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Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation

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For the article about the Religious order, seeOrder of the Most Holy Annunciation.
Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation
Ordine Supremo della Santissima Annunziata
The collar badge of the Order, which depictsOur Lady of the Annunciation,is worn on the feast day of the Most Holy Annunciation.
Awarded by

The Duke of Savoy as Sovereign Headof the House of Savoy
TypeDynastic order of knighthood
Establishedc. 1362
Royal houseHouse of Savoy
MottoFERT
(Fortitudo Eius Rhodum Tulit;By his bravery he conquered Rhodes)
EligibilityMilitary and civilian
Awarded for
  • Eminent service in high military positions
  • Distinguished civil service
  • Bringing distinction upon Italy
  • Rendering great service to the House of Savoy
StatusCurrently constituted
FounderAmadeus VI, Count of Savoy
Sovereign(disputed)
Grand MasterEmanuele Filiberto, Prince of Venice[1]
Grand ChancellorJohannes Theo Niederhauser
GradesKnight
Precedence
Next (higher)None (Highest)
Next (lower)Royal Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus

Ribbon bar

TheSupreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation(Italian:Ordine Supremo della Santissima Annunziata) is aRoman Catholicorder of chivalry,originating inSavoy.It eventually was the pinnacle of thehonours system in the Kingdom of Italy,which ceased to be anational orderwhen the kingdombecame a republicin 1946. Today, the order continues as adynastic orderunder the jurisdiction of the Head of theHouse of Savoy.

History and statutes

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The Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation originated in 1362, whenAmadeus VI, Count of Savoy(1343–1383) instituted the order's earliest designation, under the title ofOrder of the Collar.[2]The order was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary,[2]who is celebrated as "Our Lady of the Annunciation." The order is a dynastic religious (or Catholic) order of chivalry.

TheAnnunciation to the Virgin Maryis depicted on the plaque surrounded by the motto F.E.R.T., and is worn on the left breast of a knight of the Order

Under its first formulation, the order had fifteen knights.[2]The number was symbolic of the number of dailymassescelebrated with the order. In 1409,Amadeus VIII, Duke of Savoy,gave the order its first knownstatutes,and in 1434, he extended the order to five more knights.

Amadeus VIII's statutes were subsequently amended and reformed byDuke Carlo IIIin 1518, byDuke Emanuele Filiberto Iin 1570, and thereafter by succeeding Sovereigns. The most recent took place on 11 June 1985 byPrince Vittorio Emanuele,Sovereign of the order.[citation needed]It was in 1518, that many of the present designations were instituted. Most importantly, the order's name was changed to its current name, The Most Holy Supreme Order of the Annunciation.[when?]The badge of the order was also changed, with the representation of the Blessed Virgin Mary being added.[citation needed]

The order, throughout its early history and following the reforms ofDuke Carlo III,was awarded for supreme recognition of distinguished services. The order constituted a kind of religious and military fraternity between the Sovereign Head of the Order and his companions; it was reserved exclusively for distinguished men-at-arms who, apart from exemplary service, had to be of illustrious birth, particularly of catholic and noble birth.[citation needed]

Eventually, it was deemed appropriate to recognize those who had rendered distinguished service to the Kingdom of Italy (and the House of Savoy) in the exercise of high civil offices, not requiring, when such achievements could be demonstrated, nobility of birth as well.

The order holds the following other regulations:

  • The number of knights of the Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation shall be, as in the past, twenty.
  • The right to appoint knights and officers of the Order appertains exclusively to the Sovereign Head. When there are vacancies, the Sovereign Head meets with the Chapter of Knights to hear their advice on the proposal of candidates whom he alone may select.
  • The knights shall be chosen from distinguished individuals in recognition of their eminent services in high military positions, as well as from those who have distinguished themselves in senior positions in the civil service, and from those who, as private citizens have brought distinction upon Italy as exemplary benefactors of the Nation or of Mankind, or have rendered particularly noteworthy services to the Royal House of Savoy.
  • Knights must have already been awarded theOrder of Saints Maurice and Lazarus.
  • Knights must be Catholic. On rare occasions, a non-Catholic may be awarded the order. However, they may only be honorary members of the order.

In 1925, a law was passed on the day before Christmas which made the Head of Government (who at the time wasBenito Mussolini) the Secretary of the Order, and stipulated that he would preside over the Knights of the Order at public functions and ceremonies.

In October 2023,Princess Vittoria, Princess of Carignanowas created the first female Knight of the Order since its inception, by her grandfatherPrince Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples,Sovereign of the Order. Upon her eventual ascension as the Head of theHouse of Savoy,The Princess of Carignano will also become the first female Sovereign of the Order.

Classes and insignia

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The order has one rank and grade, i.e.Knight.The full Italian title isCavaliere dell'Ordine Supremo della Santissima Annunziata.

The Small Collar and the star badge of the Order

The order has two sets of insignia, the Small Collar (Piccola Collana)and the Grand Collar (Grande Collana).The two hold similar designs, though theGrande Collanahas some different features than the Small Collar and is worn only on the most special of occasions.

The Grand Collar consists of fourteen ornate sections, each of which is made up of the lettersFERTin gold, intertwined with a white and red enamelledSavoyan knot.The sections are interlinked with fourteen roses, alternately enamelled red and white. The roses represent the mysteries in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary. The knots surrounding the medallion of the collar is enamelled white, red, and blue. Pending from one of the fourteen sections is the medallion, which portrays an enamelled depiction of theAnnunciationof theVirgin Maryby theArchangel Gabriel.The medallion is surrounded by three intertwined Savoyan knots, decorated with small crosses fleury, and in the upper centre, between two of the Savoyan knots, a cluster of rays with a dove, representing the Holy Spirit, is depicted also in gold.[3]

The Small Collar is similar to the Large Collar, although of reduced size and with additional differences. The collar is made up of fifteen, rather than fourteen sections, and they are not separated by enamelled rose. The whole collar and medallion are solid gold, rather than with colored enamel like the Large Collar. The medallion pends from the interactions of two of the fourteen sections, rather than pending from the middle of as in the Large Collar.[3]

The star of the order, which was first used in 1680 by specifications of the Royal Lady Maria Giovana Battista, Duchess Regent of Savoy, is of gold and also has a representation of the Annunciation in a medallion in the centre which is set within a gold cross of four pommels. This is surrounded by a cluster of gold rays. Between the arms of the cross of four pommels are the letters F.E.R.T.

Regulations

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The insignia of the order has the following regulations:

  • The large collar (Grande Collana) is worn on the first day of the year, on the feast of the Most Holy Annunciation, and on all of the principal national holidays and at important royal functions.
  • The small collar (Piccola Collana) is worn on every other occasion which necessitates the display of order insignia.
  • Knights also wear, on the left breast, a star badge bearing the image of Holy Mary of the Annunciation.

On initiation of a new knight into the order, the small collar was worn by the initiate before theaccoladeby the Grand Master. After the accolade, the Grand Master would place the large collar over the shoulders of the new knight.

When the order is not worn, Knights may wear a gold miniature of the badge (medallion of the collar) of the order suspended from a red ribbon. They may also wear either a ribbon bar (upon a uniform) or a rosette (upon a suit), both of which are red and have a miniature cross of four pommels engraved with the Annunciation.[4]

Grand Magisterium

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Modern small collar badge of the order
Emmanuel Philibert of Savoyin the robes of Order of the Most Holy Annunciation

While theGrand MagisteriumofPrince Aimone of Savoyis limited to his claim, theGrand MagisteriumofEmanuele Filiberto, Prince of Veniceis currently in effect. The governing body of the dynastic orders of the Royal House of Savoy consists of the Sovereign and Grand Master of the Order, the Grand Chancellor of the Order, the Council of the Order, Members, and the Giunta of the Order. The following are some of those that make up theGrand Magisteriumof the order.

Notable recipients

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Among the notable recipients of the order of the Annunciation, KingAmanullahof Afghanistan (reigned 1919–1929) should probably be mentioned, especially since he was not a Christian. He received the honour during his State visit to Italy in 1928, when he authorized, for the first time, the opening of a Catholic church in Afghanistan (within the Italian Embassy) and the residence of a Catholic priest.[7]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^"THE DYNASTIC ORDERS".Dynastic Orders of the Royal House of Savoy.
  2. ^abcSyr Gawayn and the Grene Knyzt-(Concluded),J. R. Hulbert,Modern Philology,Vol. 13, No. 12 (Apr., 1916), 140.
  3. ^ab"Insignia and Robes of the Annunziata".American Delegation of Savoy Orders.Retrieved2023-04-11.
  4. ^"Ordini Dinastici della Real Casa Savoia".disavoia.org(in Italian). Archived fromthe originalon 2006-06-14.Retrieved2017-04-18.
  5. ^Italia: Ministero dell'interno (1898),Calendario generale del Regno d'Italia,Unione tipografico-editrice, p.54,archivedfrom the original on 7 January 2021,retrieved23 September2022
  6. ^Miller 2015,p. 570.
  7. ^Dupree, Louis (1973).Afghanistan,Princeton University Press.
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Wikimedia Commons has media related toOrder of the Most Holy Annunciation.

References

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  • Miller, Michael (2015).Leaders Of The Storm Troops Volume 1.England: Helion & Company.ISBN978-1-909982-87-1.
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