Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"

Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"
Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" (obverse)
Awarded by  USSR
Type	War medal
Eligibility	Soviet citizens
Awarded for	1 year of wartime labour
Campaign	1941–45
Statistics
Established	June 6, 1945
Total awarded	16,096,750
Ribbon of the Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"

Reverse of the Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"

The Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" (Russian: медаль «За доблестный труд в Великой Отечественной войне 1941–1945 гг.») was a World War II civilian labour award of the Soviet Union established on June 6, 1945 by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR^[1] to recognise the valiant and selfless labour of Soviet citizens in the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in the Great Patriotic War. Its statute was later amended by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR on July 18, 1980.^[2]

Medal statute

The Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" was awarded for wartime labour of one year or six months in the case of disabled veterans, to:

• workers, technical personnel and employees of industry and transport;
• farmers and agricultural specialists;
• workers in science, technology, the arts and literature;
• employees of the Soviet, party, trade union and other civic organizations.^[1]

Presentation of the award of the Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War of 1941–1945" was made by the executive committees of city and district Soviets on the basis of documents issued by the heads of enterprises, institutions, party, government, trade unions and other civic organizations. Lists submitted for the award of the medal were reviewed and approved:

• for workers of industrial enterprises, transport, and farms – the relevant People's Commissars of the Union and the Republican People's Commissars;
• for workers of collective farms, cooperatives and of the workers' party, Soviet, trade union and other public organizations – the Chairman of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviets of the Union (not divided into regions), and autonomous republics, the chairmen of executive committees of regional and territorial Soviets;
• for workers of science, technology, the arts and literature – the chairmen of the committees under the SNK and the heads of the departments under the CPC union and autonomous republics, and the chairman of the Presidium of the Union of Soviet Writers.^[2]

Award of the Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" was made on behalf of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet by executive committees of regional, district and city Soviets in the area of residence of the recipient.^[2]

The Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" was worn on the left side of the chest and when in the presence of other Orders and medals of the USSR, was located immediately after the Medal "For the Liberation of Prague".^[2] If worn in the presence of awards of the Russian Federation, the latter have precedence.^[3]

Each medal came with an attestation of award, this attestation came in the form of a small 8 cm by 11 cm cardboard booklet bearing the award's name, the recipient's particulars and an official stamp and signature on the inside.^[1]

The certificate of the award of the Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" ("Soviet" version)

Attestion of award of the Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"

Medal description

The Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" was a 32mm in diameter circular copper medal with a raised rim on both sides. On the obverse, the left profile bust of Joseph Stalin wearing the uniform of a Marshal of the Soviet Union, along the upper circumference of the medal, the relief inscription "OUR CAUSE IS JUST" (Russian: НАШЕ ДЕЛО ПРАВОЕ), along the lower circumference of the medal, the relief inscription "WE HAVE WON" (Russian: МЫ ПОБЕДИЛИ). On the reverse along the upper circumference of the medal, the relief inscription "FOR VALIANT LABOUR" (Russian: «ЗА ДОБЛЕСТНЫЙ ТРУД»), in the center, under a relief hammer and sickle, the inscription on four lines "THE GREAT PATRIOTIC WAR 1941–1945" (Russian: «В ВЕЛИКОЙ ОТЕЧЕСТВЕННОЙ ВОЙНЕ 1941–1945 ГГ.»), at the bottom, a small relief five pointed star.^[1]

The Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" was secured by a ring through the medal suspension loop to a standard Soviet pentagonal mount covered by a 24mm wide red silk moiré ribbon with 2mm wide yellow edge stripes and a 7mm wide green central stripe.^[1]

Recipients (partial list)

Wartime Leningrad radio broadcaster and recipient of the Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" Olga Bergholz

Wartime artillery factory engineer and recipient of the Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" Sergey Aleksandrovich Afanasyev

The individuals below were recipients of the Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945".^[4]

• Fifth General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union Konstantin Ustinovich Chernenko
• Cellist and conductor Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich
• Physicist Alexander Mikhaylovich Prokhorov
• Wartime factory worker, later cosmonaut Pavel Ivanovich Belyayev
• Composer Aram Ilyich Khachaturian
• Theoretical physicist, astrophysicist and Nobel Prize winner Vitaly Lazarevich Ginzburg
• Composer, pianist and leader of the Union of Soviet Composers Tikhon Nikolayevich Khrennikov
• Rocket engineer Valentin Petrovich Glushko
• Poet and wartime Leningrad radio broadcaster Olga Fyodorovna Bergholz
• President of the Academy of Sciences of Ukraine Oleksandr Oleksandrovych Bohomolets
• People's Artist of the USSR Nikolay Aleksandrovich Annenkov
• Founder of Russian neurosurgery Nikolay Nilovich Burdenko
• People's Artist of the USSR Oleg Aleksandrovich Strizhenov
• Film director, editor, and screenwriter Georgi Nikolaevich Vasilyev
• Major General Alexander Nikolaevich Poskrebyshev
• Writer Alexander Serafimovich Popov
• Crystallographer, geochemist, academician and Hero of Socialist Labour Nikolay Vasilyevich Belov
• Wartime artillery factory engineer Sergey Aleksandrovich Afanasyev
• Moscow Russian Army Theatre member for 60 years, actor Vladimir Mikhailovich Zeldin

See also

• Medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"
• Awards and decorations of the Soviet Union
• Great Patriotic War

References

External links

• Legal Library of the USSR

Orders, decorations, and medals of the Soviet Union
Highest grade of distinction	Hero of the Soviet Union Hero of Socialist Labour Mother Heroine
Honorary titles	Honoured Military Pilot of the USSR Honoured Military Navigator of the USSR Pilot-Cosmonaut of the USSR Honoured Test Pilot of the USSR Honoured Test Navigator of the USSR Honoured Pilot of the USSR Honoured Navigator of the USSR Honoured Inventor of the USSR People's Artist of the USSR People's Doctor of the USSR People's Architect of the USSR People's Teacher of the USSR
Civil and military orders	Order of Victory Order of Lenin Order of the October Revolution Order of the Red Banner Order of Suvorov Order of Ushakov Order of Kutuzov Order of Nakhimov Order of the Red Star Order of the Patriotic War Order of Alexander Nevsky Order of Bogdan Khmelnitsky Order of Glory Order for Service to the Homeland in the Armed Forces of the USSR Order of the Red Banner of Labour Order of Friendship of Peoples Order of the Badge of Honour Order of Maternal Glory Order of Labour Glory Order of Honour Order "For Personal Courage"
Military medals	Medal "For Courage" Medal for Battle Merit Medal of Ushakov Medal of Nakhimov Medal "For Distinction in Guarding the State Border of the USSR" Medal "For Distinction in the Protection of Public Order" Medal "For Distinction in Military Service" 1st class Medal "For Distinction in Military Service" 2nd class Medal "For Strengthening Military Cooperation" Medal "For Impeccable Service" Medal "Veteran of the Armed Forces of the USSR"
Second World War medals	Medal "For the Defence of Leningrad" Medal "For the Defence of Odessa" Medal "For the Defence of Sevastopol" Medal "For the Defence of Stalingrad" Medal "For the Defence of Moscow" Medal "For the Defence of the Caucasus" Medal "For the Defence of the Soviet Transarctic" Medal "For the Defence of Kiev" Medal "For the Capture of Berlin" Medal "For the Capture of Budapest" Medal "For the Capture of Königsberg" Medal "For the Capture of Vienna" Medal "For the Liberation of Prague" Medal "For the Liberation of Warsaw" Medal "For the Liberation of Belgrade" Medal "For the Victory over Germany in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" Medal "For the Victory over Japan" Medal "Partisan of the Patriotic War" 1st class Medal "Partisan of the Patriotic War" 2nd class Medal "For Valiant Labour in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945"
Civil medals	Medal "For Labour Valour" Medal "For Distinguished Labour" Medal "For the Salvation of the Drowning" Medal "For Courage in a Fire" Medal "Veteran of Labour" Medal "For the Restoration of the Donbass Coal Mines" Medal "For the Restoration of the Black Metallurgy Enterprises of the South" Medal "For the Development of Virgin Lands" Medal "For Construction of the Baikal-Amur Railway" Medal "For Transforming the Non-Black Earth of the RSFSR" Medal "For the Tapping of the Subsoil and Expansion of the Petrochemical Complex of Western Siberia"
Jubilee medals	Jubilee Medal "XX Years of the Workers' and Peasants' Red Army" Jubilee Medal "30 Years of the Soviet Army and Navy" Jubilee Medal "40 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" Jubilee Medal "50 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" Jubilee Medal "60 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" Jubilee Medal "70 Years of the Armed Forces of the USSR" Jubilee Medal "Twenty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" Jubilee Medal "Thirty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" Jubilee Medal "Forty Years of Victory in the Great Patriotic War 1941–1945" Medal "In Commemoration of the 800th Anniversary of Moscow" Medal "In Commemoration of the 250th Anniversary of Leningrad" Medal "In Commemoration of the 1500th Anniversary of Kiev" Jubilee Medal "50 Years of the Soviet Militia" Jubilee Medal "In Commemoration of the 100th Anniversary since the Birth of Vladimir Il'ich Lenin"