The Austrian Imperial Order of Leopold (german: Österreichisch-kaiserlicher Leopold-Orden) was founded by Franz I of Austria on 8 January 1808. The order's statutes stipulated only three grades: Grand Cross, Commander and Knight. During the war, in common with the other

Austrian Austrian may refer to: * Austrians, someone from Austria or of Austrian descent ** Someone who is considered an Austrian citizen, see Austrian nationality law * Austrian German dialect * Something associated with the country Austria, for example: ...

and later Austro-Hungarian decorations, crossed swords were instituted to reward bravery in the face of the enemy. An Imperial Decree of 1 February 1901 ordered that in future, the senior grade would be split into two separate awards. From then onwards, there were four ranks: Grand Cross, First Class, Commander, Knight. Until 18 July 1884, the award of the order also entitled the recipient, if he was not already of that standing, to be raised to the following appointments and/or ranks of the nobility: *Grand Cross: Privy Councillor *Commander: Baron *Knight: Ritter

Insignia

Both the Grand Cross and the First Class members of the Order wore (on formal occasions) their insignia in the form of a sash with the badge attached to the bow and respectively an eight-pointed and a four-pointed breast star. The Grand Cross was somewhat larger than the First Class, as was the width of the sash. A Commander's badge was worn at the neck, suspended from a 52 mm wide ribbon; a Knight wore his badge on a triangular ribbon on the left breast. The badge consists of a red-enameled gold cross, with white enamel edging. The obverse of the badge displays the initials ''FIA'' in gold on a red enamel background. The mottoes of the Order were ''INTEGRITATI ET MERITO'' and ''OPES REGUM CORDA SUBDITORUM''. The ribbon of the Order is red with two narrow white side-stripes. The badge's cross is surmounted by a golden imperial crown. The Grand Cross could also be awarded with diamonds; from 1808 to 1918, only four people received this honour. The last recipient, Ernst Graf von Silva-Tarouca, was awarded the decoration on 11 November 1918, hours before

Charles I of Austria Charles I or Karl I (german: Karl Franz Josef Ludwig Hubert Georg Otto Maria, hu, Károly Ferenc József Lajos Hubert György Ottó Mária; 17 August 18871 April 1922) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary (as Charles IV, ), King of Croatia, ...

withdrew from public affairs. After 1918, the Order was no longer awarded.

Famous recipients

Ster en Grootkruis Leopoldsorde Oostenrijk

* Karl Samuel Grünhut *''

Korvettenkapitän () is the lowest ranking senior officer in a number of Germanic-speaking navies. Austro-Hungary Belgium Germany Korvettenkapitän, short: KKpt/in lists: KK, () is the lowest senior officer rank () in the German Navy. Address The off ...

Georg Ludwig von Trapp Georg Ludwig Ritter von Trapp (4 April 1880 – 30 May 1947) was an officer in the Austro-Hungarian Navy who later became the patriarch of the Trapp Family Singers. Trapp was the most successful Austro-Hungarian submarine commander of World W ...

. Father of the famous Von Trapp family that inspired the movie ''

The Sound of Music ''The Sound of Music'' is a musical with music by Richard Rodgers, lyrics by Oscar Hammerstein II, and a book by Howard Lindsay and Russel Crouse. It is based on the 1949 memoir of Maria von Trapp, ''The Story of the Trapp Family Singers''. S ...

''. He was awarded the order for sinking 13 ships as a

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

commander in the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to t ...

during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

References

Bibliography

Gustav Adolph Ackermann Gustav Adolph Ackermann (16 January 1791 – 19 February 1872) was a German lawyer and author of a notable book on European knightly orders. Ackermann was born in Auerbach in Vogtland, Saxony. He was ''Königlich Sachsischer Appelationsrat'' oyal ...

, ''Ordensbuch, Sämtlicher in Europa blühender und erloschener Orden und Ehrenzeichen''. Annaberg, 1855 * Václav Měřička, ''Orden und Ehrenzeichen der Österreichisch-Ungarischen Monarchie'', Wien 1974

External links

Ordre Impérial Autrichien de LéopoldCísařský rakouský řád Leopolda (1808)
Orders of chivalry of Austria Orders, decorations, and medals of Austria-Hungary 1808 establishments in the Austrian Empire 4 Awards established in 1808 {{Austria-hist-stub

Insignia

Famous recipients

See also

References

Bibliography

External links