Chasing the 3 ‘R’s: Rhodesia, Romania and Russia
Military medals from Rhodesia, Romania, and Russia, and discover rare awards, historic decorations, and new collecting opportunities for medal enthusiasts.
Military enthusiasts often work to complete collections of military awards by historical eras, geographic locations, or wars of particular time frames. Often when they near completing a collection, collectors turn their attention to possible new challenges. For medal and awards collectors, this might mean moving on to focus on a country they have not collected before.
Most people associate “the 3R’s” with “reading, riting (writing), and rithmetic (arithmetic), but in this case we’ll apply the term to three countries with awards for the collector to pursue: Rhodesia, Romania and Russia. Following are some examples from each.
Rhodesia
Rhodesia was a country that was an outgrowth of British self-governing colony of Southern Rhodesia. With the rapid decolonization of Africa in the late 1950s, the government of Southern Rhodesia declared its independence from the United Kingdom in 1965, taking the name Rhodesia from 1965-1970. The official name changed to the Republic of Rhodesia from 1970-1979. Originally ruled by a White-minority government as a largely unrecognized state, the country would by April 1980 achieve internationally recognized independence as the majority-ruled country Zimbabwe.
The Rhodesian military, officially known as the Rhodesian Security Forces, was the primary defense and internal security force of the unrecognized state of Rhodesia from 1963 to 1980. The security forces were divided into several main branches under a Combined Operations headquarters in 1977. This included the Rhodesian Army, Air Force, and British South Africa Police along with Guard Force & Security Force Auxiliaries.
The most widely awarded military medal of Rhodesia was the Rhodesia General Service Medal. The 35mm medal was struck in cupro-nickel and bore a relief portrait of Cecil Rhodes on the obverse and the arms of Rhodesia on the reverse. An almost identical award called the District Service Medal exhibits a different reverse and was named along the edge to a black resident of the district. Another striking award of Rhodesia is the Rhodesia Medal for Territorial or Reserve Forces. The silver medal is awarded for 12 years of unbroken service in the Territorial Volunteer or Reserve Service. A silver clasp can be awarded each six years of additional service.
Another special award of Rhodesia is the Bronze Cross of Rhodesia for Gallantry. Instituted in 1970 by Presidential Warrant, the medal was a bronze four-arm cross with an enameled roundel in the center bearing a lion’s head. The ribbons of the Bronze Cross differed in color according to the service in which the recipient was enlisted. The Army version exhibited a red ribbon with three white stripes; the Air Force medal used a purple ribbon with the same white stripes; and the Rhodesian Guard Service used a brown ribbon with the same three white stripes.
Since the Police Force of Rhodesia was a major component of the Rhodesia armed forces, two major police awards were established in 1970: the Police Cross for Distinguished Service and the Police Cross for Conspicuous Service. Both appear as a gold-plated 38mm Maltese Cross in black-enameled arms with the center a gold lion and spear police crest on a white enamel circle. Reverses are plain with room for inscription. The Distinguished Service Cross was awarded for distinguished service or bravery. The Police Cross for Conspicuous Gallantry was awarded for exceptional bravery in the line of duty, particularly for high-risk counter-terrorism operations.
Another interesting pairing of Rhodesian medals are the Defense Cross for Distinguished Service and the Rhodesian Long and Exemplary Service Medal. The Defense Cross for Distinguished Service was awarded to members of the Rhodesia’s armed forces exhibits a white center with a gold lion surrounded by a black enamel ring inscribed “for distinguished service”. The Rhodesian Exemplary Service medal is a silver 30mm circular medal and inscribed “for long and Exemplary Service” with a silver bar suspension. The medal was often awarded for 18 years of service and part of the honors system established during the Rhodesian Republic era (1970-1980).
By 1980 after a year of transition the country acquired its current name — the Republic of Zimbabwe, which has many awards and medals available to the collector. Examples include the Zimbabwe Independence Medal (1980), the Zimbabwe Liberation Medal (1980), and the Zimbabwe Armed Forces Long Service Medal for 10 years service. The reverses of the same three medals is also shown here.
A final example to show the complexities of medals awarded by Rhodesia and Zimbabwe is a special group of four medals awarded to Assistant Inspector E. Mazarire of the Zimbabwe Republic Police Force, and late British South Africa Police Support Unit as seen in a special 2010 auction with the Hammer price reaching 3,100 pounds. The 3rd medal from the left in the form of a four-arm Maltese Cross making Mazarire the 4th recipient of Rhodesia’s highest award for remarkable bravery after receiving multiple wounds in a terrorist attack. He was originally recommended for the Grand Cross of Valor, of which just two had ever been awarded.
Romania
Romania is a southeast European Country with a language more than 1,700 years old. With a population of 20 million, it is a member of the EU and NATO and has an extensive military history that provides the collector with many opportunities. The following are just some examples of interest.
A beautiful example of a Romanian medal is the Order of the Crown instituted in 1881. It is a four-arm Bath Cross enameled red with white edges with interlaced c’s in the angles. Our example also contains crossed swords, meaning it was a military time award. The center showed a crown on a red medallion in a white border until 1932. The ribbon is bright blue with wide silver side stripes.
An equally impressive Romanian Award was the Order of the Star of Romania. Instituted in 1877 in five classes in military and civil divisions, the badge was first seen as a silver-rayed blue cross crosslet until 1932 with an eagle on a red center with the motto ‘”IN FIDE SALUS” (In Loyalty is safety). From 1932, the eagle was replaced with the royal cypher and the rays replaced by winged eagles. From 1885, swords in both examples were added for War Merit. Also shown are the reverses of both medals.
Another Romanian award was the Romanian Faithful Service Cross with Swords instituted in 1906 and modified in the 1932/1938 period. It was primarily a military award for bravery and service during wartime. It came in three classes: bronze, silver and gold. Seen are examples in bronze and silver showing a four-arm cross with wreath and swords between each arm.
Two other frequently found medals of the period are the Commemorative Medal of the Second Balkan War and the WWII Romanian Crusade against Communism. The 2nd Balkan War was established in 1913 to reward military and civilian personnel who participated in a brief 1913 conflict against Bulgaria. The silver-plated design features King Carol I on the obverse and the inscription “From the Carpathians across the Danube to the Balkans”. The red ribbon WWII Romanian Crusade Against Communism Medal is seen with an obverse that displays a clenched first gripping a sword and an inscription translated “Crusade Against Communism”. King Michael I instituted the medal in 1942 and awarded it to Romanian and Axis military personnel who participated in Operation Barbarossa, the Axis invasion of Russia.
After WWII and the forced abdication of King Michael 1, the government became the Romanian People’s Republic from 1947-1965. It was an era characterized by heavy Soviet influence. From 1965-1989, the official name of the country was the Socialist Republic of Romania, reflecting a higher stage of socialist development. This was apparent in the military awards more in line with Soviet designs. One such award was the Romanian Military Merit Medal. It was established in three classes, including the Order of Military Merit and the Medal of Military Merit. The Order shows a 40mm red enamel star on a silver wreath with a gold center ring inscribed “Meritul Militar”. It was awarded for meritorious service and 20-year service. Its companion was a lower tier award for distinguished service that featured a red enamel star and crossed swords with the initials “R.S.R.” There was also a Romanian Commemorative Medal “For Liberation from the Fascist Yoke” in 1959. Collectors will find examples of the medal for the 20-, 25-, and 30-year anniversary of liberation from Fascist domination. The initial 1959 medal is seen in the accompanying group photo has a typical Soviet red star and white and red-triped ribbon with a circular bronze 31mm medal showing a pair of helmeted soldiers and the inscription “Medalia–Eliberarea de sub jugul fascist”.
Russia
An early Russian award to target for collectors is the Badge of Distinction of the Military Order of St. George. It is a prestigious military decoration established in 1807 by Emperor Alexander I. The silver four-arm cross was designed to reward “undaunted courage” among the lower ranks, soldiers, sailors and non-commissioned officers. Our example in silver is a 3rd or 4th class example. The image in the center features a right-facing Saint George on horseback slaying a dragon with a spear, symbolizing the victory of good over evil. Closely related is the St. George Medal for Bravery 4th Class. It was founded by Tsar Alexander II in 1878 as a reward for bravery during both peace and war. The obverse central image is that of the reigning emperor, such as Alexander II.
Collectors will find examples of Russian medals of the Soviet period of the U.S.S.R. almost too numerous to mention. Military Trader featured a two-part article on collecting Soviet awards in the June and July 2021 issues.
This article will conclude with an example of one current medal of the Russian Federation less well known to the collector than the many Soviet awards seen in the collector market. The Russian Federation (FSB) Distinguished Military Service Medal was issued after 1991 when the Soviet Union was formally dissolved. Our example grouping has the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Class of the award. The 1st Class is awarded for at least 20 years of service; the 2nd Class for at least 15 years of service; and the 3rd Class for at least 10 years of service. The same ribbon has been used for a variety of other similar Russian medals for a variety of different purposes. Even the Distinguished Military Medal has been seen with slight design variations.
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David Burrows is a retired educator and life long military collector. He started collecting as a teenager. David was a physics teacher for 37 years with the Pittsburgh Public schools. He is a frequent contributor to Military Trader as well as the OMSA Journal. His other passion with British cars has resulted in many feature stories both in US publications as well as international publications over the last 30 years.
