Knight Bachelor The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the ...

is the oldest and lowest-ranking form of

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

hood in the

British honours system In the United Kingdom and the British Overseas Territories, personal bravery, achievement, or service are rewarded with honours. The honours system consists of three types of award: *Honours are used to recognise merit in terms of achievement a ...

; it is the rank granted to a man who has been

ed by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised

orders of chivalry 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 concep ...

. Women are not knighted; in practice, the equivalent award for a woman is appointment as Dame Commander of the

Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(founded in 1917).

Knights Bachelor appointed in 1919

Knights who died before they could receive the accolade

It was announced in the 1919 Birthday Honours that a knighthood was to be bestowed on William Allan Ironside (an additional Member of the Indian Legislative Council), but he died before he received the accolade. By a royal warrant gazetted on 22 July 1919,

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. Born duri ...

declared that his widow, Ellen Ironside, "shall have, hold and enjoy the same style; title, place and precedence to which she would have been entitled had her said husband survived and received either personally or by Letters-Patent under the Great Seal the degree, style and title of a Knight Bachelor". ''

The London Gazette ''The London Gazette'' is one of the official journals of record or government gazettes of the Government of the United Kingdom, and the most important among such official journals in the United Kingdom, in which certain statutory notices are ...

'' also reported that the King intended to bestow a knighthood on Ernest Adolphus O'Bryen, formerly the mayor of

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, and extends from Watling Street, the A5 road (Roman Watling Street) to Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland. The area forms the northwest part of the Lon ...

, but he died before he received the accolade. By a royal warrant gazetted with the date 30 May 1919, George V declared that his widow, Gertrude Mary O'Bryen, should also be afforded the style of a knight's widow.''The London Gazette''
29 August 1919 (issue 31527), p. 10873.

References

{{Knights Bachelor Knights Bachelor Lists of knights and dames British honours system