Schwind, David A. Blue Seas, Red Stars: Soviet Military Medals to U.S. Sea Service Recipients in World War II

摘要

In 1999, author Dave Schwind purchased a Soviet medal on eBay with the name of a U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer attached to it. Originally a curiosity, Schwind put the medal away until several years later when he located another medal collector who had the paperwork behind the chief's medal. After conducting research into its history, Schwind uncovered many more American recipients of Soviet medals, ranging from Generals Eisenhower, Marshall, and Patton to common soldiers and sailors. Using this initial research, Schwind wrote 'Soviet Military Decorations to Americans During World War II', which was published in the Journal of the Orders and Medals Society of America.1 In his article, Schwind estimated that approximately 700 medals ranking above the Order of the Red Star were awarded by the Soviet Union to American personnel during and immediately after the war. He posited that determining an accurate count would be nearly impossible due to record-keeping gaps in both the Soviet Union and the United States. Leaving the door open for future work, Schwind concluded his 2007 article with his intent to write an expanded article as more information became available.