Cross of Liberty (Estonia)

Estonian Cross of Liberty
Illustration of the three divisions of the Estonian Cross of Liberty with each in three classes
Type	Military decoration
Awarded for	Recognition for services during the Estonian War of Independence
Presented by	Estonia
Post-nominals	VR I/1 VR I/2 VR I/3 Military Leadership VR II/1 VR II/2 VR II/3 Personal Courage VR III/1 VR III/2 VR III/3 Civilian Services
Status	No longer awarded
Established	Estonian War of Independence
First awarded	24 February 1919
Last awarded	19 June 1925
Total	3156[1]
Cross of Liberty for Military Leadership, Division I Cross of Liberty for Personal Courage, Division II Cross of Liberty for Civilian Service, Division III
Precedence
Next (higher)	None
Equivalent	Order of the National Coat of Arms
Next (lower)	Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana

The Estonian Cross of Liberty (Estonian: Vabadusrist) is a military decoration established by the Prime Minister of Estonia, Konstantin Päts, on 24 February 1919 to honor the people for their services during the Estonian War of Independence. The Estonian Cross of Liberty has three divisions, each in three classes. Division I was granted for military leadership, division II for personal courage and division III for civilian services. The division and class of the Estonian Cross of Liberty is usually added to the name of the recipient in the form of post-nominal letters. The 1st class of the II division of the Estonian Cross of Liberty was never granted. Although still mentioned in the list of Estonian state decorations by the president of the republic, the bestowal of the Estonian Cross of Liberty was terminated on 19 June 1925.^[2]

The last surviving recipient of the Estonian Cross of Liberty was Karl Jaanus VR II/3, who died on 6 October 2000.

The Estonian War of Independence Victory Column in Tallinn, unveiled in 2009, is modelled according to the Estonian Cross of Liberty.