Orders and Medals - Old Royal Court

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2005-11-01 16:35

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| The Monarchy in Sweden
| Orders and Medals

The Orders in Sweden

Originally the term "order" denoted an association of people who had submitted to certain rules and obligations for a particular spiritual or secular purpose. Orders are divided into two groups, namely religious or spiritual and secular.

Religious - monastic - orders were formed at an early stage in Christian history. Several such orders came to Sweden in medieval times, including for example the Franciscan Order, which established monasteries and churches in Stockholm, Visby, Skara and elsewhere during the second half of the 13th century. The great monastic church in Stockholm is today known as Riddarholmen Church and is one of the city's most important medieval buildings. This group of religious orders also included the religious orders of knighthood - chivalry - which had come about as a result of the crusading fervour of the early 12th century. The basic ideas of the monastic orders and spiritual fraternities were transferred to these orders of chivalry and subsequently passed on to the secular orders.

Beginning with the spiritual orders of knighthood, certain insignia of order and rank already began to be used in the Middle Ages. Secular rulers favoured "orders" in this sense as a reward for services of different kinds, and this in turn was the origin of civil orders or honours as we know them today.

It was not until 1748, with the foundation by Fredrik I of the Orders of the Seraphim, Sword and Polar Star, followed in 1772 by Gustav III's institution of the Order of Vasa, that Sweden acquired an official system of orders primarily intended for Swedish recipients.

The King is "Lord and Master of all Swedish orders", or "Grand Master" as the term now goes. The Swedish orders (except for the Order of the Seraphim, which has one only) know five degrees: Commander Grand Cross, Commander First Class, Commander, Officer First Class and Officer. Women and clergy are called "members", not "officers", of the orders concerned.

Under a law passed in 1974, Swedish orders can only be conferred on foreign citizens or stateless persons for personal services to Sweden or Swedish interests. The only exception to this rule is the power of the King, since 1995, to confer the Order of the Seraphim and degrees in the Order of the Polar Star on members of the Swedish Royal Family.

Apart from the national, official system of orders, Sweden, like most other countries, has a number of official and quasi-official orders, foremost among them being the Order of King Carl XIII, of which the King is Grand Master. The quasi-official orders include the Order of St John in Sweden. Other recognised orders are the Grand Order of the Amaranth, instituted by Queen Kristina in 1653, and the Order of Innocence, both of which are to be regarded as fraternities/sororities or "social orders". Several orders - the Order of Carpenters, the Order of Good Templars and the Order of Odd Fellows, for example - work for various scholarly, idealistic and humanitarian purposes.

Swedish Royal Orders of Chivalry

The Order of the Seraphim or the Order of His Majesty the King, is the most outstanding distinction in Sweden. Nowadays it is conferred exclusively on members of the Swedish Royal Family and on foreign heads of state or other persons of comparable rank.

The Order has only one Class with the dignity of Knight or Member. The insignia of the Order are

the Collar, Badge and Grand Star. The Collar of the Order is only bestowed as a mark of special distinction.

The Collar of the Order of the Seraphim consists of eleven gold seraphims (angels), alternating with eleven blue patriarchal crosses, set in gold, joined with gold links. The Badge consists of a white Maltese cross set in gold, in the centre of which is a blue medallion bearing the monogram of Christ "IHS" (Jesus Hominum Salvator - Jesus the Saviour of Mankind). The Badge is surmounted by a golden Royal crown, by which it is fastened to the collar or to a light blue moiré ribbon.

The initials FRS (Fredericus Rex Suecia), in memory of King Fredrik I, who instituted the Order in 1748, are engraved on the reverse of the medallion.

A Knight or Member should submit proposals regarding his Seraphim arms and

a motto to the armorial painter to the Royal Orders. On the death of a Knight or Member of the Order, his (her) coat of arms, designed in accordance with the above, will be mounted in Riddarholmen Church on the occasion of the funeral of the deceased Knight or Member. The bells are tolled at Riddarholmen Church on the occasion of the funeral of a deceased Knight or Member.

The Order of the Polar Star was until 1975 intended as a reward for Swedish and foreign "civic merits, for devotion to duty, for science, literary, learned and useful works and for new and beneficial institutions". The cross of the order is of the Maltese type and was originally worn in a black sash; since 1975 the sash is blue with yellow edges. The emblem bears the device of the order, "Nescit occasum" (It knows no decline.)

This order also has a medal, "the Polar Star Medal". As from 1975, the Order of the Polar Star is presented to foreign nationals or stateless persons.

The Order of the Sword was originally presented for bravery in the field and at sea, and later also as a reward for long and distinguished service in the armed forces. In addition to the five degrees there was a sword emblem for presentation to junior officers and a sword medal for NCOs (or the equivalent). There were several decorations for distinguished wartime service. The cross of the order is of the Maltese type,

the centre consisting of a blue enamel disc showing a sword surrounded by the Three Crowns of Sweden. This order is no longer conferred.

The Order of Vasa was intended as a reward for services in a number of fields, for presentation to persons not eligible for the "service orders" of the Sword and the Polar Star. Above all, this order was intended as recognition of good services to agriculture and mining, technical progress and commerce. The Order of Vasa was a free order, i.e. unrestricted by rules of birth and education.

The cross of the order is composed on the same lines as the insignia of the more senior orders and is surmounted by a crowned sheaf, the emblem of the Vasa dynasty. Like the Order of the Sword, the Order of Vasa is no longer presented.

The Seraphim Medal (1748) is presented for outstanding services of a humanitarian nature or of general benefit to society.

H.M. the King's Medal (1850s) is presented to Swedish and foreign citizens for special merit and to officials of the Royal Court for long and faithful service. This medal is combined with chain or ribbon and there are both gold and silver versions in various sizes.

Litteris et Artibus (1853) is awarded for outstanding service to the arts, especially to music, dramatic art and literature.

The Prince Eugen Medal, founded to commemorate the eightieth birthday of Prince Eugen in 1945, is awarded for outstanding artistic achievement.

The Prince Carl Medal, instituted in 1945 on the retirement of Prince Carl from the chairmanship of the Swedish Red Cross, is awarded for national or international humanitarian activity.

The Royal Jubilee Commemoration Emblem was awarded to mark the fiftieth birthday of the present King, H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf, in 1996.

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The Swedish Government also presents the following medals, among others: the Illis quorum meruere labores medal, the medal For Civic Merit and the medal For Zeal and Honesty in the Service of the Realm. Medals are also presented, for example, by the Royal Academies and by a large number of quasi-official and private societies.