Order of Freedom
Encyclopedia
Order of Freedom was the highest military decoration
awarded in Yugoslavia
, and the second highest Yugoslav state decoration
after the Yugoslav Great Star
. It was awarded to the commanders of large military units for skillful leadership and for the outstanding courage of the troops. It was awarded to both Yugoslavian and foreign military commanders, and was the most rarely awarded of all Yugoslavian orders, decorations, and medals, being awarded only 7 times before the breakup of Yugoslavia.
After the dissolution of SFR Yugoslavia, the Order of Freedom was awarded in Serbia and Montenegro
.
(later Presidium of the People's Assembly of Yugoslavia). The recipient could be nominated by the Federal Executive Council (Government) of Yugoslavia, Executive Council of one of the Republics, Federal Secretary for Foreign Affairs or Federal Secretary for Defense.
After the dissolution of SFR Yugoslavia, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (and later Serbia and Montenegro
) continued to use some of the decorations of former Yugoslavia, among them the Order of Freedom. It was awarded by the President of FR Yugoslavia (later President of Serbia and Montenegro
). It was the highest military decoration in FR Yugoslavia, and the third highest state decoration overall, after the Order of Yugoslavia and the Yugoslav Great Star
.
). The recipients were:
— awarded in 1947 Ivan Gošnjak — awarded in 1951 Peko Dapčević
— awarded in 1951 Georgy Zhukov
— awarded in 1956 Koča Popović
— awarded in 1973 Kosta Nađ — awarded in 1973 Leonid Brezhnev
— awarded in 1976
Nebojša Pavković
Military decoration
A military decoration is a decoration given to military personnel or units for heroism in battle or distinguished service. They are designed to be worn on military uniform....
awarded in Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
, and the second highest Yugoslav state decoration
State decoration
State decorations are orders, medals and other decorations granted by a state. International decorations are similar, but are not granted by a specific nation but rather an international organization....
after the Yugoslav Great Star
Order of the Yugoslav Star
Order of the Yugoslav Star was the highest National order of merit awarded in Yugoslavia. It was divided into four classes. The highest class, the Yugoslav Great Star was the highest state decoration awarded in Yugoslavia...
. It was awarded to the commanders of large military units for skillful leadership and for the outstanding courage of the troops. It was awarded to both Yugoslavian and foreign military commanders, and was the most rarely awarded of all Yugoslavian orders, decorations, and medals, being awarded only 7 times before the breakup of Yugoslavia.
After the dissolution of SFR Yugoslavia, the Order of Freedom was awarded in Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
.
History
The Order of Freedom was founded on on 12 June 1945 and was awarded by the Presidium of the AVNOJAVNOJ
The Anti-Fascist Council of the People's Liberation of Yugoslavia, known more commonly by its Yugoslav abbreviation AVNOJ, was the political umbrella organization for the national liberation councils of the Yugoslav resistance against the World War II Axis occupation, eventually becoming the...
(later Presidium of the People's Assembly of Yugoslavia). The recipient could be nominated by the Federal Executive Council (Government) of Yugoslavia, Executive Council of one of the Republics, Federal Secretary for Foreign Affairs or Federal Secretary for Defense.
After the dissolution of SFR Yugoslavia, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (and later Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro
Serbia and Montenegro was a country in southeastern Europe, formed from two former republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia : Serbia and Montenegro. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia, it was established in 1992 as a federation called the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
) continued to use some of the decorations of former Yugoslavia, among them the Order of Freedom. It was awarded by the President of FR Yugoslavia (later President of Serbia and Montenegro
President of Serbia and Montenegro
The President of Serbia and Montenegro was the head of state of Serbia and Montenegro. From its establishment in 1992 until 2003, when the country was reconstituted as a conferederacy via constitutional reform, the head of state was known as the President of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia...
). It was the highest military decoration in FR Yugoslavia, and the third highest state decoration overall, after the Order of Yugoslavia and the Yugoslav Great Star
Order of the Yugoslav Star
Order of the Yugoslav Star was the highest National order of merit awarded in Yugoslavia. It was divided into four classes. The highest class, the Yugoslav Great Star was the highest state decoration awarded in Yugoslavia...
.
Recipients
The Order was awarded a total of 9 times — 7 times in SFR Yugoslavia and 2 times in FR Yugoslavia (after the 1999 Kosovo WarKosovo War
The term Kosovo War or Kosovo conflict was two sequential, and at times parallel, armed conflicts in Kosovo province, then part of FR Yugoslav Republic of Serbia; from early 1998 to 1999, there was an armed conflict initiated by the ethnic Albanian "Kosovo Liberation Army" , who sought independence...
). The recipients were:
SFR Yugoslavia
Josip Broz TitoJosip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
— awarded in 1947 Ivan Gošnjak — awarded in 1951 Peko Dapčević
Peko Dapcevic
Colonel General Peko Dapčević was a famous Yugoslav communist who fought in the Spanish Civil War, joined the Partisan uprising in Montenegro, and became commander of the Yugoslav 1st and 4th Armies....
— awarded in 1951 Georgy Zhukov
Georgy Zhukov
Marshal of the Soviet Union Georgy Konstantinovich Zhukov , was a Russian career officer in the Red Army who, in the course of World War II, played a pivotal role in leading the Red Army through much of Eastern Europe to liberate the Soviet Union and other nations from the Axis Powers' occupation...
— awarded in 1956 Koča Popović
Koca Popovic
Konstantin "Koča" Popović was a communist volunteer in the Spanish Civil War, 1937-1939 and Divisional Commander of the First Proletarian Division in Josip Broz Tito's Partisan army...
— awarded in 1973 Kosta Nađ — awarded in 1973 Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev – 10 November 1982) was the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , presiding over the country from 1964 until his death in 1982. His eighteen-year term as General Secretary was second only to that of Joseph Stalin in...
— awarded in 1976
FR Yugoslavia
On 16 June 1999 the Order of Freedom was awarded to: Dragoljub OjdanićDragoljub Ojdanic
Dragoljub Ojdanić was former Chief of the General Staff and Defence minister of Yugoslavia...
Nebojša Pavković
Nebojša Pavkovic
Nebojša Pavković was Chief of the General Staff of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia....
See also
- Orders, decorations, and medals of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
- Orders and medals of Federal Republic of YugoslaviaOrders and medals of Federal Republic of YugoslaviaOrders and medals were awarded in the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia between 1998 and 2006. Before the 1992 dissolution of SFR Yugoslavia, the Orders and medals of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia were awarded. Some of the old pre-1992 SFRY orders and medals were retained by FR...