The Order of the Oak Crown (french: Ordre de la Couronne de chêne, german: Eichenlaubkronenorden, lb, Eechelaafkrounenuerden) is an order of the

Grand Duchy of Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small land ...

History

The Order of the Oak Crown was established in 1841 by Grand Duke William II, who was also King of the Netherlands. At that time, the

and the

Kingdom of the Netherlands , national_anthem = ) , image_map = Kingdom of the Netherlands (orthographic projection).svg , map_width = 250px , image_map2 = File:KonDerNed-10-10-10.png , map_caption2 = Map of the four constituent countries shown to scale , capital = ...

were in

personal union A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interlink ...

in which both nations shared the same person as their respective head of state, though remaining as two distinct and independent nations. Although the order was legally a Luxembourgish honour, it was often used by William II and his successor, King-Grand Duke William III, as a house order of the Nassau dynasty to reward Dutch subjects, beyond the control of the Dutch government. William II conferred membership of the order on fewer than 30 recipients. His successor, William III, liked the ability to confer membership of this order at his sole discretion, and awarded 300 decorations on the day of his investiture alone. In the following years, hundreds of additional awards of the order were made. Indeed, there were so many recipients in the Kingdom of the Netherlands itself that the order was widely (and falsely) regarded as a Dutch honour. Membership of the Order of the Oak Crown ceased to be awarded to Dutch subjects in 1890, when

Queen Wilhelmina Wilhelmina (; Wilhelmina Helena Pauline Maria; 31 August 1880 – 28 November 1962) was Queen of the Netherlands from 1890 until her abdication in 1948. She reigned for nearly 58 years, longer than any other Dutch monarch. Her reign saw World Wa ...

, as the only remaining member of the

House of Orange-Nassau The House of Orange-Nassau (Dutch: ''Huis van Oranje-Nassau'', ) is the current reigning house of the Netherlands. A branch of the European House of Nassau, the house has played a central role in the politics and government of the Netherlands ...

, succeeded her father as new Queen of the Netherlands. Since the ''Erneuter Erbverein'', the

Salic Law The Salic law ( or ; la, Lex salica), also called the was the ancient Frankish civil law code compiled around AD 500 by the first Frankish King, Clovis. The written text is in Latin and contains some of the earliest known instances of Old Du ...

-based house-treaty between the two branches of the House of Nassau (the junior branch of ''Orange-Nassau'' and the senior branch of ''Nassau-Weilburg'' (present-day ''Luxembourg-Nassau'')), did not allow women to succeed to the throne of Luxembourg as long as male heirs of the House of Nassau (in both branches) existed, the throne of Luxembourg went to a German relative of the new Dutch queen, also her maternal great-uncle Adolphe, Duke of Nassau, who became Grand Duke of Luxembourg at age 73. The Order of the Oak Crown remained a solely Luxembourgish honour; subsequently, the Netherlands established the

Order of Orange-Nassau The Order of Orange-Nassau ( nl, Orde van Oranje-Nassau, links=no) is a civil and military Dutch order of chivalry founded on 4 April 1892 by the queen regent, Emma of the Netherlands. The order is a chivalric order open to "everyone who has ...

instead. Since the accession of Grand Duke Adolphe, the order has been primarily used as an award for Luxembourgish citizens, although membership has occasionally been conferred on foreigners, mainly on members of foreign royal families or on eminent foreigners with Luxembourgish ancestors. The Grand Duke of Luxembourg is the Grand Master of the order.

Grades and insignia

Origin

After the abdication of King-Grand Duke William I in 1841, his successor William II granted Luxembourg a written anti-liberal constitution (called ''the Charter'') in order to strengthen his authority over the country. At the same occasion, he established the Order of the Oak Crown with the idea to be able to reward loyal supporters of his regime in liberal-minded Luxembourg.Gilbert Trausch, Le Luxembourg à l'époque contemporaine, p27ff, Publisher Bourg-Bourger, Luxembourg 1981 The badge, the ribbon, and the (then) four-class hierarchy of the order were inspired by the Russian

Order of St. George The Order of Saint George (russian: Орден Святого Георгия, Orden Svyatogo Georgiya) is the highest military decoration of the Russian Federation. Originally established on 26 November 1769 Julian (7 December 1769 Gregorian) a ...

. This was probably due to the fact that William II was married to a daughter of

Emperor Paul I of Russia An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( e ...

, and that he had received the Order of St. George for his meritorious command in the

Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...

Grades

Nowadays, the order consists of five grades: #''Grand Cross'' – wears the badge on a sash on the right shoulder, and the plaque on the left chest; #''Grand Officer'' – wears the badge on a necklet, and the plaque on the left chest; #''Commander'' – wears the badge on a necklet; #''Officer'' – wears the badge on a chest ribbon with rosette on the left chest; #''Knight'' – wears the badge on a chest ribbon on the left chest; plus gilt, silver and bronze medals, who wear the medal on a chest ribbon on the left chest.

Insignia

* The ''badge'' of the order is a gilt cross pattée, enamelled in white; the Officer class has a green enamelled oak wreath between the arms of the cross. The central disc bears the crowned monogram "W" (for William) on a green enamel background. *The ''plaque'' of the order is (for Grand Cross) an eight-pointed faceted silver star, or (for Grand Officer) a faceted silver

Maltese Cross The Maltese cross is a cross symbol, consisting of four " V" or arrowhead shaped concave quadrilaterals converging at a central vertex at right angles, two tips pointing outward symmetrically. It is a heraldic cross variant which developed f ...

. The central disc bears the crowned monogram "W" (for William) on a green enamel background, surrounded by a red enamel ring with the motto ''Je Maintiendrai'' ("I Will Maintain", now the national motto of the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

), in turn surrounded by a green enamelled oak wreath. *The ''medal'' of the order is in an

octagon In geometry, an octagon (from the Greek ὀκτάγωνον ''oktágōnon'', "eight angles") is an eight-sided polygon or 8-gon. A '' regular octagon'' has Schläfli symbol and can also be constructed as a quasiregular truncated square, t, whi ...

al shape, with the motif of the badge of the Order without enamel on the obverse, and an oak wreath without enamel on the reverse. * The ''ribbon'' of the order is yellow-orange moiré with three dark green stripes. The colors are said to be inspired by the oak forests and the fields of

rue ''Ruta graveolens'', commonly known as rue, common rue or herb-of-grace, is a species of ''Ruta'' grown as an ornamental plant and herb. It is native to the Balkan Peninsula. It is grown throughout the world in gardens, especially for its bluis ...

of the Luxembourg countryside.

Recipients

;Grand Crosses *

Shinzo Abe Shinzo Abe ( ; ja, 安倍晋三, Hepburn romanization, Hepburn: , ; 21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party (Japan), President of the Lib ...

Alexander, Prince of Orange Alexander, Prince of Orange (Willem ''Alexander'' Karel Hendrik Frederik; 25 August 1851 – 21 June 1884), was heir apparent to his father King William III of the Netherlands from 11 June 1879 until his death. For a span of 116 years, from the ...

Alexis, Prince of Bentheim and Steinfurt , reign = 28 September 1890 –21 January 1919 , succession = Prince of Bentheim and Steinfurt , successor = Viktor Adolf , predecessor = Ludwig Wilhelm , house = House of Bentheim and Steinfurt , spouse = Princess Pauline of Waldeck ...

Anne, Princess Royal Anne, Princess Royal (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise; born 15 August 1950), is a member of the British royal family. She is the second child and only daughter of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, and the only sister of ...

Beatrix of the Netherlands Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, ; born 31 January 1938) is a member of the Dutch royal house who reigned as Queen of the Netherlands from 1980 until her abdication in 2013. Beatrix is the eldest daughter of Queen Juliana and her husband ...

Joseph Bech Joseph Bech (17 February 1887 – 8 March 1975)Thewes, Guy"Les gouvernements du Grand-Duché depuis 1848." Service information et presse. Luxembourg: Imprimerie Centrale, 2011. was a Luxembourgish politician and lawyer. He was the 15th Prime Mi ...

Prince Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (1792–1862) Prince Carl Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (30 May 1792 – 31 July 1862) was a distinguished soldier, who, in 1815, after the congress of Vienna, became colonel of a regiment in the service of the king of the Netherlands. He fought at the Battl ...

Xavier Bettel Xavier Bettel (; born 3 March 1973) is a Luxembourger lawyer and politician serving as Prime Minister of Luxembourg since 2013. He was previously a member of the Chamber of Deputies (1999–2013) and Mayor of Luxembourg City (2011–2013). Bett ...

Otto von Bismarck Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (, ; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898), born Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck, was a conservative German statesman and diplomat. From his origins in the upper class of J ...

Aníbal Cavaco Silva Aníbal António Cavaco Silva, GCC, GColL, GColIH (; born 15 July 1939) is a Portuguese economist who served as the 19th president of Portugal, in office from 9 March 2006 to 9 March 2016. He had been previously prime minister of Portugal fro ...

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Charles Augustus, Hereditary Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach (1844–1894) en, Charles Augustus William Nicholas Alexander Michael Bernhard Henry Frederick Stephen , image = Karl August von Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach.jpg , image_size = 180px , caption = , spouse = Princess Pauline of Saxe-Wei ...

Charles III Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

of the United Kingdom *

Charlotte, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg Charlotte (Charlotte Adelgonde Elisabeth Marie Wilhelmine; 23 January 1896 – 9 July 1985) reigned as Grand Duchess of Luxembourg from 14 January 1919 until her abdication on 12 November 1964. She acceded to the throne on 14 January 1919 fol ...

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Francesco Cossiga Francesco Maurizio Cossiga (; sc, Frantziscu Maurìtziu Còssiga, ; 1928 – 2010)
. was an Italian pol ...

Charles de Broqueville Charles Marie Pierre Albert, 1st Count de Broqueville (4 December 1860 – 5 September 1940) was the prime minister of Belgium, serving during World War I. Before 1914 Charles de Broqueville was born into an old noble family with its roots in ...

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Rudolf von Delbrück Martin Friedrich Rudolf von Delbrück (; 16 April 1817 – 1 February 1903) was a Prussian statesman at the time of Otto von Bismarck. Early life Delbrück was born at Berlin, Province of Brandenburg. He came of a distinguished family, his fathe ...

* Édouard Descamps * Augustin Dumon-Dumortier *

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; ; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was an American military officer and statesman who served as the 34th president of the United States from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, ...

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Prince Henry of the Netherlands (1820–1879) Prince William Frederick Henry of the Netherlands (Dutch: Willem Frederik Hendrik; 13 June 1820 – 13 January 1879) was the third son of King William II of the Netherlands and his wife, Grand Duchess Anna Pavlovna of Russia. He was born at ...

Jean, Grand Duke of Luxembourg Jean (Jean Benoît Guillaume Robert Antoine Louis Marie Adolphe Marc d'Aviano; 5 January 1921 – 23 April 2019) was the Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 1964 until his abdication in 2000. He was the first Grand Duke of Luxembourg of French agnatic ...

* Jos van Kemenade *

Thanat Khoman Thanat Khoman (also Thanad; th, ถนัด คอมันตร์; , 9 May 1914 – 3 March 2016) was a Thai diplomat and politician. He was foreign minister from 1959 to 1971, leader of the Democrat Party from 1979 to 1982, and deputy prim ...

Thanom Kittikachorn Field Marshal Thanom Kittikachorn ( th, ถนอม กิตติขจร, ; 11 August 1911 – 16 June 2004) was the leader of Thailand from 1963 to 1973, during which he staged a self-coup, until public protests which exploded into viole ...

Marie-Pierre Kœnig Marie Joseph Pierre François Kœnig or Koenig (10 October 1898 – 2 September 1970) was a French general during World War II during which he commanded a Free French Brigade at the Battle of Bir Hakeim in North Africa in 1942. He started a pol ...

Frits Korthals Altes Frederik "Frits" Korthals Altes (born 15 May 1931) is a retired Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and jurist. He was granted the honorary title of Minister of State on 26 October 2001. Korthals Altes attende ...

Auguste, Baron Lambermont François Auguste, Baron Lambermont (25 March 1819 in Dion-le-Val, Brabant7 March 1905), was a Belgian statesman. He came of a family of small farmer proprietors, who had held land during three centuries. He was intended for the priesthood and en ...

Edmond Leburton Edmond Jules Isidore Leburton (18 April 1915 – 15 June 1997) was a Belgium, Belgian politician who served as the prime minister of Belgium from 1973 to 1974. He first entered Parliament representing Huy, Belgium. Prime Minister of Belgium ...

Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque Philippe François Marie Leclerc de Hauteclocque (22 November 1902 – 28 November 1947) was a Free-French general during the Second World War. He became Marshal of France posthumously in 1952, and is known in France simply as le maréchal ...

Charles de Limburg Stirum Count Charles Gaëtan Corneille Marie François-Xavier Ghislain de Limburg-Stirum (15 September 1906 – 14 June 1989), a Count of the Holy Roman Empire and Knight of the Golden Fleece (Austrian branch), was a member of the House of Limburg-Stirum ...

Ludwig Wilhelm, Prince of Bentheim and Steinfurt ''Louis William'' , reign = 3 November 186628 September 1890 , succession = Prince of Bentheim and Steinfurt , successor = Alexis , predecessor = Alexius , house = House of Bentheim and Steinfurt , spouse = Landgravine Bertha of Hesse-Philip ...

Joseph Luns Joseph Marie Antoine Hubert Luns (28 August 1911 – 17 July 2002) was a Dutch politician and diplomat of the defunct Catholic People's Party (KVP) now merged into the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and jurist. He served as Secretary ...

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* Maurice de Patoul *

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Josef van Schaik Josephus Robertus Hendricus "Josef" van Schaik (31 January 1882 – 23 March 1962) was a Dutch politician of the defunct Roman Catholic State Party (RKSP) and later co-founder of the Catholic People's Party (KVP) now merged into the Christian D ...

* Emil von Schlitz *

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Dirk Stikker Dirk Uipko Stikker (5 February 1897 – 23 December 1979) was a Dutch politician and diplomat of the defunct Liberal State Party (LSP), co-founder of the defunct Freedom Party (PvdV) and of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (V ...

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Iñaki Urdangarin Iñaki Urdangarin Liebaert (born 15 January 1968) is a retired Spanish handball player turned entrepreneur and the husband of Infanta Cristina, younger daughter of King Juan Carlos and Queen Sofía. He was the brother-in-law of King Felipe VI ...

Achille Van Acker Achille Van Acker (8 April 1898 – 10 July 1975) was a Belgian politician who served three terms as the prime minister of Belgium between 1946 and 1958. A moderate from Flanders, Van Acker was a member of the Belgian Socialist Party (PSB–BSP) ...

* Victor van Strydonck de Burkel *

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;Grand Officers *

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* Piet Bukman *

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* Jean Hengen * Clarence R. Huebner *

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Henk Kamp Henricus Gregorius Jozeph "Henk" Kamp (; born 23 July 1952) is a Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) who served as List of Ministers of Defence of the Netherlands, Minister of Defence in the Third Rutte cabinet ...

Marga Klompé Margaretha Albertina Maria "Marga" Klompé (16 August 1912 – 28 October 1986) was a Dutch politician of the defunct Catholic People's Party (KVP) now merged into the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and chemist. She was granted the honor ...

* Rudolf de Korte *

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* Ernest Krings *

Pierre Lardinois Pierre Joseph Lardinois (13 August 1924 – 16 July 1987) was a Dutch politician and diplomat of the defunct Catholic People's Party (KVP) now merged into the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and agronomist. Lardinois applied at the Wa ...

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* Job de Ruiter *

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References

External links

* Legislative texts (French & German) : ** Mémorial A n° 1 du 3 January 1842
Arrêté royal grand-ducal du 29 décembre 1841, Litt. A, portant institution, pour le Grand-Duché du Luxembourg d'un Ordre de la Couronne de Chêne.
(Foundation of the Order) ** Mémorial A n° 37 du 16 July 1845
Arrêté royal grand-ducal du 8 juillet 1845, N° 1395, statuant que les insignes de l'ordre de la Couronne de Chêne doivent être renvoyés à la Chancellerie d'État à La Haye après le décès des membres de l'ordre
(Decorations of the Order must be returned after death or promotion) ** Mémorial A n° 1 du 6 January 1855
Arrêté royal grand-ducal du 2 septembre 1854 concernant les frais de l'Ordre de la Couronne de chêne
(Costs of the Order) ** Mémorial A n° 6 du 23 February 1858
Arrêté royal grand-ducal du 5 février 1858 modifiant celui du 29 décembre 1841, portant institution de l'Ordre de la Couronne de Chêne
(Creation of the rank of Officer) ** Mémorial A n° 28 du 5 November 1872
Arrêté royal grand-ducal du 28 octobre 1872 concernant les insignes de l'Ordre de la Couronne de chêne.
(Gold medal replaced by a silver-gilt medal) ** Mémorial A n° 56 du 24 August 1876
Circulaire du 21 août 1876 – Ordre de la Couronne de chêne.
(Return and wearing of decorations)
Honorary distinctions of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
– Official website of the Luxembourg gouvernement {{Luxembourg honours 1841 establishments in Luxembourg Awards established in 1841