Order of Elizabeth

The Imperial Austrian Order of Elizabeth (German: Kaiserlich österreichischer Elisabeth-Orden), founded in 1898 by Francis Joseph, Emperor of Austria and King of Hungary, was an order created for women. The order was the namesake of Saint Elisabeth of Hungary, but it was created to honor and memorialize Franz Joseph's late wife, Empress-Queen Elisabeth.

Imperial Austrian Order of Elizabeth
3rd Class of the Order
TypeOrder of chivalry for women
Established17 September 1898
1898 - 1918 (National Order)
1918 - present (Dynastic Order)
17 November (Feast day)
Royal houseHouse of Habsburg-Lorraine
Religious affiliationRoman Catholic
Awarded forGeneral welfare in Religious, Charitable or Philanthropic Merit
StatusDormant since 1951
Grades
  • Dame Grand Cordon
  • Dame Commander
  • Dame Officer
  • Dame
Statistics
First induction1898: Countess Irma Sztáray de Sztára et Nagymihály
Last induction1951: Princess Regina of Saxe-Meiningen
Total inductees1121
Precedence
Next (higher)Order of Leopold
Next (lower)Order of Franz Joseph
EquivalentOrder of the Iron Crown

Ribbon of the Order

The order was divided into three classes: Grand Cross, first and second classes. There was also an Elizabeth Medal for civil merit.

The Order

According to medal expert and collector Yuri Yashnev:[1]

The award was intended for ladies, regardless of social status or religion, for merits in religious and charitable work. The award had four degrees - the Grand Cross, I Degree and II Degree, and also a cross of merit... Awards were made, personally, by the emperor... the badges and insignia of the Order were to be returned to the state upon the death of the member, or upon the advancement from a lower degree to a higher degree... There were 81 awards of the Grand Cross, 332 awards of the I Degree, 500 awards of the II Degree, and 208 awards of the Elizabeth Medal for merit, between 1898 and 1918, when the Order was disbanded with the collapse of the monarchy.

Notable recipients

Austrian

Foreign

Sources
  1. Yashnev, Yuri (2003). Orders and Medals of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Archived from the original on 2 April 2009.
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