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ORDER
of the BRITISH EMPIRE Commander's
Badge of the Order of the British Empire
The
Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is
an order of chivalry established on 4
June 1917
by George
V. The Order includes five classes in civil and
military divisions, in order of seniority:
Only
the two highest ranks are knightly. There is also a
related British
Empire Medal, whose recipients are not members of
the Order, but which is affiliated with the Order
nonetheless.
The
Order's motto is For God and the Empire. It
is the most junior of the British orders of chivalry
and has more members than any other.
History
King
George V founded the Order to fill gaps in the British
honours system: The
Most Honourable Order of the Bath honoured only
senior military officers and civil servants, The
Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George
honoured diplomats and the Royal
Victorian Order honoured those who had personally
served the Royal Family. In particular, King George V
wished to honour the many thousands of people who
served in numerous non-combatant capacities during the
First
World War. Originally, the Order included only one
division; soon after its foundation, in 1918,
it was formally divided into Military and Civil
Divisions. The Order has been used to honour not only
British citizens, but also citizens of other Commonwealth
nations. During the Second
World War, the Order of the British Empire was
also awarded to senior military officers of allied
nations, such as General
George S. Patton
Composition
The
British
Sovereign is the Sovereign of the Order and
appoints all other members of the Order (by
convention, on the advice of the Government). The
next-most senior member is the Grand Master. The
current Grand Master is HRH
The Duke of Edinburgh.
The
Order is limited to 100 Knights and Dames Grand Cross,
845 Knights and Dames Commanders, and 8960 Commanders.
There are no limits on the total number of members of
the fourth and fifth classes, but no more than 858
Officers and 1464 Members may be appointed per year.
Appointments are made on the advice of the governments
of the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth nations.
By convention, female judges of the High
Court of England and Wales are created Dames
Commanders after appointment. Male judges, however,
are created Knights
Bachelor.
Most
members belong to the United Kingdom or to
Commonwealth nations. Citizens of other countries,
however, may be admitted as "honorary
members." They do not count towards the numerical
limits aforementioned, nor are they addressed as
"Sir." (They may be made full members if
they subsequently become British citizens.) Notable
foreign members of the Order have included Pelé,
Bob
Geldof, Bill
Gates, Rudy
Giuliani, Alan
Greenspan, Steven
Spielberg and Wesley
Clark (all Knights Commanders).
At
the foundation of the Order, the "Medal of the
Order of the British Empire" was instituted. In 1922,
it was renamed the "British Empire Medal."
Recipients, who are not members of the Order itself,
are grouped into the Civil and Military Divisions.
Only junior government and military officials are
awarded the medal; senior officials are directly
appointed to the Order of the British Empire. The
United Kingdom's Government has not recommended the
awarding of the medal since 1992,
though some Commonwealth nations continue the
practice.
The
Order has six officials: the Prelate, the Dean, the
Secretary, the Registrar, the King of Arms and the
Usher. The Bishop
of London, the most senior bishop in the Church
of England, serves as the Order's Prelate. The
Dean of St Paul's is ex officio the Dean of
the Order. The Order's King of Arms is not a member of
the College
of Arms, like many other heraldic
officers. The Usher of the Order is known as the
Gentleman Usher of the Purple Rod; he does not, unlike
his Order of the Garter equivalent (the Gentleman
Usher of the Black Rod), perform any duties
related to the House
of Lords.
Vestments
and accoutrements
Members
of the Order wear elaborate costumes on important
occasions (such as quadrennial services and coronations),
which vary by rank (the designs underwent major
changes in 1937):
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The
mantle, worn only by Knights and Dames
Grand Cross, was originally made of purple satin
lined with white silk, but is now made of rose
pink satin lined with pearl grey silk. On the left
side is a representation of the star (see below).
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The
collar, also worn only by Knights and
Dames Grand Cross, is made of gold. It consists of
six medallions depicting the Royal Arms,
alternating with six medallions depicting the
Royal and Imperial Cypher of George V ("GRI,"
which stands for "Georgivs Rex
Imperator"). The medallions are linked with
gold cables depicting lions and crowns.
At
less important occasions, simpler insignia are used:
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The
star is an eight-pointed silver star used
only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights
and Dames Commanders. It is worn pinned to the
left breast. The Star, which varies in size
depending on class, bears a crimson circle bearing
the motto of the Order. Within the circle, a
figure of Britannia
was originally shown. Since 1937, however, the
effigies of George V and his wife Queen Mary have
been shown instead.
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The
badge is the only insignia used by all
members of the Order. Knights and Dames Grand
Cross wear it on a rose pink and pearl grey (until
1937 plain purple) sash, passing from the right
shoulder to the left hip. Male Knights Commanders
and Commanders wear the badge from a ribbon around
the neck; male Officers and Members wear the badge
on a chest ribbon; all females (other than Dames
Grand Cross) wear it on a bow on the left
shoulder. The badge is in the form of a cross
patonce, the obverse of which bears the same field
the star (that is, either Britannia or George V
and Queen Mary); the reverse bears George V's
Royal and Imperial Cypher. The size of the badges
varies by rank: the higher classes have slightly
larger badges.
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The
badges of Knights and Dames Grand Cross, Knights
and Dames Commanders and Commanders are pale blue
enamelled; those of Officers are gold; those of
Members are silver.
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In
1957,
it was decided that any individual made a member
of the Order for gallantry could wear an emblem of
two crossed silver oak leaves on the same riband,
ribbon or bow as the badge. Since 1974,
however, appointments for gallantry have not been
made; instead, a separate Queen's
Gallantry Medal has been awarded.
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The
British Empire Medal is made of silver.
On the obverse is an image of Britannia surrounded
by the motto, with the words "For Merituous
Service" at the botom; on the reverse is
George V's Imperial and Royal Cypher, with the
words "Instituted by King George V" at
the bottom. The name of the recipient is engraved
on the rim.
On
certain "collar days" designated by the
Sovereign, members attending formal events may wear
the Order's collar over their military uniform or
evening wear. When collars are worn (either on collar
days or on formal occasions such as coronations), the
badge is suspended from the collar. Collars are
returned upon the death of their owners, but other
insignia may be retained.
Chapel
The
chapel of the order is in the far eastern end of the
crypt of St
Paul's Cathedral, but it holds its great services
upstairs in the main body of the cathedral. (The
Cathedral also serves as the home of the chapel of The
Most Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George.)
Religious services for the whole Order are held
quadrennially; new Knights and Dames Grand Cross are
installed at these services. The chapel was dedicated
in 1969.
Precedence
and privileges
Members
of all classes of the Order are assigned positions in
the order of precedence. Wives of male members of all
classes also feature on the order of precedence, as do
sons, daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights Grand
Cross and Knights Commanders; relatives of Ladies of
the Order, however, are not assigned any special
precedence. (As a general rule, individuals can derive
precedence from their fathers or husbands, but not
from their mothers or wives.) (See order
of precedence in England and Wales for the exact
positions.)
Knights
Grand Cross and Knights Commanders prefix
"Sir," and Dames Grand Cross and Dames
Commanders prefix "Dame," to their
forenames. Wives of Knights may prefix
"Lady" to their surnames, but no equivalent
privilege exists for husbands of Dames. Such forms are
not used by peers and princes, except when the names
of the former are written out in their fullest forms.
Furthermore, honorary members and clergymen do not use
the accolade of knighthood.
Knights
and Dames Grand Cross use the post-nominal "GBE,"
Knights Commanders "KBE," Dames Commanders
"DBE," Commanders "CBE," Officers
"OBE" and Members "MBE." The
post-nominal for the British Empire Medal is "BEM."
Knights
and Dames Grand Cross are also entitled to receive
heraldic supporters. They may, furthermore, enircle
their arms with a depiction of the circlet (a circle
bearing the motto) and the collar; the former is shown
either outside or on top of the latter. Knights and
Dames Commanders and Commanders may display the
circlet, but not the collar, surrounding their arms.
The badge is depicted suspended from the collar or
circlet.
LINKS:
References:
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Member British Empire MBE
