SINCONA Auktion 67

Beschreibung

Jeton of The Society of the Standard Bearers of the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour on occasion of the renovation and re-consecration of the so-called „Kutuzovs Hut“ in Fili on September 1, 1887 (O.S.). 47.1 x 31.2 mm, silver, without any marks.
Gutes sehr schön / Good very fine.
(~€ 325/USD 385)
By command of The Society of the Standard Bearers of the Cathedral of Christ the Saviour [Храм Христа Спасителя] in Moscow, recognized by the highest authority, these jetons were issued on occasion of the renovation and re-consecration of the so-called Kutuzovs Hut in Fili on September 1, 1887 (O.S.). It was probably manufactured in the workshops of an orthodox convent (Sagorsk?) as it does not bear any marks.
The village of Fili, today part of Moscow, was situated on the street from Moscow west-ward to Borodino, where, during the Patriotic War [Отечественная война] of 1812 the on August 26 (O.S.) [September 6 (N.S.)] 1812, the battle of Borodino, one of the bloodiest of the 19th century, took place. The defending Imperial Russian Army of about 120,000 men, led by General Commander-in-Chief Mikhail Illarionovich Golenishchev-Kutuzov (1745-1813), and the invading French Grande Armée of about 130,000 men, led by Emperor Napoléon I (1769-1821, reigned from 1804 until 1814/1815) himself. The battle, with at the end about 39,000 to 45,000 casualties on the Russian side and about 30,000 to 35,000 on the French side, due to the retreat of the Russians, led to a tactical victory of Napoléon I. After the Russian retreat General Field Marshal (since August 31 (O.S.) [September 11 (.N.S.)]) Kutuzov’s staff met in a little hut in Fili, where on September 1 (O.S.) [12 (N.S.)], Kutozov took the final decision to evacuate Moscow, and to entice the Grande Armée to invade the open city. This decision led to the initiation of the decline of the Grande Armée due to the lack of replenishment and the Great Fire of the city, so that Napoléon was forced to give by mid-October the order for withdrawal of his forces from Moscow.
After the Battle of Krasnoi [Сражение под Красным] near Smolensk from November 3 (O.S.) [15 (N.S.]) to 6 (O.S.) [18 N.S.] 1812, victorious for the Russians, Emperor Alexander [Александр Павлович] I (1777-1825, reigned since 1801) elevated Kutuzov to Knyaz [Prince] Golenischev-Kutuzov-Smolensky [князь Голенищев-Кутузов-Смоленский] with the Stile of His Serene Highness [Светлейший князь]. He died on April 16 (O.S.) [28 (N.S.)] 1813 in Bunzlau (today Bolesawiec in western Poland) and was burried in the Kazan Kathedral [Казанский кафедральный собор] in Sankt Petersburg.
After Kutuzov’s death the hut was consecrated to a church as a memorial of his fundamental decision leading to the Russian victory in the Patriotic War. In occasion of 75 years jubilee of this decision, the hut was renovated and re-consecrated by the Metropolitan [Митрополит] and Archbishop of Moscow Joannice (born Ivan Maksimovich Rudnev [Иван Максимович Руднев] - 1826-1900, Metropolitan of Moscow from 1882 until 1891).