When Leonid Brezhnev was at the head of the USSR,Victory Day over Nazi Germany began to turn into the second most important state holiday after the day of the October Revolution. May 9 officially became a day off in 1965. The holiday in those years gained a large number of traditions of holding, which are still observed today, for example, military parades on Red Square. Then the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier was also discovered. Since that time the history of commemorative medals dedicated to the anniversaries of the Victory begins.
The first anniversary medal
In 1965 the first jubilee medal was issuedVictory, which was dedicated to the twentieth anniversary of the disengagement of states from the Nazis. The obverse depicted a Soviet soldier-liberator from Berlin's Treptow Park, which was flanked by two laurel branches. The author of the award was Evgeni Vuchetich. Also on the sides were the dates of 1945 and 1965 respectively. On the reverse there are the words "Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945", the Roman numeral XX and the star, in divergent rays.
The jubilee medal was made of brass, and withThe ear was attached to a pentagonal shoe, which was framed by a three-color (red, green and black) ribbon. According to the statute, this award should be on the chest on the left. She was awarded all the Red Army soldiers, as well as former partisans. As a result, about 16.4 million Soviet citizens received the award.
Jubilee award in honor of the 30th anniversary of the Victory
For the thirtieth anniversary of the victory, which was accounted for1975, another medal was established. The jubilee award was presented to all the soldiers who were in the Red Army during the war, underground workers, partisans and workers of the rear. By the way, depending on who was awarded during the war, the inscriptions on the reverse side of the medal differed. If a person took part in the battles, and wrote a reverse to the "Participant of the war", if he was a worker of the rear, then to the "Participant of the labor front".
An interesting fact is that foreigncitizens were awarded without these inscriptions. A total of 14 million Soviet citizens received the award. On the obverse of the medal was again placed the image of the statue of the authorship of Evgeny Vuchetich. This time it was the famous "Motherland" from Volgograd. Behind it there was an image of a salute, to the left - a laurel branch, a star, and also dates 1945 and 1975.
Jubilee award in honor of the fortieth anniversary of Victory
The last anniversary jubilee medal in the history of the USSR,dedicated to the anniversary of victory, was the one that appeared in 1985. The rules of awarding her were the same as those of the previous ones. The appearance has changed. The front side contains figures of the worker, collective farm and soldier, laurel branches, salute lights, the years 1945 and 1985, as well as the Spasskaya Tower of the Kremlin. About 11.3 million Soviet citizens received the medal.
50 years after the Victory
In 1993, another jubilee medal was established"50 Years of Victory". The award was issued this time in four former Soviet republics, which were already sovereign states. This membership included Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Belarus. In the list of awardees were added the then-under-age prisoners of concentration camps and ghettos.
On the obverse of the medal were images of the Kremlin wall, Spassky Tower, St. Basil's Cathedral and salute. Below in the frame of laurel branches the inscription "1945-1995" was shining.
Anniversary medal "60 years of Victory"
In 2004, a presidential decree was issued,according to which, a medal was established. The jubilee award was created in honor of the forthcoming sixtieth anniversary of the Victory in the war. It was also awarded in Ukraine and Belarus. On the obverse this time, they placed the Order of Victory and the inscription "1945-2005". The reverse side is formed in the same way as the previous medal: "Sixty (in figures) years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945." in the frame of laurel branches.
Five years later, another award was issued,dedicated to the Victory over Nazi Germany. On her obverse, they placed the Order of Glory 1st degree and the date "1945-2010". In all other respects, it did not differ much from the previous medal: in the inscription on the reverse, naturally, the figure was changed by 60 to 65, but now it was not flanked by laurel branches.
Jubilee medal "70 years of Victory"
In 2013 the heads of the CIS member statesdecided to establish a unified jubilee award, which was dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the overthrow of Nazism. It was to be celebrated in 2015. But some countries agreed to this only with certain reservations. In Moldova, where they decided to abandon the image of the hammer and sickle, the new design received a medal. The jubilee award in Ukraine would be devoid of multicolor, but after the change of government it was abandoned and created its own.
This time the obverse, in addition to the inscription "1945-2015", was decorated with the Order "Patriotic War" in color. The reverse is designed in the same way as a medal in honor of the 60th anniversary of the Victory.
