Order of the War Banner

The Order of the War Banner (Serbo-Croatian: Orden ratne zastave / Орден ратне заставе, Macedonian: Орден на военото знаме, Slovene: Red vojne zastave) was a military order of honor and the 7th highest state decoration of the both Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (SFRY) and Serbia and Montenegro (also known as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia). It was awarded to military commanders who show personal courage or self-sacrifice during the war.

Order of the War Banner
"За слободу и независност ★ socijalističke domovine" (lit. 'For the freedom and independence of the socialist homeland')
Type	Order
Awarded for	Personal courage, self-sacrifice, involvement in commanding and distinct role in creation, fixing and training of Armed Forces of SFRY during the war
Country	Yugoslavia Serbia and Montenegro
Eligibility	Military commanders
Status	Dissolved
Established	29 December 1951
First award	1954
Total	209
Precedence
Next (higher)	Order of the People's Liberation (1951-1992) Order of the Yugoslav Flag (1998-2006)
Next (lower)	Order of the Yugoslav Flag (1951-1992) Order of Merits of FR Yugoslavia (1998-2006)

History

The Order of the War Banner It was founded by the Presidency of People's Assembly on 29 December 1951, with one class. After that, a public competition for the design of the insignia was announced. The results of the competition were published in Politika on 27 August 1953, and the winner was Grigorij Samojlov, an architect from Belgrade. From its establishment in 1951 until 1984, there were 209 recipients of the order; 204 were Yugoslav citizens, and the remaining five were Soviet generals (who were all awarded in 1964).^[1]

In 1998, Federal Republic of Yugoslavia adopted new Law on Decorations that kept most of the decorations of the Socialist Yugoslavia, with some additions.^[2][3] Order of the War Banner was kept, but now had three classes. The inscription on the badge was slightly altered, so now it read "За слободу и независност отаџбине" (For the freedom and independence of the motherland).^[4]

Ribbon bar (1951-1992)
Order of the War Banner (single class)
Ribbon bars (1998-2006)
Order of the War Banner, 1st class	Order of the War Banner, 2nd class	Order of the War Banner, 3rd class

Recipients

Socialist Yugoslavia

• Petar Gračanin^[5]

Federal Republic of Yugoslavia

• Vladimir Lazarević (1st class)^[6][7]
• Guards Brigade (1st class)^[8]
• 72nd Brigade for Special Operations (1st class)^[9]

See also

• Orders, decorations, and medals of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
• Orders and medals of Federal Republic of Yugoslavia