The
Cross of Saint Vladimir was an Imperial
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n Order established in 1782 by Empress Catherine II in memory of the deeds of Saint Vladimir, the Grand Prince and the Baptizer of the Kievan Rus.
Motto - "Benefit, Honor and Glory".
The order had four degrees and was awarded for continuous civil and military service.
The
Cross of Saint Vladimir was an Imperial
RussiaRussia , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia . It is a semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n Order established in 1782 by Empress Catherine II in memory of the deeds of Saint Vladimir, the Grand Prince and the Baptizer of the Kievan Rus.
Motto - "Benefit, Honor and Glory".
The order had four degrees and was awarded for continuous civil and military service. The color of the order ribbon is red with a black border.
First class of the order - A red cross with black and golden borders. It was born on the ribbon thrown over the right shoulder with an octagonal star made from gold and silver. It was fastened on the left side of the chest.
Second class - The red cross on the neck and the star on the left side of the chest.
Third class - The red cross of a smaller size on the neck.
Fourth class - The same on the chest.
Badge: A red
enamelledIn a discussion of material science, enamel is the colorful result of fusing powdered glass to a substrate by firing, usually between 750 and 850 degrees Celsius. The powder melts and flows and hardens to a smooth, durable vitreous coating on metal, glass or ceramic...
cross pattéeA cross pattée is a type of cross that has arms which are narrow at the center, and broader at the perimeter. The name comes from the fact that the shape of each arm of the cross was thought to resemble a paw...
with black enamelled borders, and a black enamelled central disc bearing a crowned red and
ermineErmine is a heraldic fur representing the winter coat of the stoat . Many skins would be sewn together to make a luxurious garment, producing a pattern of small black spots on a white field...
mantle with the
monogramA monogram is a motif made by overlapping or combining two or more letters or other graphemes to form one symbol. Monograms are often made by combining the initials of an individual or a company, used as recognizable symbols or logos...
of St. Vladimir. Worn on a
sashA sash is a cloth belt used to hold a robe together, and is usually tied about the waist. The Japanese equivalent of a sash, obi, serves to hold a kimono or yukata together. Decorative sashes may pass from the shoulder to the hip rather than around the waist...
by the first degree, on a
neckletA neck order is a type of decoration which is designed to be worn and displayed around a person's neck, rather than hung from the chest as is the standard practice for displaying most decorations....
by the second and third degrees, and on a chest
ribbonA ribbon or riband is a thin band of flexible material, typically cloth but also plastic or sometimes metal, used primarily for binding and tying...
by the fourth degree.
Star: A four-pointed star superimposed upon a four-pointed gold star, with a golden cross pattée and the letters "CPKB" between the arms of the cross on a black enamel background at the centre surrounded by the motto of the order "Beneficence, Honour and Glory" (
Pol'za Chest' i Slava). Worn on the left chest by the first and second degrees. This motto was transferred to present-day star of the Order of Merit of the Russian Federation, which was established in 1992 by President
Boris YeltsinBoris Nikolayevich Yeltsin was the first President of the Russian Federation, serving from 1991 to 1999....
and is today the second highest ranking decoration of that country.
Ribbon: red with wide black edges.
In 1957, in commemoration of the 40th anniversary of the
Patriarchy restoration in Russia, the order was revived by the
Russian Orthodox ChurchThe Russian Orthodox Church ; or The Moscow Patriarchate , also known...
. The order is to be awarded to priests and nuns of Orthodox church for their service to
Soviet UnionThe Union of Soviet Socialist Republics was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. The name is a translation of the , tr. Soyuz Sovetskikh Sotsialisticheskikh Respublik, abbreviated СССР, SSSR. The common short name is Soviet Union, from , Sovetskiy Soyuz...
and later Russia. There are three degrees of the order.
The Order of Saint Prince Vladimir (St. Vladimir Order)
People who had been awarded with the St.Vladimir Order for military merits bore it with a special fold on the ribbon - "with a bow".
There was a certain hierarchy of Russian Orders. According to this, the St. Vladimir Order, 1st Class was the second one (the first - St. George Order) by its significance.
According to the Russian Law about the Nobility, people who were awarded with the St. Vladimir Order (each class) had had the rights of hereditary nobility until the Emperor's Decree of 1900 was issued. After this only three first classes of the Order gave such a right.