The work In Memoriam. In Memory of the Heroes Who Fell at the Nistru (1992) was developed within the Center for Culture and Military History and published under the auspices of the Government of the Republic of Moldova, the Bureau for Reintegration, and the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Moldova. Authors: Gheorghe Bălan, Vitalie Ciobanu, Gheorghe Cojocaru.
This work provides a retrospective of the events that led to the outbreak of the war on the Nistru, accompanied by photographs of the heroes who lost their lives in the battles to defend the independence and territorial integrity of the Republic of Moldova.
On March 2, 1992, the political conflict in the Nistru region escalated into a true fratricidal war. Under the fabricated pretext of "defending Russia's southern borders," political adventurers from the former Soviet metropolis encouraged Transnistrian separatism by arming secessionist paramilitary groups. At the same time, thousands of mercenary Cossacks and prisoners released early from jails, along with tanks and missiles, were sent against Independent Moldova, in a desperate attempt to revive the fallen empire.
Russia's undeclared war against the Republic of Moldova left behind hundreds of dead and wounded, shattered families, and villages in ruins. More than 50,000 peaceful residents from the conflict zone were forced to flee their homes, seeking refuge from the horrors of war.
For the sake of freedom and the future, Moldova's defenders faced death, enduring the hardships and humiliations of war.
During the Nistru war, 198 soldiers of the National Army and 89 personnel from the Ministry of Internal Affairs lost their lives, while 40 combatants went missing without a trace, and nearly 300 were left disabled.
The Medal “For Works on Excellent Performance of General Mobilization in 1914” from the collections of the National Museum of History of Moldova
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. IX [XXIV], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2015
Abstract
In the collections of NMHM there are a military award, which has a particular symbolic value in view of the centenary of the First World War, which was celebrated in 2014 the medal "For Works on Excellent Performance of General Mobilization in 1914".
The medal was established by the decree of 12 February 1915 and was awarded to persons who had participated actively in the work associated with drawing up plans for mobilization, recruitment in military service, the supply of troops in dressings, providing military vehicles, as well as the transport of troops and military cargo. In addition, it was awarded to persons directly involved in the execution of works during the mobilization of 1914. Later the provisions were completed, so that the medal could be awarded to persons responsible for pre-military training of young people. The main issue (50000 copies) was made at the Petrograd Mint, and 800 medals were sent to Bessarabia, according to the request of its governor M.E. Gilhen.
Regarding the piece that is kept at NMHM, we shall mention that it entered the museum's collections from the disbanded Museum of Military Glory. It was donated to this museum in 1977 by a resident of Chișinău Vladimir Șirevschi. The donation included, in addition to this, other four military medals of the time and a photo of their former owner Onufrie Filipovici Shirevsky, the donor's father, who fought on the battlefields of the First World War.
The close analysis of the medal suggests that it was not made at the Petrograd Mint; most likely it was minted in a private workshop, located either at Kerki, the town in Turkestan, where the regiment of O.F. Shirevsky was stationed at the beginning of the First World War, or in Tashkent, the administrative center of Turkestan Region. It is known that, due to the large number of requests and the exhaustion of the original stock, private workshops in some gubernias, with the permission of the authorities, produced replicas of this medal. These replicas were awarded to those who, in local authorities' opinion, was worthy of this medal. In the archive file on awarding the medal "For Works on Excellent Performance of General Mobilization in 1914" in Bessarabia there is no mention of such initiatives of the local governor. This fact strengthens our assumptions, although in the questionnaire of O.F. Shirevsky, filled on March 18, 1916, there is no mention about the awarding this medal.
List of illustrations: Fig. 1. Shirevsky Onufrie Filipovici. On his chest one can see three crosses of the Order of St. George of the 2nd, 3rd and 4th classes, the 4th class St. George Medal, and the medal "In Memory of the 300th Anniversary of Romanov Dynasty". On the left pocket flap there is a badge of the 11th Rifle Regiment of Turkestan. Fig. 2. The medal "For Works on Excellent Performance of General Mobilization in 1914" from the collection of the National Museum of History of Moldova. Fig. 3. The medal "For Works on Excellent Performance of General Mobilization in 1914" made at the Petrograd Mint.
Andrei Emilciuc
The role of grain exports in external commerce of Bessarabia (1812-1830)
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Establishment and functioning of the public granaries in Bessarabia (1834-1856)
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Commercial navigation on the Dniester River (1812-1853)
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. II [XVII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
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Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. I [XVI], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2007
Andrei Emilciuc
Comparative evolution of the customs system in Bessarabia and Romania (1859-1914)
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. XVI [XXXI], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
The work In Memoriam. In Memory of the Heroes Who Fell at the Nistru (1992) was developed within the Center for Culture and Military History and published under the auspices of the Government of the Republic of Moldova, the Bureau for Reintegration, and the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Moldova. Authors: Gheorghe Bălan, Vitalie Ciobanu, Gheorghe Cojocaru...
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
31 August 1989 St., 121 A, MD 2012, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova
