The

Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...

is an

order of knighthood An order of chivalry, order of knighthood, chivalric order, or equestrian order is an order of knights, typically founded during or inspired by the original Catholic military orders of the Crusades ( 1099–1291) and paired with medieval concept ...

awarded by the sovereign of the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

and several Commonwealth realms. It is granted personally by the monarch and recognises personal service to the monarchy, the Royal Household, royal family members, and the organisation of important royal events."Royal Victorian Order"
''The British Monarchy'' (accessed 16 August 2014) The order was officially created and instituted on 23 April 1896 by letters patent under the Great Seal of the Realm by

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 216 days was longer than that of any previo ...

. The order has had five grades since its institution, the two highest of which confer the status of knighthood on holders (apart from foreigners, who typically received honorary awards not entitling them to the style of a knight).Honorary Knighthood
, ''

Debrett's Debrett's () is a British professional coaching company, publisher and authority on etiquette and behaviour, founded in 1769 with the publication of the first edition of ''The New Peerage''. The company takes its name from its founder, John De ...

'' (accessed on 20 August 2014) Women were not admitted until Edward VIII altered the statutes of the order in 1936. The order has five statutory officers—Grand Master, Chancellor, Secretary, Registrar and Chaplain—as well as a non-statutory Honorary Genealogist. The order has had a chancellor and a secretary since it was founded; the former office is held ''ex officio'' by the

Lord Chamberlain of the Royal Household The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Household of the United Kingdom, supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Sovereign of the United Kingdom while also acting as the main ch ...

, while the office of secretary has been held ''ex officio'' by the

Keeper of the Privy Purse The Keeper of the Privy Purse and Treasurer to the King/Queen (or Financial Secretary to the King/Queen) is responsible for the financial management of the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. The officeholder is assisted by th ...

(except for the years 1936 to 1943 when the King's Private Secretary was also the order's secretary). The order has had a registrar since 1916; the first appointee was the Secretary of the Private Secretary's Office, Sir Francis Morgan Bryant, while his two successors were Secretaries to the Privy Purse; since 1936, the Registrar has always been the Secretary of the

Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood The Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood, or simply the Central Chancery, is an office of the Lord Chamberlain’s department within the Royal Household of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom. It is responsible for the administration of ...

. On 1 February 1937, King George VI appointed his Queen,

Elizabeth Elizabeth or Elisabeth may refer to: People * Elizabeth (given name), a female given name (including people with that name) * Elizabeth (biblical figure), mother of John the Baptist Ships * HMS ''Elizabeth'', several ships * ''Elisabeth'' (sch ...

(later the Queen Mother) as the order's inaugural Grand Master; after her death in 2002, the office fell vacant until

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...

appointed her daughter,

Princess Anne, Princess Royal Anne, Princess Royal (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise; born 15 August 1950), is a member of the British royal family. She is the second child and only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the only sister of Ki ...

, Grand Master. The

Savoy Chapel The King's Chapel of St John the Baptist in the Precinct of the Savoy, also known as the King's Chapel of the Savoy, is a church in the City of Westminster, London. Facing it are 111 Strand, the Savoy Hotel, the Institution of Engineering and T ...

was made the order's chapel in 1938 and its chaplain has also been ''ex officio'' the order's chaplain ever since. Since 1938, the order has also had an Honorary Genealogist, who has also been an

Officer of Arms An officer of arms is a person appointed by a sovereign or state with authority to perform one or more of the following functions: * to control and initiate armorial matters; * to arrange and participate in ceremonies of state; * to conserve a ...

, although appointees are not technically officers of the order, there being no provision for it in the statutes.Galloway, 1996, pp. 63–65.

Grand Masters

Chancellors

Secretaries

Registrars

Chaplains

Honorary Genealogists

References

Citations

Bibliography

* P. Duckers (2004)
''British Orders and Decorations''
(Princes Risborough: Shire Publications Ltd, ) * P. Galloway, D. Stanley, D. Martin (1996)
''Royal Service''
volume 1 (London: Victorian Publishing, ) * C. McCreery (2008)
''On Her Majesty's Service: Royal Honours and Recognition in Canada''
(Toronto:

Dundurn Press Dundurn Press is one of the largest Canadian-owned book publishing companies of adult and children's fiction and non-fiction. The company publishes Canadian literature, history, biography, politics and arts. Dundurn has about 2500 books in print, ...

; ) * W. M. Shaw (1906)
''The Knights of England''
volume i (London: Sherratt and Hughes; OCLCbr>185192520
{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal Victorian Order, Knights and Dames Grand Cross appointed by Elizabeth II to the British honours system Royal Victorian Order