slava1stclass

On ‎9‎/‎23‎/‎2016 at 15:51, slava1stclass said:

Gents,

  Currently available on the well-known auction site for a buy-it-now price of $3,500.00.  The orders booklet and OGII only first surfaced at auction in Ukraine a couple of years back.  Since then, the "OGIII" has now suddenly appeared.  While I'm confident in the OGII's and orders booklet's authenticity, I can't say the same for the OGIII based on the images below.  While the OGIII's "serial number" matches that awarded to the Full Cavalier in question, the likelihood of the original OGIII being found and then reunited with the OGII and orders booklet seems remote at best.  The seller is in Latvia and has a solid eBay reputation.

  In any event, this an interesting offering as the Full Cavalier in question initially served in an airborne unit and later transitioned to duties as an aerial gunner/radio operator in an IL-2 Shturmovik ground-attack aircraft.  His OGIII recommendation included credit for shooting down a German aircraft.  His IL-2 pilot would go on to earn the HSU title.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  With no takers thus far, he dropped his BIN price to $2,999.00.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎9‎/‎23‎/‎2016 at 15:51, slava1stclass said:

Gents,

  Currently available on the well-known auction site for a buy-it-now price of $3,500.00.  The orders booklet and OGII only first surfaced at auction in Ukraine a couple of years back.  Since then, the "OGIII" has now suddenly appeared.  While I'm confident in the OGII's and orders booklet's authenticity, I can't say the same for the OGIII based on the images below.  While the OGIII's "serial number" matches that awarded to the Full Cavalier in question, the likelihood of the original OGIII being found and then reunited with the OGII and orders booklet seems remote at best.  The seller is in Latvia and has a solid eBay reputation.

  In any event, this an interesting offering as the Full Cavalier in question initially served in an airborne unit and later transitioned to duties as an aerial gunner/radio operator in an IL-2 Shturmovik ground attack aircraft.  His OGIII recommendation included credit for shooting down a German aircraft.  His IL-2 pilot would go on to earn the HSU title.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Although I had my reservations, a knowledgeable fellow collector has confirmed the OGIII's authenticity. 

  One correction.  Osipov's OGIII recommendation credited him with damaging and not shooting down a Me-109 fighter.  After three long bursts from his machine gun, the German fighter began trailing smoke and returned to its lines.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  A Bravery Medal and another nice ribbon rack attributed to Full Cavalier V. I. Finogenov that recently sold for $130.00 at auction in the former Soyuz.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  A beautiful ribbon rack to Full Cavalier G. D. Kokozashvili that sold for $120.00 at auction in the former Soyuz two years ago.  It was accompanied by several documents including those for his Caucasus, Warsaw, Berlin and VoG medals.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Currently available on the well-known auction site for a buy-it-now price of $3,500.00.  The orders booklet and OGII only first surfaced at auction in Ukraine a couple of years back.  Since then, the "OGIII" has now suddenly appeared.  While I'm confident in the OGII's and orders booklet's authenticity, I can't say the same for the OGIII based on the images below.  While the OGIII's "serial number" matches that awarded to the Full Cavalier in question, the likelihood of the original OGIII being found and then reunited with the OGII and orders booklet seems remote at best.  The seller is in Latvia and has a solid eBay reputation.

  In any event, this an interesting offering as the Full Cavalier in question initially served in an airborne unit and later transitioned to duties as an aerial gunner/radio operator in an IL-2 Shturmovik ground attack aircraft.  His OGIII recommendation included credit for shooting down a German aircraft.  His IL-2 pilot would go on to earn the HSU title.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  A group of Full Cavalier-related documents to a Guards airborne sapper.  It is currently available at auction in the former Soyuz with an opening bid of slightly under $1,000.00.  Among the items included are his Full Cavalier booklet, his orders booklet and his 1985 jubilee award OPWI booklet.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎8‎/‎7‎/‎2016 at 02:54, mihaizaha said:

Dear gents!

What do you think about this one? Original?Any help appreciated!

Thank you in advance!

Mihai Z.

Mihai Z.,

  In the future, please do not post such requests in this thread.  This thread is reserved for discussions relating to Orders of Glory associated with Full Cavaliers.  Please feel free to start a separate thread/topic when you seek opinions on a given order/medal.  Thank you.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  This loose OGII to a Full Cavalier sold in April 2016 somewhere in the $700.00 to $800.00 range.  Sale was in the former Soyuz.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎5‎/‎17‎/‎2006 at 08:11, slava1stclass said:

HSU A.P. Voloshin was one of the 119 Red Army personnel awarded the U.S. Army Silver Star during World War II/the Great Patriotic War.  It is clearly visible in the below photo.  For the majority of the war, Voloshin served as a Battery Commander in the 271st Rifle Regiment, 10th NKVD Rifle Division (later redesignated the 18th Stalingrad NKVD Rifle Division). He was wounded five times during the course of the war.

Approved for award of the Silver Star on 12 July 1944, he was personally decorated by President Roosevelt's Special Advisor, Harry Hopkins, in the Sverdlovsk Room of the Kremlin in October 1944.  Averill Harriman as the U.S. Ambassador to the USSR; the U.S. Defense Attache, Moscow as well as Secretary of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet, Gorkin, were among those who attended the ceremony.

Voloshin would later march in the 24 June 1945 Victory Parade in Moscow where he carried the unit colors of the Moscow Artillery Academy.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Almost 69 years after receiving his Silver Star, HSU A. P. Voloshin still proudly wears it next to his HSU gold star medal.  The fact that he wears just these two decorations is a statement in itself. 

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  On June 15th, 1945, in the vicinity of the Oder River, U.S. Army Brigadier General J. H. Collier, Commanding General, Combat Command A, 2nd Armored Division decorated several Red Army personnel.  Among them were Senior Lieutenant I. A. Savelyev a tank company commander in the 4th Tank Regiment, 35th Mechanized Brigade, 2nd Guards Tank Army and Guards Senior Lieutenant R. Kurbangaliyev a T-34 tank platoon leader in the 64th Guards Independent Tank Brigade, 1st Guards Tank Army who each received the Bronze Star Medal.

  As noted earlier in this thread, an exact count of Bronze Star Medals awarded to Red Army personnel is difficult to ascertain as many were issued at the field level in the immediate post-war weeks and months.  This award ceremony is one such example. 

  Sr. Lt. Savelyev's award orders follow immediately below his photograph.  His orders are a good example of how the paperwork for these field-issued U.S. Army awards was executed.  Note the short citation which justifies his award.  It is highly unlikely that BSM award certificates were issued either during the field presentations or after the fact.  The authorizing award orders would have been the sole official paperwork accompanying the award in the case of BSMs. 

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎11‎/‎18‎/‎2014 at 15:16, GHB said:

More comfirmations for LOM Chief Commander. The Truman Presidential Library forwarded the following documents for Army General Yeremenko and Marshals of the Soviet Union Rokossovsky, Meretskov and Govorov.

Gents,

  Thanks to the research contributions of fellow forum members Gunner 1 (DFC and AM data) and GHB (LM Chief Commander data), I can offer an update to the chart seen in post #1 this thread.  I offer it here as I'm unable to edit the original post.

  The following U.S. Army decorations were awarded to Red Army personnel for heroism or meritorious service in World War II:

Distinguished Service Cross (DSC) - 53

Distinguished Service Medal (DSM) - 20

Silver Star (SS) - 119

Legion of Merit (LM) - 323

By degree:

- Chief Commander - 9*

- Commander - 35

- Officer - 85

- Legionnaire - 194

Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC) - 46

Bronze Star Medal (BSM) - 40**

Air Medal (AM) – 8

Notes:

*Awards of the LM in the degree of Chief Commander to MSUs Vasilevskiy, Govorov, Zhukov, Meretskov and Rokossovskiy; Chief Marshal of Aviation Novikov and Army Generals Antonov, Bagramyan and Yeremenko have been confirmed via documentary evidence all of which is posted in this thread.  Additionally, photographic evidence confirms award of the LM Chief Commander degree to Admiral of the Fleet Kuznetsov.  As it wasn't awarded via the U.S. Army, Kuznetsov's LM Chief Commander degree is not included in the above sub-total.  His award, however, represents the 10th total LM Chief Commander degree known to have been awarded to a Soviet general/flag officer during WWII.

**Information available in an OMSA publication suggests the number of BSMs awarded to Red Army personnel was higher.  This is likely true since many BSMs were awarded at the U.S. Army army/corps level and below.  The number above reflects only those BSMs to Red Army personnel authorized by War Department General Orders.  It is also very probable the number of LMs awarded to Red Army personnel may be higher for the same reason.  The same OMSA publication suggested one Soldier's Medal was awarded to a Red Army servicemember.  To date, no evidence - documentary or photographic - has arisen to confirm this.

Regards,

slava1stclass

1 hour ago, JBFloyd said:

And another, Legionnaire grade, to Lt Colonel Fyedor Ivanovich Vinokurov, 117th Regiment, 23rd Infantry Division.

Gents,

  Lieutenant Colonel F. I. Vinokurov was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union on February 27th, 1945.

1 hour ago, JBFloyd said:

The officer grade to Colonel General Leon[id] Kotlar, who received the HSU as chief of engineering troops in the capture of Berlin.

  Colonel General (Engineer Troops) Leontiy Zakharovich Kotlyar was awarded the title Hero of the Soviet Union on April 28th, 1945.

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎10‎/‎29‎/‎2014 at 06:55, slava1stclass said:

Gents,

LM certificate to Guards Colonel N. N. Gladkoff. The citation for his LM reads, "Colonel Nickolai Nickolovitch Gladkoff, 20th Budapest Guards Infantry Corps, Red Army, displayed exceptionally meritorious conduct in the performance of outstanding services, contributing materially to the success of combined operations in Europe."

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  His award certificate, albeit not as nice a copy, was previously listed at post # 289 this thread.  Thanks to Jeff for the better image.

Regards,

slava1stclass

1 hour ago, JBFloyd said:

To add to the archive of Legion of Merit documents to the Red Army, here's the Truman citation to Major General George Matviyicha Solovyov, 38th Infantry Guards Division.

Jeff,

  A great addition.  This excellent citation to Guards Major General Georgi Matveyevich Solovyov is certainly one of the most descriptive ones posted to date.  If only they were all this good.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  Five years ago, this HSU gold star medal was in the collection of a respected and currently active forum member.  Uncertain if it has since changed hands.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  The President Roosevelt-signed Legion of Merit (Degree of Officer) citation to Lieutenant Colonel N. P. Murzin.

Regards,

slava1stclass

10 minutes ago, Christian Zulus said:

Dear slava1stclass,

do you have any informations about the hammer-price (incl. fees), if it was sold?

Kind regards

Christian

Christian,

  The two-week auction's opening bid was set at 400,000 Hryvnia (the Ukrainian currency) and ended at that amount with two total bids placed.  I can only assume the set sold.  This particular Ukrainian online auction site assesses a 1% commission on all sales greater than 8,000 Hryvnia.  In this instance, that would have amounted to a $160.00 commission.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  While not the best image, this very crusty Category 7 Full Cavalier set to Ya. L. Gladkiy was up for auction this past April in Ukraine.  The opening bid was set at just over $16,000.00.  

Regards,

slava1stclass 

On ‎9‎/‎19‎/‎2013 at 12:25, JapanX said:

On ‎9‎/‎19‎/‎2013 at 20:28, Ferdinand said:

That second one is Ivan Ivanovich Lyudnikov. His Wikipedia page has the same photo, but in higher quality: http://ru.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%9B%D1%8E%D0%B4%D0%BD%D0%B8%D0%BA%D0%BE%D0%B2,_%D0%98%D0%B2%D0%B0%D0%BD_%D0%98%D0%BB%D1%8C%D0%B8%D1%87

Gents,

  The President Roosevelt-signed Legion of Merit (Degree of Commander) award certificate to the aforementioned Guards HSU Lieutenant General I. I. Lyudnikov.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  A President Truman-signed Legion of Merit (Degree of Legionnaire) citation on White House stationery to Guards Lieutenant Colonel S. S. Sergeyev.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  A President Truman-signed Legion of Merit (Degree of Commander) citation on White House stationery to HSU Guards Lieutenant General M. B. Anashkin.

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  A President Roosevelt-signed Legion of Merit (Degree of Officer) certificate to then Colonel M. G. Machin, head of the Red Army Air Force military representative office in Alaska.  Awarded the HSU title on June 29th, 1945, as a Major General, he retired as a Lieutenant General in the 1970s.

Regards,

slava1stclass

19 hours ago, Christian Zulus said:

Well, the s/n. of the OGII is a rather crude fake ;-)

11 hours ago, Christian Zulus said:

Question to slava1stclass: The price of 4.4 k USD is not a current sales price? If you deduct the actual price for one ounce of pure gold, it seems a bit too cheap.

Gents,

  As noted in my original post, while the OGII order itself appears legitimate, its serial number was altered to match this Full Cavalier's awarded OGII serial number. 

  As also noted in my original post, the $4,400.00 purchase price dates to the early 2000s and is not reflective of current market asking prices for a comparable set.  Said prices tend to range from $12,500.00 to $18,000.00 depending on the orders' condition and any accompanying documentation; the point of sale i.e., in the former Soyuz or in the West; and the Full Cavalier's combat pedigree which is a combination of the awardee's military occupational specialty, Guards status and the actual OGI award recommendation write up.  As an example, a knock-you-off-your-feet OGI recommendation that is very fact filled and descriptive - regardless of MOS, Guards status or location of cited action - will always command a premium as will Full Cavalier sets whose OGI is based on a late-war descriptive recommendation for action in Koenigsberg or Berlin. 

Regards,

slava1stclass

Gents,

  As things have been relatively quiet of late, I thought I'd post this set from days gone by.  Its $4,400.00 purchase price suggests it was on the market sometime in the early 2000s.  One of the other NYC-area dealers had offered it.

  While all the orders appear good, the OGII's number appears to have been altered to match the set. 

Regards,

slava1stclass

On ‎12‎/‎17‎/‎2015 at 22:02, slava1stclass said:

Gents,

  A Category 7 Full Cavalier set currently up for auction.  Opening bid is $16,000.00.

Regards,

slava1stclass

 

 

Gents,

  With no takers thus far, the opening bid was recently lowered to $12,500.00.

Regards,

slava1stclass