Order of Lenin
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The Order of Lenin (ru: Орден Ленина), named after the leader of the Russian Revolution, was the second highest national order of the Soviet Union (Highest was the Order of Victory). The Order was bestowed for the following:
- to civilians for outstanding services rendered to the State
- to members of the armed forces for exemplary service
- to those who promoted friendship and cooperation between peoples and in strengthening peace
- other meritorious services to the Soviet state and society
Those who were awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union and the Hero of Socialist Labor were also given the Order at the same time. The Order was also bestowed on cities, companies, factories, regions, military units and ships. It was established by the Central Executive Committee on April 6, 1930. The first native recipient was a Soviet newspaper Komsomolskaya Pravda on May 23 1930. First foreign recipients were two American air mechanics on September 10 1934 for participation in search and rescue operations of the steamship Cheliuskin.
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Order Construction Details
| Missing image Order_of_Lenin_ribbon_bar.png Image:Order_of_Lenin_ribbon_bar.png |
The Order consisted of a badge, featuring a disc bearing the portrait of Vladimir Lenin in platinum. The disc is surrounded by two golden panicles of wheat, and a red flag with the word 'Lenin' in Russian (Ленин). A red star is placed on the left, and a Hammer and Sickle emblem is located at the bottom, also colored in red. The badge was worn on the left chest, originally without ribbon, later with a red ribbon bearing two yellow stripes on each edge (see image to the left). (Note: The ribbon for the Order is the same as that of the British Fire Services Long Service & Good Conduct Medal.)
Sample List of Recipients
- All 14 SSR's and the RSFSR
- Cities
- Companies
- Pravda (Newspaper)
- People
- Fidel Castro (Cuban Leader)
- Yuri Gagarin (Cosmonaut)
- George Formby (British Actor) [1] (http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/onthefuture/A622568)
- Nikita Khrushchev (Soviet Premier)
- Kim Philby (British/Soviet Double Agent) [2] (http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kim_Philby)
- Lev Yashin (Soviet Football Goalkeeper)
- Yakov Zel'dovich (Soviet scientist)
- Georgy Zhukov (Marshal of the SU)
References in Other Media
In the movie The Hunt For Red October, the doctor on the Red October told the captain of the ship, Marko Ramius (Sean Connery) that his plans to scuttle the ship and save a majority of his crew could possible award him the Order. It is unclear whether or not his actions will fit the criteria of the Order or Captain Ramius was bestowed the Order. However, by the looks of this photo [3] (http://www.stud.tu-ilmenau.de/~ramius/ram1farb.gif), Ramius is wearing the Order ribbon, thus he has been bestowed the Order before.
![[3]](http://www.stud.tu-ilmenau.de/~ramius/ram1farb.gif){kind=link}
In the game Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater, the Soviet scientist Aleksandr Leonovitch Granin shows off his various awards including the Order of Lenin and boasts about being given the title of 'Hero of Socialism' for his development of the mobile ballistic missile system known as SS-1C.
James Bond himself has received the Order in the movie A View to a Kill. It was awarded by General Gogol, for saving the Russian microchip industry, which was going to be destroyed by the main villian Max Zorin. In the movie, Bond was told he is the first non-Soviet citizen to receive the award, though this is not historically accurate. Various other villians and characters in the James Bond movie series have worn the Order on their uniforms, usually in the form of a ribbon bar.
External Links
http://www.russian-medals.net/chkord4.htm
See also
fr:Ordre de Lénine ru:Орден Ленина sl:Red Lenina sv:Leninorden