Orders and Decorations of the Royal House of Georgia
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 certain 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.
On 10th May 1799 Prince Ioan submitted his plan to Giorgi XII which was eventually endorsed. This plan included four Orders. Unfortunately, this plan was never put into place because soon after King Giorgi passed away the Georgian Kingdom was illegally annexed with Russia on 17th January 1801.
Following this historic event, after more than two hundred years, on 25th December 2009 the present Head of the Royal House of Georgia, Crown Prince Nugzar, issued a special decree to establish three chivalric 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 honour 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, and
- 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 honour 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 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 (mail@theroyalhouseofgeorgia.org) or by registered mail in the following address:
The Chancery of the Royal House of Georgia
House No. 1
Gagarin Avenue Lane 3,
Tbilisi 0159
Georgia.
Statutes of the Royal Order of the Crown of the Georgian Kingdom
