The Order of the Redeemer ( el, Τάγμα του Σωτήρος, translit=Tágma tou Sotíros), also known as the Order of the Saviour, is an order of merit of

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders wi ...

. The Order of the Redeemer is the oldest and highest decoration awarded by the modern Greek state.

Establishment

The establishment of the Order of the Redeemer was decided by the Fourth National Assembly at Argos in 1829, during the final year of the Greek War of Independence. The decision was not immediately implemented, however, and the relevant decree was signed in

Nafplio Nafplio ( ell, Ναύπλιο) is a coastal city located in the Peloponnese in Greece and it is the capital of the regional unit of Argolis and an important touristic destination. Founded in antiquity, the city became an important seaport in th ...

by the Regency Council (

Josef Ludwig von Armansperg Josef Ludwig, Graf von Armansperg ( el, Κόμης Ιωσήφ Λουδοβίκος Άρμανσπεργκ; 28 February 1787 – 3 April 1853) served as the Interior and Finance Minister (1826–1828) and Foreign and Finance Minister (1828–1831) u ...

, Karl von Abel and Georg Ludwig von Maurer) in the name of King Otto on May 20, 1833.
Government Gazette 19, issue A, dated 20 Jan. 1833
According to the decree of establishment, the name of the Order "shall recall the, by divine assistance miraculously and fortuitously accomplished, salvation of Greece".

Grades and award criteria

Since its establishment in 1833, and in common with all Greek orders of merit, the Order of the Redeemer has five classes: * GRE Order Redeemer 1Class

''Grand Cross'' () – wears the badge of the Order on a sash on the right shoulder, and the star of the Order on the left chest; * GRE Order Redeemer 2Class

''Grand Commander'' () – wears the badge of the Order on a necklet, and the star of the Order on the right chest; * GRE Order Redeemer 3Class

''Commander'' () - wears the badge of the Order on a necklet; * GRE Order Redeemer 4Class

''Gold Cross'' () – wears the badge on a ribbon on the left chest; * Order of the Redeemer Ribbon bar

''Silver Cross'' () – wears the badge on a ribbon on the left chest. According to the original decree, the Order was to be awarded to those Greek citizens who took part in the War of Independence, or "who should distinguish themselves henceforth in any branch of public service, in the army and navy, in the diplomatic and judicial corps, in public administration, in the arts, science, agriculture and industry, commerce, or should distinguish themselves in any other social field through outstanding civic virtue, and through illustrious services to the Throne, for the Glory of the Hellenic name and for the welfare of the fatherland", while foreigners were admitted either for past services to Greece, or due to their ability "to bring honour to the Order, through their outstanding personal virtues and excellence". The original decree set specific limits on the number of awards: while the Silver Cross could be awarded at will, Gold Crosses were limited to 120, Commanders to 30, Grand Commanders to 20, and Grand Crosses to 12. Foreign recipients and princes of the Greek royal family did not count to these totals. In modern times, in practice the Grand Cross is awarded only to foreign heads of state. The first person to be awarded the Grand Cross of the Order of the Redeemer was King Ludwig I of Bavaria, the father of King Otto, in 1833. Other distinguished recipients included

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in 1835, Baron Guenther Heinrich von Berg on 21 February 1837

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, Alexandros Mavrokordatos and Lazaros Kountouriotis in 1836,

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, Theodoros Kolokotronis and Georgios Kountouriotis in 1837, and Konstantinos Kanaris in 1864.

Insignia

The form of the various insignias has been altered a number of times since the establishment of the order, the most obvious change being the removal of the crown during the periods of republican rule. The present form of insignias is regulated by Presidential Decree 849/1975 (). The original decree of 1833 described the ''badge'' of the Order as consisting of a white enamelled Maltese cross (silver for the Silver Cross, gold for the higher grades), surmounted by a crown, set on a green enamelled wreath, one half of which is an oak branch and the other half a laurel branch. The obverse featured a white cross on a blue background (the coat of arms of Greece) with Otto's Bavarian arms in an inescutcheon in the centre, surrounded by this inscription on an outer ring: ("Thy right hand, O Lord, is become glorious in power",

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, 15:6). The reverse featured a portrait of Otto with the circular inscription: ("Otto, King of Greece"). After Otto's deposition in 1863, his portrait was removed and substituted by an

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, the ''Redeemer'' of Orthodox Christian soteriology. This resulted in the wearing of this side as the obverse, with the national coat of arms (purged of the Bavarian escutcheon) relegated to the reverse, and the inscriptions correspondingly changed: the obverse's inscription remained in place, and the reverse came to feature a new inscription: ("The IV National Assembly of the Hellenes at Argos – 1829"). The ''star'' of the Order is an eight-pointed faceted silver star with the same central disc as on the badge of the Order. At first the stars were embroidered, but eventually, they were made of solid silver, a practice that continues to this day. The ''ribbon'' of the Order is light blue, edged with white, reflecting the national colours of Greece.

Recipients

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* Prince Albert of Prussia (1809–1872) * Archduke Albrecht, Duke of Teschen * Alexander I of Yugoslavia * Alexander II of Russia *

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* Gyula Andrássy * Prince Andrew of Greece and Denmark * Prince Arthur of Connaught * Prince Axel of Denmark * Maximilian de Beauharnais, 3rd Duke of Leuchtenberg * Prince Oscar Bernadotte * Friedrich Ferdinand von Beust * Herbert von Bismarck * Otto von Bismarck * Walther Bronsart von Schellendorff * Bernhard von Bülow * Carl XVI Gustaf * Prince Carl, Duke of Västergötland * Carol I of Romania *

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* Maximilian Daublebsky von Sterneck * Adolf von Deines * Jules de Trooz *

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* Prince Eitel Friedrich of Prussia *

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* Gaston Errembault de Dudzeele * Prince Eugen, Duke of Närke * Theoklitos Farmakidis * Franz Joseph II, Prince of Liechtenstein * Frederick VIII of Denmark * Frederick IX of Denmark *

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* Boutros Ghali * Agenor Maria Gołuchowski * Gustaf V * Gustaf VI Adolf *

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* Gustav, Prince of Vasa * Prince Harald of Denmark * Prince Henry of Prussia (1862–1929) * Duke Henry of Mecklenburg-Schwerin * Hirohito * Miklós Horthy * Dietrich von Hülsen-Haeseler *

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(Grand Commander, 1932) * Archduke John of Austria * Prince Johann of Schleswig-Holstein-Sonderburg-Glücksburg * Archduke Johann Salvator of Austria *

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* Joseph, Duke of Saxe-Altenburg * Juliana of the Netherlands *

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* Konstantinos Kanaris *

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* Ilias Kanellopoulos * Karl Anton, Prince of Hohenzollern * Prince Karl Theodor of Bavaria * Gustav von Kessel * Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich of Russia * Knud, Hereditary Prince of Denmark * Theodoros Kolokotronis * Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia *

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* Georgios Kountouriotis * Lazaros Kountouriotis *

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* Grand Duke Michael Alexandrovich of Russia * Milan I of Serbia * Zygmunt Mineyko * Konstantinos Minas * Prince Moritz of Saxe-Altenburg * August Myhrberg *

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* Nicholas II of Russia * Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich of Russia * Grand Duke Nicholas Nikolaevich of Russia (1831–1891) * Prince Nikolaos of Greece and Denmark * Olga Constantinovna of Russia * Oscar II * Otto of Bavaria * Otto of Greece * Paul of Greece * Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece * Philippe of Belgium * Queen Mathilde of Belgium * Pedro II of Brazil * Georgios Pentzikis *

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* Joseph Radetzky von Radetz * Archduke Rainer Ferdinand of Austria * Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria * Spyridon Samaras *

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* Simeon Saxe-Coburg-Gotha * Konstantinos Smolenskis * Leonidas Smolents * Dionysios Solomos * Hermann von Spaun * Stepa Stepanović *

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* Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples * John Weston (pioneer aviator and motor caravanner) * Wilhelm II, German Emperor * Wilhelm, German Crown Prince * Wilhelmina of the Netherlands * Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands *

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* William I, German Emperor *

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* Sergei Witte * Duke Eugen of Württemberg (1846–1877) * Basil Zaharoff * Todor Zhivkov *

August zu Eulenburg August Ludwig Traugott Botho Graf zu Eulenburg (22 October 1838 – 16 June 1921) was an officer in the Prussian, and later German armies, and official in the Prussian royal court. He was the younger brother of Count Botho zu Eulenburg, who se ...

* Emmanouil Zymvrakakis * Emir Abdelkader (1808-1883) * Joice NanKivell Loch

References

External links

The Greek Royal Orders
{{Honors and decorations of Greece Orders, decorations, and medals of Greece 1833 establishments in Greece Awards established in 1833 Redeemer