Not to be confused with the Order of the Union of Burma

Pyidaungsu Sithu Thingaha

The Pyidaungsu Sithu Thingaha is the highest Burmese order.The order of Pyidaungsu Sithu was founded on 2 September 1948 as a replacement for the British Order of Burma. The original order had been founded by Royal Warrant on 10 May 1940...

. Order of the Union was also used as the original title for the Order of the Star of Romania

Order of the Star of Romania

The Order of the Star of Romania is Romania's highest civil order. It is awarded by the President of Romania...

.

The Order of the Union was a chivalric order established in 1806 by Louis Napoleon, younger brother of Napoleon I

Napoleon I

Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...

, for the Kingdom of Holland

Kingdom of Holland

The Kingdom of Holland 1806–1810 was set up by Napoleon Bonaparte as a puppet kingdom for his third brother, Louis Bonaparte, in order to better control the Netherlands. The name of the leading province, Holland, was now taken for the whole country...

. The order was abolished in 1811 when the French Empire

French Empire

The term French Empire can refer to:* Two Empires of the French founded by members of the House of Bonaparte,** The First French Empire of Napoleon I and II ** The Second French Empire of Napoleon III...

 absorbed the Kingdom of Holland. It was succeeded by the Order of the Reunion

Order of the Reunion

The Order of the Reunion was an order of chivalry of the First French Empire, set up to be awarded to Frenchmen and foreigners to reward services in the civil service, magistracy and army, particularly those from areas newly annexed to France, such as the Kingdom of Holland. It was established in...

.

Variants

Louis Napoleon was highly active despite the short length of his reign and so there were six variants of the order, though these all had more or less the same form, rules and decorations and the different names were all for more or less the same order - the orders have been described by authors such as Mr. O. Schutte, J.A. van Zelm van Eldik, George Sanders, P.J. d'Artillac Brill Sr. and G.C.E. Köffler as an organic whole. These variants were:

• Order of the Union (12 December 1806 - 13 February 1807)
• Royal Order of Merit (12 December 1806 - 13 February 1807)
• Royal Order of Holland (13 February 1807 - 23 November 1807)
• Royal Order of the Union (23 November 1807 - 6 February 1808)
• Royal Order of the Union of Holland (so-named in the decree of 6 February 1808)
• Royal Order of the Union (6 February 1808 - 1 April 1811?)

The Order of the Union (1806–1807) and the Royal Order of Merit (1806–1807) merged to become the Royal Order of Holland (1807). This new order became the Royal Order of the Union (1807–1808), also known as the Royal Order of the Union of Holland (1808) and finally the Royal Order of the Union (1808).

The order's chaotic history has led some to argue that the Royal Order of Holland broke up in 1807. Other authors such as Schutte, Van Zelm van Eldik and George Sanders emphasize its continuity. They write that the order established in 1806 died out at the same time as the Kingdom of Holland. The continuity is reflected in a letter or circular in French in which Grand Chancellor Maarten van der Goes van Dirxland

Maarten van der Goes van Dirxland

Maarten van der Goes van Dirxland was a Dutch politician and government minister. He belonged to the Patriot then moderate party. His son Louis Napoleon van der Goes van Dirxland was also active as a minister.-Life:Van der Goes came from a family of Regenten in the Hague and his father, Adriaan...

 explains that all these orders all actually made up one order and that "the Knights of the Royal order of Holland can also bear the name of Knights of the union. Union is the aim and foundation of the order. This article must be inserted into the order's statutes. Perhaps it would be convenient to make it the first one?".

History

Preparations

Louis was made king of the new Kingdom of Holland

Kingdom of Holland

The Kingdom of Holland 1806–1810 was set up by Napoleon Bonaparte as a puppet kingdom for his third brother, Louis Bonaparte, in order to better control the Netherlands. The name of the leading province, Holland, was now taken for the whole country...

 on 6 June 1806. Like the other Bonapartes, he wanted to add the luster of pomp and knighthood to his reign. Until 1806 the Netherlands had always been a republic and so had no pre-existing system of orders so, on 24 August 1806, Louis wrote to Napoleon (then in Aachen

Aachen

Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...

):

Organisation of the Dutch orders

Attributes