- Order of Merit
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This article is about the Commonwealth realms order. For similarly named orders, see Order of Merit (disambiguation).
Order of Merit 
Insignia of the Order of Merit presented to Dorothy Hodgkin, displayed in the Royal Society in London Awarded by the
sovereign of the Commonwealth realmsType Dynastic order Royal house House of Windsor Motto FOR MERIT Eligibility All living citizens of the Commonwealth realms Awarded for At the monarch's pleasure Status Currently constituted Sovereign Elizabeth II Grades (w/ post-nominals) Member (OM) Established 1902 Precedence Next (higher) Dependent on state Next (lower) Dependent on state 
Ribbon of the Order of Merit The Order of Merit (French: Ordre du Mérite)[n 1] is a dynastic order recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by King Edward VII, admission into the order remains the personal gift of its Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, and is limited to 24 living recipients at one time from these countries plus a limited number of honorary members.[1][2] While all members receive the ability to use the post-nominal letters OM and a medallion for life,[3] the Order of Merit's precedence amongst other honours differs between Commonwealth realms.
Contents
History
The first mention of a possible Order of Merit was made following the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805, in correspondence between First Lord of the Admiralty The Lord Barham and William Pitt, though nothing eventuated from the idea.[4] Later, it was thought by Queen Victoria, her courtiers, and politicians alike,[5] that a new order, based on the Prussian order Pour le Mérite, would make up for the insufficient recognition offered by the established honours system to achievement outside of public service, in realms such as art, music, literature, industry, and science.[4] Victoria's husband, Albert, Prince Consort, took an interest in the matter; it was recorded in his diary that he met on 16 January 1844 with Robert Peel to discuss the "idea of institution of a civil Order of Merit" and three days later he conferred with the Queen on the subject.[6] The concept did not wither and, on 5 January 1888, British prime minister the Marquess of Salisbury submitted to the Queen a draft constitution for an Order of Merit in Science and Art, consisting of one grade split into two branches of knighthood: the Order of Scientific Merit for Knights of Merit in Science, with the post-nominal letters KMS and the Order of Artistic Merit for Knights of Merit in Art, with the post-nominal letters KMA. However, Sir Frederic Leighton, President of the Royal Academy, advised against the new order, primarily because of its selection process.[7]
King Edward VII, founder of the Order of Merit
It was Victoria's son, Edward VII, who eventually founded the Order of Merit on 26 June 1902 the date for which his coronation had been originally planned[8] as a means to acknowledge "exceptionally meritorious service in Our Navy and Our Army, or who may have rendered exceptionally meritorious service towards the advancement of Art, Literature and Science";[9] all modern aspects of the order were established under his direction, including the division for military figures.[3] From the outset, prime ministers attempted to propose candidates or lobbied to influence the monarch's decision on appointments, but the Royal Household adamantly guarded information about potential names.[3] After 1931, when the Statute of Westminster came into being and the Dominions of the British Empire became independent states, equal in status to the UK,[10][11] the Order of Merit remained an honour open to all the King's realms; thus, as with the monarch who conferred it, the order ceased to be purely British.[1][12]
From its inception, the order has been open to women, Florence Nightingale being the first woman to receive the honour, in 1907. Several individuals have refused admission into the Order of Merit, such as Rudyard Kipling, A. E. Housman, and George Bernard Shaw. To date, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, remains the youngest person ever inducted into the Order of Merit, having been admitted by Queen Elizabeth II in 1968, when he was 47 years of age.[3]
Eligibility and appointment
All citizens of the Commonwealth realms are eligible for appointment to the Order of Merit. There may be, however, only 24 living individuals in the order at any given time, not including honorary appointees, and new members are personally selected by the reigning monarch of the 16 realms, presently Queen Elizabeth II, with the assistance of her private secretaries;[3] the order has thus been described as "quite possibly, the most prestigious honour one can receive on planet Earth."[13] Within the limited membership is a designated military division, with its own unique insignia; though it has not been abolished, it is currently unpopulated, the Earl Mountbatten of Burma having been the last person so honoured.[3] Honorary members form another group, to which there is no numerical limit, though such appointments are rare; individuals from countries in the Commonwealth of Nations that are not headed by Elizabeth II are therefore considered foreigners, and thus are granted only honorary admissions, such as Nelson Mandela (South Africa) and Mother Teresa (India).[1]
Upon admission into the Order of Merit, members are entitled to use the post-nominal letters OM, and are entrusted with the badge of the order, consisting of a golden crown from which is suspended a red enamelled cross, itself centred by a disk of blue enamel, surrounded by a gold laurel wreath, and bearing in gold lettering the words FOR MERIT;[14] the insignia for the military grouping is distinguished by a pair of crossed swords behind the central disk. The ribbon of the Order of Merit is divided into two stripes of red and blue; men wear their badges on a neck ribbon, while women carry theirs on a ribbon bow pinned to the left shoulder, and aides-de-camp may wear the insignia on their aiguillettes.[14] Since 1991, it has been required that the insignia be returned upon the recipient's death.[15]
Current members
- Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II
- Members
- (122)[n 2]
The Duke of Edinburgh, royal consort, appointed 10 June 1968[16] - (145)
The Reverend William Owen Chadwick, theological historian, appointed 11 November 1983[16] - (146) Sir Andrew Fielding Huxley, physiologist, Nobel laureate, and former President of the Royal Society, appointed 11 November 1983[16]
- (151) Frederick Sanger, biochemist and double Nobel laureate, appointed 11 February 1986[16]
- (158) The Lady Thatcher, former British prime minister, appointed 7 December 1990[16]
- (162) Sir Michael Francis Atiyah, mathematician, Fields medalist, Abel laureate, and former President of the Royal Society, appointed 17 November 1992[16]
- (166) Sir Aaron Klug, biophysicist, Nobel laureate, and former President of the Royal Society, appointed 23 October 1995[16]
- (169) The Lord Foster of Thames Bank, architect and Pritzker laureate, appointed 25 November 1997[16]
- (174) Sir Anthony Alfred Caro, sculptor, appointed 9 May 2000[16]
- (175) Sir Roger Penrose, mathematical physicist, appointed 9 May 2000[16]
- (176) Sir Tom Stoppard, playwright, appointed 9 May 2000[16]
- (177) The Prince of Wales, heir to the throne and conservationist, appointed 27 June 2002[16]
- (178)
The Lord May of Oxford, ecologist and former President of the Royal Society, appointed 28 October 2002[16] - (179) The Lord Rothschild, philanthropist, appointed 28 October 2002[16]
- (180) Sir David Frederick Attenborough, broadcaster, appointed 10 June 2005[16]
- (181) The Lady Boothroyd, first female Speaker of the British House of Commons, appointed 10 June 2005[16]
- (182) Sir Michael Eliot Howard, military historian, appointed 10 June 2005[16]
- (183) The Lord Eames, Anglican Primate of All Ireland and Archbishop of Armagh, appointed 13 June 2007[16]
- (184) Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee, inventor of the World Wide Web and Director of the World Wide Web Consortium, appointed 13 June 2007[16]
- (185) The Lord Rees of Ludlow, Astronomer Royal and former President of the Royal Society, appointed 13 June 2007[16]
- (186)
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien, former Canadian prime minister, appointed 13 July 2009[17] - (187) Robert Neil MacGregor, art historian and Director of the British Museum, appointed 4 November 2010[18]
- Vacant
- Vacant
- Honorary members
(165)
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela, statesman and Nobel laureate, appointed 21 March 1995[16]Precedence in each realm
As the Order of Merit is open to the citizens of sixteen different countries, each with their own system of orders, decorations, and medals, the order's place of precedence varies from country to country. While, in the United Kingdom, the order's postnominal letters follow those of Knights and Dames Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath, membership in the Order of Merit itself gives members no place in any of the orders of precedence in the United Kingdom. However, it has been claimed by Stanley Martin, in his book The Order of Merit 1902-2002: One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour, that the Order of Merit is actually the pinnacle of the British honours system.[19] Similarly, though it was not listed in the Canadian order of precedence for honours, decorations, and medals until December 2010,[20] except relating to those who were appointed to the order prior to 1 June 1972,[21] both Christopher McCreery, an expert on Canadian honours and secretary to the Lieutenant Governor of Nova Scotia, and Rafal Heydel-Mankoo, an editor of Burke's Peerage, stated that the Order of Merit was the highest civilian award for merit a Canadian could receive.[22][23][24]
Some orders of precedence are as follows:
Past members
Substantive members
Florence Nightingale, the first female member of the Order of Merit, appointed in 1907
Countries[n 3] Name Date of appointment Date of death 1.[n 4] The Earl Roberts 26 June 1902 14 November 1914 2. The Viscount Wolseley 26 June 1902 25 March 1913 3. The Earl Kitchener 26 June 1902 5 June 1916 4. The Lord Rayleigh 26 June 1902 30 June 1919 5. The Lord Kelvin 26 June 1902 17 December 1907 6. The Lord Lister 26 June 1902 10 February 1912 7. Sir Henry Keppel 26 June 1902 17 January 1904 8. The Viscount Morley of Blackburn 26 June 1902 23 September 1923 9. William Edward Hartpole Lecky 26 June 1902 22 October 1903 10. Sir Edward Hobart Seymour 26 June 1902 2 March 1929 11. Sir William Huggins 26 June 1902 12 May 1910 12. George Frederic Watts 26 June 1902 1 July 1904 13. Sir George Stuart White 30 June 1905 24 June 1912 14. The Lord Fisher 30 June 1905 10 July 1920 15. Sir Richard Claverhouse Jebb 30 June 1905 9 December 1905 16. Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema 30 June 1905 25 June 1912 17. George Meredith 30 June 1905 18 May 1909 18. William Holman Hunt 30 June 1905 7 September 1910 22. The Earl of Cromer 29 June 1906 29 January 1917 23. The Viscount Bryce 11 February 1907 22 January 1922 24. Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker 30 June 1907 10 December 1911 25. Florence Nightingale 12 May 1907 13 August 1910 26. Henry Jackson 26 June 1908 25 September 1921 27. Alfred Russel Wallace 26 June 1908 7 November 1913 28. Sir William Crookes 8 July 1910 4 April 1919 29. Thomas Hardy 8 July 1910 11 January 1928 30. Sir George Otto Trevelyan 19 June 1911 17 August 1928 31. Sir Edward William Elgar 19 June 1911 23 February 1934 32. Sir Arthur Knyvet Wilson 8 March 1912 25 May 1921 33. Sir Joseph John Thomson 15 March 1912 30 August 1940 34. Sir Archibald Geikie 1 January 1914 10 November 1924 35. The Earl of Ypres 3 December 1914 22 May 1925 36. The Viscount Haldane 26 May 1915 19 August 1928 37. Henry James 1 January 1916 28 February 1916 38. The Earl Jellicoe 31 May 1916 20 November 1935 39. The Earl of Balfour 3 June 1916 19 March 1930 41. The Earl Beatty 3 June 1919 11 March 1936 42. The Earl Haig 3 June 1919 29 January 1928 44. The Earl Lloyd-George 5 August 1919 26 March 1945 45. Sir James Matthew Barrie 2 January 1922 19 June 1937 46. Francis Herbert Bradley 3 June 1924 18 September 1924 47. Sir Charles Scott Sherrington 3 June 1924 4 March 1952 48. Sir James George Frazer 1 January 1925 7 May 1941 49. 
/The Lord Rutherford of Nelson 1 January 1925 19 October 1937 50. Sir Charles Algernon Parsons 3 June 1927 11 February 1931 51. Sir George Abraham Grierson 4 June 1928 9 March 1941 52. Robert Seymour Bridges 3 June 1929 21 April 1930 53. John Galsworthy 3 June 1929 31 January 1933 54. /Samuel Alexander 3 June 1930 13 September 1938 55. Montague Rhodes James 3 June 1930 12 June 1936 56. George Macaulay Trevelyan 3 June 1930 21 July 1962 57. Sir Charles Edward Madden 1 January 1931 5 June 1935 58. Philip Wilson Steer 1 January 1931 18 March 1942 59. Sir William Henry Bragg 3 June 1931 10 March 1942 60. John William Mackail 1 January 1935 13 December 1945 61. John Edward Masefield 3 June 1935 12 May 1967 62. Ralph Vaughan Williams 3 June 1935 26 August 1958 63. Sir Frederick Gowland Hopkins 3 June 1935 16 May 1947 64. The Lord Chetwode 1 January 1936 6 July 1950 65. Herbert Albert Laurens Fisher 1 February 1937 18 April 1940 66. The Lord Baden-Powell 11 May 1937 8 January 1941 67. Sir Arthur Stanley Eddington 9 June 1938 22 November 1944 68. The Lord Chatfield 2 January 1939 15 November 1967 69. Sir James Hopwood Jeans 2 January 1939 16 September 1946 70. The Lord Newall 29 October 1940 30 November 1963 71. /George Gilbert Aimé Murray 1 January 1941 20 May 1957 72. Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens 1 January 1942 1 January 1944 73. Augustus Edwin John 11 June 1942 31 October 1961 74. The Lord Adrian 11 June 1942 4 August 1977 75. Sir William Searle Holdsworth 1 January 1943 2 January 1944 76. Sir Alfred Dudley Pickman Rogers Pound 3 September 1943 21 October 1943 77. The Lord Passfield 8 June 1944 13 October 1947 78. Sir Henry Hallett Dale 8 June 1944 23 July 1968 79. Sir Giles Gilbert Scott 8 June 1944 8 February 1960 80. /
Alfred North Whitehead 1 January 1945 30 December 1947 82. Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill 1 January 1946 24 January 1965 83. The Viscount Portal of Hungerford 1 January 1946 22 April 1971 84. The Viscount Alanbrooke 13 June 1946 17 June 1963 85. The Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope 13 June 1946 12 June 1963 86. The Earl of Halifax 13 June 1946 23 December 1959 87. 
Jan Christiaan Smuts 1 January 1947 11 September 1950 89. 
William Lyon Mackenzie King 17 November 1947 22 July 1950 90. Thomas Stearns Eliot 1 January 1948 4 January 1965 91. Sir Robert Robinson 9 June 1949 8 February 1975 92. The Earl Russell 9 June 1949 2 February 1970 93. Sir Alexander George Montagu Cadogan 1 January 1951 9 July 1968 94. The Viscount Trenchard 1 January 1951 10 February 1956 95. George Edward Moore 7 June 1951 24 October 1958 96. The Earl Attlee 5 November 1951 8 October 1967 97. Wilder Graves Penfield 1 January 1953 5 April 1976 98. Walter John de la Mare 1 June 1953 22 June 1956 100. The Lord Hailey 31 May 1956 1 June 1969 101. Sir John Douglas Cockcroft 1 January 1957 18 September 1967 102. The Viscount Waverley 8 December 1957 4 January 1958 103. Sir Frank Macfarlane Burnet 12 June 1958 31 August 1985 104. The Viscount Samuel 21 November 1958 2 February 1963 105. The Earl Alexander of Tunis 23 April 1960 16 June 1969 106. Sir Cyril Norman Hinshelwood 23 April 1960 9 October 1967 107. Graham Sutherland 23 April 1960 17 February 1980 108. Sir Geoffrey de Havilland 23 November 1962 21 May 1965 109. Sir Basil Urwin Spence 23 November 1962 19 November 1976 110. Sir Owen Dixon 29 May 1963 7 July 1972 112. George Peabody Gooch 16 August 1963 31 August 1968 113. Henry Spencer Moore 16 August 1963 31 August 1986 114. The Lord Britten 23 March 1965 4 December 1976 115. Dorothy Mary Hodgkin 23 March 1965 29 July 1994 116. The Earl Mountbatten of Burma 15 July 1965 27 August 1979 117. /The Lord Florey 15 July 1965 21 February 1968 118. The Lord Blackett 20 November 1967 13 July 1974 119. Sir William Turner Walton 20 November 1967 8 March 1983 120. Benjamin Lauder Nicholson 23 April 1968 6 February 1982 121. /The Lord Zuckerman 23 April 1968 1 April 1993 123. Edward Morgan Forster 1 January 1969 7 June 1970 124. Malcolm John MacDonald 14 July 1969 11 January 1981 125. The Lord Penney 14 July 1969 3 March 1991 126. Sir Geoffrey Ingram Taylor 14 July 1969 27 June 1975 127. Dame Cicely Veronica Wedgwood 14 July 1969 9 March 1997 128. John Cawte Beaglehole 21 March 1970 10 October 1971 129. Lester Bowles Pearson 20 May 1971 27 December 1972 130. Sir Isaiah Berlin 20 May 1971 5 November 1997 131. Sir George Robert Freeman Edwards 20 May 1971 2 March 2003 132. Sir Alan Lloyd Hodgkin 17 April 1973 20 December 1998 133. Paul Adrien Maurice Dirac 17 April 1973 20 October 1984 134. The Earl of Stockton 2 April 1976 29 December 1986 135. The Lord Hinton of Bankside 2 April 1976 22 June 1983 136. The Lord Clark 2 April 1976 21 May 1983 137. /Sir Ronald Syme 2 April 1976 4 September 1989 138. The Lord Todd 24 October 1977 10 January 1997 139. The Lord Franks 24 October 1977 15 October 1992 140. Sir Frederick William Mallandaine Ashton 24 October 1977 18 October 1988 141. John Boynton Priestley 24 October 1977 14 August 1984 142. The Lord Olivier 6 February 1981 11 July 1989 143. Sir Peter Brian Medawar 6 February 1981 2 October 1987 144. The Lord Cheshire 6 February 1981 31 July 1992 147. Sir Sidney Robert Nolan 11 November 1983 28 November 1992 148. Sir Michael Kemp Tippett 11 November 1983 8 January 1998 150. Henry Graham Greene 11 February 1986 3 April 1991 152. Sir Frank Whittle 11 February 1986 9 August 1996 153. The Lord Menuhin 25 February 1987 12 March 1999 154. Sir Ernst Hans Josef Gombrich 15 February 1988 3 November 2001 155. Max Ferdinand Perutz 15 February 1988 6 February 2002 156. Dame Cicely Mary Saunders 30 November 1989 14 July 2005 157. The Lord Porter of Luddenham 30 November 1989 31 August 2002 159. Dame Joan Alston Sutherland 29 November 1991 10 October 2010 160. /
Francis Harry Compton Crick 27 November 1991 28 July 2004 161. Dame Ninette de Valois 17 November 1992 8 March 2001 163. The Lord Jenkins of Hillhead 6 December 1993 5 January 2003 164. Lucian Michael Freud 6 December 1993 20 July 2011 167. Sir Arthur John Gielgud 9 December 1996 21 May 2000 168. The Lord Denning 25 November 1997 5 March 1999 170. Sir Denis Eric Rooke 25 November 1997 2 September 2008 171. Edward James Hughes 10 August 1998 28 October 1998 172. George Haliburton Hume 25 May 1999 17 June 1999 173. Sir James Whyte Black 9 May 2000 22 March 2010 Honorary members
Agnesë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu, known as Mother Teresa, appointed to the Order of Merit in 1983Countries[n 3] Name Date of appointment Date of death 19. 
Prince Yamagata Aritomo 21 February 1906 1 February 1922 20. Prince Ōyama Iwao 21 February 1906 10 December 1916 21. Marquess Tōgō Heihachirō 21 February 1906 30 May 1934 40. 
Ferdinand Foch 29 November 1918 20 March 1929 43. Joseph Jacques Césaire Joffre 26 June 1919 3 January 1931 81. Dwight David Eisenhower 12 June 1945 28 March 1969 88. John Gilbert Winant 1 January 1947 3 November 1947 99. Albert Schweitzer 25 February 1955 4 September 1965 111. 
Sir Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan 12 June 1963 17 April 1975 149. 
/Agnesë Gonxhe Bojaxhiu 18 November 1983 5 September 1997 Notes
- ^ For use in Canada, in accordance with the country's policy of official bilingualism.
- ^ The number shown in brackets is the individual's place in the wider order of appointment since the Order of Merit's inception.
- ^ a b Flags denote country of origin and country or countries of later residence, respectively.
- ^ The number shown is the individual's place in the wider order of appointment since the Order of Merit's inception.
Citations
- ^ a b c The Royal Household. "The Queen and the UK > Queen and Honours > Order of Merit". Queen's Printer. http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/Honours/OrderofMerit.aspx. Retrieved 28 July 2009.
- ^ Office of the Governor General of Canada. "It's an Honour > Orders > Order of Merit". Queen's Printer for Canada.
- ^ a b c d e f Jackson, Michael D. (2007). "The Order of Merit 1902-2002: One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour". Canadian Monarchist News (Toronto: Monarchist League of Canada) Summer 2007 (26): 15. http://www.monarchist.ca/cmn/2007/Summer_2007_CMN.pdf. Retrieved 28 July 2009.[dead link]
- ^ a b Martin 2007, p. 11
- ^ Martin 2007, p. 12
- ^ Martin 2007, p. 13
- ^ Martin 2007, pp. 18–20
- ^ Martin 2007, p. 1
- ^ Mountbatten, Philip (2007). "Foreword". written at London. In Martin, Stanley. The Order of Merit: One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour. New York: I.B. Tauris & Co. Ltd.. pp. xvii. ISBN 978-1-86064-848-9. http://books.google.ca/books?id=zWVscq9SdgYC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q=&f=false. Retrieved 14 October 2009.
- ^ Arthur, Balfour (November 1926). "Imperial Conference 1926: Inter-Imperial Relations Committee Report". London: King's Printer. p. 1. E (I.R./26) Series. http://www.foundingdocs.gov.au/resources/transcripts/cth11_doc_1926.pdf. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
- ^ George V (11 December 1931). The Statute of Westminster, 1931. 2.2. Westminster: King's Printer. http://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Canada/English/StatuteofWestminster.html. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
- ^ "Chrétien says Order of Merit 'humbling experience'". CTV. 14 July 2009. http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20090714/jean_chretien_090714/20090714?hub=TopStories&s_name=. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
- ^ Editorial Board (15 July 2009). "Order Worthy?". National Post. http://www.nationalpost.com/story.html?id=1791001. Retrieved 29 July 2009.[dead link]
- ^ a b Clarence House. "For Children > Medals and Uniforms > Medals > Picture 4: The Order of Merit". Queen's Printer. http://www.princeofwales.gov.uk/forchildren/medalsanduniforms/medals/index.html. Retrieved 29 July 2009.
- ^ Martin 2007, p. 56
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u The Royal Household. "The Queen and the UK > Queen and Honours > Order of Merit > List of current members". Queen's Printer. http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/Honours/OrderofMerit/Listofcurrentmembers.aspx. Retrieved 15 August 2009.
- ^ "Queen gives Chrétien Order of Merit". CBC. 13 July 2009. http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2009/07/13/chretien-merit.html. Retrieved 15 August 2009.
- ^ Buckingham Palace. "Mr Neil MacGregor appointed to the Order of Merit, 4 November 2010". The Royal Household. http://www.royal.gov.uk/LatestNewsandDiary/Pressreleases/2010/MrNeilMacGregorappointedtotheOrderofMerit4November.aspx. Retrieved 4 November 2010.
- ^ Martin, Stanley (2007). "The Order of Merit 1902-2002: One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour". written at London and New York. In Jackson, Michael D.. The Order of Merit 1902-2002: One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour. Summer 2007. Toronto: Monarchist League of Canada. 15. http://www.monarchist.ca/cmn/2007/Summer_2007_CMN.pdf. Retrieved 28 July 2009.
- ^ Government of Canada (8 December 2010), "Order of Merit (O.M.) Order", Canada Gazette (Queen's Printer for Canada) 144 (25), SI/2010-88, http://www.gazette.gc.ca/rp-pr/p2/2010/2010-12-08/html/si-tr88-eng.html, retrieved 10 December 2010
- ^ Office of the Governor General of Canada. "Honours > Order of Precedence". Queen's Printer for Canada. http://www.gg.ca/honours/op/index_e.asp. Retrieved 24 July 2009.
- ^ McCreery, Christopher (2005). The Order of Canada: Its Origins, History and Development. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. ISBN 0-8020-3940-5.
- ^ Taber, Jane (15 July 2009). "Chrétien 'thrilled' by rare honour from Queen". The Globe and Mail. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/chrtien-thrilled-by-rare-honour-from-queen/article1216381/. Retrieved 24 July 2009.
- ^ Heydel-Mankoo, Rafal (2009). "Letter". In The Monarchist. A Letter from Burke's Peerage and Gentry. London: The Monarchist. 25 July 2009. http://themonarchist.blogspot.com/2009/07/letter-from-burkes-peerage-and-gentry.html. Retrieved 26 July 2009.
- ^ New Zealand Defence Force. "Medals Home > general medals information > order of wear". Queen's Printer for New Zealand. http://medals.nzdf.mil.nz/info/orderofwear.html. Retrieved 30 July 2009.
References
- Martin, Stanley (2007). The Order of Merit: One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour. New York: I.B. Tauris & Co. Ltd.. ISBN 978-1-86064-848-9. http://books.google.com/?id=zWVscq9SdgYC&printsec=frontcover&q=.
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