Order of Carol I

The Order of Carol I (Romanian: Ordinul Carol I) was the highest ranking of the Romanian honours of the Kingdom of Romania until the abolition of the monarchy in 1947. It was instituted on 10 May 1906[1] by King Carol I to celebrate the Ruby Jubilee of 40 years of his reign.

Order of Carol I
Ordinul Carol I
Badge and sash of the order
Awarded by the King of Romania
TypeDynastic Order
Royal houseHouse of Romania
Religious affiliationRomanian Orthodox
RibbonPale blue with gold edges bearing a narrow red stripe
MottoPRIN STATORNICIE LA IZBÂNDĂ
("To Victory Through Steadiness")
Awarded forConspicuous and special merit
StatusCurrently constituted
GradesGrand Cross with Collar
Grand Cross
Grand Officer
Commander
Precedence
Next (higher)None (highest)
Next (lower)Order of the Crown

Ribbon of the order

During its time as a national order, it was widely used to reward members of the Romanian royal family, Romanian Prime Ministers, Romanian politicians, foreign monarchs and heads of state, selected consorts and heirs, and other people thought to be worthy of receiving the order by the King of Romania.

It is currently a dynastic order of the former Romanian royal family. It is the highest-ranking award among all the decorations of the Romanian Royal House and is administered by its head. There are currently no foreign knights or dames of the order, except for members of the Romanian royal family.

Classes

The order has only the superior classes, each of them with limited numbers:[2]

  • Grand Cross with Collar (limited to 10)
  • Grand Cross (limited to 20)
  • Grand Officer (limited to 30)
  • Commander (limited to 40)

Posseeders of the order, regardless of degree, call themselves Knight of the Order of Carol I.

Insignia

Collar

The Collar is in Gold and consists of 8 links of the emblems of the Danubian Principalities of The: Principality of Wallachia, Principality of Moldavia, Principality of Oltenia and Principality of Dobruja, 4 emblems on either side of the collar with 2 of the emblems of the House of Hohenzollern between each two Principalities; between each emblem is the monogram of King Carol I. At the back of the collar is the lock which is an Eagle with open wings which suspends in half to wear. At the front of the collar is the Steel Crown of Romania which the badge of the order suspends from.

Badge
  • The Badge is the Romanian Eagle on top of a square Gold sunray on top of a Red Maltese cross. The Eagle wears the Crown of Romania, holds the Orthodox cross in its beak, holds the Sword of King Carol I in its left claw, holds the Royal Mantle in its right claw and supports the ribbon inscribed "PRIN STATORNICIE LA IZBÂNDĂ" by both its claws whilst on its chest is a small Gold effigy of King Carol I.[3]

On the obverse is the Red Maltese cross on top of the Gold sunray, in the middle of the Maltese Cross is a small Gold monogram of King Carol I.

  • The Badge is featured on: The Collar, The Sash, The Medal and The Necklet.

Stars

There are two types of stars of the order: 1st which is for the Grand Cross with Collar/Grand Cross and the 2nd which is for the Grand Officer; both are to worn on the left stomach.

  • The 1st Star is in Gold which is 8-pointed, set in sunray's and is similar in shape of the Swedish Royal Order of the Seraphim; the Eagle which is on the Badge is on top of the star and set in Silver.
  • The 2nd Star is also in Gold and also in sunray's, it is set in a Rhombus shape and is similar in shape of the Dutch Order of the Crown; the Eagle which is on the Badge is on top of the star and set in Gold.

Sash

The Sash is pale Blue with Gold edges bearing a narrow Red stripe; at the bottom of the sash is a bow which joins both sides together and where the badge hangs from; It is worn from the right shoulder.[4]

Recipients

Grand Cross with Collar

Kingdom of Romania Romanian royal family

Romania

Foreign

Grand Cross

Romania Romanian royal family

Romania

Foreign

Grand Officer

Romania Romanian royal family

Romania

Commander

Romania

See also

References
  1. "ODM of Romania: Order of Carol I". medals.org.uk. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  2. "Cancelaria Ordinelor". canord.presidency.ro. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  3. "Image: Order_of_Carol_I.jpg". commons.m.wikimedia.org. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  4. "Image: Order-of-Carol-I-2.jpg, (402 × 455 px)". paulfrasercollectibles.com. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  5. "Carol, the first King of Romania". robinsonlibrary.com. Archived from the original on 14 October 2011. Retrieved 6 September 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. Familia Regala
  7. "Regina Maria catre printul Carol si capetele incoronate au slabiciuni | Romania Libera". romanialibera.ro. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  8. "National Portrait Gallery - Large Image - NPG x121560; Prince Nicholas of Romania". npg.org.uk. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  9. , Current Recipients of the order
  10. "Order of Carol I". familiaregala.ro. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  11. "Demnitari în cortegiul funerar | Fototeca Ortodoxiei Românești". fototecaortodoxiei.ro. Archived from the original on 10 September 2015. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  12. "The Royal House of Norway - The Decorations of King Haakon". royalcourt.no. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  13. "Antique Photos - Antique Photos". antique-photos.com. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  14. "Passenger List, White Star Line, Republic, 14 August 1907". ggarchives.com. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  15. "Ordinul Carol I" [Order of Carol I], Familia Regală a României (in Romanian), Bucharest, archived from the original on 6 May 2021, retrieved 23 September 2022
  16. "Banca Naţională a României - Theodor Rosetti". bnr.ro. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  17. "Duke Georg Alexander | House of Mecklenburg-Strelitz". mecklenburg-strelitz.org. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  18. "Umberto II : Who, What, Where, When". servinghistory.com. Retrieved 6 September 2015.
  19. Acović, Dragomir (2012). Slava i čast: Odlikovanja među Srbima, Srbi među odlikovanjima. Belgrade: Službeni Glasnik. p. 153.
  20. "A patra zi a Jubileului 90 | Familia Regală a României / Royal Family of Romania". romaniaregala.ro. Retrieved 6 September 2015.

Further reading
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