The Illustrious Royal Order of Saint Ferdinand and Merit is an
order of knighthood
An order of chivalry, order of knighthood, chivalric order, or equestrian order is a society, fellowship and college of knights, typically founded during or inspired by the original Catholic military orders of the Crusades ( 1099–1291) and pai ...
of the
Kingdom of the Two Sicilies
The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies () was a kingdom in Southern Italy from 1816 to 1861 under the control of the House of Bourbon-Two Sicilies, a cadet branch of the House of Bourbon, Bourbons. The kingdom was the largest sovereign state by popula ...
.
It was established on 1 April 1800 by
Ferdinand IV of Naples and III Sicily to reward men who performed important deeds and gave proof of loyalty to the
Head of the Royal House and to the
Royal Family
A royal family is the immediate family of monarchs and sometimes their extended family.
The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term papal family describes the family of a pope, while th ...
.
Ranks and Insignia
The Order is divided into three Ranks:
*Knights of Grand Cross, with fess, cross and plate;
*Knights Commanders, with neck ribbon and cross;
*Knights, with ribbon and cross to the buttons.
The decoration is formed by a golden round shield bearing the image of St. Ferdinand, edged by a blue-enameled round plate with the inscription "FIDEI ET MERITO", bordered by six golden rays edged by six white enameled lilies. The ribbon is blue and edged in dark red.
See also
*
Royal Order of Francis I
The Royal Order of Francis I (properly 'The Royal Order of Francis I of the Two Sicilies' ) was an extinct order of merit of the former Kingdom of the Two Sicilies which was annexed in 1861 by the King of Italy (until 1860 King of Piedmont and S ...
*
Order of Saint George and Reunion
*
Order of Saint Januarius
The Illustrious Royal Order of Saint Januarius (Italian: ''Insigne Reale Ordine di San Gennaro'') is a Roman Catholic order of knighthood founded by Charles VII of Naples in 1738. It was the last great dynastic order to be constituted as a chiva ...
*
Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George
The Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George (; ), also historically referred to as the Imperial Constantinian Order of Saint George and the Order of the Constantinian Angelic Knights of Saint George, is a dynastic order of knighthood ...
External links
Pictures of the Order
{{Orders of Italian States before unification
1800 establishments in Italy
Awards established in 1800
Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies