THE ROYAL HOUSE OF GEORGIA
Canada Delegation
Royal Orders
AWARDING SYSTEM
OF
THE ROYAL HOUSE OF GEORGIA
BACKGROUND
The Georgian Kingdom never had a tradition to grant chivalric honours. Contrary to many European sovereigns, the Georgian kings used to reward their subordinates with a sword, or a castle, or a plot of land.
During the last period of the Georgian Kingdom there was a plan to establish four orders of chivalry. This was instigated by one of the direct ancestors of the present Crown Prince Nugzar, Prince Ioan, the son of the last King of Georgia, Giorgi XII.
The royal Prince Ioane prepared a special project in which they considered the establishment of chivalric Orders. On 1oth May 1799 this project was presented to his father King Giorgi XII of Georgia who liked it and approved it for the United Kingdom of Georgia. Prince Ioane, direct ancestors of the present Crown Prince Nugzar, along with other state issues has started to implement this project. Unfortunately, this plan was never put into place because soon after King Giorgi passed away (December 28, 1800), in spite the Treaty of Georgievsk's 3rd Article guaranteed continued sovereignty for the Bagration Dynasty and their continued presence on the Georgian throne, the Imperial Russia took advantage of the moment and moved to illegally annex the Georgian kingdoms on 17th January 1801 while sending the remnants of the Georgian royal family into forced exile in Russia.
Before the collapse of the Soviet Union the Royal Family lived inside the iron curtain. The fact of being isolated from the European civilization unfortunately allowed some other distant Non-royal members of the Dynasty to act as pretenders. Of course, if the country was not governed by a communist regime, these would not have been allowed to do so.
Follow the example of the Sovereign Dynasties of Europe the Royal Awarding System are currently awarded by HRH Prince Nugzar Bagrationi-Gruzinski and does not confer nobility in any class. Following this historic event, on 25th December 2009 the present Head of the Royal House of Georgia issued a special decree to establish three Awarding Orders.
The Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom
This Order is bestowed on persons who have served the Royal family of Georgia and contributed to the well-being of this country. This is available to both Georgian citizens and foreigners. The Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom was established on 4th July 2013 by Royal decree on the feast of the two Martyr Georgian Kings, St. Archil (744) and St. Luarsab (1622);
The Royal Order of King Erekle II
This Order is bestowed on Georgian citizens and shall be an honor for persons who have contributed actively to the nation’s development and served its prosperity, be they from the government ranks, Church leaders, artists, sports professionals or scientists.
The Royal Order of St. David:
This highest Order is reserved for members of the Royal family of Georgia as well as for other legitimate and true royals around the world. At the discretion of the Head of the Order, this honor may also be bestowed on Heads of State in their capacity as Head of a sovereign country. Its purpose is to promote the Royal family of Georgia widely as an old royal dynasty in the world.
The Royal Order of St. Queen Ketevan the Martyr
The Royal Order of St. Queen Ketevan the Martyr is an honor for persons who have served the Royal House of Georgia and/or contributed to the well-being of the people of Georgia or the Orthodox Church. It is available to both Georgian and non-Georgian persons.
THE ROYAL ORDER OF THE CROWN OF THE GEORGIA KINGDOM CONSISTS OF SIX RANKS
FROM LOWEST TO HIGHEST IN PRECEDENCE:
1 - Knight or Dame of The Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom (Post nominal= KGK/DGK)
2 - Knight Officer or Dame Officer of The Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom (Post nominal= KOGK/DOGK)
3 - Knight Commander or Dame Commander of The Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom (Post nominal= KCGK/DCGK)
4 - Knight Grand Officer or Dame Grand Officer of The Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom (Post nominal = KGOGK/DGOGK)
5 - Knight Grand Cross or Dame Grand Cross of The Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom (Post nominal= KGCGK/DGCGK)
6 - Knight Grand Collar or Dame Grand Collar of The Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom (this Rank is reserved for the Grand Master of the Order, Georgian Royal family members, and Heads of State).
Recipients of the award at the various ranks are entitled to the following:
- Knights/Dames receive a silver narrow neck riband, a broad red riband and a Cape (Kabalachi) with embroidered insignia on it.
- Knight Officers/Dame Officers receive a gold breast medal, a broad red riband and a Cape (Kabalachi) with embroidered insignia on it.
- Knight Commanders/Dame Commanders receive a silver breast star, a silver narrow neck riband, a broad red riband and a Cape (Kabalachi) with embroidered insignia on it.
- Knight Grand Officers/Dame Grand Officers receive a gold breast star, a gold breast medal, a broad riband and a Cape (Kabalachi) with embroidered insignia on it.
- Knight Grand Crosses/Dame Grand Crosses receive a gold breast star, a gold breast medal, a broad red riband with the insignia of the Order and a Cape (Kabalachi) with embroidered insignia on it.
- Knight Grand Collars/Dame Grand Collars receive a gold collar, a broad red riband with the insignia of the Order, a gold breast star, a gold breast medal, and a Cape (Kabalachi) with embroidered insignia on it.
Title
The honors of this Order are for the life of the recipient. They are not hereditary. Males who receive the award are entitled to the style of “His Honour”, and the title of Raindi (Knight), unless he has another title that has a higher style. Likewise, females who receive the award are entitled to the style of “Her Honour”, and the title of Mandilosani (Dame), unless she has another title that has a higher style.
Example a Knight of the Order would be addressed as "His Honour Raindi Joe Doe, KGK"
This tradition dates from the reign of King Giorgi XII, when gentlemen who were not titled but still honorable were accorded the style of “ghirseuli” (ღირსეული). Modern recipients of the Order are also entitled to use the title of Raindi (Knight – Geo:“Raindi” transcribe: [Ræɪŋ'dɪ] - რაინდი) if male, or Mandilosani (Dame – Geo: most Appropriate “Mandilosani” transcribe: [’Mændɪlosænɪ] - მანდილოსანი), if female, as a prefix to his or her name.
Admission:
Admission into the Order is open to all persons of good will who wish to collaborate in chivalrous spirit in the furtherance of the Order Statutes. Considerations in selecting members are: demonstrated good character, documented accomplishments in life, and obvious commitment to the ideals of the Royal House. The Order invests membership upon only those men and women who deport themselves in an honorable and chivalrous manner, who will be committed to the Order´s values and precepts, and who are Ecumenical in thought. A candidate´s involvement in other charitable, military, religious and hereditary organizations are welcome to our Order.
Not every person who offers a gift can be honored; major support capital for our worldwide works is raised through our financial benefactors. Our Grand Council may recommend to our Order, people who have performed great service in support and shares our philanthropic works. In addition, any noble, royal, or academic honor they possess must be shown to be genuine. The evidence must be capable of being validated or confirmed by accurate and reliable facts.
The Royal House will not honor those who are involved in any self-styled orders of chivalry or who claim noble, royal, or academic titles that cannot be establish as real, genuine, and authentic.
At some point in the process, a candidate making a claim to some public honor may be asked to present further substantiation than is required on the application, discard a questionable or counterfeit claim, or have his or her petition rejected.
Your possible eligibility for nomination as Knight or Lady will be submitted to the Board of the Order who will advise you in writing of his decision.
The process leading to a candidate’s admission into the Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom is explained in detail in the Statutes of the Order. Prospective candidates need to fill in an application form which can be obtained from the Administration Office of the Order. All applications and documentation can be sent either by electronic mail. Download application here.
The Chancery of the Royal House of Georgia
House No. 1
Gagarin Avenue Lane 3,
Tbilisi 0159
Georgia.
DRESS CODE
Knights/Dames silver narrow neck riband and broad red sash.
Knight Officers/Dame Officers silver narrow neck riband, gold breast medal, a broad red sash
Knight Commanders/Dame Commanders silver breast star, a silver narrow neck riband and broad red sash
Knight Grand Officers/Dame Grand Officers gold breast star, gold breast medal, and broad sash
Knight Grand Crosses/Dame Grand Crosses gold breast star, gold breast medal and broad red sash with the insignia of the Order
Knight Grand Collars/Dame Grand Collars gold collar, broad red sash with the insignia of the Order, gold breast star and gold breast medal.
Membership in the Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom implies that all members have adopted an attitude that is consistent with the ideals and human values professed by our Responsibility.
The Knights and Ladies, far from exhibiting arrogance, shall combine noble simplicity with genuine allegiance, without indulging in any attitudes that might lead them to carelessness or to superfluous formalism.
During the Ceremonies and the official reunions, such as receptions or events, in which individual members or groups take part, attending members observe a serious-minded conduct marked by actions that are proper for the occasion and for the Order's dignity, the behavior of the members have an impact on the image of the Order.
We wish to remind members that through all phases of a ceremony and the official gatherings, receptions, meetings, dinners, etc., both as individuals and as groups, it is necessary to always maintain a well-mannered and correct bearing.
