Royal Order of Cambodia

The Royal Order of Cambodia ( km, គ្រឿងឥស្សរិយយសព្រះរាជាណាចក្រកម្ពុជា; french: Ordre royal du Cambodge) was a colonial order of chivalry of French Cambodia, and is still in use as an order of chivalry in the present-day Kingdom of Cambodia.

History

Colonialism

In 1845, the Rattanakosin Kingdom (in present-day Thailand) and Nguyễn dynasty (in present-day Vietnam) established a joint protectorate over the Kingdom of Cambodia. With French support, Cambodia gained independence under King Norodom in 1863, but he had to accept the French protectorate of Cambodia and a strong French interference in the administration of his country.

On 8 February 1864, the king founded the Royal Order of Cambodia as an order of merit with five degrees. After 1896, the French government and the kings of Cambodia each granted themselves the Order of Cambodia. The French president was rightly Grand Cross in the Royal Order of Cambodia. The order served to distinguish civilians and soldiers, subjects of the king or strangers, who had made themselves worthy. In 1896, the order was officially taken up in the French system of colonial orders of chivalry.

For French appointments, the recipient had to be at least 29 years old and enter the Order first as a knight, to be promoted to a higher grade after a certain period. Only officers of the Légion d'honneur could become a commander in the Order and only commanders of the Légion d'honneur could be Commanders or Officers of the Order. Apart from decorations for bravery or merit during foreign campaigns, the French colonial orders also required that a certain number of years had to have been spent in the tropics or overseas to be eligible - in this case, three years in Indochina, preferably in Cambodia. From 1933 the Order was also granted for the organization of exhibitions dedicated to Cambodia and sacred events important to the French colonies. None of these rules applied for grants by the King of Cambodia himself.

The colonial and overseas orders were immediately contingent on the French orders and awarded on ministerial orders. Those awarded it not only had to pay for their own registration and qualifications, but also had to buy their own insignia.

Post-colonial

In 1948 France ceased granting the order. Formally it remained a French colonial policy, but it was now only granted by the King of Cambodia. The order has since then been one of the historical orders of France.

On September 1, 1950 the (colonial) French order-system was reformed. The Order of the Star of Anjouan and the Order of the Black Star were formalised as French Overseas Orders. The other three were the "Order of States Associated to the French Union" (French: "Ordre des États de l'Union Française Associés"). In 1955, Cambodia became independent. The order was approved by King Norodom Sihanouk during his government and also granted during his exile in Beijing. Even after the restoration of the Khmer dynasty it remained the highest Cambodian distinction.

Grades

Since 1948

The five classes of appointment to the Order are, in descending order of precedence:
# Maha Sirivaddha (មហាសេរីវឌ្ឍន៍) or Knight Grand Cross (GCC)
# Mahasena (មហាសេនា) or Knight Grand Officer (GOC)
# Dhipadinda (ធិបឌិន្ទ) or Knight Commander (KCC)
# Sena (សេនា) or Knight Officer (OC)
# Assarariddhi (អស្សឫទ្ធិ) or Knight or Chevalier (KC)

Prior to 1948

The five classes of appointment to the Order are, in descending order of precedence:
# Maha Sirivaddha (មហាសេរីវឌ្ឍន៍) or Knight Grand Cross (GCC)
# Mahasena (មហាសេនា) or Knight Grand Officer (GOC)
# Dhipadinda (ធិបឌិន្ទ) or Knight Commander (KCC)
# Sena (សេនា) or Knight Officer (OC)
# Assarariddhi (អស្សឫទ្ធិ) or Knight or Chevalier (KC)

Post-Nominals

The senior ranks of Knight Grand Cross entitle their members to use the title as post-nominal GCC; Knight Grand Officer, GOC; Knight Commander, KCC.

The lower ranks of Knight Officer use the post-nominal OC; and Knight, KC. Members of all classes of the order are assigned positions in the order of precedence., pp.50-55.

Insignia

The medal of the order comes in many different forms, as a slightly elongated silver or gold star surmounted by a Cambodian crown and with an image of the king's crown and coat of arms in gold on a violet blue background and surrounded by a red circle. The reverse of the medal is left rough. To promote the order if it was awarded by the French, the Cambodian crown was replaced with a European one surmounted by a small cross, and in the early years the order was even awarded without any crown.

The central image on the star of the order is the same as the medal, though the crown is missing and the rays are usually smooth. The star is elongated, with the vertical rays longer than the horizontal rays. The regalia of Knights is in silver, whilst those of the higher grades are gold. The medal and star are equally for civilians and soldiers. The ribbon of the order was originally green with a red border, changing in 1899 to white with an orange border (in the same year the French government changed the colours of the ribbons of all five colonial orders), before reverting to the original black ribbon when it became a purely Cambodian order again.

Recipients

* Emperor Akihito of Japan
* Marcel Alessandri
* Norodom Arunrasmy
* Aun Pornmoniroth
* Bảo Long
* Bảo Đại
* Bhumibol Adulyadej
* Jean-Baptiste Billot
* Chau Sen Cocsal Chhum
* Sarin Chhak
* Charles de Gaulle
* Hamengkubuwono VIII
* Hassan II of Morocco
* Emperor Hirohito of Japan
* Kao Kim Hourn
* Ibrahim of Johor
* Kim Il-sung
* Kim Jong-il
* Nikolai Kolomeitsev
* Jean de Lattre de Tassigny
* Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque
* Leopold II of Belgium
* Bảo Long
* Manuel Luis Quezon
* Raoul Magrin-Vernerey
* Hun Manet
* Norodom Monineath
* Hor Nambora
* Hor Namhong
* Boun Oum
* Pakubuwono X
* Putra of Perlis
* Tengku Fauziah binti Almarhum Tengku Abdul Rashid
* Willem Rooseboom
* John Sanderson
* Yōhei Sasakawa
* Vong Savang
* Norodom Sihamoni
* Jagatjit Singh
* Sirajuddin of Perlis
* Tea Banh
* Thành Thái
* Josip Broz Tito
* Tuanku Tengku Fauziah
* Mardochée Valabrègue
* Sisavang Vong
* François Zimeray
* Leopold III of Belgium
* Ramon Magsaysay
* Jean Desbois

References

External links

Les Compagnons de la Libération - Croix et Attributs ", de Cyrille CARDONA, édité par la SAMOL, 2022, ISBN : 978-2-9581971-0-0


* ttp://www.medals.org.uk/cambodia/kingdom-of-cambodia/cambodia005.htm Medals of the World, Kingdom of Cambodia: Royal Order of Moniseraphon

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cambodia
French protectorate of Cambodia
Orders of chivalry of France
Orders, decorations, and medals of Cambodia
Colonial orders of chivalry
Awards established in 1864
1905 establishments in French Indochina