The fundamental principle of state heraldry in general, and military heraldry in particular, is the widespread use of historically established symbols that are familiar to most people in this profession to represent the same or similar phenomena and qualities. The use of these historical symbols in the creation of regimental and other insignia, patches, chevrons, emblems, and even coats of arms for units and formations allows people in uniform not only to feel the connection between generations of defenders of the Fatherland, but also to implement the continuity of military traditions in practice. Another extremely important function of military heraldry is educational: the revival of the historical symbols of the Russian army and navy, as well as their addition and modification in accordance with modern realities, contribute to the development of love for the history of the Fatherland and its glorious military, the cultivation of the corporate spirit of soldiers, and the strengthening of discipline.

One of the areas of military heraldry is phaleristics - the art of designing breast insignia, badges. This issue of "Heraldic Bulletin" is devoted to the history of breast insignia and badges of the Russian Navy.

The first breast insignia of the Russian Navy appeared in the middle of the 19th century. These were insignia awarded for graduating from military academies. Later, insignia were established in honor of the anniversaries of regiments that originated from naval units, fortresses, and finally, for graduating from other naval educational institutions. By the end of the century, the fashion for making breast insignia and tokens had spread to all units and formations of the Naval Department. They were ordered for the anniversaries of ships, units, and formations, in honor of ship laying and launching, in memory of long voyages and friendly visits to foreign ports, and as awards for the winners of rowing and sailing races.

It is noteworthy that breast insignia of warships were not widespread in the Russian Imperial Navy. In other words, insignia were established in honor of ship anniversaries, but this did not go any further, unlike in the army, where regimental insignia soon lost their original anniversary significance and became personalized regimental insignia. These insignia were awarded to all officers, military officials, and enlisted personnel serving in a particular regiment.

It is difficult to say why this happened. Perhaps it was believed that a naval uniform, even without special insignia, indicated one's affiliation with the navy (remember that the sailors of the Imperial Navy wore the name of their ship on their caps). It is likely that the naval department took this issue more seriously than the land forces. To confirm this, we will cite an order issued in 1904: "In view of the fact that some military units, institutions, and establishments of the Military Department have submitted requests for the establishment of special breast insignia for various occasions, such as anniversaries, with the right to wear them in all forms of dress, it has been ordered by the Emperor that no announcements be made regarding the already approved breast insignia in the Military Department, and that all requests for the establishment of new insignia be rejected." To be fair, the order had no effect, and dozens of new badges and tokens were ordered and produced by the fleets every year.

Thus, by the beginning of the XX century, the Russian Navy had developed a stable, although not all officially accepted system of naval signs. It included several types of badges: badges for graduating from academies and other naval institutions, jubilee badges, badges of regiments formed on the basis of naval commands and units, badges of sea fortresses, professional badges ("Sea Pilot", " Pilot

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sign") and a large group of various badge-tokens issued for a variety of reasons. For example, in the early 20th century, the Navy developed a tradition of creating special commemorative tokens for each graduation ball, known as "ball tokens." These tokens were made of silver, were unique, and conveyed the message of loyalty to one's chosen profession and love for one's alma mater.

There were also so-called "tailcoat insignia" that officers wore when they changed into civilian clothes. These insignia were exact replicas of the official insignia, but they were reduced in size by a factor of two to three.

Separately, in the system of Russian naval insignia, there is a group of departmental awards: "For the Defense of Port Arthur", "For Border Surveillance", "For the Best Artillery Shooting", and others. As the names suggest, these awards were given for special achievements, and the rules for their presentation were strictly regulated.

According to the instructions of the Naval Department, only approved awards and insignia were allowed to be worn on naval uniforms at official receptions, parades, and reviews. The so-called unofficial insignia and tokens were only allowed to be worn on anniversaries, although this requirement was not always followed, especially on ships and in remote garrisons.

The procedure for establishing and manufacturing badges and tokens was usually routine. First, the idea for the badge was discussed at a general meeting, and then a design was developed and put up for competition. The designs of many badges were highly original and diverse. The designers aimed to use symbols that would evoke memories of the ship's, regiment's, or educational institution's past. The most common elements used in the design of the insignia were laurel and oak wreaths, crosses, crowns, double-headed eagles, monogrammed images of the emperors' names, flags, anchors, and the inscription of anniversary dates. The only naval insignia that did not feature monarchical or state symbols were those awarded to graduates of the Mine, Artillery, Electrical Engineering, Underwater, Diving, Navigation, and Aviation Officer Classes. The main elements of these signs were anchors and anchor chains, i.e. maritime symbols, as well as naval specialization emblems: crossed cannons, pole mines, torpedoes, a submarine, a diving helmet, a sextant, lightning-shaped arrows and wings, etc.

The naval insignia were dominated by white, blue, and red enamels, which were the colors used on the national flag. The red color (chervlen) symbolized bravery, courage, and fearlessness, the blue color (lazur) symbolized beauty, gentleness, and grandeur, and the white color symbolized purity and nobility. The gold on the insignia symbolized wealth, justice, and generosity, while the silver symbolized purity and innocence. The winning design and the regulations for the insignia were submitted for approval by the Tsar. Official breast insignia were introduced by orders that defined only the insignia and the rules for wearing it.

For example, the history of the creation of the "Naval Pilot" badge is interesting. One of the founders of naval aviation in the Baltic Sea, Captain 1st Rank B. Dudorov, considered it inappropriate for naval aviators to wear the "Military Pilot" badge, and he personally designed four versions of the "Naval Pilot" badge, which were fundamentally different in design from the "Military Pilot" badge.

The Minister of the Navy ordered that the first version of the badge be used as a basis, which was reported to Nicholas II and then approved by him on January 29, 1915. This badge, made of silver, consisted of a circle formed by an anchor chain with an Admiralty anchor attached vertically, with wings symbolizing aviation depicted across the badge.

The badge was usually presented by the unit commander in a solemn ceremony, along with a certificate of eligibility to wear it. When officially approved badges were presented, a record was made in the service record.

Some of the breast insignia were numbered, and the number was engraved on the reverse side, corresponding to the number on the list of recipients. The insignia were awarded in order of seniority, with generals and admirals at the top of the list, followed by staff and senior officers, and then non-commissioned officers and enlisted personnel. The insignia often included the owner's name and the date of presentation. Since many of the insignia existed for a long time and were made in various workshops by different craftsmen, there are many variations of the same insignia: some were set, with exquisite workmanship and beautiful enamels, while others were simpler. The latter were typically worn by lower-ranking officers, while many of the officer insignia were true works of art.

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