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Royal Order of the Lion (Belgium)
Encyclopedia
The Royal Order of the Lion was established by King Leopold II of Belgium
on 9 April 1891, in his capacity as ruler of the Congo Free State
, and was awarded for services to Congo and its ruler that did not deserve the award of the Order of the African Star
and were not necessarily performed from within the Congo. It was incorporated into the Belgian honours system following the annexation of the Congo Free State by Belgium
. The motto of the Order is "Travail et progrès" . The King of the Belgians is its Grand Master. Even though Congo is no longer a Belgian colony, it is still considered to be a Belgian Order
.
The Royal Order of the Lion is awarded by Royal Decree. Following the independence of Congo
in 1960, the Royal Order of the Lion is no longer awarded (although it still exists).
The Plaque (for Grand Cross) is a faceted silver eight-pointed star, or (for Grand Officer) a faceted silver Maltese Cross
with silver rays between the arms. The central disc is the same to that of the badge.
The Medal is round in gold, silver and bronze versions, with a suspension in the form of a royal crown with two pendelia and a ribbon ring. The obverse shows a finely ribbed central area with bead surround, with a royal lion superimposed. The surrounding circlet carries the motto of the Belgian Congo: Travail et Progrès (work and progress) - the later issues are bilingual including the Dutch Arbeid en Vooruitgang in the lower half of the circlet. The reverse is a stylised 'double L' crowned Leopold II monogram within a palm wreath.
The Ribbon of the order is amaranth purple, with narrow pale yellow edge stripes bordered with pale blue. When awarded in war time, the ribbon of the Order may be arorned with a silver of gold palm.
The Ribbon bar
of the order is worn on the semi-formal dress uniform.
and were not necessarily performed from within the Congo. In particular, it was awarded for long distinguished service in the Belgian Congo.
As the Order of the African Star
, the Royal Order of the Lion is currently administered by the FPS Foreign Affairs
, but was originally administered by the Ministry of the Colonies.
:Category:Royal Order of the Lion recipients
Leopold II of Belgium
Leopold II was the second king of the Belgians. Born in Brussels the second son of Leopold I and Louise-Marie of Orléans, he succeeded his father to the throne on 17 December 1865 and remained king until his death.Leopold is chiefly remembered as the founder and sole owner of the Congo Free...
on 9 April 1891, in his capacity as ruler of the Congo Free State
Congo Free State
The Congo Free State was a large area in Central Africa which was privately controlled by Leopold II, King of the Belgians. Its origins lay in Leopold's attracting scientific, and humanitarian backing for a non-governmental organization, the Association internationale africaine...
, and was awarded for services to Congo and its ruler that did not deserve the award of the Order of the African Star
Order of the African Star
The Order of the African Star was established by King Leopold II of Belgium on 30 December 1888, in his capacity as ruler of the Congo Free State, and was awarded for services to Congo and for the "promotion of African civilisation in general". It was incorporated into the Belgian honours system...
and were not necessarily performed from within the Congo. It was incorporated into the Belgian honours system following the annexation of the Congo Free State by Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
. The motto of the Order is "Travail et progrès" . The King of the Belgians is its Grand Master. Even though Congo is no longer a Belgian colony, it is still considered to be a Belgian Order
Order (decoration)
An order or order of merit is a visible honour, awarded by a government, dynastic house or international organization to an individual, usually in recognition of distinguished service to a nation or to humanity. The distinction between orders and decorations is somewhat vague, except that most...
.
The Royal Order of the Lion is awarded by Royal Decree. Following the independence of Congo
Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a state located in Central Africa. It is the second largest country in Africa by area and the eleventh largest in the world...
in 1960, the Royal Order of the Lion is no longer awarded (although it still exists).
Classes
The Royal Order of the Lion has five classes and three medals:- Grand Cross, who wears the badge on a sash on the right shoulder, plus the plaque on the left chest;
- Grand Officer, who wears only the plaque on the left chest;
- Commander, who wears the badge on a necklet;
- Officer, who wears the badge on a ribbon with rosette on the left chest;
- Knight, who wears the badge on a ribbon on the left chest;
- Gold Medal, who wears the medal on the left chest;
- Silver Medal, who wears the medal on the left chest;
- Bronze Medal, who wears the medal on the left chest.
Insigna
The Badge of the order is a white enamel Rupert cross with a perimeter channel of blue enamel, with the angles in-filled with filigree 'back to back' letter "C"s for "Congo". The central disc depicts the crowned Belgian lion on a blue enamel background surrounded by a silver ring with the motto of the Congo "TRAVAIL ET PROGRES". This again is surrounded by a scalloped channel of blue enamel. Reverse, similar to the obverse but with a central disc of red enamel with the crowned royal monogram "L/S/L" superimposed. Suspension is by means of a pivoting royal crown and ring.The Plaque (for Grand Cross) is a faceted silver eight-pointed star, or (for Grand Officer) a faceted silver Maltese Cross
Maltese cross
The Maltese cross, also known as the Amalfi cross, is identified as the symbol of an order of Christian warriors known as the Knights Hospitaller or Knights of Malta and through them came to be identified with the Mediterranean island of Malta and is one of the National symbols of Malta...
with silver rays between the arms. The central disc is the same to that of the badge.
The Medal is round in gold, silver and bronze versions, with a suspension in the form of a royal crown with two pendelia and a ribbon ring. The obverse shows a finely ribbed central area with bead surround, with a royal lion superimposed. The surrounding circlet carries the motto of the Belgian Congo: Travail et Progrès (work and progress) - the later issues are bilingual including the Dutch Arbeid en Vooruitgang in the lower half of the circlet. The reverse is a stylised 'double L' crowned Leopold II monogram within a palm wreath.
The Ribbon of the order is amaranth purple, with narrow pale yellow edge stripes bordered with pale blue. When awarded in war time, the ribbon of the Order may be arorned with a silver of gold palm.
The Ribbon bar
Ribbon bar
Ribbon bars are small decorations that are worn by military, police, and fire service personnel or by civilians. Ribbon bars are mainly used when wearing either full decoration, or when wearing medals is considered inappropriate or impractical. Each military force has its own rules on what ribbons...
of the order is worn on the semi-formal dress uniform.
| Collar of the Order | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Front view - Reverse view |
||||
| Ribbon bars & Decorations | ||||
| Grand Cross | | Grand Officer | | Commander | Officer | | Knight |
Sash - Plaque |
Star |
Necklet star |
Decoration |
Decoration |
| Gold Medal | Silver Medal | Bronze Medal | ||
| . | . | |||
| . | Medal |
Medal |
Medal |
. |
Award Conditions
The Royal Order of the Lion was awarded for services to Congo and its ruler that did not deserve the award of the Order of the African StarOrder of the African Star
The Order of the African Star was established by King Leopold II of Belgium on 30 December 1888, in his capacity as ruler of the Congo Free State, and was awarded for services to Congo and for the "promotion of African civilisation in general". It was incorporated into the Belgian honours system...
and were not necessarily performed from within the Congo. In particular, it was awarded for long distinguished service in the Belgian Congo.
As the Order of the African Star
Order of the African Star
The Order of the African Star was established by King Leopold II of Belgium on 30 December 1888, in his capacity as ruler of the Congo Free State, and was awarded for services to Congo and for the "promotion of African civilisation in general". It was incorporated into the Belgian honours system...
, the Royal Order of the Lion is currently administered by the FPS Foreign Affairs
FPS Foreign Affairs Belgium
The FPS Foreign Affairs, Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation , more commonly known as the FPS Foreign Affairs, is a Federal Public Service of Belgium. It was created by Royal Order on March 8, 2002, as part of the plans of the first Verhofstadt Government to modernise the federal administration...
, but was originally administered by the Ministry of the Colonies.
See also
- Grand Masters : Leopold IILeopold II of BelgiumLeopold II was the second king of the Belgians. Born in Brussels the second son of Leopold I and Louise-Marie of Orléans, he succeeded his father to the throne on 17 December 1865 and remained king until his death.Leopold is chiefly remembered as the founder and sole owner of the Congo Free...
- Albert IAlbert I of BelgiumAlbert I reigned as King of the Belgians from 1909 until 1934.-Early life:Born Albert Léopold Clément Marie Meinrad in Brussels, he was the fifth child and second son of Prince Philippe, Count of Flanders, and his wife, Princess Marie of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen...
- Leopold IIILeopold III of BelgiumLeopold III reigned as King of the Belgians from 1934 until 1951, when he abdicated in favour of the Heir Apparent,...
- Baudouin - Albert IIAlbert II of BelgiumAlbert II is the current reigning King of the Belgians, a constitutional monarch. He is a member of the royal house "of Belgium"; formerly this house was named Saxe-Coburg-Gotha... - Order of Leopold (Belgium)
- Order of the African StarOrder of the African StarThe Order of the African Star was established by King Leopold II of Belgium on 30 December 1888, in his capacity as ruler of the Congo Free State, and was awarded for services to Congo and for the "promotion of African civilisation in general". It was incorporated into the Belgian honours system...
- Order of the CrownOrder of the Crown (Belgium)The Order of the Crown is an Order of Belgium which was created on 15 October 1897 by King Leopold II in his capacity as ruler of the Congo Free State. The order was first intended to recognize heroic deeds and distinguished service achieved from service in the Congo Free State - many of which acts...
- Order of Leopold IIOrder of Leopold IIThe Order of Leopold II is an order of Belgium and is named in honor of King Léopold II. The decoration was established on 24 August 1900 by Leopold II as king of the Congo Free State and was in 1908, upon Congo being handed over to Belgium, incorporated into the Belgian awards system...
- List of Belgian decorations
- List of Belgian military decorations
:Category:Royal Order of the Lion recipients