Order of the Crown of India
Imperial Order of the Crown of India | |
---|---|
![]() The insignia of the Imperial Order of the Crown of India | |
Awarded by the British monarch | |
Type | Order of Chivalry |
Eligibility | British princesses, wives or female relatives of Indian princes |
Status | Last appointment in 1947 Dormant order since 2022 |
Sovereign | Charles III |
Post-nominals | CI |
![]() Ribbon of the order |
TheImperial Order of the Crown of Indiais an order in theBritish honours system.The Order was established byQueen Victoriawhen she becameEmpress of Indiain 1878.[1]The Order was open only to women, and no appointments have been made since thePartition of Indiain 1947. The Order was limited to British princesses, wives or female relatives of Indian princes (female rulers like theNawab Begums of Bhopalcounted as such) and the wife or female relatives of any person who held the office of:
- Viceroy of India
- Governor of Madras
- Governor of Bombay
- Governor of Bengal
- Commander-in-Chief India
- Secretary of State for India
- Governor-General of India
History[edit]
The Order of theCrown of Indiawas established byQueen Victoriain 1878 as a companion order to theOrder of Victoria and Albert.The order was intended to recognize women associated with India regardless of their social statuses. In practice, the Order of the Crown of India was mostly conferred on royalty, wives of peers, wives of members of India's ruling classes and wives of civil servants stationed in India. It is one of the few honors which was reserved for women only, such as theRoyal Red Cross,Order of Victoria and Albertand theRoyal Family Order.
Queen Elizabeth II,then Princess Elizabeth, and her sister,Princess Margaret,were appointed to the Order by their father,King George VI,in June 1947, before theBritish Rajwas dissolvedthree months later,making them among the last women to be presented with the Order. By the late 20th century there were only four living recipients – Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother, Princess Margaret, andPrincess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester,who was the last ordinary member at the time of her death in 2004.
With the death of the last surviving holder, Queen Elizabeth II, the last active imperial Indian order became dormant in 2022.
Description[edit]
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b9/Imperial_Order_of_the_Crown_of_India.jpg/220px-Imperial_Order_of_the_Crown_of_India.jpg)
The members of the Order could use thepost-nominal letters"CI",but did not acquire any special precedence or status due to it. Furthermore, they were entitled to wear the badge of the Order, which included QueenVictoria's Imperial Cypher, VRI (Victoria Regina Imperatrix). The letters were set in diamonds, pearls, and turquoises, and were together surrounded by a border of pearls surmounted by a figure of the Imperial Crown. The badge was worn and attached to a light blue bow, edged in white, on the left shoulder.
![Elizabeth in red uniform on a black horse](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/4/40/ElizabethIItroopingcolour_crop.jpg/250px-ElizabethIItroopingcolour_crop.jpg)
Recipients[edit]
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![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/0/09/Rani_Bharani_Thirunal_Lakshmi_Bayi_of_Travancore_%281848%E2%80%931901%29.jpg/220px-Rani_Bharani_Thirunal_Lakshmi_Bayi_of_Travancore_%281848%E2%80%931901%29.jpg)
1878–1900[edit]
- 1878:Alexandra, Princess of Wales[1]
- 1878:Victoria, Princess Royal, Crown Princess of Germany[1]
- 1878:Princess Alice, Grand Duchess of Hesse and by Rhine[1]
- 1878:Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein[1]
- 1878:Princess Louise, Marchioness of Lorne[1]
- 1878:Princess Beatrice of the United Kingdom[1]
- 1878:Maria Alexandrovna, Duchess of Edinburgh[1]
- 1878:Augusta, Duchess of Cambridge[1]
- 1878:Grand Duchess Augusta of Mecklenburg-Strelitz[1]
- 1878:Princess Mary Adelaide, Duchess of Teck[1]
- 1878:Maharani Bamba Singh[1]
- 1878:Sultan Shah Jahan, Begum of Bhopal[1]
- 1878: Maharani Sita Vilas Dawaji Ammani Anaro ofMysore[1]
- 1878: Maharanee Jumnabai Sahib Gaekwad ofBaroda(widow of Maharaja Khanderao)[1]
- 1878: Dilawar un-Nisa Begum Sahiba, ofHyderabad[1]
- 1878: Nawab Qudsia, Begum ofBhopal[1]
- 1878:Vijaya Mohana Muktamba BaiAmmani Raja Sahib ofTanjore[1]
- 1878:Maharani SwarnamoyeeofCossimbazar[1]
- 1878:Elizabeth Campbell, Duchess of Argyll[1]
- 1878:Georgina Gascoyne-Cecil, Marchioness of Salisbury[1]
- 1878: Henrietta Vyner,Marchioness of Ripon,Vicereine of India[1]
- 1878:Lady Mary Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville[1]
- 1878: Mary Bruce, The Countess of Elgin[1]
- 1878: The Countess of Mayo[1]
- 1878: Lady Susan Bourke[1]
- 1878:Mary Wood, Viscountess Halifax[1]
- 1878: Lady Hobart (Mary Hobart, wife ofLord Hobart,Governor of the Presidency of Madras)[1]
- 1878: Lady Jane Baring[1]
- 1878: Anne Napier, Baroness Napier (wife ofFrancis Napier, 10th Lord Napier,Governor of the Presidency of Madras, 1866–1872)[1]
- 1878:Edith Bulwer-Lytton, Countess of Lytton[1]
- 1878: Harriette Lawrence, Baroness Lawrence[1]
- 1878: Cecilia Northcote, Countess of Iddesleigh[1]
- 1878: Catherine Frere, Lady Frere (wife ofSir Henry Frere, 1st Baronet,Governor of the Presidency of Bombay)[1]
- 1878: Mary Temple, Lady Temple (wife ofSir Richard Temple, 1st Baronet,Governor of the Presidency of Bombay)[1]
- 1878: Caroline Denison, Lady Denison (wife ofSir William Denison,Governor of the Presidency of Madras)[1]
- 1878: Katherine Strachey, Lady Strachey (wife ofSir John Strachey,acting Viceroy of India 1872)[1]
- 1878: Jane Gathorne-Hardy, Countess of Cranbrook
- 1878:Princess Frederica of Hanover
- 1878:Princess Marie of Hanover
- 1879:Thyra, Duchess of Cumberland
- 1879:Louise Margaret Duchess of Connaught
- 1879: Lady Napier of Magdala (wife ofRobert Napier, 1st Baron Napier of Magdala,Commander-in-Chief India 1870–1876 and acting Viceroy of India, 1862–1863)[2]
- 1879: Lady Frances Cunynghame[2]
- 1879: Dowager Lady Pottinger (widow of SirHenry Pottinger,Governor of the Presidency of Madras 1848–1854)[2]
- 1881:Bharani Thirunal Lakshmi Bayi,Senior Rani ofAttingal
- 1881: Lady Fergusson (Olive Fergusson, wife ofSir James Fergusson, 6th Baronet,Governor of the Presidency of Bombay, 1880–1885)
- 1881: Mrs William Patrick Adam (Emily Adam, widow ofWilliam Patrick Adam,Governor of the Presidency of Madras 1880–1881)
- 1882:Helen, Duchess of Albany
- 1883: Lady Grant Duff (Anna Julia Grant Duff, wife ofSir Mountstuart Grant Duff,Governor of the Presidency of Madras 1881–1886)
- 1884: Edith Fergusson (daughter ofSir James Fergusson, 6th Baronet,Governor of the Presidency of Bombay, 1880–1885)
- 1884:The Countess of Dufferin(wife ofFrederick Hamilton-Temple-Blackwood, Earl of Dufferin,Viceroy of India, 1884–1888)
- 1885:Lady Randolph Spencer-Churchill(wife ofLord Randolph Churchill,Secretary of State for India, 1885–1886)
- 1885: Lady Reay (Fanny Georgiana Jane Mackay, wife ofDonald Mackay, 11th Lord Reay,Governor of the Presidency of Bombay 1885–1890)
- 1886: Viscountess Cross (Georgina Cross, wife ofRichard Assheton Cross, 1st Viscount Cross,Secretary of State for India 1886–1892)
- 1887:Princess Louise of Wales
- 1887:Princess Victoria of Wales
- 1887:Princess Maud of Wales
- 1887: Maharanee Sunity Devee ofKuch Behar
- 1888:Maud Petty-Fitzmaurice, Marchioness of Lansdowne,Vicereine of India
- 1889:Princess Helena Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein
- 1889:Princess Victoria Mary of Teck
- 1890: Lady Harris (Lucy Ada Harris, wife ofGeorge Harris, 4th Baron Harris,Governor of the Presidency of Bombay, 1890–1895)
- 1891: Maharanee Sakhiabai Raje Sahib Scindia Bahadur, Regent ofGwalior(widow of Maharaja Sir Jayajirao Scindia Bahadur)
- 1891: Lady Wenlock (Constance Mary Lawley, wife ofBeilby Lawley, 3rd Baron Wenlock,Governor of the Presidency of Madras 1891–1896)
- 1892: Maharanee Chimnabai Sahib Gaekwad ofBaroda(wife ofMaharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III)
- 1892: Lady Nandkuverbai Bhagvatsinh Jadeja, Rani Sahib ofGondal
- 1893: MaharaniKempananjammanni DeviofMysore(wife ofMaharaja Chamaraja Wodeyar X)
- 1893:Marie, Crown Princess of Romania
- 1893:Princess Victoria Melita of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
- 1893:Princess Aribert of Anhalt
- 1894:The Countess of Elgin(wife ofVictor Bruce, 9th Earl of Elgin,Viceroy of India, 1894–1899)
- 1895: Mrs Henry Fowler (Ellen Fowler, wife ofHenry Fowler,laterViscount Wolverhampton,Secretary of State for India, 1894–1895)
- 1895: The Lady Sandhurst (wife ofWilliam Mansfield, 1st Baron Sandhurst,later Viscount Sandhurst, Governor of the Presidency of Bombay, 1895–1900)
- 1895: Lady George Hamilton (wife ofLord George Hamilton,Secretary of State for India, 1895–1903)
- 1897:Alexandra, Hereditary Princess of Hohenlohe-Langenburg
- 1897: Maharani Sahiba ofUdaipur(wife of Maharajadhiraja Fateh Singh)
- 1897: Nawab Shamsi Jahan, Begum Sahiba ofMurshidabad
- 1897: Lady Havelock (Anne Havelock, wife ofSir Arthur Havelock,Governor of the Presidency of Madras, 1896–1900)
- 1899:Lady Curzon of Kedleston,Vicereine of India
- 1900:Princess Margaret of Connaught
- 1900: Lady Northcote (wife ofHenry Northcote, 1st Baron Northcote,Governor of the Presidency of Bombay, 1900–1903)
- 1900: Lady Roberts (wife ofFrederick Roberts, Baron Roberts,Commander-in-Chief India 1885–1893)[3]
- 1900: Lady Stewart (Marina Katherine Stewart, widow of GeneralSir Donald Stewart, 1st Baronet,Commander-in-Chief India 1881–1885)[4]
- 1900: Lady White (Amelia Maria White, wife of GeneralSir George White,Commander-in-Chief India 1893–1898)[4]
- 1900: Lady Mary Katharine Lockhart (née Eccles; widow of General SirWilliam Stephen Alexander Lockhart,Commander in Chief India,1898–1900)
- 1900:Lady Ampthill(wife ofArthur Russell, 2nd Baron Ampthill,Governor of the Presidency of Madras, 1900–1905)
1901–1947[edit]
![](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/3/32/Maharani_Tara_Devi.jpg/220px-Maharani_Tara_Devi.jpg)
- 1909:The Countess of Minto(wife ofGilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 4th Earl of Minto,Viceroy of India, 1905–1910)[5]
- 1910:Lady Hardinge of Penshurst(wife ofCharles Hardinge, 1st Baron Hardinge of Penshurst,Viceroy of India, 1910–1916)[6]
- 1911:Princess Patricia of Connaught(Coronation of George V)[7]
- 1911:Princess Charlotte of Prussia, Duchess of Saxe-Meiningen(Coronation of George V)[8]
- 1911: The Marchioness of Crewe (wife ofRobert Crewe-Milnes, 1st Marquess of Crewe,Secretary of State for India, 1910–1911)
- 1911:Kaikhusrau Jahan, Begum of Bhopal
- 1911: Maharani Sri Nundkanvarba ofBhavnagar
- 1916:The Viscountess Chelmsford(wife ofFrederic Thesiger, 1st Viscount Chelmsford,Viceroy of India, 1916–1921)
- 1917:Lady Willingdon(wife ofFreeman Freeman-Thomas, 1st Baron Willingdon,later Marquess of Willingdon, Governor of the Presidency of Bombay, 1913–1918; Governor of the Presidency of Madras, 1919–1924; Viceroy of India, 1931–1936)
- 1918: Maji Sahiba Girraj Kuar, Maharani of Bharatpur, Regent ofBharatpur,1900–1918
- 1919:Mary, Princess Royal and Countess of Harewood
- 1921:Alice Isaacs, Countess of Reading,Vicereine of India
- 1926:Lady Irwin(wife ofEdward Frederick Lindley Wood, 1st Baron Irwin,later Earl of Halifax, Viceroy of India, 1926–1931)
- 1927: The Countess of Lytton (wife ofVictor Bulwer-Lytton, 2nd Earl of Lytton,Viceroy of India, 1925–1926)
- 1928: Shrimati Chinkuraja Scindia, Senior Maharani ofGwalior
- 1929: Puradam ThirunalSethu Lakshmi Bayi,Regent Maharani ofTravancore
- 1930: Lady Birdwood (wife ofWilliam Birdwood, 1st Baron Birdwood,Commander-in-Chief India, 1925–1930)
- 1931:Elizabeth Duchess of York
- 1932: Begum Mariam Sultana, Lady Ali Shah (widow ofAga Khan II)
- 1935: Maharani Bhatianiji Sri Ajab Kanwarji Sahib, of Bikaner, Rajputana[9]
- 1935:Lady Beatrix Taylour Stanley[9]
- 1936:Doreen Hope, Marchioness of Linlithgow,Vicereine of India[10]
- 1937:Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester[11]
- 1937:Princess Marina, Duchess of Kent[12]
- 1937:Doreen Knatchbull Lady Brabourne[13]
- 1943: The Viscountess Wavell (wife ofArchibald Wavell, Viscount Wavell,later Earl Wavell, Viceroy of India, 1943–1947)
- 1945: Mrs Leopold Stennett Amery (Florence Amery, wife ofLeopold Stennett Amery,war-time Secretary of State for India, 1940–1945)[14]
- 1946: Maharani Tara Devi ofJammu and Kashmir[15]
- 1947:Edwina, Viscountess Mountbatten of Burma,Vicereine of India[16]
- 1947:Princess Elizabeth of the United Kingdom[17]
- 1947:Princess Margaret of the United Kingdom[17]
- 1947: Agnes Anne, Baroness Clydesmuir (wife ofJohn Colville, 1st Baron Clydesmuir,Governor of the Presidency of Bombay)[18]
Sources[edit]
- ^abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyzaaabacadaeafagahaiajakal"No. 24539".The London Gazette.4 January 1878. p. 113.
- ^abc"No. 24733".The London Gazette.13 June 1879. p. 3906.
- ^"Court Circular".The Times.No. 36075. London. 26 February 1900. p. 6.
- ^ab"Court Circular".The Times.No. 36083. London. 7 March 1900. p. 6.
- ^"No. 12194".The Edinburgh Gazette.19 November 1909. p. 1186.
- ^"No. 28458".The London Gazette.20 January 1911. p. 499.
- ^"No. 12366".The Edinburgh Gazette.23 June 1911. p. 625.
- ^"No. 12366".The Edinburgh Gazette.23 June 1911. p. 625.
- ^ab"No. 15136".The Edinburgh Gazette.4 January 1935. p. 15.
- ^"No. 34259".The London Gazette.25 February 1936. p. 1232.
- ^"No. 34406".The London Gazette.9 June 1937. p. 3729.
- ^"No. 24406".The London Gazette.9 June 1937. p. 3729.
- ^"No. 34451".The London Gazette.5 November 1937. p. 6889.
- ^"No. 37325".The London Gazette.26 October 1945. p. 5237.
In recognition of her work for Indian service men and Indian seamen as Chairman of the Indian Comforts Fund.
- ^"No. 37598".The London Gazette(Supplement). 4 June 1946. p. 2763.
- ^"No. 37905".The London Gazette.14 March 1947. p. 1216.
- ^ab"No. 37976".The London Gazette(Supplement). 12 June 1947. p. 2569.
- ^"No. 38041".The London Gazette.8 August 1947. p. 3731.
- The India List and India Office List.Harrison and sons. 1905.