| Order of Merit | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Badge and ribbon bow of the order (for wear by female recipients) | |
| Awarded byCharles III | |
| Type | Order of merit |
| Established | 26 June 1902 |
| Motto | For Merit |
| Eligibility | All living citizens of theCommonwealth realms |
| Criteria | At the monarch's pleasure |
| Founder | Edward VII |
| Sovereign | Charles III |
| Secretary and Registrar | Robin Janvrin, Baron Janvrin |
| Grades | Member (OM) |
| Precedence | |
| Next (higher) | Dependent on state |
| Next (lower) | Dependent on state |
.svg) Ribbon bar of the order | |
TheOrder of Merit (French:Ordre du Mérite)[n 1] is anorder of merit for theCommonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 byEdward VII, admission into the order remains the personal gift of its Sovereign—currently Edward VII's great-great-grandsonCharles III—and is restricted to a maximum of 24 living recipients from the Commonwealth realms, plus honorary members.[1][2] While all members are awarded the right to use thepost-nominal lettersOM and wear the badge of the order,[3] the Order of Merit'sprecedence among other honours differs between countries.
In around 1773,George III considered establishing anorder of knighthood to be called the "Order ofMinerva" with membership restricted to 24 distinguished artists and authors.[4] Knights would be entitled to the post-nominal lettersKM, and would wear a silver nine-pointed breast star with the image of Minerva at its centre, along with a "straw-coloured"sash worn across the chest from the right shoulder.[4] Themotto of the Order would be"Omnia posthabita scientiae" (inLatin, 'Everything comes after science'). Once the King's proposal was made public, however, arguments within intellectual circles over who would be most deserving of the new order grew so heated that George ultimately dropped the idea,[4] though he briefly reconsidered it in 1789; on 6 February of that year, he revised the design of the order, with the breast star to have sixteen points, the motto to be the Latin for "Learning improves character" and with membership to include distinguished scientists.[5] Following theBattle of Trafalgar in 1805,First Lord of the AdmiraltyCharles Middleton, 1st Baron Barham andWilliam Pitt exchanged correspondence concerning the possible creation of an order of merit, though nothing came of the idea.[6]
Later,Queen Victoria, hercourtiers, and politicians alike,[7] thought that a new order, based on thePrussian orderPour le Mérite, would make up for the insufficient recognition offered by the establishedhonours system to achievement outside public service, in fields such as art, music, literature, industry and science.[6] Victoria's husband,Albert, Prince Consort, took an interest in the matter; it was recorded in his diary that he met SirRobert Peel on 16 January 1844 to discuss the "idea of institution of a civil Order of Merit" and, three days later, he conferred with the Queen on the subject.[8]
Though nothing came of the idea at the time, the concept did not wither and, more than 40 years later, on 5 January 1888, Prime MinisterRobert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury submitted to the by then long-widowed Queen a draft constitution for an Order of Merit in Science and Art, consisting of one grade split into two branches of knighthood: the Order of Scientific Merit, for Knights of Merit in Science, with the post-nominal lettersKMS, and the Order of Artistic Merit, for Knights of Merit in Art, with the post-nominal lettersKMA. However,Frederic Leighton, President of theRoyal Academy of Arts, advised against the new order, primarily because of its selection process.[9]
.jpg)
It was Victoria's sonEdward VII who eventually founded the Order of Merit on 26 June 1902 (the date for which his coronation had been originally scheduled[10]) as a means to acknowledge "exceptionally meritorious service in Our Navy and Our Army, or who may have rendered exceptionally meritorious service towards the advancement of Art, Literature and Science".[11] All modern aspects of the order were established under his direction, including the division for military figures.[3]
From the outset, prime ministers attempted to propose candidates orlobbied to influence the monarch's decision on appointments. But, theRoyal Household adamantly guarded information about potential names.[3] After 1931, when theStatute of Westminster came into effect and theDominions of theBritish Empire became independent countries within the empire, equal in status to the UK, the Order of Merit continued as an honour open to all these realms and, in many, became a part of their newly developing national honours systems.[12] The order's statutes were amended in 1935 to include members of theRoyal Air Force and, in 1969, the definition of honorary recipients was expanded to include members of theCommonwealth of Nations that are not realms.
The order has always been open to women,Florence Nightingale being the first woman to receive the honour, in 1907. Several individuals have refused admission into the Order of Merit, includingRudyard Kipling,A. E. Housman, andGeorge Bernard Shaw.Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, remains the youngest person ever inducted into the Order, having been admitted by QueenElizabeth II in 1968, when he was 47 years old.[3]
Robin Eames, Baron Eames represented the order at thecoronation of Charles III and Camilla on 6 May 2023.[13]
All citizens of theCommonwealth realms are eligible for appointment to the Order of Merit.[2] There may be, however, only 24 living individuals in the order at any given time, not including honorary appointees, and new members are personally selected by the reigning monarch of the realms, currentlyCharles III, with the assistance of his private secretaries;[3] the order has thus been described as "quite possibly, the most prestigious honour one can receive on planet Earth."[14] Within the limited membership is a designated military division, with its own unique insignia; though it has not been abolished, it is currently unpopulated,Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma having been the last person so honoured.[3]
Honorary members form another group, to which there is no numerical limit, though such appointments are rare; individuals from countries in theCommonwealth of Nations that are not headed by King Charles are therefore considered foreigners, and thus are granted only honorary admissions, such asNelson Mandela (South Africa) andMother Teresa (India).[1]
Upon admission into the Order of Merit, members are entitled to use thepost-nominal lettersOM and are entrusted with thebadge of the order.
.jpg)
The insignia consists of a badge, which consists of a golden crown from which is suspended a redenamelledcross pattée, itself centred by a disk of blue enamel, surrounded by alaurel wreath.[15] Theobverse of the badge's central disk bears the wordsFOR MERIT in gold lettering, while the reverse bears theroyal cypher of the reigning monarch in gold. The insignia for the military grouping is distinguished by a pair of crossed swords behind the central disk.[2]
Theribbon of the Order of Merit is divided into two stripes of red and blue. The neck ribbon is 50mm in width, while the ribbon bar width is the standard British 32mm size for military or civilian wear.[16] Men wear their badges on a neck ribbon (as anecklet), while women wear theirs on a ribbon bow pinned to the left shoulder, andaides-de-camp may wear the insignia on theiraiguillettes.[15]
Since 1991, the insignia must be returned upon the recipient's death.[17]
| Name | Year of appointment | Present age |
|---|---|---|
| KingCharles III (ex officio) | 2002 as The Prince of Wales; sovereign since 2022[a] | 76 |
|
There have been no honorary members of the Order of Merit since the death of the last such member,Nelson Mandela, in December 2013.[18]
Secretary and Registrar:Robin Janvrin, Baron JanvrinGCB, GCVO, QSO, PC
As the Order of Merit is open to the citizens of 15 countries, each with their own system of orders, decorations, and medals, the order's place ofprecedence varies from country to country. While, in the United Kingdom, the order's postnominal letters follow those of Knights and Dames Grand Cross of theOrder of the Bath, membership in the Order of Merit itself gives members no place in any of theorders of precedence in the United Kingdom. However, Stanley Martin says in his bookThe Order of Merit 1902–2002: One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour, that the Order of Merit is the pinnacle of the British honours system.[3] Similarly, though it was not listed in theCanadian order of precedence for honours, decorations, and medals until December 2010,[19] Christopher McCreery, an expert on Canadian honours and secretary to theLieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia, stated that the Order of Merit was the highest civilian award for merit a Canadian could receive.[20][21]
Some orders of precedence are as follows:
| Country | Preceding | Following |
|---|---|---|
 AustraliaOrder of wear[22] | Knight/Lady of the Most Ancient and Most NobleOrder of the Thistle(KT/LT) | Knight/Dame of theOrder of Australia(AK/AD) |
 CanadaOrder of wear[23] | Cross of Valour(CV) | Companion of theOrder of Canada(CC) |
 New ZealandOrder of wear[24] | Knight/Dame Grand Cross of the Most HonourableOrder of the Bath(GCB) | Member of theOrder of New Zealand(ONZ)[25] |
 United Kingdom | Knight/Dame Grand Cross of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath(GCB) | Baronet's Badge(Bt)[27] |
| Awards of valour | |
|---|---|
| National orders | |
| Dynastic orders | |
| Provincial orders | |
| Territorial orders | |
| Other decorations and medals | |
| Canadian honours lists | |
Authority control databases: National |
|---|
_BAR.svg)
_BAR.svg)
_ribbon_-vector.svg)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
_ribbon.png)
