The Sinclair Collection

New Acquisition

M-1945 "Victory Parade" Uniform

Marshal of the Soviet Union

Leonid Aleksandrovich Govorov

By James C. McComb Sinclair II

I am delighted to add to The Sinclair Collection the "Victory Parade" Uniform of Marshal Leonid Aleksandrovich Govorov ( February 22, 1897-March 19, 1955). This addition makes a total of five "Victory Parade" Uniforms of World War II Marshals of the Soviet Union in the collection. There are four others that are known that are in Moscow.

We are just a few months away from celebrating with our Allies and the world the 75th Anniversary of the end of World War II. As you can see from the image of this uniform, there is a strong Czarist design influence that was reborn when the tides of war changed in 1943. At that point new uniform orders were issued. Stalin had his designers revert back to the Czarist design books to make a more striking uniform. The M-1943 uniform looked almost identical except that the color was gray instead of this striking Peacock Blue/Green. In 1945, with victory secured, the original Czarist design books were used again to create this updated uniform in the original Czarist Green. The full transition of the uniform changes from 1935 to 1945 can be viewed on the website by clicking on the image above.

I acquired my first Russian general's uniform in the mid nineties and the collection has grown to include the uniforms of thirteen Marshals, eight Branch Marshals and more than twenty recipients of the Hero of the Soviet Union medal. Ten of the Marshals were on the cover of Time Magazine. The collection consists of approximately 86 individual uniforms of Marshals, Generals, Admirals and Diplomats. There is also a two volume compendium available at Schiffer Publishing. The Sinclair Collection has been a passion and academic endeavor to conserve and preserve this historically significant part of the past. There is no political agenda. Ambassador Yuri Ushakov remarked, when questioned by a guest why a certain uniform from the collection was on display at the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Washington D. C. , the Ambassador responded "These are the uniforms and not the men". Extensive vetting, testing and research has been done with each uniform prior to any acquisition. I do the curating myself.

Marshal Govorov is pictured here in the same M-1945 "Victory Parade" uniform. Compare this photo, taken in 1945, with the enlarged image below. Notice how the order holes for the, the medal loops, the Hero of the Soviet Union medal, the orders (on left), the French Croix de Guerre medal (awarded along with the Legion of Honor pictured lower right ) and the Order of Victory below the hanging medals and above the French breast badge, all line up perfectly. The tailoring is superb as you would expect for a Marshal. Each order hole is hand embroidered. The medal loops are hand sewn. The gold bullion handwork is fabulous! The size is consistent with Marshal Govorov's build. The material is very fine. I notice a slight variation in the bullion work and the shoulder boards as they are slightly different than my other sets that were made in Moscow. The buttons are all made in Moscow. We were told by the Russian brokers, that offered this set for sale, that the uniform was made in Leningrad for the Victory Parade celebrations held there at the end of the war. This tunic and cap have been in private hands since the early nineties and had been the focal point of a major Russian collection. It was recently sold to a group of Russian brokers who offered it to my broker here in the United States.

I have decided not to put medals and orders on this uniform except for the Hero of the Soviet Union medal, because I want to show the detail of the tailoring, the bullion work, the order hole embroidery and the medal loops. In it's non-medaled state, it is plain to see why a Czarist Marshal in the court of Czar Nicholas II would have had no problem identifying this uniform as that of a Marshal.

Govorov joined the Red Army in 1920. He served as an artillery officer in the 1939-1940 "Winter War" against Finland. After the invasion of Russia by Nazi Germany in June 1941, Govorov"s experience as a commander of artillery units found him on the Western Front in Belarus. Govorov became Chief of Artillery during the Battle of Moscow. He was appointed commander of the Leningrad Group on the Leningrad Front in April of 1942. Govorov became responsible for lifting the siege of the city. He was promoted to Colonel General (three stars) in January of 1943. Because of his continued success as a commander in the Leningrad region, Govorov was again promoted to Army General (four stars) in November of 1943. The Soviet Counter Offensive commenced in January of 1944. This offensive resulted in several fierce battles from Narva to Pskov. After the recapture of Vyborg on the 3rd Baltic Front in June 1944, Govorov was promoted to Marshal of the Soviet Union. He was awarded the Hero of the Soviet Union on January 27, 1945. Marshal Govorov is known as the "Hero of Leningrad". In his post war career he commanded the Leningrad Military District, was the Chief Inspector of Ground Forces and later, in 1952, became Deputy Minister of Defense of the USSR. In later years, Govorov suffered from chronic heart disease and died on March 19, 1955. He is interned in the Kremlin Wall Necropolis.

Photo of Marshal Govorov taken during parade ceremonies on March 1, 1946