The Ordre de la Sincérité (), was an

order of knighthood An order of chivalry, order of knighthood, chivalric order, or equestrian order is a society, fellowship and college of knights, typically founded during or inspired by the original Catholic military orders of the Crusades ( 1099–1291) and pai ...

of the German Margrave of

Bayreuth Bayreuth ( or ; High Franconian German, Upper Franconian: Bareid, ) is a Town#Germany, town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtel Mountains. The town's roots date back to 11 ...

. The order's name came from 18th-century courtiers who spoke French. The order had fifty knights. It was later renamed the Order of the Brandenburg Red Eagle and later as the

Order of the Red Eagle The Order of the Red Eagle () was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. It was awarded to both military personnel and civilians, to recognize valor in combat, excellence in military leadership, long and faithful service to the kingdom, o ...

History

The Ordre de la Sincérité was founded on November 17, 1705, by the ruling Margrave George William of Brandenburg-Bayreuth, a member of the

House of Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern (, ; , ; ) is a formerly royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) German dynasty whose members were variously princes, Prince-elector, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern Castle, Hohenzollern, Margraviate of Bran ...

. As it was often the case with the orders of knighthood of the small German courts it soon fell into disuse. However, was revived in 1712 in Brandenburg-Bayreuth and again in 1734 in Brandenburg-Ansbach, where it was renamed "Order of the Brandenburg Red Eagle". The statutes were changed in 1777 and the order named therein as the "Order of the Red Eagle". The order was conferred in one class, limited to fifty knights. The church of the order was the Ordenskirche St. Georgen in

. In January 1792, the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

bought both Brandenburg-Bayreuth and Brandenburg-Ansbach and on June 12, 1792, King Frederick William II again revived the order as a Prussian royal order. After the

Order of the Black Eagle The Order of the Black Eagle () was the highest order of chivalry in the Kingdom of Prussia. The order was founded on 17 January 1701 by Elector Friedrich III of Brandenburg (who became Friedrich I of Prussia, Friedrich I, King in Prussia, the ...

, the Order of the Red Eagle was the second highest order of the kingdom in order of precedence. In 1918, it was finally abolished as a state order, but continues as a House Order of the House of Hohenzollern.

References

Sources

* Maximilian Gritzner, Handbuch der Ritter- und Verdienstorden aller Kulturstaaten der Welt innerhalb des XIX. Jahrhunderts. Auf Grund amtlicher und anderer zuverlässiger Quellen zusammengestellt. Verlag:Leipzig., Verlagsbuchhandlung von J.J.Weber, 1893. {{DEFAULTSORT:Ordre De La Sincerite Orders of chivalry of Germany