (12/2/1947 - No. 66231, 12/18/1956 - No. 281153, 06/17/1961 - No. 344996, 12/18/1966 - No. 382246, 2/10/1971 - No. 401096, 12/18/1976 - No. 425869, 12/19/1978 - No. 432408, 12/18/1981 - No. 458500)
Order of Victory (02.20.1978 - No. 20), the award was canceled by the Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Council of the USSR on 09.21.1989
  2 orders of the October Revolution (03/14/1979 - No. 58256, 12/18/1980 - No. 87064)
  2 orders of the Red Banner (03/27/1942 - No. 23636, 05/29/1944 - No. 8148/2)
  Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky 2nd degree (05/23/1945 - No. 1182)
  Order of the Patriotic War of the 1st degree (09/18/1943 - No. 11025)
  Order of the Red Star (03.16.1943 - No. 102567)
  medal "For Military Merit"
  medal "For the Defense of Odessa"
  Medal "For the Defense of the Caucasus"
  medal "For the Liberation of Warsaw"
  medal "For the capture of Vienna"
  Medal "For Valiant Labor in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945."
  medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945."
  medal “For the restoration of the iron and steel enterprises of the south” medal “For the development of virgin lands”
  medal “In memory of the 250th anniversary of Leningrad”
  medal “In memory of the 1500th anniversary of Kiev”
  medal "40 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR"
  medal "50 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR"
  medal "60 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR"
  Medal "Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945."
  medal "Thirty years of victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945."
  medal “For valiant work. In commemoration of the centenary of the birth of V.I. Lenin
  Medal of the Lenin Prize Laureate (04/20/1979)
  Honorary weapon - a nameplate with a golden image of the State Emblem of the USSR (12/18/1976)

Foreign awards:

Argentina Award:
  Order of the May Revolution 1st class (1974)
Award of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan:
  Order of the "Sun of Liberty" (12.16.1981)
Awards of the People's Republic of Bulgaria:
  3 Golden Stars of the Hero of the People's Republic of Bulgaria (09.09.1973, 12.1976, 12.1981)
  3 orders of George Dimitrov (09/08/1973, 12.1976, 12.1981)
  Medal "100 years of the liberation of Bulgaria from the Ottoman yoke" (1978)
  Medal "30 years of the Socialist Revolution in Bulgaria" (1974)
  Medal "90th Birth Anniversary of G. Dimitrov" (1974)
  Medal "100th Birth Anniversary of G. Dimitrov" (1982)
Awards of the Hungarian People's Republic:
  2 orders of the Banner of Hungary with diamonds (12/17/1976, 12/18/1981)
Awards of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam:
  Gold Medal of the Hero of Labor of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (12.21.1981)
  Order of Ho Chi Minh 1st degree (12/21/1981)
  Order of the Golden Star (07.1980)
Guinea Republic Award:
  Order of Independence (02.1961)
German Democratic Republic Awards:
3 Golden Stars of the Hero of the German Democratic Republic (12/13/1976, 12/18/1979, 12/18/1981)
  3 orders of Karl Marx (10.1974, 12/18/1979, 12/18/1981)
Big Star of the Order of Friendship of Peoples with diamonds (12/13/1976)
  Medal for Merit in Strengthening the GDR (1979)
Indonesia awards:
  2 stars and badge of the Order of the Star of Indonesia 1st class (1961, 1976)
Yemen People's Democratic Republic Award:
  Order of the Revolution October 14 (09.1982)
Democratic People's Republic of Korea Award:
  Order of the State Banner of the 1st degree (08.19.1982)
Awards of the Republic of Cuba:
  Golden Star of the Hero of Cuba (12/15/1981)
  Order of Jose Marti (01.29.1974)
  Order of Carlos Manuel de Cespedes (12/15/1981)
  Order of Playa Chiron (12/15/1976)
  Medal “20 years of the assault on the Moncada barracks” (1973)
  Medal "20 years of the Revolutionary Armed Forces" (1976)
Lao People's Democratic Republic Awards:
  Golden Star of the Hero of Lao People's Democratic Republic (12/15/1981)
  Gold Medal of the Nation (12/15/1981)
Awards of the Mongolian People's Republic:
  2 Golden Stars of the Hero of the Mongolian People's Republic (12/14/1976, 12/1981)
  4 orders of Suche-Bator (1966, 1971, 12/14/1976, 12/1981)
  medal "30 years of Victory at Khalkhin Gol" (1969)
  medal "40 years of Victory at Khalkhin Gol" (1979)
  Medal "50 years of the Mongolian People's Revolution" (1971)
  Medal "50 years of the Mongolian People's Army" (1971)
  medal "30 years of Victory over Japan" (1975)
Republic of Peru Award:
  Order "Sun of Peru" 1st degree (06.1978)
Awards of the Polish People's Republic:
  Grand Cross of the Order of "Virtuti Militari" (07/21/1974, the award was canceled 07/10/1990)
  Grand Cross of the Order of the Renaissance of Poland, 1st class (1976)
  star and badge of the Order of Merit, NDP 1st class (12.1981)
order of the Grunwald Cross, 2nd Degree (1946)
  medal "For the Oder, Neisse, Baltic" (1946)
  Medal "Victory and Freedom" (1946)
Awards of the Socialist Republic of Romania:
  Order "Star of Romania" 1st degree (11.24.1976)
  Order of Victory of Socialism (12.1981)
Finland Award:
  star and badge of the Order of the White Rose of the 1st class (12.16.1976)
Awards of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic:
  3 Golden Stars of the Hero of the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (05/05/1970, 10/29/1976, 12/16/1981)
  4 orders of Clement Gottwald (05/05/1970, 10/29/1976, 05/1978, 12/16/1981)
  Order of the White Lion "For Victory" 1st degree (1946)
  Star and badge of the Order of the White Lion with a chain (02.1973)
  2 Military Crosses 1939 (1945, 1947)
medal "For courage before the enemy" (1945)
  Military Commemorative Medal (1946)
  Dukel commemorative medal (1960)
  Medal “20 years of the Slovak National Uprising” (1964)
  medal "50 years of the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia" (1971)
  Medal "30 years of the Slovak National Uprising" (1975)
  Medal "For Strengthening Friendship in Arms" 1st Degree (1980)
Socialist Ethiopia Award:
  Order of the Star of Honor (10.1980)
Awards of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia:
  Order "Star of Yugoslavia" 1st degree (1962)
  Order of Liberty with Diamonds (1976)

Awards of international and public organizations
  laureate of the International Lenin Prize "For the consolidation of peace between peoples" (06/12/1973)
  Gold Medal of Peace named after F. Joliot-Curie (11/14/1975, from the World Peace Council)
  K. Gottwald State Prize Medal (03.1975)
  Gold Medal of the UN Peace named after O. Gan (09.1977)
  Gold medal named after Karl Marx (11/16/1977, from the USSR Academy of Sciences)
  medal of the laureate of the G. Dimitrov Prize (11/23/1978)
  Gold medal of the International Peace Prize Golden Mercury (10/13/1980)
  sign “50 years of stay in the CPSU” (from the Central Committee of the CPSU) (1981)
  Gold Medal of the World Federation of Trade Unions (02/15/1982)