Azerbaijan represented at int'l heraldic conference

By Azernews

By Laman Ismayilova

Parvin Gozalov, the first deputy chairman of Qasr Cultural Heritage and Historical Monuments Preservation Public Union, ICOMAM member, has taken part in the hybrid conference in Russia.

The event was organized by the State Hermitage and the Heraldry Council under the President of the Russian Federation.

This year's conference marks the 300th anniversary of the establishment of the Heroldmeister's Office by Peter the Great and the 30th anniversary of the restoration of the Heraldry Service in the Russian Federation.

Parvin Gozalov delivered a speech on "Islamic and Soviet symbols in the revolutionary flags of 1919-1922".

The conference gathered 48 speakers, including scientists and experts from St. Petersburg, Moscow, Bryansk, Sochi, Novosibirsk, Komsomolsk-on-Amur, Orenburg, Tallinn, Tyumen, Syktyvkar, Ekaterinburg, Ivanovo, Kirov.

Doctor of Philosophy in History Parvin Gozalov was the only foreign participant invited to the conference. 

Speaking at the conference, Hermitage Museum Director-General Mikhail Borisovich Piotrovsky greeted the participants online and wished them further success. 

Next, Russian State Heraldmaster Georgy Vadimovich Vilinbakhov read congratulatory letters to the conference participants from the Russian President Vladimir Putin and director of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service Sergey Naryshkin.

The conference discussed conceptual and strategic issues of state policy in heraldry, problems of legal issues in this field, and other topical heraldic problems. 

Parvin Gozalov's report "Islamic and Soviet symbols in the revolutionary flags of 1919-1922" includes flags used in the revolutionary processes that took place during the establishment of the Soviet Union in 1919-1922, among the flags published by the French diplomat

In his report,  symbols embodying the religious affiliation of the peoples and the attributes of the state structure were presented on the flag.                       

The 1919 flag is 64 x 61 cm in size, with a "Muslim crescent" on the front and a five-pointed star on top, both made of red cloth. The number "1" on top of the star, and "Bash.Cav.P." (Bashkir Water Regiment) beneath the crescent.

The first Bashkir cavalry regiment awarded with this flag is a typical example of many different military units during the Civil War. In fact, he served the highest-paid man and changed sides at least four times: when the civil war broke out, the 1st platoon with the "white" armies turned "red" in 1919, and then briefly became "white" again. He ended his brilliant career as a mercenary during the Civil War and disappeared as a result of the 1921 peace. and this mixture of political symbolism is widespread among Muslim militias on both sides, and other similar flags confirm this more convincingly.                                                            

The second flag of the petition is made of canvas measuring 81x112 cm. The flag of 1922 is made of red velvet, made of silver and colored threads, applied with colored fabrics and decorated with a silver cord. On the front: artillery and cavalry symbols, two cross-shaped cannons and horseshoes, stripes symbolizing the sun's rays on the horseshoe. In the center, there is an image of the Order of the Red Banner on a blue background, as well as two (II) Roman numerals in dark gray below. The text of the "Council of People's Commissars of the Federal Socialist Republic of Ukraine" is written on the canvas: "USSR ANK 1921 / II. Galician light battery". The text "Ukrainian workers and peasants" is written on the back of the canvas.

He represented the Second Galician Battalion, which fought alongside Antonov-army Ovseenko's on the Ukrainian front against several foes, including Ukrainian nationalists from Petlyura, the White Army from Denikin, and the French army after defeat by the British. Nestor Maxno's gang obtains the second Galisi Light Battery. During the Red Army's campaign with Poland in 1920, it lost more than 40 standards. During the war, it was displayed at the Army Museum in Warsaw. After Poland was liberated from Soviet troops in 1945, the Soviet Union forced them to return these standards (flags).                                                      

Following the report, Parvin Gozalov answered numerous questions from the audience. In response to questions, the rapporteur proposed to the Heraldry Council a number of collaborations on historical facts published and distorted in Europe. The participants of the conference were given a tour of the BN Elsin Presidential Library as part of the conference.

During his visit to St. Petersburg, Gozalov met Valeriy Krylov, the director of the Military Historical Museum of Artillery, Engineers, and Signal Corps.

Notably, Parvin Gozalov discovered the state and battle flags of the Nakhchivan Khanate from the flags of the Azerbaijani khanates annexed to the Russian Empire in 2015 for the first time in Azerbaijan's history after 1925.