Order of the Crown of Italy

The Order of the Crown of Italy (Italian: Ordine della Corona d'Italia or OCI) was founded as a national order in 1868 by King Vittorio Emanuele II, to commemorate the unification of Italy in 1861.[1] It was awarded in five degrees for civilian and military merit. Today the Order of the Crown has been replaced by the Order of Merit of Savoy and is still conferred on new knights by the current head of the house of Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples.

Order of the Crown of Italy
Ordine della Corona d'Italia
Star of the Grand Cordon set of the Order
Awarded by

The Head of the Italian Royal Family
TypeDynastic Order of Knighthood
Established20 February 1868
Royal houseHouse of Savoy
EligibilityMilitary, civilian
Awarded forMeritorious Service or Achievement
StatusRarely constituted
FounderKing Victor Emmanuel II
Grand MasterPrince Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples
Chairman of the CouncilPrince Emanuele Filiberto, Prince of Venice
GradesKnight Grand Cross
Grand Officer
Commander
Officer
Knight
Precedence
Next (higher)Royal Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus
Next (lower)Royal Civil Order of Savoy
Royal Military Order of Savoy

Ribbon bar

The order has been suppressed by law since the foundation of the Republic in 1946. However, Umberto II did not abdicate his position as fons honorum and it remained under his Grand Mastership as a dynastic order. While the continued use of those decorations conferred prior to 1951 is permitted in Italy, the crowns on the ribbons issued before 1946 must be substituted for as many five pointed stars on military uniforms.[2]

Grades

The various degrees of the order, with corresponding ribbons, were as follows:

RibbonClass (English)Class (Italian)Manner of wear
Knight Grand CrossCavaliere di Gran Croce decorati del Grande CordoneBadge on sash on right shoulder, plus star on left chest
Grand OfficerGrande Ufficiale dell'Ordine della Corona d'ItaliaStar on left chest
CommanderCommendatore dell'Ordine della Corona d'ItaliaBadge on necklet
OfficerUfficiale dell'Ordine della Corona d'ItaliaBadge on ribbon with rosette on left chest
KnightCavaliere dell'Ordine della Corona d'ItaliaBadge on ribbon on left chest

Insignia
Medals
Kingdom of Italy
Knight
Officer
Commander
Grand Officer
Knight Grand Cross
Italian Republic and Savoy House
Knight
Officer
Commander
Grand Officer
Knight Grand Cross

Members

Members of the order have included:

  1. Founded by Royal Decree No. 4251 of 20 February 1868, renewed by Royal Decree No. 4850 of 24 January 1869, Royal Magistral Decree of 17 November 1907 and Royal Decree No. 276 of 16 March 1911
  2. Ordini Cavallereschi del Regno d'Italia Archived 2006-05-07 at the Wayback Machine Corpo della Nobiltà Italiana (retrieved 10 September 2009)
  3. Tremblay, Yves (2005). "BAYLOCK, HARRY WOODBURN". Dictionary of Canadian Biography. Vol. 15. University of Toronto/Université Laval. Retrieved 28 September 2018.

Non-order merit awards

- Gold cross

Knights' uniform and Church robes

- Silver cross

Grand Masters of the order[4]

Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples, Duke of Savoy

Additional information

According to International Commission for Orders of Chivalry the Order of Merit is also known as the Merit of Savoy

Under their section: chivalric institutions founded by the head of a formerly reigning dynasty, the Order has been defined as the following since their 2016 register:[5]

ITALY

House of Savoy (Catholic)

Merit of Savoy

Founded: H.R.H. Crown Prince Vittorio Emanuele of Savoy, Prince of Piedmont and Prince of Naples 23 January 1988.

Ribbon: Blue with a broad white centre stripe.

Grand Master: H.R.H. Crown Prince Vittorio Emanuele of Savoy, Prince of Piedmont and Prince of Naples (Vittorio Emanuele IV, Titular King of Italy) (b. 1937).

Order of Merit of Savoy Recipients (amongst others)

As of the year 2000 there are/were 1453 recipients of the Order of Merit.[6]

See also

References
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Order of the Crown of Italy.
  1. "Orders and Decorations, 1920" (in Japanese). p. 2.
  2. "Brig. Gen. A. T. Smith Dies After Illness of Four Days". The Evening Star. Washington, DC. November 28, 1939. p. 2 – via GenealogyBank.com.
  3. "WILLIAM VERBECK, EDUCATOR, IS DEAD; General and Former Commander of New York National Guard, Succumbs at 69.HEADED MANLIUS SCHOOL In 1927 He Was Made Commander of Crown of Italy--Received Citizenship by Legislative Act". The New York Times. 1930-08-25. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-11-24.
  4. "Bulmer-Thomas, Prof. Victor Gerald, (born 23 March 1948), Director, Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), 2001–06; Emeritus Professor, London University, since 1998", Who's Who, Oxford University Press, 2007-12-01, doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u9377, retrieved 2022-09-20
  5. "REGISTERS". International Commission for Orders of Chivalry (in Italian). Retrieved 2022-09-22.
  6. "Zoppi, Count Vittorio, (23 Feb. 1898–6 May 1967), Knight Grand Cross Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana", Who Was Who, Oxford University Press, 2007-12-01, doi:10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.u48869, retrieved 2022-09-20
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