Chief Marshal
Encyclopedia
The ranks of Marshal of a branch and Chief Marshal of a branch were senior military ranks of the Soviet Armed Forces
. Immediately above the rank "Marshal of a branch" is the rank "Chief Marshal of a branch". Both ranks are immediately above the rank "Colonel General
" and equal to Soviet General of the Army. The ranks were created as an analog to Air Marshal
and Air Chief Marshal
, though they weren't used just in the Soviet Air Force
but also in the several Soviet Army
's branch commands.
In the branches, the rank of Colonel General was succeeded by the rank of Marshal of the branch. While the rank of Marshal of a branch was apparently equal to the one of General of the Army (whom was only entitled to the four small shoulder board stars), the Marshals of branches had the marshal's star of the 2nd level on the tie and the large 40mm star on the shoulder boards, but the General of the Army had neither. Generals of the Army were given the 40mm star shoulder board and the marshal's star of the 2nd level on the tie in 1974.
Marshals of the branches were normally eligible for promotion to Chief Marshal of branch, however, neither was eligible for promotion to Marshal of the Soviet Union. After 1984, the rank of Marshal was preserved only in the Air Force and Artillery. Later, the rank of Marshal stopped being conferred even in these branches. The regulations of Russian Army, confirmed in 1993, unified the system of general ranks in all the branches: the ranks of Marshal of Artillery and Marshal of Aviation were replaced by the one of General of the Army/Army of Aviation, the ranks of Chief Marshal were canceled.
The ranks of Chief Marshal of the branches of Aviation, Artillery, Armoured Troops, Engineer Troops, and Signals were established October 27, 1943. The three former branches had already had (since February 4, 1943) the corresponding ranks of Marshal; in the two latter branches the ranks of Marshal and of Chief Marshal were established simultaneously. When the rank of Chief Marshal was established, the size of the shoulder board's stars for all marshals except the now superior Marshal of the Soviet Union were made about 10mm smaller and for Chief Marshals, the star was surrounded by a laurel wreath. On the uniform tie, Chief Marshals wore the marshal's star of the 2nd level. During the next forty years, the ranks of Chief Marshal were conferred mainly on deputy defense ministers - commanders of the corresponding branch. The ranks of Chief Marshal of Engineer Troops and Chief Marshal of Signals, abolished in 1984, were never conferred on anybody. No Chief Marshal promotions were conferred after 1984. The youngest Chief Marshal was aviator Golovanov, 40 when promoted in 1944. Three of thirteen people who held the Chief Marshal rank had a tragic circumstances: Novikov was imprisoned for seven years; Nedelin perished in the flame of an exploded rocket; Varentsov was accused of heedlessness, dismissed and degraded (his subordinate, Oleg Pen'kovski, had been found to be a spy).
Soviet Armed Forces
The Soviet Armed Forces, also called the Armed Forces of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics and Armed Forces of the Soviet Union refers to the armed forces of the Russian SFSR , and Soviet Union from their beginnings in the...
. Immediately above the rank "Marshal of a branch" is the rank "Chief Marshal of a branch". Both ranks are immediately above the rank "Colonel General
Colonel General
Colonel General is a senior rank of General. North Korea and Russia are two countries which have used the rank extensively throughout their histories...
" and equal to Soviet General of the Army. The ranks were created as an analog to Air Marshal
Air Marshal
Air marshal is a three-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
and Air Chief Marshal
Air Chief Marshal
Air chief marshal is a senior 4-star air-officer rank which originated in and continues to be used by the Royal Air Force...
, though they weren't used just in the Soviet Air Force
Soviet Air Force
The Soviet Air Force, officially known in Russian as Военно-воздушные силы or Voenno-Vozdushnye Sily and often abbreviated VVS was the official designation of one of the air forces of the Soviet Union. The other was the Soviet Air Defence Forces...
but also in the several Soviet Army
Soviet Army
The Soviet Army is the name given to the main part of the Armed Forces of the Soviet Union between 1946 and 1992. Previously, it had been known as the Red Army. Informally, Армия referred to all the MOD armed forces, except, in some cases, the Soviet Navy.This article covers the Soviet Ground...
's branch commands.
Marshal
The ranks of Marshal of the Aviation, Artillery and Armoured Troops branches were established on February 4, 1943 with a large, approximately 50mm wide, shoulder board star (the same star as the at-the-time equivalent rank of Marshal of the Soviet Union's shoulder board star). When the rank of Chief Marshal was established on October 27, 1943, the size of the shoulder board's stars for Marshals was made about 10mm smaller establishing the superiority of the Marshal of the Soviet Union insignia. Also, on October 27, 1943 the ranks of Marshal of the branches Engineer Troops and Signals were established. On the uniform tie, Marshals wore the marshal's star of the 2nd level.In the branches, the rank of Colonel General was succeeded by the rank of Marshal of the branch. While the rank of Marshal of a branch was apparently equal to the one of General of the Army (whom was only entitled to the four small shoulder board stars), the Marshals of branches had the marshal's star of the 2nd level on the tie and the large 40mm star on the shoulder boards, but the General of the Army had neither. Generals of the Army were given the 40mm star shoulder board and the marshal's star of the 2nd level on the tie in 1974.
Marshals of the branches were normally eligible for promotion to Chief Marshal of branch, however, neither was eligible for promotion to Marshal of the Soviet Union. After 1984, the rank of Marshal was preserved only in the Air Force and Artillery. Later, the rank of Marshal stopped being conferred even in these branches. The regulations of Russian Army, confirmed in 1993, unified the system of general ranks in all the branches: the ranks of Marshal of Artillery and Marshal of Aviation were replaced by the one of General of the Army/Army of Aviation, the ranks of Chief Marshal were canceled.
Chief Marshal
List of Chief Marshals
- Chief Marshals of Aviation
- Alexander Alexandrovich Novikov (19.11.1902-3.12.1976) Appointed 21.02.1944
- Alexander Evgenievich Golovanov (7.08.1904-22.09.1975) Appointed 19.08.1944
- Pavel Fedorovich Zhigarev (19.01.1900-2.10.1963) Appointed 11.3.1955
- Konstantin Andreevich Vershinin (3.06.1900-30.12.1973) Appointed 8.05.1959
- Pavel Stepanovich KutakhovPavel Stepanovich KutakhovPavel Stepanovich Kutakhov was Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Air Forces between 1969 and 1984, Chief Marshal of Aviation since 1972, twice Hero of Soviet Union , Honored Pilot of USSR ....
(16.08.1914-3.12.1984) Appointed 03.1972 - Boris Pavlovich BugaevBoris Pavlovich BugaevBoris Pavlovich Bugaev was a Soviet military pilot, politician and statesman....
(29.07.1923- 13.01.2007) Appointed 1977. Served as Minister of Civil Aviation of the USSR 1972-1987 - Alexander Ivanovich Koldunov (20.09.1923-9.06.1992) Appointed 1984. Served as commander of air defense from 1978 to 1987
- Chief Marshals of Artillery
- Nikolai Nikolaevich Voronov (5.05.1899-28.02.1968) Appointed 21.02.1944
- Mitrofan Ivanovich NedelinMitrofan Ivanovich NedelinMitrofan Ivanovich Nedelin was a Soviet military commander who served as Chief Marshal of Artillery, a position he held from May 8, 1959 until his untimely death...
(9.11.1902-24.10.1960) Appointed 8.05.1959 - Sergei Sergeevich Varentsov (10.08.1901-1.03.1971) Appointed 6.05.1961
- Vladimir Fedorovich Tolubko (25.11.1914-17.06.1989) Appointed 1983
- Chief Marshals of Armoured Troops
- Pavel Alexeevich Rotmistrov (6.07.1901-16.04.1982) Appointed 28.04.1962
- Hamazasp Khachaturovich BabadzhanianHamazasp BabadzhanianHamazasp Khachaturi Babadzhanian was Chief Marshal of the Mechanized Forces of the USSR and Hero of the Soviet Union.-Biography:Babadzhanian was born in the family of an Armenian peasant, in the village of Chardakhlu near Yelizavetpol , then part of the Russian Empire, attending school there...
(18.2.1906-1.11.1977) Appointed 05.1975
List of Marshals
- Marshals of Aviation of the USSR
- Alexander Alexandrovich Novikov appointed 17.03.1943 (Chief Marshal 1944)
- Alexander Evgenievich Golovanov appointed 3.08.1943 (Chief Marshal 1944)
- Konstantin Andreevich Vershinin appointed 3.06.1946 (Chief Marshal 1959)
- Pavel Fedorovich Zhigarev appointed 3.8.1955 (Chief Marshal 1955)
- Pavel Stepanovich KutakhovPavel Stepanovich KutakhovPavel Stepanovich Kutakhov was Commander-in-Chief of the Soviet Air Forces between 1969 and 1984, Chief Marshal of Aviation since 1972, twice Hero of Soviet Union , Honored Pilot of USSR ....
appointed 1969 (Chief Marshal 1972) - Boris Pavlovich BugaevBoris Pavlovich BugaevBoris Pavlovich Bugaev was a Soviet military pilot, politician and statesman....
appointed 5.11.1973 (Chief Marshal 1977) - Alexander Ivanovich Koldunov appointed 18.10.1973 (Chief Marshal 1984)
- Marshals of the Soviet Army Artillery
- Nikolai Nikolaevich Voronov appointed 18.01.1943 (Chief Marshal 1944)
- Mitrofan Ivanovich NedelinMitrofan Ivanovich NedelinMitrofan Ivanovich Nedelin was a Soviet military commander who served as Chief Marshal of Artillery, a position he held from May 8, 1959 until his untimely death...
appointed 4.08.1953 (Chief Marshal 1955) - Sergei Sergeevich Varentsov appointed 11.03.1955 (Chief Marshal 1961)
- Marshals of Armoured Troops and Forces
- Pavel Alexeevich Rotmistrov appointed 21.02.1944 (Chief Marshal 1962)
- Hamazasp Khachaturovich BabadzhanianHamazasp BabadzhanianHamazasp Khachaturi Babadzhanian was Chief Marshal of the Mechanized Forces of the USSR and Hero of the Soviet Union.-Biography:Babadzhanian was born in the family of an Armenian peasant, in the village of Chardakhlu near Yelizavetpol , then part of the Russian Empire, attending school there...
appointed 28.10.1967 (Chief Marshal 1975)
- Marshals of Communications and Signals Troops
- Marshals of Engineering Troops