Museum of Military Uniforms of the Russian Military Historical Society

On December 12, 2019, the Museum of Military Uniforms was opened in the heart of Moscow. This is a unique project of the Russian Military Historical Society, whose main goal is to preserve and popularize the best traditions of Russian military service. The museum is in the classical ensemble of the Vasilchikov family’s city estate on Bolshaya Nikitskaya Street, built at the end of the 18th – beginning of the 19th century. The estate has the status of a cultural heritage site of federal significance.

The unique museum complex is located on an area of over 4000 square meters, of which 1500 square meters are allocated for exhibition halls.

Visitors to the museum are presented with three permanent exhibitions. The basis of the “Uniform for a Hero” exhibition consists of samples of military uniform clothing and ammunition from the 16th century to the present day. Some exhibits are real relics – a collection of priceless military clothing items carefully preserved by the Imperial Intendant Museum until 1917. A special place in the exhibition is occupied by rare experimental samples of the Russian army uniform, presented to the public for the first time, items belonging to Russian emperors, various equipment and weapons from different eras, authentic exhibits from the 18th and 19th centuries.

It is worth noting that the exhibition includes such exhibits as a reconstruction of Catherine II’s dress uniform in the form of the Cavalerguards Corps (second half of the 18th century), sewn according to the exact measurements of the original (State Museum-Reserve “Tsarskoye Selo”), authentic uniform items of soldiers and officers of the most famous regiments of the Russian Imperial Army: Leib-guards Hussar, Kirasirsky His Majesty, Sapper battalion, Preobrazhensky, Ulan, Cavalerguards, Dragoon Military Order, 145th Infantry Novocherkassk and others. A rare and well-preserved drummer’s uniform of the Leib-guards Semyonovsky Polk of 1809 occupies a special place.

The “Vasilchikov Estate” exhibition, located in one of the rooms of the parade suite of the Main House, tells the history of the ancient estate where the museum is located. The exhibition presents a detailed model of the estate complex of buildings that formed after 1870.

The “We Have Something to Be Proud Of” exhibition presents the latest achievements of all branches of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation. Advanced military developments, samples of military uniforms, equipment and equipment of servicemen are presented according to the three elements – Air, Land and Water. The fourth section of the exhibition recreates the working environment of the Missile Forces Command Post, where visitors can try their hand at controlling a radar station.

The museum also hosts temporary exhibitions “Georgy Zhukov. Time of Power and Forgotten Reforms”, dedicated to the activities of G.K. Zhukov as Minister of Defense of the Soviet Union in 1955-1957, and “To the 165th Anniversary of the End of the Crimean War”, which presents rare exhibits from the private collection of Gennady Gusev – witnesses to events and direct participants in military actions, embodying the memory of the heroic episodes of the Crimean War.

The distinctive feature of the Military Uniform Museum is an extensive complex of modern multimedia technologies (touch panels, widescreen displays, projections, binoculars, and much more), which will provide free and effective access to substantive and visual information on the history of Russian military uniform from the 16th to the 21st century and create conditions for studying the military history of the country. The main goal of the museum is to preserve and develop a sense of pride in one’s homeland, popularize service in the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation, and form civic-patriotic qualities based on the study of Russia’s military past and achievements in military-historical science.