Guide to M1926 Unit Flags

[DougD]

This is the unit flag style I know least about, mostly because i have yet to get my hands on one. Here though is what I can say about it: after the Russian Civil War ended in 1924, the Red Army decided to devise a new unit flag design that would be standard for the entire force. The design was very ornate, requiring a huge amount of work (perhaps one of the reasons the design was done away with in 1935); it was square in shape, and listed the unit name as well as the parent unit name above.

Even in museums these unit flags are scarce; I have only actually seen them in the Central Armed Forces Museum (CAFM). Also, I do not know of any in private collections in the world (though that might just be because unit flag collectors tend to be shy about sharing what they have; this is very true in Russia itself).

These photos are from the CAFM and show two superb examples of the M1926 unit flag. This design was done away with in 1938 in favor of a simplified unit flag design (to be covered next).

If anyone has further info on the M1926 unit flags, let me know.

DougD