The Ordre du Mérite indochinois (Indochinese Order of Merit) was a regional award of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

awarded by the

Governor-General of Indochina European (as well as Japanese and Chinese) colonial administrators had historically been responsible for the territory of French Indochina, an area equivalent to modern-day Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, and the Chinese city of Zhanjiang. List o ...

for the local population of

French Indochina French Indochina (previously spelled as French Indo-China),; vi, Đông Dương thuộc Pháp, , lit. 'East Ocean under French Control; km, ឥណ្ឌូចិនបារាំង, ; th, อินโดจีนฝรั่งเศส, ...

History

Established April 30, 1900 by Governor-General of French Indochina

Paul Doumer Joseph Athanase Doumer, commonly known as Paul Doumer (; 22 March 18577 May 1932), was the President of France from 13 June 1931 until his assassination on 7 May 1932. Biography Joseph Athanase Doumer was born in Aurillac, in the Cantal ''dépa ...

the order was to reward the local population of Indo-China for services to agriculture, commerce, industry and art. This award had no status as an official French colonial award but was a local only award for the population of

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...

Cambodia Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...

Tonkin Tonkin, also spelled ''Tongkin'', ''Tonquin'' or ''Tongking'', is an exonym referring to the northern region of Vietnam. During the 17th and 18th centuries, this term referred to the domain ''Đàng Ngoài'' under Trịnh lords' control, includi ...

Cochin China Cochinchina or Cochin-China (, ; vi, Đàng Trong (17th century - 18th century, Việt Nam (1802-1831), Đại Nam (1831-1862), Nam Kỳ (1862-1945); km, កូសាំងស៊ីន, Kosăngsin; french: Cochinchine; ) is a historical exony ...

, and Annam.ORDRE DU MÉRITE INDOCHINOIS (fr)
France-phalerisitque, Marc Champenois. date accessed 2011-03-09. Governed by an Order Council, it was divided into three classes with limit on the number of members for each class. The 3rd class, was limited to 500 members. The 2nd Class, was limited to 100 members. The 1st class, was limited to 15 members.

Description

The badge of the order is a ball tipped six-pointed star with concave sides. In the center of the star is a round rimmed medallion. In the center of the medallion is the inscription in

Annamese The Vietnamese people ( vi, người Việt, lit=Viet people) or Kinh people ( vi, người Kinh) are a Southeast Asian ethnic group native to modern-day Northern Vietnam and Southern China (Jing Islands, Dongxing, Guangxi). The native lang ...

ideographic writing An ideogram or ideograph (from Greek "idea" and "to write") is a graphic symbol that represents an idea or concept, independent of any particular language, and specific words or phrases. Some ideograms are comprehensible only by familiarit ...

"It is worthy to develop knowledge" (彰美, written from right-to-left). On the rim is the inscription INDOCHINE FRANCAISE (French Indochina). Attached to the ball of the top most arm of the star are two laurel branches, which act as a ring to attach the star to its ribbon. The ribbon of the order is yellow Moire silk. The Order was presented in the 1st degree in gold, 2nd degree silver, and third degree bronze.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ordre du Merite Indochinois Merite Indochinois Merite Indochinois Colonial orders of chivalry Awards established in 1900