Misplaced Pages

#294705

26-480: The Royal Victorian Chain is a decoration instituted in 1902 by King Edward VII as a personal award of the monarch (i.e. not an award made on the advice of any Commonwealth realm government). It ranks above the Royal Victorian Order , with which it is often associated but not officially related. Originally reserved for members of the royal family, the chain is a distinct award conferred only upon

52-596: A badge worn with or without a ribbon on the chest. An example of a communist order of merit was the one-class Order of Lenin of the Soviet Union (1930). Unlike Western orders, however, communist orders could be awarded more than once to an individual. After the collapse of the Soviet Bloc in the 1990s, most Eastern European countries reverted to the Western-style orders originally established before

78-471: A gold wreath for men, upon which the badge is suspended. The chain is worn around the collar by men or with the four motifs and some chain links fixed to a riband in the form of bow (blue with red-white-red edges) on the left shoulder by women. However, the Queen's sister, the late Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon , in later life chose to wear her chain around the collar, as male recipients do. The badge

104-429: A more courtly nature. Some were merely honorary and gradually the badges of these orders (i.e. the association) began to be known informally as orders . As a result, the modern distinction between orders and decorations or insignia has become somewhat blurred. While some orders today retain the original notion of being an association or society of individuals, others make no distinction, and an "order" may even be

130-586: A personal decoration for Sovereigns, Princes, and other Royal personages, and also for a few eminent British subjects." It was first recorded as a new decoration in August 1902, when it was reported that Frederick Temple , Archbishop of Canterbury , was received in private audience to receive the Royal Victorian Chain , following the coronation of the King two days earlier. The first recipients included

156-446: A personal token of high distinction and esteem from the monarch. The chain can be conferred upon men and women of any nationality. It has normally served as the senior award for Canadians , who are generally ineligible to receive titular honours under federal Cabinet policy . Only two Canadians have thus far been conferred with the chain: Vincent Massey and Roland Michener , both former governors general . The Royal Victorian Chain

182-526: Is a gold, white enamelled Maltese Cross ; the oval-shaped central medallion depicts Victoria's royal and imperial cypher — VRI ( Victoria Regina Imperatrix )—on a red background, surrounded by a crown-surmounted blue ring bearing the word Victoria . Both the crown and Queen Victoria's cypher are studded with diamonds. The Royal Victorian Chain does not confer upon its recipients any style , title or postnominal letters , nor does it give precedence within any Commonwealth honours system. However, it represents

208-457: Is an object, such as a medal or the insignia of an order , that is awarded by a sovereign state to honor the recipient. The term includes civil awards and decorations , as well as military awards and decorations . This article related to orders , decorations , and medals is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Order (distinction) Modern honour systems of state orders and dynastic orders emerged from

234-477: Is invariably granted to holders of the office of Archbishop of Canterbury, often just after their retirement. The only holders of that title not to receive the decoration since its inception are William Temple , who died in office, and Justin Welby , who announced in 2024 his intention to resign. The Royal Victorian Chain must be returned on the death of the recipient. State decoration A state decoration

260-489: The Congressional Gold Medal to civilians. The Legion of Merit is the only United States decoration which may be issued in award degrees (much like an order of chivalry or certain orders of merit), but award degrees are only made to foreign nationals, typically senior military officers or government officials. Switzerland does not award any orders. Article 12 of the 1848 Swiss Constitution prohibited

286-805: The Order of Australia , and New Zealand awards the Order of New Zealand and the New Zealand Order of Merit . The Order of Mapungubwe is the highest honour in South Africa , while the Orders of Luthuli , and the Baobab exist alongside other decorations. The United States awards the Medal of Honor to members of its military for acts of valour, and the Presidential Medal of Freedom and

SECTION 10

#1732766121295

312-567: The Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary (1764) still required that one had to have at least four generations of noble ancestors. Still today, many dynastic orders are granted by royal families to worthy individuals for service and achievements. In 1802 Napoleon created the Legion of Honour ( Légion d'honneur ), which could be awarded to any person, regardless of status, for bravery in combat or for 20 years of distinguished service. While still retaining many trappings of an order of chivalry, it

338-485: The 18th century, these ideas gradually changed and the orders developed from "honourable societies" to visible honours. An example of this gradual development can be seen in two orders founded by Maria Theresa of Austria . While the Military Order of Maria Theresa (1757) was open to any deserving military officer regardless of social origin, and would grant titles of nobility to those who did not already have them,

364-414: The King's son George, Prince of Wales (later George V ) and the King's brother Prince Arthur, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn . The chain is in gold, decorated with motifs of Tudor rose , thistle , shamrock , and lotus flower (symbolizing England , Scotland , Ireland , and India , respectively) and a crowned, red enamelled cypher of King Edward VII— ERI ( Edwardus Rex Imperator )—surrounded by

390-540: The Seychelles do not seem to confer official civil orders of merit. By the time of the Renaissance , most European monarchs had either acquired an existing order of chivalry, or created new ones of their own, to reward loyal civilian and especially military officials. Such orders remained out of reach to the general public, however, as being of noble rank or birth was usually a prerequisite to being admitted. In

416-730: The acceptance of honors from other sovereigns unless the honorific order comes from a list of countries specified in a regulation. In 1974 the Cabinet of Sweden passed a regulation forbidding the monarch of Sweden from awarding membership in orders to Swedish citizens. The orders themselves were not abolished, but only the Royal Orders of the Seraphim and the Polar Star (both established in 1748) continued to be awarded, and only to foreign citizens and stateless individuals. In 1995

442-446: The acceptance of honours and titles by Swiss citizens. The current Constitution of 1999 has no specific prohibition, but a federal statute effectively continues the prohibition by barring holders of foreign orders from holding public office. This practice has become common across the globe (albeit other countries usually issue a general prohibition to accept foreign orders, allowing for generous exceptions). Australia, for instance, bans

468-478: The contemporary era, 96% of the world's states – 196 out of a sample of 204 polities, which includes sovereignty-claiming entities like Abkhazia – were found to use Orders to bestow them upon their own citizens and, as a diplomatic tool, upon foreigners. In total, 133 states even regulate the use of Orders in their constitutions. Only Switzerland, Micronesia, Libya, the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, and

494-538: The culture of orders of chivalry of the Middle Ages , which in turn emerged from the Catholic religious orders . The word order ( Latin : ordo ), in the case referred to in this article, can be traced back to the chivalric orders , including the military orders , which in turn trace the name of their organisation back to that of the Catholic religious orders . Orders began to be created ad hoc and in

520-748: The culture of chivalric orders established in the Middle Ages , originally the military orders of the Middle Ages and the Crusades , who in turn grew out of the original Catholic religious orders. While these chivalric orders were "societies, fellowships and colleges of knights", founded by the Holy See or European monarchs in imitation of the military orders of the Crusades, granting membership in such societies gradually developed into an honour that could be bestowed in recognition of service or to ensure

546-621: The highest dignitaries, including foreign monarchs, heads of state, and high-ranking individuals such as the Archbishop of Canterbury . The Royal Victorian Chain was created by King Edward VII in 1902, six years after his mother created the Royal Victorian Order. The Royal Victorian Chain ranks above all decorations of the Royal Victorian Order, but it is not officially part of the Order. Edward created it to honour his mother "as

SECTION 20

#1732766121295

572-632: The loyalty of a certain clientele . Some of modern Europe's highest honours, such as the Order of the Golden Fleece , England 's Order of the Garter , Denmark 's Order of the Elephant and Scotland 's Order of the Thistle , were created during that era. They were essentially courtly in nature, characterised by close personal relations between the orders' members and the orders' sovereign. In

598-436: The name of a decoration. Most historic chivalric orders imply a membership in a group, typically a confraternity . In a few exclusive European orders, membership is or was also limited in number. Decorations seldom have such limitations. Orders often come in multiple classes, including knights and dames in imitation of the original chivalric orders. Modern national orders, orders of merit , and decorations, emerged from

624-526: The regulation was altered, allowing the monarch to bestow the two remaining active orders to members of the Swedish royal family . Finally, in 2022, the 48-year-old regulation was repealed by the Swedish Government, the orders were re-opened to Swedish citizens, and the two dormant orders ( Sword and Vasa ) were revived, with effect from 2023. Modern orders are usually open to all citizens of

650-542: The rise of communism. Today, many countries have some form of order of merit or national decorations. Both Thailand 's Order of the White Elephant and Japan 's Order of the Rising Sun are over 100 years old. In Canada and some Commonwealth Realms, the Order of Merit is the highest civilian honour. Canada has the Order of Canada and provincial orders such as the Order of Nova Scotia . Australia has

676-837: Was the first modern national order of merit and is still France 's highest award today. The French Legion of Honour served as the model for numerous modern orders of merit in the Western world , such as the Order of Leopold in Belgium (1832) and the Order of the British Empire in the United Kingdom (1917). Orders of merit based on the French Legion of Honour typically retain five classes in accordance with habits of chivalric orders. In communist countries , orders of merit usually come in one to three grades, with only

#294705