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St. George's Cross - 4th Class
(Sign of Favor of the Military Order)
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Established -
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1807
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Composition -
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Silver
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Number Awarded -
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Unknown
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Originally issued as a single class order, the silver
cross with the engraving of St. George the Victor was instituted to
decorate soldiers for valor and courage.
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During the Crimean War some 24,150 St. George's
Crosses were awarded. One of these was to Kolya Pichshenko, a ten
year old boy, who relayed messages and worked in a mortar battery
defending Sevastopol. In March of
1856 it became a four class award. A gold cross with a bow for
first class, a gold cross for second class, a silver cross with bow for
third class, and a silver cross for fourth class. The class and
serial number are marked on the back of the cross. In 1913 the Sign of Favor of the Military Order was
formally renamed the St. George's cross. In 1915 the Tsarist
government began to make orders and medals from bronze and nickel
rather than gold and silver due to financial difficulties. The
St. George's Cross was one of the last to be made from these cheaper
materials. The crosses were awarded beginning with the
forth class award. Anyone who earned it received an automatic
promotion to the next higher rank. Other benefits that enlisted
men received when awarded the cross were that they were exempted from
corporal punishment and paid no taxes when they retired. |
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In
1913 the statutes were changed and those who had received the cross
were awarded money each year. The amount of money depended on the
class of cross the held. They received this money in
addition to their military pension when they retired. The amounts
are listed below.
| 1st Class |
120 Rubles/year |
| 2nd Class |
96 Rubles/year |
| 3rd Class |
60 Rubles/year |
| 4th Class |
36 Rubles/year |
The statutes also stated that a cross holder could
not be reduced in rank or have their cross taken away without
undergoing a court-martial. Many who received these awards continued to
wear them even after being promoted to the officer's ranks or after
receiving the St. George's Order. One of
the first people to receive this award was Nadezhda Durova, a junior
Uhlan officer who saved the life of another officer in a skirmish in
1807. Over 200,000 of these crosses were awarded
during World War One alone.
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