The Russian edition of the Guinness Book of Records (Moscow, Progress, 1991) states that the most awarded person in not only the USSR, but in the world is the former Soviet leader L.I. Brezhnev. According to the publishers of the book, he "had 15 orders of the USSR and 18 Soviet medals, and in total, together with foreign awards, Brezhnev's ceremonial tunic was decorated with 42 orders and 47 medals." In a number of other publications, information can be gleaned that Brezhnev allegedly had more than two hundred orders and medals. But, none of these figures are correct, and the number of Brezhnev's awards is one of the mysteries.
Indeed, the secular leader's passion for "collecting" orders, medals and titles, especially in the last years of his life, was well known. The former assistant to the President of the USSR M. Gorbachev, Boldin, in the book “The collapse of the pedestal” writes: “... Brezhnev’s passion for having awards turned into a mania. People who knew him well told me that in the last months of his life he wept when he learned that they were going to award him not with the Gold Star of the Hero of the Soviet Union, since he received such an award recently, but with an order. And tall men had to rebuild on the go.
Meanwhile, during the Great Patriotic War, Leonid Ilyich, contrary to popular belief, did not shed any “order rain”. When Major General L. Brezhnev (who started the war as a colonel) walked next to the front commander at the head of the consolidated front column at the Victory Parade on Red Square, there were far fewer orders and medals on his chest than other generals and even officers! In the post-war period, Brezhnev was also not particularly pampered in terms of awards: two Orders of Lenin (in 1947 and 1956) and a couple of medals: “For the restoration of the ferrous metallurgy enterprises of the south” and “For the development of virgin lands”. But after Brezhnev came to the leadership of the country and the party, awards fell on him like from a cornucopia.
It is clear that the vast majority of L. Brezhnev's awards of this period are of an "jubilee-political" nature, but from the point of view of history, he remains the most decorated person in the world. It is a fact. However, the question of how many official awards Brezhnev actually had and which ones Brezhnev had is still being actively debated. And in different sources different figures are given, regalia are described that Brezhnev did not possess. In a word, there are a number of myths around his awards, which we will try to understand.
However, before starting to count the official awards, L.I. Brezhnev, it is necessary to agree on the subject of the calculation. What awards to count? Indeed, in addition to state orders and award medals, Brezhnev’s dress jacket or military tunic was decorated with medals of the laureate of various international and union awards, he also wore various foreign honorary titles (for example, “Honorary Metallurgist of the Guta-Warsaw Plant”, “Honorary Builder of the Katowice Iron and Steel Works” and etc.). Brezhnev was also awarded the Honorary Arms of the USSR, including the "Marshal's", with the coat of arms of the USSR, and had a number of other "gifts" that could well be attributed to official awards.
Since the most ambiguities are with orders and medals, we will count only Soviet and foreign state orders of Brezhnev, award medals of the USSR and foreign countries, as well as medals (badges) of international and allied awards, leaving non-award signs outside the calculation, for example, “Member of the Supreme Council USSR" or a party award - a badge "50 years of being in the CPSU". We will also not include in this list both honorary weapons and numerous honorary titles, some of which also had their own phaleronyms: “Honorary Citizen”, “Honorary Veteran”, etc.
Another question: at what point should L. Brezhnev's awards be considered? At the time of death? Or at the moment? It is known that after his death, Brezhnev was officially deprived of two orders - the highest Soviet military order "Victory" and the Polish order "Virtutti Military" I class. The decision to award the Order of Victory was made already in the post-war period in 1978, when the words of praise in the USSR against Brezhnev reached their peak. This award, 33 years after the victory in the Great Patriotic War, did not correspond to the true merits of the marshal - he did not possess any military leadership talents. In 1989, seven years after Brezhnev's death, the then Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev canceled the decree awarding him the Order of Victory on the grounds that "the recipient did not comply with the statute of the award." For the same reasons, Brezhnev was deprived of the highest Polish order "Virtutti Militari" 1st class for the same reasons also after his death by decree of the President of the Republic of Poland of July 10, 1990. We will also take these facts into account.
The most real historical document (of the widely known) about the number of awards L.I. Brezhnev - a certificate of the transfer of his regalia to the Order Storeroom of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. As biographers L.I. Brezhnev, after the death of the Secretary General, his widow Viktoria Petrovna called the reception of the Presidium of the Supreme Light of the USSR and asked to take ALL of his awards from Leonid Ilyich's dacha. Then, according to the inventory, "114 orders and medals, including two marshal's stars with diamonds, 34 units of Soviet orders and medals and 71 awards from other states" were received from the widow in the pantry. This listing has been published. But, as her careful study shows, she cannot serve as a basis for counting Brezhnev's official awards! Since, firstly, not all of Brezhnev's awards were included in this list and were surrendered, and secondly, among the surrendered regalia there were duplicates and, let's say, awards presented to Brezhnev by friends in an informal setting.
Let's also pay attention to the fact that this inventory of awards includes two marshal's stars with diamonds. But this is illegal. The stars were not an independent award, but were attached to the ranks of Brezhnev: army general and marshal of the Soviet Union. When calculating state awards, we will not take them into account.
As for duplicates or so-called. "doublets", i.e. copies of awards, primarily the Gold Stars of the Hero of the Soviet Union and the Hero of Socialist Labor, Brezhnev had 21 medals of the Hero of the Soviet Union and 13 Hammer and Sickle medals. Each of his tunic or jacket had its own non-removable "iconostasis". All doublets were made of gold and, of course, were handed over to the pantry after death. And there is a possibility that they were also "counted" as awards. It also makes it difficult to study Brezhnev's official regalia.
In addition, the list of L. Brezhnev's awards handed over to the pantry includes Soviet medals "For the Capture of Vienna" and "For Military Merit". The author carefully read many biographical publications about L. Brezhnev, memoirs of military leaders and did not find any mention of Brezhnev being awarded the medals "For the Capture of Vienna" and "For Military Merit". Most likely, these medals were awarded to Brezhnev after the war, unofficially, and their inclusion in the list of official awards is hardly justified.
This is also confirmed by the very rare edition “Marshals and Admirals of the Fleet of the Soviet Union (uniforms, awards, weapons)” available to the author, published in a limited edition by the Aspect Publishing House in 2001, edited by Art. n. With. State Historical Museum of the Russian Federation Yuri Smirnov. The author and consultants of this richly illustrated reference book had direct access to the holy of holies of the Soviet awards department. In this unique edition, each award of Marshal of the Soviet Union L. Brezhnev is photographed and documented: with the date of issue and number. This is the most reliable source of all that has so far fallen into the hands of the author.
First, let's count the state orders and medals of the USSR and foreign countries of L. Brezhnev. From this edition it is clear that he had: five Soviet medals of the Gold Star of the Hero (four medals of the Hero of the Soviet Union and one of the Hero of Socialist Labor "Hammer and Sickle"); 16 Soviet orders (including the Order of Victory) and 17 Soviet award medals. The book also provides a detailed list of 81 (!) awards (gold medals of the Star of the Hero or Hero of Labor, orders and award medals) of foreign countries.
Thus, if we count all the Gold Stars of the Hero, orders and award medals of L. Brezhnev at the time of his death, then the result is 119 state awards! If we subtract two orders: "Victory" and "Virtutti Military", which Brezhnev was deprived of after his death, there are 117 Soviet and foreign state awards.
Among the Soviet orders of Brezhnev, there are eight Orders of Lenin, two Orders of the October Revolution, two Orders of the Red Banner, the Order of the Patriotic War I degree, the Order of Bohdan Khmelnitsky II degree and the Order of the Red Star. It should be especially noted that five of these orders are combat, i.e. obtained during the Great Patriotic War. These are two orders of the Red Banner. The first one for No. 23636 was awarded to Leonid Ilyich on March 27, 1942 "For the exemplary performance of combat missions on the Southern Front during the Barvenkovo-Lozovskaya operation." And at that time they did not indulge in awards at the front. Brezhnev received the second Order of the Red Banner for No. 8148 with the number 2 (re-awarding) already in 1944 (05/29/1944).
This is followed by the Order of the Red Star No. 102567 dated March 16, 1943, the Order of the Patriotic War I degree No. 11025 dated September 18, 1943 (according to other sources, it was awarded to Brezhnev after the war) and the Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky II degree No. 1182 dated May 23, 1945. All other orders of Brezhnev are mostly "anniversary" ones: these are 8 orders of Lenin and 2 orders of the October Revolution.
Of the 17 Soviet award state medals of the USSR L. Brezhnev - five combat: "For the defense of Odessa", "For the defense of the Caucasus", "For the liberation of Warsaw", "For the liberation of Prague" and "For the victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 years." However, not all of them were received by L. Brezhnev directly at the front. It is known for sure that during the war Brezhnev was awarded only two medals: "For the Defense of Odessa" (December 22, 1942) and "For the Defense of the Caucasus" (May 1, 1944). It was with these two medals on his chest that he walked at the Victory Parade in Moscow on Red Square in 1945.
Other military medals: "For the liberation of Warsaw", "For the liberation of Prague" were awarded to L. Brezhnev after the war. Like the medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945." This was a common practice, many front-line soldiers received such awards already in the military registration and enlistment offices at their place of residence. By the way, in the publication “Marshals and Admirals of the Fleet of the Soviet Union (uniform, awards, weapons)” published by the Aspect Publishing House in 2001, there is no data on awarding L. Brezhnev with medals “For the Capture of Vienna” and “For Military Merit”, about which are widely mentioned on the Internet and in a number of publications. But there is a medal, which is not in any list - "For the strengthening of military commonwealth." It is a fact.
As for L. Brezhnev's foreign awards, their collection is simply amazing. Each head of a socialist (and not only) state who came to Moscow considered it his duty to bring L. Brezhnev the highest awards of his country as a gift. And not only the highest - even ordinary medals were awarded to the Soviet leader, for example, the Cuban commemorative medal "20 years of the Revolutionary Armed Forces" or the Bulgarian "100 years of liberation from Bulgaria from the Ottoman yoke."
Of the foreign countries of that time, Czechoslovakia (Czechoslovakia) became the champion in presenting awards to L. Brezhnev - 18 awards. Among them are three medals of the Gold Star of the Hero of Czechoslovakia, four higher orders of Klement Gottwald, the Order of the White Lion "For Victory", by the way, dated 1946 and the Order of the White Lion with a chain (1973 is already an anniversary award), as well as others regalia.
But among these awards there are also curious ones. This is the Czechoslovak "Military Cross of 1939", which Brezhnev, according to documents, was awarded twice in 1945 and 1947. and the medal "For bravery before the enemy" from 1945. Why funny? The fact is that these award medals were established after the occupation of Czechoslovakia by Nazi Germany by the Czech bourgeois government in exile. And only after 1948, when the Communist Party came to power in Prague, were they included in the list of official awards of Czechoslovakia. And according to the data given in the publication, all these medals were awarded to Brezhnev in 1945 and 1947, i.e. practically on behalf of the Czech government in exile.
Brezhnev was also the owner of 11 state awards of Mongolia (MPR), including two Gold Stars (Hero of the MPR and Hero of Labor of the MPR) and four highest orders of Sukhe Bator. The leaders of Bulgaria (NBR) did not lag behind in the awards marathon - 10 awards. Among other Bulgarian regalia of Brezhnev, three medals of the Gold Star of the Hero of the NBR and three higher orders of Georgy Dimitrov stand out.
The next in terms of the number of regalia awarded to the Soviet leader is the GDR. Eight times the Germans honored L. Brezhnev with their state awards. He was three times the Hero of the GDR and the holder of the three highest orders of Karl Marx, as well as the owner of the Order of the Great Star of Friendship of Peoples (with diamonds). The leaders of the then Poland (Poland) and Cuba presented their national orders and medals to L. Brezhnev six times each. Among the Polish awards of the Soviet leader are the highest: the Order of the Revival of Poland, 1st class, and the Order of Merit of Poland, 1st class. The Cuban leader elevated L. Brezhnev to Heroes of Cuba with the Gold Star medal and awarded Jose Marti and Playa Giron, among others, with the highest state orders.
Three times L. Brezhnev was awarded Vietnamese awards (Socialist Republic of Vietnam, SRV). He is a Hero of Labor of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, holder of the Order of Ho Chi Minh I degree and the Order of the Golden Star. Brezhnev also had two awards each from Hungary, Romania, Laos (NDRL) and Finland. Among the Finnish regalia of L. Brezhnev is the highest award of this northern country - the Order of the White Rose with a golden chain, and the Laotians elevated him to the rank of Hero of the People's Democratic Republic of Laos.
Obviously they were modest about awards for L.I. Brezhnev, the leaders of North Korea (DPRK). They presented Leonid Ilyich with only one single, although the highest regalia - the Order of the State Banner of the 1st degree. Even the Yugoslav leaders, who were in rather cool relations with the USSR, twice awarded Brezhnev with their highest orders: the "Star of Yugoslavia" of the first degree and the Order of Freedom with diamonds. And, finally, the collection of the Soviet leader includes quite exotic awards from Argentina (the Order of the May Revolution), Afghanistan (the Order of the Sun of Freedom), the Peruvian Order of the Sun of Peru, the Indonesian Order of the Star of Indonesia, 1st class (twice ), the highest Yemeni (NDRY) regalia "Order of the October 14 Revolution", the Ethiopian Order of the Star of Honor and the "Order of Independence" of the Republic of Guinea.
In total, the collection of L. Brezhnev at the time of his death included state awards from 21 countries of the world: 58 orders (16 Soviet and 42 foreign) and 42 award medals (17 Soviet and 25 foreign).
The Gold Star of the Hero (Hero of Labor) medals can be singled out in a separate category. Brezhnev had 19 such stars (five of the USSR and 14 other states). Brezhnev also became the laureate of various allied and international awards eight times, which had their own medals (badges). Publicly L.I. Brezhnev wore only four of them: the medal of the International Lenin Prize "For the strengthening of peace between peoples" (awarded in 1973), the Gold Medal of Peace named after F. Julio-Curie (awarded in 1975), the medal of the laureate of the Prize. G. Dimitrov (awarded in 1978) and the medal of the Lenin Prize (awarded in 1979). If we sum up all the regalia that fall under the “medal” category (including the Gold Stars of the Hero and laureate badges), then there will be 69 of them.
Thus, at the time of his death, the former Soviet leader, Marshal of the Soviet Union L.I. Brezhnev was the owner of 127 official awards: 58 state orders and 61 state medals of twenty-one countries of the world, as well as eight medals (badges) of the winner of allied and international prizes. This is an absolute record. If we take the current moment (minus two orders, "Victory" and "Virtutti Military", which Brezhnev was deprived of after his death), then the marshal will have 56 orders. Thus, the total number of official orders, medals and signs will be 125 units!
This myth needs to be disproved. In the press at one time, portraits (not photos!) of Brezhnev in a military marshal's uniform with full "iconostases" were widely published. Someone even started a rumor that this tunic weighed so much that, having put it on, the Secretary General could move only with outside help. But according to the recollections of his secretaries, L. Brezhnev never put on a military tunic or civilian jacket with ALL of his orders and medals “live”. This simply could not be done! Well, tell me where to hang only 19 (!) Gold Hero Stars?!
The Soviet leader had several suits, each of which was fastened with doublets of four medals of the Hero of the USSR, one medal of the Hero of Socialist Labor "Hammer and Sickle" and medals of the winner of four of the most prestigious awards. On solemn occasions, L. Brezhnev wore the military uniform of a Marshal of the Soviet Union with order bars, five Hero stars and four laureate badges (medals).
4.3 (85%) 4 votes
1. Hero of Socialist Labor under No. 9995 with the award of the Order of Lenin under No. 344996 (Decree of the USSR PVS of 06/17/1961)
2. Order of Lenin - 3 pcs.
3. medal "For the defense of Odessa"
4. medal "For the capture of Warsaw"
5. medal "For the capture of Vienna"
6. medal "For valiant labor in the Second World War 1941-1945"
7. medal "For the victory over Germany 1941-1945"
8. medal "For the restoration of ferrous metallurgy enterprises of the south" (1951)
9. medal "For the development of virgin lands" (1956)
10. medal "In memory of the 250th anniversary of Leningrad" (1957)
11. medal "40 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" (1957)
12 medal "Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945" (1965)
13. medal "Gold Star" of the Hero of the Soviet Union under No. 11230 with the award of the Order of Lenin under No. 382246 (Decree of the USSR PVS of 12/18/1966)
14. Order of the October Revolution - 2 pcs. (1967)
15. medal "50 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" (1967)
16. medal “For Valiant Labor. In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin" (1969)
17. medal "30 years of victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945" (1975)
18. medal "Gold Star" of the Hero of the Soviet Union under No. 97 with the award of the Order of Lenin under No. 425869 (Decree of the USSR PVS of 12/18/1976)
19. honorary weapon - personalized checker with a golden image of the State Emblem of the USSR (12/18/1976)
20. medal "60 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" (1977)
21. medal "Gold Star" of the Hero of the Soviet Union under No. 5 with the award of the Order of Lenin under No. 432408 (Decree of the USSR PVS of 12/19/1978)
22. Order "Victory" (Decree of the PVS of the USSR on February 20, 1978).
23. Medal of the laureate of the All-Union Lenin Prize (04/20/1979)
24. medal "Gold Star" of the Hero of the Soviet Union under No. 2 with the award of the Order of Lenin under No. 458500 (Decree of the USSR PVS of 12/18/1981)
25. medal "In memory of the 1500th anniversary of Kyiv" (1982) Argentina:
Order of the May Revolution 1st class (1974)
Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA):
Order of the Sun of Freedom (1981)
People's Republic of Bulgaria (NRB):
Gold Star Hero of the NRB - 3 awards (1973, 1976, 1981)
Order of Georgy Dimitrov - 3 awards (1973, 1976, 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 anniversary of the birth of G. Dimitrov" (1974)
medal "100 years since the birth of G. Dimitrov" (1982)
Hungarian People's Republic (HPR):
Order of the Banner of Hungary with diamonds - 2 awards (1976, 1981)
honorary veteran of the Krasny Chepel plant
Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV):
Gold medal of the Hero of Labor of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (1982)
Order of Ho Chi Minh 1st class (1982)
Order of the Golden Star (1980)
Republic of Guinea:
Order of Independence (1961)
German Democratic Republic (GDR):
Gold Star of the Hero of the GDR - 3 awards (1976, 1979, 1981)
Order of Karl Marx - 3 awards (1974, 1979, 1981)
order "Big Star of Friendship of Peoples" with diamonds (1976)
medal "For Merit in Strengthening the GDR" (1979)
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Indonesia:
star and badge of the Order of the Star of Indonesia, 1st class - 2 awards (1961, 1976)
People's Democratic Republic of Yemen:
Order of the Revolution October 14 (1982)
Democratic People's Republic of Korea (PRC):
Order of the State Banner of the 1st degree (1976)
Republic of Cuba:
Gold Star of the Hero of Cuba (1981)
Order of José Marti (1974)
Order of Carlos Manuel de Cespedes (1981)
order "Playa Giron" (1976)
medal "20 years of the assault on the barracks of Moncada" (1973)
medal "20 years of the Revolutionary Armed Forces" (1976)
Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR):
Gold Star of the Hero of the Lao PDR (1981)
Gold Medal of the Nation (1982)
Mongolian People's Republic (MPR):
Gold Star of the Hero of the MPR (1976)
Gold Star of the Hero of Labor of the MPR (1981)
Order of Sukhbaatar - 4 awards (1966, 1971, 1976, 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:
Order of the Sun of Peru, 1st class (1978)
Polish People's Republic:
Grand Cross of the Order "Virtuti Militari" (21 July 1974)
Grand Cross of the Order of the Rebirth of Poland, 1st class (1976)
star and badge of the Order of Merit of Poland, 1st class (1981)
Cross of Grunwald, 2nd class (1946)
medal "For the Oder, Neisse, Baltic" (1946)
medal "Victory and Freedom" (1946)
Honorary metallurgist of the plant "Guta-Warsaw"
Honorary Builder of the Katowice Iron and Steel Works (1976)
Socialist Republic of Romania:
Order of the Star of Romania, 1st class (1976)
Order "Victory of Socialism" (1981)
Finland:
star and badge of the Order of the White Rose 1st class (1976)
Order of the White Rose with chain (1976)
Czechoslovak People's Republic:
Gold Star of the Hero of Czechoslovakia - 3 awards (05/05/1970, 10/26/1976, 12/16/1981)
Order of Klement Gottwald - 4 awards (1970, 1976, 1978, 1981)
Order of the White Lion "For Victory", 1st class (1946)
star and badge of the Order of the White Lion with chain (1973)
Military Cross 1939 - 2 awards (1945, 1947)
medal "For bravery 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:
Order of the Star of Honor (1980)
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia:
Order of the Star of Yugoslavia, 1st class (1962)
Order of Liberty (1976)
As a result, such a picture is obtained. L.I. Brezhnev had 44 orders, 22 medals and 14 Gold Stars of foreign states. The total amount is exactly 80 awards.
The following should be added to this list:
Marshal's Star with the rank of General of the Army
Marshal star with the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union (05/07/1976)
Prizes and other awards L.I. Brezhnev:
medal of the laureate of the International Lenin Prize "For the strengthening of peace between peoples" (06/12/1973)
F. Joliot-Curie Gold Medal of Peace (11/14/1975, from the World Peace Council)
O. Gan UN Peace Gold Medal (1977)
medal of the laureate of the G. Dimitrov Prize (23.11.1978)
Medal of the laureate of the All-Union Lenin Prize (04/20/1979)
Gold medal of the International Prize for Peace "Golden Mercury"
Karl Marx Gold Medal (1977, from the Academy of Sciences of the USSR)
badge "50 years of being in the CPSU" (from the Central Committee of the CPSU)
Gold medal of the World Federation of Trade Unions (15.02.1982)
Honorary titles:
Honorary citizen of the city of Dnepropetrovsk (21.08.1979);
Honorary Citizen of Tbilisi (05/21/1981);
Honorary cadet of the 1st tank company of the armored school of the Trans-Baikal Military District (12/17/1981);
Honorary citizen of Kyiv (26.04.1982);
Honorary Citizen of Baku (09/24/1982);
USSR awards - 38 awards; awards of foreign states - 80 awards; awards - 8 awards; badge "50 years of being in the CPSU" - 1 award; Marshal's Stars - 2 awards; honorary weapons - 2 awards. The total number of awards is 131 units.
Many different independent sources write about the awards of the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev. And, oddly enough, each source calls a different number of orders and medals. It just seems that the periodicals set themselves the goal of denigrating and trampling this lover of medals into the dirt, but do not set themselves the goal of calculating how many awards there were, in fact.
In some articles there were mentions of more than 200 awards of the Secretary General, someone wrote that he was awarded all the awards of the USSR, except for a set of Mother Heroine awards.
Conventionally, the awards of Leonid Ilyich would be better divided into 3 categories: received for the war, received in the period between the end of the war and ascension to the post of Secretary General, received at the post of Secretary General. So let's start counting.
Military awards of Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev:
1. Order of the Red Star
2. Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky, 2nd class.
3. Order of the Red Banner - 2 pcs.
4. Order of the Patriotic War 1 step.
5. medal "For Military Merit"
6. medal "For the Defense of the Caucasus"
7. honorary weapon - inscribed Mauser (awarded in 1943)
From the above list it can be seen that the number of awards from Leonid Brezhnev is more than modest. Only 5 orders (including 2 orders of the Red Banner) and 2 medals.
After L.I. Brezhnev took the post of First Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU in 1964, the flow of awards from him increased significantly. From the end of the war to the post of General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU, Leonid Brezhnev earned the following awards:
1. Hero of Socialist Labor under No. 9995 with the award of the Order of Lenin under No. 344996 (Decree of the USSR PVS of 06/17/1961)
2. Order of Lenin - 3 pcs.
3. medal "For the defense of Odessa"
4. medal "For the capture of Warsaw"
5. medal "For the capture of Vienna"
6. medal "For valiant labor in the Second World War 1941-1945"
7. medal "For the victory over Germany 1941-1945"
8. medal "For the restoration of ferrous metallurgy enterprises of the south" (1951)
9. medal "For the development of virgin lands" (1956)
10. medal "In memory of the 250th anniversary of Leningrad" (1957)
11. medal "40 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" (1957)
So, it is clear that from the moment the war ended until the beginning of 1964, when L.I. Brezhnev took the highest post in the country of awards, he significantly increased. The output is like this:
Orders - 4 pcs. (4 orders of Lenin)
Medals - 10 pcs. (including the medal of the Hero of Socialist Labor)
In 1964 L.I. Brezhnev takes an active part in the removal of N.S. Khrushchev, the then leader of the country and heads the secretariat of the Central Committee of the CPSU. During this period, and until his death in 1982, a real stream of awards fell on him.
1. medal "Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945" (1965)
2. medal "Gold Star" of the Hero of the Soviet Union under No. 11230 with the award of the Order of Lenin under No. 382246 (Decree of the USSR PVS of 12/18/1966)
3. Order of the October Revolution - 2 pcs. (1967)
4. medal "50 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" (1967)
5. medal “For Valiant Labor. In commemoration of the 100th anniversary of the birth of Vladimir Ilyich Lenin" (1969)
6. medal "30 years of victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945" (1975)
7. medal "Gold Star" of the Hero of the Soviet Union under No. 97 with the award of the Order of Lenin under No. 425869 (Decree of the USSR PVS of 12/18/1976)
8. honorary weapon - a nominal checker with a golden image of the State Emblem of the USSR (12/18/1976)
9. medal "60 years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" (1977)
10. medal "Gold Star" of the Hero of the Soviet Union under No. 5 with the award of the Order of Lenin under No. 432408 (Decree of the USSR PVS of 12/19/1978)
11. Order "Victory" (Decree of the PVS of the USSR on February 20, 1978).
12. Medal of the laureate of the All-Union Lenin Prize (04/20/1979)
13. medal "Gold Star" of the Hero of the Soviet Union under No. 2 with the award of the Order of Lenin under No. 458500 (Decree of the USSR PVS of 12/18/1981)
14. medal "In memory of the 1500th anniversary of Kyiv" (1982)
In total, the Secretary General earned over the years of his reign - 6 orders and 11 medals (including 4 medals of the Hero of the Soviet Union)
As you can see, from the above count, the General Secretary of the CPSU Central Committee has only 16 orders and 23 medals. Some sources give just such a figure, with the difference that there are 22 medals in their list. Since the sign of the All-Union Lenin Prize winner is also a prize medal, we will not include it. Let there be 22 medals.
The same "authoritative" sources claim that Brezhnev had 71 awards from foreign countries (42 orders and 29 medals). Let's try to calculate the actual number of his awards. For greater clarity, we will compile this list by country in alphabetical order.
Argentina:
Order of the May Revolution 1st class (1974)
Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA):
Order of the Sun of Freedom (1981)
People's Republic of Bulgaria (NRB):
Gold Star Hero of the NRB - 3 awards (1973, 1976, 1981)
Order of Georgy Dimitrov - 3 awards (1973, 1976, 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 anniversary of the birth of G. Dimitrov" (1974)
medal "100 years since the birth of G. Dimitrov" (1982)
Hungarian People's Republic (HPR):
Order of the Banner of Hungary with diamonds - 2 awards (1976, 1981)
honorary veteran of the Krasny Chepel plant
Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV):
Gold medal of the Hero of Labor of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (1982)
Order of Ho Chi Minh 1st class (1982)
Order of the Golden Star (1980)
Republic of Guinea:
Order of Independence (1961)
German Democratic Republic (GDR):
Gold Star of the Hero of the GDR - 3 awards (1976, 1979, 1981)
Order of Karl Marx - 3 awards (1974, 1979, 1981)
order "Big Star of Friendship of Peoples" with diamonds (1976)
medal "For Merit in Strengthening the GDR" (1979)
Indonesia:
star and badge of the Order of the Star of Indonesia, 1st class - 2 awards (1961, 1976)
Democratic People's Republic of Korea (PRC):
Order of the State Banner of the 1st degree (1976)
Republic of Cuba:
Gold Star of the Hero of Cuba (1981)
Order of José Marti (1974)
Order of Carlos Manuel de Cespedes (1981)
order "Playa Giron" (1976)
medal "20 years of the assault on the barracks of Moncada" (1973)
medal "20 years of the Revolutionary Armed Forces" (1976)
Lao People's Democratic Republic (Lao PDR):
Gold Star of the Hero of the Lao PDR (1981)
Gold Medal of the Nation (1982)
Mongolian People's Republic (MPR):
Gold Star of the Hero of the MPR (1976)
Gold Star of the Hero of Labor of the MPR (1981)
Order of Sukhbaatar - 4 awards (1966, 1971, 1976, 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:
Order of the Sun of Peru, 1st class (1978)
Polish People's Republic:
Grand Cross of the Order "Virtuti Militari" (21 July 1974)
Grand Cross of the Order of the Rebirth of Poland, 1st class (1976)
star and badge of the Order of Merit of Poland, 1st class (1981)
Cross of Grunwald, 2nd class (1946)
medal "For the Oder, Neisse, Baltic" (1946)
medal "Victory and Freedom" (1946)
Honorary metallurgist of the plant "Guta-Warsaw"
Honorary Builder of the Katowice Iron and Steel Works (1976)
Socialist Republic of Romania:
Order of the Star of Romania, 1st class (1976)
Order "Victory of Socialism" (1981)
Finland:
star and badge of the Order of the White Rose 1st class (1976)
Order of the White Rose with chain (1976)
Czechoslovak People's Republic:
Gold Star of the Hero of Czechoslovakia - 3 awards (05/05/1970, 10/26/1976, 12/16/1981)
Order of Klement Gottwald - 4 awards (1970, 1976, 1978, 1981)
Order of the White Lion "For Victory", 1st class (1946)
star and badge of the Order of the White Lion with chain (1973)
Military Cross 1939 - 2 awards (1945, 1947)
medal "For bravery 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:
Order of the Star of Honor (1980)
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia:
Order of the Star of Yugoslavia, 1st class (1962)
Order of Liberty (1976)
As a result, such a picture is obtained. L.I. Brezhnev had 44 orders, 22 medals and 14 Gold Stars of foreign countries. The total amount is exactly 80 awards.
The following should be added to this list:
Marshal's Star with the rank of General of the Army
Marshal star with the title of Marshal of the Soviet Union (05/07/1976)
Prizes and other awards L.I. Brezhnev:
medal of the laureate of the International Lenin Prize "For the strengthening of peace between peoples" (06/12/1973)
F. Joliot-Curie Gold Medal of Peace (11/14/1975, from the World Peace Council)
O. Gan UN Peace Gold Medal (1977)
medal of the laureate of the G. Dimitrov Prize (23.11.1978)
Medal of the laureate of the All-Union Lenin Prize (04/20/1979)
Gold medal of the International Prize for Peace "Golden Mercury"
Karl Marx Gold Medal (1977, from the Academy of Sciences of the USSR)
badge "50 years of being in the CPSU" (from the Central Committee of the CPSU)
Gold medal of the World Federation of Trade Unions (15.02.1982)
Honorary titles:
Honorary citizen of the city of Dnepropetrovsk (21.08.1979);
Honorary Citizen of Tbilisi (05/21/1981);
Honorary cadet of the 1st tank company of the armored school of the Trans-Baikal Military District (12/17/1981);
Honorary citizen of Kyiv (26.04.1982);
Honorary Citizen of Baku (09/24/1982);
After the death of the Secretary General, his awards were handed over to the order storeroom of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR. According to the inventory, the following number of awards were handed over:
five Gold Star Heroes,
16 orders of the USSR
18 medals of the USSR,
two marshal's stars with diamonds - a general of the army and a marshal of the Soviet Union, an honorary weapon with a golden image of the State Emblem of the USSR,
42 orders and 29 medals of foreign states.
Now let's calculate.
5 Gold Stars of the Hero were handed over (4 Stars of the Hero of the USSR and 1 Hero of Socialist Labor). Quantity matches.
16 orders of the USSR - coincides with the number of awards presented
18 medals of the USSR - in total, Brezhnev had 22 medals. What 4 medals did not pass relatives?
Two marshal stars - the same (stars of the army general and Marshal of the Soviet Union)
An honorary weapon - there is a personalized saber, but there is no award Mauser, which Leonid Ilyich received in 1943. Maybe he handed it over immediately after the war, or maybe his relatives left it as a keepsake. It's not clear yet.
42 orders and 29 medals of foreign states. The result is 71 surrendered awards. I counted 80. Something was taken away from Brezhnev after his death. Order "Victory" 21.09.1989 and Grand Cross of the Order "Virtuti Militari" 10 July 1990
If we count all the awards that the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the CPSU Brezhnev Leonid Ilyich had, we get the following figure. USSR awards - 38 awards; awards of foreign states - 80 awards; awards - 8 awards; badge "50 years of being in the CPSU" - 1 award; Marshal's Stars - 2 awards; honorary weapons - 2 awards. The total number of awards is 131 units.
True, 2 awards were canceled after death, so at the moment the number of awards will be 129 units.
So the rumors about allegedly 200 orders and medals have no real basis, although the true number of awards is very close to the indicated number.
A curious fact: Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev is the Guinness Book of Records record holder. There he is recorded as "The most awarded person in the world." In the 1991 edition, his list includes 15 orders and 18 medals of the USSR, as well as 29 medals and 49 orders of foreign states. At the same time, which is typical, Brezhnev was no longer awarded posthumously, but some insignia were completely taken away. During perestroika, in particular, Leonid Ilyich was deprived of the Order of Victory, the highest military award of the USSR, as well as the Polish Order of Military Valor.
The funny popular nickname of the second Ilyich is not the only reaction of the common people to the love for medals and orders of the first person. According to one tale, Brezhnev had to wear a tunic weighing 6 kilograms because of the awards. No one, of course, weighed his awards. But such a tunic itself would indeed be more than weighty. It was physically impossible to wear it, so Leonid Ilyich did not wear all his medals at the same time. As a rule, it was limited to "Golden Stars", "Hammer and Sickle", signs of Lenin's awards and sometimes slats of orders.
Brezhnev's awards presented at his funeral. Photo: Vladimir Akimov, RIA Novosti
Brezhnev also had such awards that were established specifically for him. In October 1981, on the occasion of 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 being in the CPSU." The Central Committee solemnly handed the badge to the Secretary General, which he himself commented as follows: “As for me, receiving this honorary badge, I feel understandable excitement. And not just excitement, but a feeling of deep gratitude to the great party of Lenin. Two months later, by the way, there was a kind of record. Brezhnev celebrated his 75th birthday, and for this holiday he received thirteen different awards from eight states at once.
In addition to state awards, Brezhnev received many departmental ones. In 1977 he received a membership card of the Union of Journalists of the USSR. Together with him, Brezhnev also got another badge: Leonid Ilyich received the right to wear a badge confirming membership. And Leonid Ilyich received a number of awards more than once, and much more often than others. For example, only Marshal Zhukov became the Hero of the Soviet Union four times besides Brezhnev. And together 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 except him.
The number of foreign awards of Leonid Brezhnev is impressive. According to various estimates, it 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 even now.
December 19, 1906 Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev was born. In the 70s and 80s, the birthday of the General Secretary of the CPSU was a very significant event, and Brezhnev himself was awarded orders, medals and other awards, the number of which he had become one of the most striking stereotypes about Soviet leaders.
Today we would like to take a closer look at what awards Brezhnev was awarded, which items in his "collection" are the most interesting and exotic, and also give other interesting facts about the awards of the first person 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 into the Guinness Book of Records with them as "the most awarded person in the world." In the 1991 edition, his list includes 15 orders and 18 medals of the USSR, as well as 29 medals and 49 orders of foreign states. 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 very fact of such a record is impressive.
2. It is curious that with all the abundance of lifetime awards, Brezhnev was no longer awarded posthumously. Moreover: during the "perestroika" he posthumously lost some awards. 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 story, according to which Brezhnev, because of the awards, had to wear a tunic that weighed 6 kilograms. In fact, no one weighed his awards. But such a tunic itself would indeed be more than weighty. It was physically impossible to wear it, so Leonid Ilyich did not wear all his medals at the same time. As a rule, it was limited to "Golden Stars", "Hammer and Sickle", signs of Lenin's awards and sometimes straps of orders.
Brezhnev's awards presented at his funeral. Photo: Vladimir Akimov / RIA Novosti www.ria.ru
4. Brezhnev also had such awards that were established specifically for him. In October 1981, on the occasion of 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 being in the CPSU." The Central Committee solemnly handed the badge to the General Secretary, which he himself commented as follows: "As for me, receiving this honorary badge, I feel understandable excitement. And not just excitement, but a feeling of deep gratitude to the great party of Lenin."
5. Two months later there was a kind of record. Brezhnev celebrated his 75th birthday, and for this holiday he received thirteen different awards from eight states at once.
6. In addition to state awards, Brezhnev received many departmental ones. In 1977 he received a membership card of the Union of Journalists of the USSR. Together with him, Brezhnev also got another badge: Leonid Ilyich received the right to wear a badge confirming membership.
7. Leonid Ilyich received a number of awards more than once, and noticeably more often than others. For example, only Marshal Zhukov became the Hero of the Soviet Union four times besides Brezhnev. And together 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 except him.
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 even now.
