The Order of St. Andrew the First-Called is one of the oldest insignia, approved by Peter the Great, and the most significant in the Russian Empire. It was always an honor to receive such an order. And it is no coincidence: after all, this award was awarded for special merits to the Fatherland.
A star, a cross and a blue ribbon are the main symbols of the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called. Historians have speculated that the Scottish Order of the Thistle is the prototype of this order. The Russian emperor found out about him during his trip to England. There are also explanations why the order began to be named in honor of this particular apostle.
Andrew the First-Called, revered in Russia during the reign of the Kiev princes, according to legend, made his way from the "Greeks to the Varangians." He visited all Russian lands, from south to north, blessed the places where the Great Kiev City and Novgorod were later laid. Having spent his life on wanderings and travels, Apostle Andrew is also considered the patron saint of sailors. It was probably this situation that played the main role when Peter the Great established the naval flag in 1699, taking as the basis the blue St. Andrew’s Cross, with diagonal bars fastened together. According to legend, the apostle was crucified on such a cross.
On March 10, 1699, according to the old style, having returned from a trip to Europe as part of the "Great Embassy", Peter the Great established the first state award - the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called. He was handed over for special merits: for fidelity, courage, and other services rendered to the Fatherland, noble and heroic virtues, for the differences manifested in military operations and operations. Few received this highest award: monarchs, the highest state and military dignitaries, the most important allies of the Russian Empire. During the reign of Peter the Great, only 38 orders were awarded. Among the awarded were the emperor himself (he was the seventh cavalier of the order), his associates and 12 foreigners.
The sovereign received the order from the hands of the admiral, Field Marshal, for the operation to capture two Swedish ships at the mouth of the Neva. This momentous event occurred in May 1703. A year earlier, on January 12, 1702, Count Sheremetyev Boris Petrovich was awarded the Order for the victory over the Swedes at Erresfer. For the capture of the Swedish courts in 1703, the orders were awarded to A. D. Menshikov and Count G. I. Golovkin, who later became the Supreme Chancellor.
Since 1998, the Order of St. Andrew the First-Called received a "second life." He is handed, as before, for special merits to the Fatherland and achievements in various fields of activity: in science, culture, medicine, journalism, etc. Among the knights of the order are also Alexander Solzhenitsyn, Lyudmila Zykina, Mikhail Gorbachev and others.
