The collar of the Order of Saint Michael is a chivalric collar which was attributed as the most prestigious '' insignia'' to the knights of the

Order of Saint Michael , status = Abolished by decree of Louis XVI on 20 June 1790Reestablished by Louis XVIII on 16 November 1816Abolished in 1830 after the July RevolutionRecognised as a dynastic order of chivalry by the ICOC , founder = Louis XI of France , h ...

until 1830. This collar is now extremely rare. Only three are now known to exist, all of which would have been awarded to Dutch notables in the years 1650–1660 as a sign of appreciation for their faithfulness during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (80 ...

History

The collar of the Order of St. Michael was probably made in imitation of the Collar of the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece ( es, Insigne Orden del Toisón de Oro, german: Orden vom Goldenen Vlies) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in Bruges by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1430, to celebrate his marriage ...

. In fact, the Order of Saint-Michel was created by

Louis XI Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (french: le Prudent), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revol ...

, on August 1, 1469, to counter the importance of the Duke of Burgundy, whose order of the Golden Fleece was conferred on many European princes. During the wars of religion, the order was awarded perhaps too generously and consequently lost its prestige. It became the second royal order when the

Order of the Holy Spirit The Order of the Holy Spirit (french: Ordre du Saint-Esprit; sometimes translated into English as the Order of the Holy Ghost), is a French order of chivalry founded by Henry III of France in 1578. Today, it is a dynastic order under the House of ...

was created on December 31, 1578. Reformed by

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Vers ...

, it disappeared definitively in 1830. When the

Order of Liberation The Order of Liberation (french: Ordre de la Libération) is a French Order which was awarded to heroes of the Liberation of France during World War II. It is a very high honour, second only after the ''Légion d’Honneur'' (Legion of Honour ...

claimed itself to be the continuation of the Order of Saint Michael, it imitated the collar of Saint Michael, replacing the shells and image of Saint Michael with the

Cross of Lorraine The Cross of Lorraine (french: Croix de Lorraine, link=no), known as the Cross of Anjou in the 16th century, is a heraldic two-barred cross, consisting of a vertical line crossed by two shorter horizontal bars. In most renditions, the horizon ...

Description

The collar of the Order of Saint Michael consists of twelve enamelled gold scallop shells, connected by artistic interlace. The pendant, attached by a double gold chain, represents

Saint Michael Michael (; he, מִיכָאֵל, lit=Who is like El od, translit=Mīḵāʾēl; el, Μιχαήλ, translit=Mikhaḗl; la, Michahel; ar, ميخائيل ، مِيكَالَ ، ميكائيل, translit=Mīkāʾīl, Mīkāl, Mīkhāʾīl), also ...

slaying the devil. It was painted for the first time as being worn by

King Louis XI Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (french: le Prudent), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revol ...

and the painting was kept at his castle in Fontainebleau. In the 1730s, it was printed for the first time as worn during the first chapter of the order of Saint Michael in ''Les monuments de la monarchie française'' by

Bernard de Montfaucon Dom Bernard de Montfaucon, O.S.B. (; 13 January 1655 – 21 December 1741) was a French Benedictine monk of the Congregation of Saint Maur. He was an astute scholar who founded the discipline of palaeography, as well as being an editor of works ...

Location

Only three collars of the Order of Saint Michael are authenticated in the present day. Two of them are preserved in the Netherlands, one in the

Rijksmuseum The Rijksmuseum () is the national museum of the Netherlands dedicated to Dutch arts and history and is located in Amsterdam. The museum is located at the Museum Square in the borough of Amsterdam South, close to the Van Gogh Museum, the St ...

, and the other in the museum of the Chancellery of the Dutch orders of the Palace of Het Loo. The third is on deposit at the

Musée de la Légion d'honneur The Musée national de la Légion d'honneur et des ordres de chevalerie ( French for "National museum of the Legion of Honour and of orders of chivalry") is a French national museum of orders of merit and orders of chivalry. It is located in th ...

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

References

Orders of chivalry Heraldry Neckwear Necklaces {{Orders-medals-stub

History

Description

Location

See also

References