Commander (order)
Commander (
The title of Commander occurred in the medieval
France
History
The rank of commandeur in the French orders comes from the Middle Ages
- The Order of the Holy Spirit, created in 1578 by king Henry III, had two categories of commanders.
- Ecclesiastical commanders: members of the clergy with the rank of grand almonerof the King was counted as a supplementary ecclesiastical commander ex officio.
- Administrative officers: the "officers-commanders" were the four most important executive officers of the order. They had the same rank as lay knights, but they needed not to prove their nobility. These offices were used by the Kings to honor recent nobles, such as Jean-Baptiste Colbert. The officers-commanders were sometimes called grand officers, in order to distinguished them from the lowest rank of officers.
- Ecclesiastical commanders: members of the clergy with the rank of
- The Order of Saint Louis, created in 1694 by King Louis XIV, had one rank of commanders. This was the second highest rank of the order, destined to honor military officers. They were only 24 commanders at a time, eventually promoted to the rank of Grand Cross.
Both orders were suppressed in 1830 by the new King
Modern merit orders
- The Napoléon Bonaparte, was hereditary on the grandchildren descendants of his siblings, and originally had a rank of Commandant. This rank was renamed Commander by King Louis XVIIIin 1816 in order to bring the Napoleonic order on monarchical guidelines. This is still the third highest rank of the order.
- The Ordre national du Mérite, created in 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle, has the same rank structure as the Legion of Honor. The Commanders form the third highest rank of the order.
- The Ordre des Palmes académiques, created in 1808 for teachers and professors, has Commander as its highest rank since reorganization in 1955 by President René Coty.
- The Order of Agricultural Merit, created in 1883 for contributions to agriculture, has Commander as its highest rank since reorganization in 1900.
- The Ordre du Mérite Maritime has had Commander as its highest rank since its creation in 1930.
- The Ordre des Arts et des Lettres has Commander as its highest rank since its creation in 1957.
Italy
The title of Commendatore ("Knight Commander") in the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (originally established by the royal House of Savoy) and other orders of knighthood is awarded by decree of the President of Italy. The rank of Commendatore (Knight Commander) is a higher award than Ufficiale (Officer), which in turn is higher than Cavaliere (Knight), the first level in this order of chivalry. The Italian government's orders are exceptional to the international standard in that they do not officially have special ranks or decorations for females (Dames).
The rank of Commendatore is also bestowed in several Italian
Commendatore is also the Italian translation for the rank of Knight Commander in foreign orders, such as the Order of the British Empire.
Il Commendatore is also a character in
In the
Germany
In
Grosskomtur (or Großkomtur, 'Grand Commander') was one of the highest ranks within the Knights responsible for the administration of the Order and second-in-command after the
In postwar Germany the ranks of the Order of Merit were named with totally new terms. The equivalent to a commander is the Great Cross of Merit and the equivalent to a Knight Commander is the Great Cross of Merit with the Star and Sash (Großes Verdienstkreuz mit Stern und Schulterband)
Papal orders
As for the
United Kingdom
United Kingdom is distinguished by its use of differentiating Commander and Knight or Dame Commander.
Knight Commander or Dame Commander is the second most senior grade of seven
In the
The orders, from highest to lowest, that award the rank of Knight and Dame Commander, and related post-nominal letters, are (dormant orders are in italics):
- Order of the Bath (KCB/DCB)
- Order of the Star of India (KCSI)
- Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG/DCMG)
- Order of the Indian Empire (KCIE)
- Royal Victorian Order (KCVO/DCVO)
- Order of the British Empire (KBE/DBE)
Knights Commander and Dames Commander rank behind the most senior rank in each order, that of
Spain
In
See also
- Grand Master (order)
References
- ^ ISBN 9780299066703.