The Order of the Star of South Africa is a South African National Order that consisted of seven decorations in two military and five non-military classes. The order was discontinued on 2 December 2002.

Institution

The Order of the Star of South Africa was instituted by the

Republic of South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

on 1 July 1975. The decorations of the order were awarded by the State President and, from 1994, the President of South Africa to general and flag officers of the

South African Defence Force The South African Defence Force (SADF) (Afrikaans: ''Suid-Afrikaanse Weermag'') comprised the armed forces of South Africa from 1957 until 1994. Shortly before the state reconstituted itself as a republic in 1961, the former Union Defence F ...

for services concerning national defence and security. It replaced the Star of South Africa decoration of 1952. A civilian division was added in 1978.South African Medal Website - SA Defence Force : 1975-2003
(Accessed 30 April 2015)Republic of South Africa Government Gazette no. 15093, Pretoria, 3 September 1993Republic of South Africa Government Gazette Vol. 457, no. 25213, Pretoria, 25 July 2003
/ref>Republic of South Africa Government Gazette Vol. 477, no. 27376, Pretoria, 11 March 2005, The order was named after the first large diamond to be found in South Africa, the Star of South Africa that was found on the banks of the

Orange River The Orange River (from Afrikaans/Dutch: ''Oranjerivier'') is a river in Southern Africa. It is the longest river in South Africa. With a total length of , the Orange River Basin extends from Lesotho into South Africa and Namibia to the north ...

in 1869 and that sparked the New Rush, leading to the establishment of Kimberley.

Military division

The order was initially a purely military honour that was conferred on general and flag officers in two classes: * The

Star of South Africa, Gold The Star of South Africa, Gold, post-nominal letters SSA, is the senior decoration of two military and five non-military classes of the Order of the Star of South Africa, a South African Order which was instituted in 1975, for award to general a ...

, post-nominal letters SSA, for meritorious military service which promoted SADF efficiency and preparedness and made a valuable contribution to national security. * The Star of South Africa, Silver, post-nominal letters SSAS, for exceptionally meritorious service of major military importance.

Non-military division

The Order of the Star of South Africa was expanded on 17 October 1978 when a civilian division in five classes was added. These were bestowed on civilians in defence-related industries and organisations.South African Medal Website - Republic of South Africa: 1967-2002
(Accessed 1 May 2015) The five classes are: * The Star of South Africa, Grand Cross, post-nominal letters SSA, for excellent meritorious service which made a lasting contribution to the security and general national interest of South Africa. * The Star of South Africa, Grand Officer, post-nominal letters SSAS, for outstanding meritorious service which made a significant contribution to the security and general national interest of South Africa. * The Star of South Africa, Commander, post-nominal letters CSSA, for exceptionally meritorious service which made a meaningful contribution to the security and general national interest of South Africa. * The Star of South Africa, Officer, post-nominal letters OSSA, for meritorious service which made a contribution to the security and general national interest of South Africa. * The Star of South Africa, Member, post-nominal letters MSSA, initially called "Knight" and in Afrikaans, "Ridder", for exceptional service.South African Medal Website - Post-nominal Letters
(Accessed 28 April 2015) In 1988 the Civilian Division was renamed the Non-military Division and eligibility for the honours was extended to include senior police, railways police, prisons and intelligence officers, as well as foreign military attachés. The post-nominal letters CSSA, OSSA and MSSA were retrospectively authorised for the non-military division in 2005.

Description

The obverse of the order is a gold or silver Maltese cross, which is in blue enamel. Two four-pointed stars are superimposed on one another and, together, on the cross, with a diamond in the centre. The pre-1994 South African Coat of Arms is displayed on the reverse. The obverse of the SSA and SSAS classes in both divisions have protea flowers between the arms of the cross. ;Ribbons Each class has its own distinctive ribbon, the first three classes being worn around the neck, and the others on the chest. In the military division, the SSA ribbon is plain dark blue and the SSAS ribbon is dark blue with a white band down the centre. Until 1988 the Star of South Africa, Gold also had a gold neck chain for ceremonial occasions. In the non-military division, the ribbons are dark blue with different combinations of orange and white bands: * Orange edges for the SSA. * White edges for the SSAS. * White edges and an orange centre band for the CSSA. * White edges and an orange centre band between two white bands for the OSSA. * White edges and three white centre bands for the MSSA. ;Breast stars Eight-pointed breast stars, displaying the obverse of the decoration, are also worn by the SSA and SSAS recipients.

Discontinuation

Conferment of the decoration was discontinued on 6 December 2002 when a new set of national orders was instituted. The order has no direct equivalent among the current South African national orders.

References

{{South African military decorations navbox Awards established in 1975 1975 establishments in South Africa