Hero of the Russian Federation

Hero of the Russian Federation (Geroy Rossiyskoy Federatsii), also unofficially called Hero of Russia (Geroy Rossii), is the highest honorary title of the Russian Federation. The title comes with a Gold Star medal, an insignia of honour that identifies recipients. The title is awarded to persons for "service to the Russian state and nation, usually connected with a heroic feat of valour". The title is bestowed by decree of the president of the Russian Federation. Russian citizenship or being in the service of the Russian state is not obligatory. The title was established in 1992 and, , was awarded more than 970 times, of which more than 440 were posthumously. The title "Hero of Russia" is a successor to Hero of the Soviet Union (Герой Советского Союза), which was established by Resolution of the Central Executive Committee of the Soviet Union of 5 May 1934. The corresponding Gold Star is derived from the Soviet design, created by architect Miron Merzhanov and approved by Decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of 1 August 1939, and the ribbon was updated from the Soviet flag colors to the colors of the Russian flag. Following the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, Russian Federation under president Boris Yeltsin retained a modified award by Law of the Russian Federation No. 2553-1 20 March 1992. Article 71 of the Constitution of Russia permits titles, orders and medals to be presented by the government, and Article 89 gives the Russian president power to create state awards. This is the highest honour that can be presented by the Russian president to a citizen. The title of Hero of the Russian Federation can be awarded for a heroic deed in the service of the state. It can be awarded to both civilian and military personnel. The title can also be awarded posthumously if the heroic act costs the recipient his or her life. The President of the Russian Federation is the main conferring authority of the award. The insignia of the title of "Hero of the Russian Federation" is also called the "Gold Star" medal (медаль "Золотая Звезда"), its design is similar to the Soviet variant.