Engineering Troops Day

Three documents.

Decree of the President of Russia

"On the establishment of Engineering Troops Day"
Taking into account the historical traditions and military merits of the engineering troops, their contribution to the development of the country’s defense potential
I DECIDE:
Establish Engineering Troops Day and celebrate it on January 21.
President of Russian Federation.
B. Yeltsin
Moscow Kremlin
September 18, 1996
№ 1370

Order
Minister of Defense of Russia
№ 348

About the Day of the Engineering Troops and the establishment of the memorial sign “300 years of the Russian Engineering Troops”.

I ORDER:
1. Every year on January 21, celebrate Engineering Troops Day in the Russian Armed Forces.
2. Establish a memorial sign “300 years of the Russian Engineering Troops” (hereinafter referred to as the memorial sign) and approve the attached Regulations on the memorial sign and its Description.
3. The chief of the engineering troops should ensure the production of a memorial sign.
Russian Defense Minister
Colonel General I. Rodionov

Position
about the memorial sign
"300 years of Russian engineering troops"

The memorial sign “300 years of the Russian Engineering Troops” (hereinafter referred to as the memorial sign) is an award sign of the Russian Ministry of Defense, expressing the recognition of the services of military personnel, civilian personnel of the Russian Armed Forces and other persons to the engineering troops.
The memorial sign has two types.
A memorial badge made of silver (memorable badge of the 1st type) is awarded to:
*Officers and warrant officers of engineering troops;
*Servicemen of the engineering troops (with the exception of officers and warrant officers) who have served impeccably in the engineering troops for at least 20 years, or who have received state awards;
*Former military personnel of the engineering troops are veterans of the Great Patriotic War, military operations in the territories of other states, and military service.

A memorial badge made of brass (memorable badge of 2 types) is awarded to:
*Servicemen of the engineering troops (with the exception of officers and warrant officers) who have served impeccably in the engineering troops for less than 20 years;
*Servicemen of other branches of the Russian Armed Forces, military branches and other persons who have served the engineering forces.
The awarding of the memorial badge is carried out on the eve of the celebration of the historical anniversary - the 300th anniversary of the Russian engineering troops by order of the chief of the engineering troops on the proposal of the commanders of the engineering military units (the form of presentation is determined by order of the Minister of Defense of Russia 1966 No. 280).
The form of the certificate for the badge, as well as the procedure for presenting the badge and the certificate for it are determined by the head of the engineering troops.
The memorial badge is worn on the right side of the chest, next to the badge of graduation from a military educational institution.
Chief of Engineering Troops
Russian Ministry of Defense
Colonel General V. Kuznetsov.

The armed forces of each state consist of special military units responsible for organizing and carrying out a certain type of activity. One of the most elite units in the Russian army are the Engineering Troops, which carry out strategic missions that are of particular importance to the security of our country.

An analogue of this type of troops appeared in ancient times. The first historical mention of the construction of special military fortifications dates back to the heyday of such civilizations as Egypt, Carthage, and Ancient Rome. As a rule, such tasks were entrusted to slaves, however, paramilitary detachments were soon organized, engaged in excavation and construction of strategic military installations. The responsibilities of these units included the following tasks:

• construction of crossings;
• arrangement of roads for the movement of infantry and cavalry;
• construction of military camps;
• creation of ramparts, embankments, ditches and other fortifications.

The first engineering structures on the territory of Rus'

Military engineering flourished in the 9th century AD. During this period, Russian architects built fortress walls and dug defensive ditches around cities. Largely thanks to these engineering facilities, it was possible to withstand the siege of enemy troops and successfully repel fierce enemy attacks.

Many historical events are indisputable proof that, thanks to their skill in constructing military fortifications, Russian soldiers achieved success on the battlefields. Victories on Lake Peipsi and in the Battle of Kazan are direct proof of this.

The history of the origin of the holiday in modern Russia

As you know, in Russia Engineering Troops Day will be traditionally celebrated on January 21. This date is far from accidental. After all, it was on this significant day in 1701 that Russian Emperor Peter the Great issued a state decree on the founding of a school of military engineers. This institution was opened in Moscow in 1708. However, this turned out to be not enough. In 1719, a new military institution was founded in the capital - the school of “pushkar affairs”. In each of the above-mentioned institutions, up to 300 future specialists underwent professional training. Over time, the skills of Russian engineers improved and soon, under the leadership of the famous A. Hannibal, a special military unit was created, the backbone of which was formed by the best engineering craftsmen of the Russian Empire.

An invaluable contribution to the development of engineering troops was made by Yu. Dolgorukov, who put all his efforts into building a powerful and capable army. Under his tireless leadership, dozens of strategically important fortifications and gunpowder factories were erected.

Many graduates of this military organization took part in campaigns such as the Russo-Turkish and Russo-Japanese Wars, where their knowledge and professional skills played a fundamental role in defeating the enemy.

Not only artillery engineers and sappers, but also gun and saber makers, blacksmiths and cannon casting specialists were involved in the “pushkar business”.

The most famous representatives of military engineering are:

• M. Kutuzov;
• A. Suvorov;
• P. Bagration.

In the 18th century, the number of engineering troops continued to increase rapidly. The first engineer regiment was organized in 1797, and by 1812 the number of engineer companies numbered more than 40 units.

Historical reference

1. In 1819, three pioneer brigades were founded in the Russian army.
2. From 1853 to 1856 the number of sapper battalions increased to 9.
3. In the first half of the 19th century, the Russian Engineering Troops numbered more than 21,000 people.
4. By 1917, the number of professional military engineers accounted for 6% of the total number of military personnel.
5. In 1921, the number of military engineers was about 3% of the Red Army.

During the Great Patriotic War, this type of troops was an integral part of the Soviet army. Professional personnel were trained at the Military Academy. Engineering formations played a special role during the Soviet-Finnish War. The merit of Russian specialists in strategically important battles is invaluable and will forever remain in the military history of our Motherland.

Engineering troops in modern realities

After the end of World War II, Soviet engineering units took an active part in various “hot spots”. Military engineers accompanied Soviet troops in Afghanistan, helping to carry out the most difficult and dangerous tasks. In addition, they carried out a colossal amount of work to neutralize the consequences of the man-made disaster at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

Currently, the IW is part of the structures of the border troops and the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

When is the Day of the Russian Engineering Troops celebrated?

Today, IW Day is widely celebrated throughout Russia. However, not all citizens of the Russian Federation know on what date ceremonial events will be organized on this holiday. Let us remind you that the current date for celebrating the Day of the Engineering Troops of the Russian Federation is August 18th. On the occasion of this date, gala concerts with the participation of Russian pop stars will be held in many cities of Russia. Representatives of political and public organizations will voice their congratulations. On this day, many outstanding representatives of the IW will be awarded honorary titles, including Hero of Russia, and will also be presented with memorable gifts.

Currently, the threat of terrorism has increased in the world, so the mission of military engineers is extremely important. Indeed, in the event of a military conflict, the task of providing the Russian army with the necessary conditions for conducting military operations will be placed on their shoulders.

Video

Date in 2019: .

The movement of troops and the conduct of combat operations are closely related to the construction of various structures that help to cross water bodies and pass through hard-to-reach places. Often you have to deal with mined objects or areas. But even such problems are not an obstacle for the Russian troops, since there are engineering troops whose purpose is to resolve such issues. It is customary for the engineering troops to congratulate them on their professional holiday in January.

Who's celebrating?

The first mentions of soldiers who were engaged in the construction of crossings for active troops date back to the times of Ancient Rome. But there was no talk of troops of this kind of activity then.

Much later, the military realized that they should not distract the main units from performing combat missions. Separate groups should deal with auxiliary, but no less important issues.

Moreover, often problems associated with the movement of troops and defense required non-standard ideas and engineering solutions. This is how units appeared that were required to create roads, crossings, bridges, and pontoons. Rebuilding destroyed military installations after hostilities was also the responsibility of these troops.

Later, with the advent of mining equipment, these ammunition posed a serious threat to infantry and equipment. Therefore, mine clearance is also the responsibility of the engineering troops. There was no point in separately training soldiers capable of removing and installing mines. Which entailed the need to supplement the duties of soldiers from engineering units with the functions of miners.

Today, this branch of the military is equipped with the latest technology, which enables soldiers to solve the most difficult problems.

history of the holiday

For sappers and miners, engineers and builders, road workers and fighters of other professions who are directly related to these troops, their own holiday has been approved, Engineering Troops Day, which is celebrated at the end of January.

The holiday falls on the 21st, and was first approved by Yeltsin in 1996. But based on the Presidential Decree signed in 2006, the previous document became invalid. Based on the new Decree, Engineering Troops Day in Russia is celebrated as a professional holiday on January 21. The date coincides with the first mention of this type of troops in Russia, which happened under Peter I back in 1701, when the emperor created the “School of Pushkar Order.” Miners were trained there, and later the school itself was significantly expanded. And in 1722, the rank of engineer officers was documented to be higher than officers of other units.

Congratulations to the engineering troops in prose and poetry

Engineering troops have been used for defense, rear and breakthrough for more than three hundred years. And not an iota of impossibly smart. Only technical savvy, calculation and cunning help solve the most complex problems. And may your bright minds never run out of extraordinary engineering ideas, may your service be easy and free of dangers and unjustified risks. Happy holiday to you guys, soldiers of the engineering troops.

You build bridges and pontoons,

And difficult runs.

Possible crossings

To our brave soldiers.

And happy engineering troops day

Always faithful to your oath,

We will congratulate the guys beautifully,

Doing their duty silently.

Larisa, January 11, 2017.

Engineering Troops Day 2020 is celebrated in Russia on January 21. Military personnel and workers of this branch of the armed forces participate in the festive events: engineers, sappers, miners, divers and others. Former employees and cadets of specialized specialties from universities of the Ministry of Defense will join the celebrations.

The date of the event has a symbolic meaning. On January 21, 1701, Peter the Great established the “School of the Pushkar Order” in Moscow for the training of military engineers. Its graduates began to staff the army's mining units. In 1712, the Tsar ordered the engineering school to be separated from it and enlarged. In 1719, a similar educational institution opened in St. Petersburg. In 1723, these two institutions merged into one - the St. Petersburg School of Engineering. In 1722, Peter I issued a Table of Ranks, in which officers of the engineering troops were placed above the rank of cavalry and infantry officers.

Holiday traditions

On this day, the President of the Russian Federation thanks soldiers, officers and veterans of the engineering troops for their courage, fidelity to duty and conscientious service. The best specialists receive extraordinary titles, awards, orders, and the title of Hero of Russia. Demonstration performances are held. Festive concerts are organized. Television and radio broadcast programs about the exploits of members of this branch of the military. Veterans share stories from their service.

About the profession of engineering corps employees

Military personnel of the engineering troops march simultaneously or ahead of motorized rifle and tank formations. They erect defensive structures, buildings for the sheltered use of guns, arrange pontoon crossings, build bridges, mine, clear mines and camouflage territories and objects, and carry out engineering reconnaissance of the enemy. In peacetime, they destroy the ammunition remaining from great warriors, participate in the elimination of emergencies, the consequences of accidents and disasters, and provide assistance to the population.

The military personnel of the engineering troops in the 18th-19th centuries were called Pioneers.

665 employees of these formations were awarded the title of Hero of the Soviet Union.

M. Kutuzov began his service in the engineering troops.

The heavenly patron of the Russian engineering troops is the holy noble Prince Daniil of Moscow.

On January 21, military personnel and employees of the engineering troops celebrate their professional holiday. Engineering troops are a branch of troops (special troops) of the RF Armed Forces, which are intended for engineering support: equipping the territory of military (combat) operations, escorting troops on the offensive, engineering reconnaissance and other tasks. The engineering troops include command and control bodies, enterprises, institutions, engineer-sapper, pontoon, road-engineering and other formations, military units and subunits. Very soon the ranks of the engineering troops will be replenished with “shock” units.

Engineering Troops Day was established based on the order of the President of the Russian Federation Boris Nikolaevich Yeltsin dated September 18, 1996. This memorable date was established taking into account the contribution to the development of Russia's defense potential made by the engineering troops, as well as as a tribute to historical traditions. Military engineering and military architecture existed back in the days of Ancient Rus', but engineering troops received systematic development only after the formation of a regular army during the reign of Peter I.

Already in 1692 and 1694, under the leadership of Peter I, most likely, the first engineering training maneuvers took place in the country, during which the construction of various defensive structures was worked out. It is known that at that time, when developing engineering measures, the emperor used the work of the most famous engineer at that time - Marshal of France Vauban. Forming regular armed forces in Russia, Peter I tried to pay special attention to the development of artillery and engineering troops. The first legislative act that dealt directly with military engineering was the decree of Peter I of January 21, 1701 on the opening of the Pushkar Prikaz School. The Pushkarsky Prikaz School became the first artillery, engineering and naval school in our country, the historical forerunner of the entire modern system of engineering and technical education in Russia. And January 21 is celebrated today as Engineering Troops Day.

Flag of the Russian Engineering Troops (since 2005)

In 1712, Peter I ordered the separation of the engineering school from the school of the Pushkar order and its expansion. In 1719, by imperial decree, the St. Petersburg Engineering School was formed, which was joined by the Moscow School 4 years later. Together, they began to train non-commissioned and chief officers for the engineering troops. Subsequently, the engineering troops took part in all significant wars waged by Russia. They stood guard over our country. The courage, bravery and accumulated knowledge of military engineers greatly contributed to the successful conduct of military operations in the Patriotic War of 1812. Military engineers played a major role in the defense of Sevastopol (1854-1855) and during the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905), as well as two world wars.

Soldiers and commanders of engineering troops especially distinguished themselves during the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945. For exploits performed on the battlefields, more than 100 thousand military personnel of the engineering troops were presented with orders and medals, about 700 of them were awarded the high title of Hero of the Soviet Union, 294 military engineers became full holders of the Order of Glory.

Today, engineer troops are special troops designed to solve the most complex problems of engineering support for combined arms operations (including combat operations), which require special training of personnel and the use of various means of engineering weapons, as well as inflicting losses on the enemy through the use of engineer ammunition. Organizationally, the Russian engineering troops consist of units, formations and subunits for various purposes: engineer-sapper, engineering-reconnaissance, road engineering, engineering-technical, engineering-camouflage, pontoon-bridge (pontoon), ferry-landing, field water supply, assault and others.

When preparing and conducting combined arms operations (combat operations), the engineering troops are assigned to perform a number of main tasks:
- conducting engineering reconnaissance of the area, objects and the enemy;
- construction of various fortifications (trenches, trenches and communication passages, shelters, shelters, dugouts and other objects), construction of field structures intended to accommodate troops (economic, residential, medical);
- creation of engineering barriers, including the installation of minefields, installation of non-explosive barriers on the ground (escarps, counter-scarps, anti-tank ditches, gouges, etc.), carrying out blasting operations;
- carrying out demining of areas and objects;
- preparation and maintenance of routes for the movement of their troops;
- arrangement and maintenance of crossings on various water barriers, including the construction of bridges;
- extraction and purification of water in the field.

And these are not all the tasks that the engineering troops have to solve today. They also take part in countering enemy reconnaissance and guidance systems (camouflage), simulating on-the-ground concentrations of troops and objects, and providing disinformation and demonstrative actions aimed at deceiving the enemy. Among other things, engineering units must take part in eliminating the consequences of the enemy’s use of weapons of mass destruction.

In peacetime, the Engineering Troops of the RF Armed Forces also perform a number of very important socially significant tasks. They are used to clear the area of ​​all kinds of explosive objects, take part in eliminating the consequences of natural and man-made accidents and catastrophes, prevent the destruction of various hydraulic structures and bridges during ice drifts and solve many other equally important problems.

The Engineering Troops, like all armed forces of the Russian Federation, do not stand still; they try to meet the challenges of the time and are constantly developing. By the end of 2018, the Russian army will have “shock” units of sappers. They will be created in all regiments and brigades of the engineering troops of the RF Armed Forces. The head of the engineering troops, Lieutenant General Yuri Stavitsky, told reporters about this on Friday, January 19. In an interview with the newspaper "" he noted that currently the assault engineering, reconnaissance engineering and special mining units are preparing for use. The lieutenant general noted that according to calculations, by the end of 2018, brigades and regiments will each have one “strike” unit.

According to Stavitsky, with the advent of such units, “there will be no radical revision of the tactics of using troops, but the quality of engineering support will change, and the speed of completing such tasks will increase, which is very important in modern wars.” According to the general, one of the most important qualities of engineering assault units is their versatility - from specific engineering tasks, demining objects and terrain to direct fire suppression of enemy resistance at any even fortified firing point.

Robotic demining complex "Uran-6"

During the period from 2012 to 2017, 19 formations of engineering units and organizations were formed in Russia. In addition, four military units were reassigned to the chief of engineering troops of the RF Armed Forces, and two federal budgetary institutions were formed. The formation of army engineer regiments in the Russian army, which began in 2013, continues. The process of their formation is planned to be completed by 2021. At the same time, a newly formed engineer-sapper regiment became part of the 2nd Combined Arms Army of the Central Military District in 2017. The regiment was formed in Udmurtia in the village of Kizner; previously, a military unit for the safe storage and disposal of chemical weapons was located here. At the end of September 2017, the chemical weapons elimination program was officially completed.

Also, the ranks of the RF Armed Forces were replenished by the centrally subordinated engineering camouflage regiment formed in 2017, the main purpose of which is to increase the ability to hide and imitate important objects and areas. Two months after its creation, the new regiment already took part in special exercises of engineering troops, which took place as part of the large Zapad-2017 exercises, receiving high praise for its actions.

It is impossible to imagine modern engineering troops without new equipment, often robotic. According to Yuri Stavitsky, in 2017, 18 modern equipment were adopted for armament and supply of engineering troops. In particular, the development of promising engineering weapons has been organized: a multifunctional robotic complex for clearing anti-tank mines, an induction mine detector, a capacitor explosive device, group and individual power sources and other means that are designed to increase the efficiency of performing special tasks.

Already in 2018, it is planned to adopt the Uran-6 sapper robot, as well as the Sfera and Scarab guided systems, which were tested in combat conditions during the operation in Syria, into service with the engineering troops. The experience gained in Syria was taken into account and will be used in the future to train engineering officers, the general noted. The engineering troops are also being replenished with new combat vehicles, for example, equipment for overcoming and destroying obstacles.

The units are replenished with engineering clearing vehicles, wheeled vehicles for various purposes, armored bulldozers, heavy mechanized bridges, and modern means of overcoming water obstacles. Important new products are high-tech modern means of field water supply for troops; engineering units are being replenished with mobile drilling rigs, water conservation complexes and integrated purification stations. New means of mechanizing earthworks are also arriving: military excavators and front-line loaders and many other special equipment, without which the work of military engineers is impossible.

On Engineering Troops Day, the Military Review team congratulates all active soldiers and officers of the Engineering Troops of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, as well as veterans and all citizens involved in this branch of the military, on their professional holiday.