Established in the February 1807 decree of Emperor Alexander I, it was intended as a reward for "undaunted courage" by the lower ranks (soldiers, sailors and NCOs) of the military.

The first soldier to be awarded the Cross of Saint George was a cavalry non-commissioned officer named Yegor Ivanovich Mitrokhin.

On 10 September 1916, the Highest Council of Ministers approved a change to the St George Cross removing the gold and silver from its making.

The virtual absence of a unified command and the territorial fragmentation of the White armies meant that no common award system was created.

At the same time, in the south of Russia, on the territory of the Don Republic, taking into account the local specifics of George the Victorious on St George's Crosses depicted in the form of a Cossack: in a hat with a Bashlyk, Cossack uniform and boots, a forelock is visible from under the hat, his face is framed by a beard.

On 9 February 1919 the awarding of the George Cross was restored on the Eastern Front of the Russian Civil War to forces commanded by Alexander Kolchak.

The first post reinstatement award ceremony took place in August 2008 to soldiers who displayed courage and heroism during the armed conflict in South Ossetia.

On that day, Russian President Dmitry Medvedev decorated 11 soldiers and sergeants with the Cross of Saint George, fourth class, for courage and heroism displayed in the performance of military duties.

[14] List of the 11 initial recipients in August 2008:[15] On New Year 2023, Russian president Vladimir Putin awarded the Cross of St. George to military personnel participating in the invasion of Ukraine.

It is a 34mm wide cross pattée worn on the left side of the chest with other medals, the obverse has a central medallion bearing the right facing image of Saint George on horseback slaying the dragon.

The reverse of the central medallion bears the Cyrillic monogram of the Order of Saint George "SG" (Russian: «СГ»).

All four crosses hang from the standard Russian pentagonal mount covered with an overlapping 24mm wide silk moiré ribbon of Saint George.