The Truth about the So-Called "Cavalry" Sized Russian Medals

S. G. Yasinitsky

During the past several years, after the scholars and premiologists in Russia became free to resume their research on Russian Imperial medals, one gross error crept into their writings, an error that should not go uncorrected. This self-pex~etuating mistake is that they ascribe the smaller-sized (17-22mm) Russian campaign medals of the first half of the 19th Century to the cavalry. This leads to the conclusion that medals of regular-sized (28-29mm) were awarded to the infantry, artillery, and other non-mounted branches of the Russian military. Such attribution is completely wrong.

Before the fall of the USSR and the restoration of Russia, collecting medals and other Russian Imperial relics was done mostly in the Emigration, by Russian expatriates, and their descendants, many of whom had collected Russian awards long before the Revolution forced them into exile. Collectors, such as V. G. yon Rychter, Paul Pachkoff, Gleb Popoff, Alexander Doll and many others, always referred to the small medals as kavalerskiye, or those of cavaliers (or chevaliers, or knights), not as kavaleriyskiye, which meant "of the cavalry." (We know of similarly reduced sized medals and even orders in the West, normally called Prinzen or "princely.") These smaller-sized medals were received and worn by officers who were recipients of orders of valor. Such officers were called knights, or chevaliere, or in the Russian, cavalyery.

A Russian officer was called a Cavalier after he had

been awarded an order for valor, usually the Military

Order of St. George. He became known as

Georgievsky Cavalier, (Knight of St. George.) This,

in a more common Russian parlance, also pertained

to other officers who had been given the Order of

St. Vladimir, and so forth, presumably for valor.

The smaller-sized medals are known only for the period following the Napoleonic campaigns, when officers’ chests were burdened down not only with numerous Russian awards but also with those of

foreign allies. The rows of medals on the chests of those heroes extended well beyond the regulation "buttonhole" where they were supposed to have been worn. They began to be arranged in a straight line, in a tight group. Smaller-sized medals were mounted in such manner, rendering them easier to fit the limited length allowed by regulations. The smaller medals had nothing to do with awards to cavalrymen. They were worn by all officer-cavaliers v~ho cared to purchase them, in place of full-sized medals.

The explanation for the mistake about the smaller medals being those for the cavalry - whether made by current Russian writers or clerks of long ago - lies in the misreading now, or perhaps in the recopying long ago, of documents which were not clearly written or which used abbreviations such as "car." Before typewriters and carbon paper, clerks copied and recopied each other’s writing, because, as in any bureaucracy, triple, quadruple, or other multiple copies were always required by the various ministries and departments. A modern Russian researcher had either misread or mistakenly presumed that the abbreviation "car." meant "Cavalry" rather than "Chevalier." The error was then perpetuated by others who did not bother to check the source, creating a mistaken category of awards to the cavalry.

The weak explanation that cavalrymen, for some reason, found these smaller medals easier to wear on their chests while riding horses, does not stand up. One will notice that all these smaller medals had the easily-managed ball-and-ring suspension system, instead of the integral eye of the officially- issued Russian medals. The interesting fact the old Russian premiologists, prior to the last decade of the 20th Century, had never heard or read of "cavalry" medals, shows that someone in New Russia has made a mistake.

Again, these smaller-sized medals (Figure 1) were made in the period from 1812 to 1831, after which time the Napoleonic War veterans were retired or dead, and there were fewer large groups of awards creating this need or fad for smaller medals. The cavalier-sized medals then ceased to be produced.

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Figure 1: Regulation sized medals (above) and the smaller-sized (below) Russian medals that are most frequently seen by collectors are as follows: (1) Bronze Medal for the Patriotic War of 1812, (2) Medal for the Capture of Paris, (3) Medal for the Persian War, 1826-28, (4) Medal for the Turkish War, 1828-29, and (5) Medal for the Taking of Warsaw by Storm, 1831.

Vol. 54, No. 3 33

Supplement to the Article on the Order of the Precious Star of the Double Dragon (2nd Type), Late Manchu Dynasty, Imperial China (JOMSA

Volume 53, No. 6 and Volume 54, No.l)

King Kwok

After the publication of my article in JOMSA Vol. 53 No. 6 and Vol. 54 No. 1, contributions were received from Gustav A. Tammann and Michel Gontier:

The attached photograph (Figure 1) from Gustav A. Tammann shows a 1st class 3rd grade set consisting of a breast star, a fringed maroon sash with a sash badge. It confirms the report that the sash badge of 1st class award is a star with six blunt and widened points. As a 3rd grade award, this badge has a blue three-petal-like enamel decorative pattern between each point. The center medallion is round with a central plain coral. Encircling the coral are two dragons. Outside the dragons are a blue enamel circle and then the three-petal-like decoration. The gem/coral at the top of the medallion is missing in this specimen. The badge is of gold-plated silver. A tie ring is attached to the top of the badge.

According to Michel Gontier, the unidentified European diplomat in Figure 27 of JOMSA Vo.54 No.l, is French, not German. The three medals on the left breast of the Frenchman are the badges of the Academic Palms, the Dragon of Annam and the Royal Order of Cambodia.

In addition, I would like to note the following updates to the article:

JOMSA Vol. 53 No. 6

Page 6, bottom line: Charles Denby was the United States Ambassador to China. Page 7, middle part: "In 1909, 1st class / 2nd grade PSDDs were awarded to Sa Zhen- bing, the Admiral of the Imperial Fleet; Duan Fang, the Viceroy of Zhili as well as Beiyang / Peiyang Commissioner."

JOMSA Vol. 54 No.l, Page 13-14, Bibliography

It should be: Hu, Zeng-yi, Professor of Linguistics, Institute of Nationality Studies, The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Beijing (as Chief Editor), .4 Comprehensive Manchu-Chinese Dictionary, Xinjiang People’s Publishing House, People’s Republic of China,

1994 (in Chinese).

The First Historical Archives Museum of China and the History Faculty of Fu-jian Education University (as Editors), The Chronology of Chinese and Foreign Consulates, Zhong Hua Book Shop, People’s Republic of China, 1985 (in Chinese)

Zhang, Hui-wen (as Chief Translator), The International Relations of the Chinese Empire (original book written by Morse, Hosea Ballou, Kelly & Walsh Limited, Shanghai, 1910), Shanghai Book Shop Publishing House, People’s Republic of China, 2000 (in Chinese)

Figure 1: 1st Class 3rd Grade Badge, Breast Star, and Sash of the Order of the Precious Star of the Double Dragon (2nd Type).

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