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Orders, Decorations, And Medals Of The Holy See
The orders, decorations, and medals of the Holy See include titles, chivalric orders, distinctions and medals honoured by the Holy See, with the Pope of Rome as the fount of honour, for deeds and merits of their recipients to the benefit of the Holy See, the Catholic Church, or their respective communities, societies, nations and the world at large. Some of these honours are defunct or currently dormant, while some are still actively conferred. Chivalric orders ''Papal orders of knighthood'' or ''Pontifical orders of knighthood'' are orders of knighthood bestowed in the name of the reigning Pope of the Roman Catholic Church by his authority as head of the Holy See and sovereign of the Vatican City State. Historically, membership in these orders was either conferred by Papal bulls not signed by the Pope or by apostolic letters signed by the Pope himself. Since the reforms of these orders in the beginning of the 20th century, the diplomas have been signed by the Cardi ...
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Title Of Honour
A title of honor or honorary title is a title bestowed upon individuals or organizations as an award in recognition of their merits. Sometimes the title bears the same or nearly the same name as a title of authority, but the person bestowed does not have to carry out any duties, except for ceremonial ones. The title may sometimes be temporary, only valid for the individual's visit or for a single day, though they can also be permanent titles. In some cases, these titles are bestowed posthumously. Some historical honorary titles may be bought, like certain titles of nobility. This has long been a matter of fraud, both outright and indirect. Honorary titles also serve as positions of sinecure and honorary retirement. Examples Some examples of honorary titles from various areas include: * Academician – Honorary title (academic) * Fellow of an academic, artistic, or professional society * Fire chief * Freeman of the City of London * Hero of the Russian Federation * Hon ...
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Sovereign Military Order Of Malta
The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta, and commonly known as the Order of Malta or the Knights of Malta, is a Catholic lay religious order, traditionally of a military, chivalric, and noble nature. Though it possesses no territory, the order is often considered a sovereign entity under international law. The Order traces its institutional continuity with the Knights Hospitaller, a chivalric order that was founded about 1099 by the Blessed Gerard in the Kingdom of Jerusalem. The order is led by an elected prince and grand master. Its motto is ("Defence of the faith and assistance to the poor"). The government of the Sovereign Order of Malta has a similar structure to state governments. However, it also includes specific features associated with its nature as a lay religious order, as well as particular terminology evolved from nine centuries of history. The ...
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Knights Templar
The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, mainly known as the Knights Templar, was a Military order (religious society), military order of the Catholic Church, Catholic faith, and one of the most important military orders in Western Christianity. They were founded in 1118 to defend pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem, with their headquarters located there on the Temple Mount, and existed for nearly two centuries during the Middle Ages. Officially endorsed by the Catholic Church by such decrees as the papal bull ''Omne datum optimum'' of Pope Innocent II, the Templars became a favoured charity throughout Christendom and grew rapidly in membership and power. The Templar knights, in their distinctive white mantle (monastic vesture), mantles with a red Christian cross, cross, were among the most skilled fighting units of the Crusades. They were prominent in Christian finance; non-combatant members of the order, who made up as much as 90% of their members, ma ...
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Apostolic Nuncio
An apostolic nuncio (; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international organization. A nuncio is appointed by and represents the Holy See, and is the head of the diplomatic mission, called an apostolic nunciature, which is the equivalent of an embassy. The Holy See is legally distinct from the Vatican City or the Catholic Church. In modern times, a nuncio is usually an Archbishop. An apostolic nuncio is generally equivalent in rank to that of ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary, although in Catholic countries the nuncio often ranks above ambassadors in diplomatic protocol. A nuncio performs the same functions as an ambassador and has the same diplomatic privileges. Under the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, to which the Holy See is a party, a nuncio is an ambassador like those from any other country. The Vienna ...
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Head Of State
A head of state is the public persona of a sovereign state.#Foakes, Foakes, pp. 110–11 "[The head of state] being an embodiment of the State itself or representative of its international persona." The name given to the office of head of state depends on the country's form of government and any separation of powers; the powers of the office in each country range from being also the head of government to being little more than a ceremonial figurehead. In a parliamentary system, such as Politics of India, India or the Politics of the United Kingdom, United Kingdom, the head of state usually has mostly ceremonial powers, with a separate head of government. However, in some parliamentary systems, like Politics of South Africa, South Africa, there is an executive president that is both head of state and head of government. Likewise, in some parliamentary systems the head of state is not the head of government, but still has significant powers, for example Politics of Morocco, Moro ...
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Order Of Christ (papacy)
The Supreme Order of Christ () is the highest order of chivalry that can be awarded by the Pope. No appointments have been made since 1987 and following the death in 1993 of the last remaining knight, King Baudouin of Belgium, the order became dormant. According to some scholars, it derives from the Order of Christ of the Knights Templar, like the Portuguese Military Order of Christ. Dispute The papacy insisted that the right of the Portuguese monarchs to award the honour had been granted by a pope in the Papal bull ''Ad ea ex quibus'' issued in Avignon on 14–15 March 1319. Although the bull itself does not explicitly grant to the pope the right to grant membership in the order, successive popes since John XXII have done so. For many years, the Portuguese monarchy disputed the right of the papacy to award the order, and in one famous case arrested Giovanni Niccolò Servandoni, an Italian architect, for wearing the papal order. The position of the Crown of Portugal was th ...
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Order Of Saint Sylvester
The Pontifical Equestrian Order of Saint Sylvester (, ), sometimes referred to as the Sylvestrine Order, or the Pontifical Order of Pope Saint Sylvester, is one of five Papal order of knighthood, orders of knighthood awarded directly by the Pope as Supreme Pontiff and head of the Catholic Church and as the Head of State of Vatican City. It is intended to honour Catholic laypeople who are actively involved in the life of the Church, particularly as it is exemplified in the exercise of their professional duties and mastership of the different arts. History This Order was at one time united with the Order of the Golden Militia. Pope Pius X in his ''motu proprio'' of 7 February 1905, entitled ''Multum ad excitandos'', divided the Sylvestrine Order into two Orders of Knighthood, one retaining the name of St. Sylvester and the other taking the ancient name of the Order, i.e. Order of the Golden Militia, or Order of the Golden Spur.
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Order Of Saint Gregory The Great
The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great (; ) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of the five orders of knighthood of the Holy See. The honor is bestowed upon Catholic men and women (and certain notable non-Catholics) in recognition of their personal service to the Holy See and to the Catholic Church, through their unusual labors, their support of the Holy See, and the examples they set in their communities and their countries. History and appointment The inaugural brief states, in part, that "gentlemen of proven loyalty to the Holy See who, by reason of their nobility of birth and the renown of their deeds or the degree of their munificence, are deemed worthy to be honored by a public expression of esteem on the part of the Holy See". The end of the brief states that they must progressively maintain, by continued meritorious deed, the reputation and trust they had already inspired ...
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Order Of Pius IX
The Order of Pope Pius IX (), also referred as the Pian Order (, ), is a papal order of knighthood originally founded by Pope Pius IV in 1560. It is the highest honor currently conferred by the Holy See (two higher honors, the Supreme Order of Christ and the Order of the Golden Spur, are dormant). The awarding of the order fell into disuse and was re-instituted by Pope Pius IX as a continuation on 17 June 1847. The highest rank awarded by the Pope is the ''Collar of the Order'', usually to Catholic heads of state on the occasion of official visits to the Holy See. The ''Grand Cross'' is the highest Papal award given to lay men and women, ordinarily given to resident Ambassadors accredited to the Holy See after two years in post and rarely to exceptional Catholics in the wider world for particular services, mainly in the international field and for outstanding deeds for Church and society. The rank of Knight is almost never awarded, and when it happens, it is given in recognitio ...
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Order Of The Golden Spur
The Order of the Golden Spur (, ), officially known also as the Order of the Golden Militia (, ), is a papal order of knighthood conferred upon those who have rendered distinguished service in propagating the Catholic faith, or who have contributed to the glory of the Church, either by feat of arms, by writings, or by other illustrious acts. With the death in 2019 of the last remaining knight, Grand Duke Jean of Luxembourg, the order is considered dormant. History Before 19th century: a noble order It is accounted the earliest papal chivalric institution. The Order of the Golden Spur had its origins in the title ''Count palatine of the Lateran Palace'', which was in the gift of the Holy Roman Emperor in the fourteenth century: Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor conferred the title on one Fenzio di Albertino di Prato, 15 August 1357, at Prague. The Order began to be associated with the inheritable patent of nobility in the form of count palatinate during the Renaissance; Frederick ...
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Supreme Order Of Christ
The Supreme Order of Christ () is the highest order of chivalry that can be awarded by the Pope. No appointments have been made since 1987 and following the death in 1993 of the last remaining knight, King Baudouin of Belgium, the order became dormant. According to some scholars, it derives from the Order of Christ of the Knights Templar, like the Portuguese Military Order of Christ. Dispute The papacy insisted that the right of the Portuguese monarchs to award the honour had been granted by a pope in the Papal bull ''Ad ea ex quibus'' issued in Avignon on 14–15 March 1319. Although the bull itself does not explicitly grant to the pope the right to grant membership in the order, successive popes since John XXII have done so. For many years, the Portuguese monarchy disputed the right of the papacy to award the order, and in one famous case arrested Giovanni Niccolò Servandoni, an Italian architect, for wearing the papal order. The position of the Crown of Portugal was ...
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