Order of the Bath

The Très Honourable Order of the Bath ( Most Honourable Order off the Bath ) is the third most important order of the British chivalrous system. It is mainly decreed with the soldiers like with certain civils servant of high ranking., the Order was rested by the king George Ier of Great Britain, on May 18th, 1725. Its name comes from the medieval ceremony of dubbing which comprised a bath, symbolizing the purification, after which he became “Knight of the Bath”. This ritual was initially instituted in 1399, by Henri IV of England, when its 36 riders took a bath in its company, after having taken care all during the night which preceded its sacring. It is however only with George I that the knights were high in regular military order. The Order had never really existed previously as body of knights controlled by statutes and with a fixed number knights.,

In the beginning, the order was called the Very Honourable Military Order of the Bath ( The Most Honourable Military Order off the Bath ). The “military” term was removed by the Victoria queen, in 1847.

History

Knights of the Bath

With the the Middle Ages, the knighthood was often associated with elaborate ceremonies. They generally implied the catch of a ritual bath and symbolic system, during which it was informed of the duties related to the statute of knight. It was then put at the bed in order to dry itself. Vêtu of a special dress, it was then carried out in music to the vault where it spent the night to be taken care. At dawn, he confessed and attended a Messe, before withdrawing himself to sleep until the rising of the sun. He was then led in front of the king who, after having ordered with two knights to attach the spurs on the heels of the new knight, passed a belt around his size before giving him a blow on the nape of the neck (with its hand, or a sword) making of him a knight. It was this accodance which constituted the essential act of the dubbing. There existed also a simpler ceremony where the title of chavlier was conferred just while striking or while touching knight-in-to become it on the shoulder, using a sword. One spoke then about “Knight of sword” or “Knight of the carpet”. The ceremony supplements was usually reserved to the men coming eminent families. The knights continued to be adoubés by the simplified ceremony. The last occasion during which knights of the Bath were adoubés was during the crowning of Charles II in 1661.

Since 1625, or perhaps since the reign of Jacques Ier, the knights of the Bath had as a currency: “ Sorted iuncta in uno ” (Latin , " Three joined together the into only one one "), and a badge with three crowns inside an oval in solid gold carried. These two references were adopted thereafter by the Order of the Bath. Their symbolic system remains however obscure. The “three joined together in one” could refer to the kingdoms of England, Scotland and either the France or the Ireland, which were possessions (or a claim for France) of the British monarchs. That could correspond to the three crowns of the badge. Another explanation of the currency refers to the Holy Trinity.

Foundation of the Order

The first to have modified the operation of the Order John Anstis, the king of weapons of the Order of the Garter, the most Heraldic station of England. Sir Anthony Wagner, a recent officer of the Jumper, described the motivations of Anstis:

It was the opinion of Martin Leake whom the problems and the opposition that Anstis met at the time of its entry within the Jumper made it bitter towards the heralds. When it succeeds finally in 1718, it made enlarging of its office to their expenses his main aim. It is clearly at least that it succeeds in being made essential at Earl Marshall, which was not difficult, their political visions being similar and their already established friendship. It also known to make itself essential to Sir Robert Walpole and the government Whig, which was probably not easy matter to achieve when one knows his attachment with the Claiming with the throne and the circumstances in which he integrated his office… The main aim of the action of Anstis, thereafter, was the rebirth or the establishment about the Bath so probably making sure the good graces of the Almighty Walpole Prime Minister.

At the 18th century, the use of the honors differed considerably from the honorary system current in which hundreds, even from the thousands, people receive each year of the honors on the basis of merit. At the time, the only honors available were Pairie S and baronnie S hereditary, the knighthood as well as the Order of the Garter (or the Ordre of the Thistle for Scot), which were not allotted in great number (the Jumper and the Thistle are limited respectively to 24 and 16 alive members). The political environment was also very different:

The Sovereign was still a power on which it was necessary to count, at the eighteenth century. The court remained the center of the political world. The king was limited by the fact that it was to choose ministers being able to have a majority at the Parliament, but with final the choice remained it his. The chief of an administration was despite everything to preserve personal confidence and the approval of the king. An administration was followed by the Parliament only if it were able to grant positions of precedence, pensions and other marks of royal favor to the defenders of the government.

The attraction of the new Order for Walpole lay in the fact that it would provide a source of such favors to reinforce its political position. Being of agreement with the proposal of Walpole, George Ier commissioned Anstis to write new statutes for the Order of the Bath. As specified previously, it adopted the currency and the badge used by the knights of the Bath, as well as the color of the ribbon and the coat, and the ceremony of establishment. The remainder of the statutes in great majority was based on those about the Jumper, of which he was officer (as a King of the weapons). The Order was rested by letter patent aiming by the Large Seal, dated May 18th, 1725, and the statutes were published the following week.,

In the beginning, the Order was composed of the Sovereign, a Principal Knight (a prince of royal blood), of a Large Master and 35 Knight-Companions. The Order appointed seven officers (see below), which presented another source of political sponsorship, since it was about Sinécure S at the disposal of the Large Master and financed by the royalties of the knights. In spite of the fact that the Order was presented like a military order, very few military officers appeared in the row of the members to his creation. During the creation of the Order, this one could be broken up of categories as follows (some could belong to more than one category):

14 members of the House of Commons,
11 members of the court or the royal sinecures,
4 diplomats,
3 Walpole family members, of which the Prime Minister,
3 officers of British Army or Royal Navy,
2 Irish pars,
2 gentlemen-farmer named by the Court.

The majority of new the Knight-Companion were adoubés by the king and were invested with their ribbon and their badge, on May 27th, 1725. Although the statutes provided that the nomination of the knights proceeds at the time of a complete medieval ceremony, this one carried out forever. Moreover, it is probable that it was never question because the statutes of origin contained a provision making it possible to the Large Master to avoid this formality for the Knight-Companion. The knights of origin were thus exempted of all medieval ceremonies except for that of the Initiation , which was held in the vault of the Order, the vault of Henry VII in the Abbaye of Westminster, on June 17th, 1725. This created a precedent which has, consequently, followed until 1812, after which Initiation was also exemptable, until its reappearance at the twentieth century. The ceremonies are however remained in the statutes until 1847.

Although the initial nominations of the Order were mainly political, as from the years 1770, the nominations were justified more and more by the naval, military or diplomatic merit. This is explained partly by the conflicts that Great Britain knew for this period., Another statute had been emitted eighty years earlier, making compulsory for each knight to provide and support four men-at-arms, where necessary, for one period not being able to exceed 42 days per annum, to intervene on all the national territory. This company was then directed by the Large Master who had, to provide him four trumpet players and eight officers (this provision was however never called upon).}}

The Order consisted then of three classes: knights Large Cross, the knights Commanders and companions. The knights companions who existed previously (60) became knights Grand Cross. This class was limited to 72 members, including twelve promoted under diplomatic or civil services. The military members were to have at least the Major-General rank of or Rear Admiral. The knights commanders were 180, without counting the foreigners with the head of British commissions of which 10 could be promoted with the row of honorary Commandeur knight. They were at least to then have a rank of Lieutenant-Colonel or Post-Captain. On the other hand, the number of companions was not fixed, but they were to have received an honorary medal or to be mentioned in a Dépêche since the beginning of the war, in 1803. A list of almost 500 names was then published. During this reorganization, two additional officers were founded: the " Officer off arms" and a secretary dedicated to the knights Commanders and to Compagnons" , The statutes of 1847 also abolished the totality of the medieval ritual. However, they introduced a formal ceremony of nomination, led by the covered sovereign of the coat and the badge of the Order, and in which the officers and of Large Cross take part as much as possible.

In 1859, a new modification of the statutes was carried out, relating to mainly financial questions. Before this date, the badge which was delivered by the British Crown, was to be returned with dead of the member elect (except for the foreigners which carried an honorary title). In addition, the foreigners generally received a silver star encrusted with diamonds, whereas the ordinary members received only one embroidered star. The decision was made to grant a silver star to all the members, without exception, and that only the collar was to be returned with dead of the member. The State also paid allowances with the officers of the Order for the members who had been promoted at the time of the last war. The allowances were abolished and replaced by of the same wages value. The stations of genealogist and messenger were removed and those of clerk and secretary amalgamated.

The XXème century

In 1910, after its accession with the throne, George V ordered the re-establishment of the ceremony of establishment and the construction of a new vault for the Ordre of the Thistle in 1911. The ceremony of establishment proceeded on July 22nd, 1913 in the vault Henri VII, and since them are held with regular interval. Before the ceremony of 1913, the vault due being modified in order to be able to accommodate the big number of members. A call to the gift was then launched near the members and a remainder appeared after the ceremony. A committee was then formed to manage the “Fund of the Vault of the Bath” ( Bath Chapel Fund ), and with time, this committee considering its prerogatives to extend beyond the purely financial spots.

Another revision was undertaken in 1925, to consolidate the 41 additional statutes which were emitted since the modification of 1859.

The women were allowed within the Order as from 1971. and her husband, dead the previous year, had also occupied this station.

Experienced civils servant, such as the permanent secretaries, and the important members of the armed forces, commes the generals, are often promoted within the Order. The civils servant associated with the Foreign Office, like the ambassadors, are generally promoted in the Ordre of Saint-Michel and Saint-Georges.

Composition

The Sovereign

The British monarch is the sovereign about the Bath. Following the example other orders honorary (except for those which are personal possessions), the sovereign decides on all promotions of the Order on the councils of the government.

The Large Master

The second most important character of the Order is the Large Master. In the history of the Order, one counts only nine of them:

1725 – 1749: John Montagu, 2nd Duke of Montagu
1749 – 1767: (vacant)
1767 – 1827: Frederick, duke of York and Albany
1827 – 1830: William, duke of Clarence and Saint-Andrews (the future king Guillaume IV)
1830 – 1837: (vacant)
1837 – 1843: Prince Augustus Frederick, duke of Sussex
1843 – 1861: Prince Albert
1861 – 1897: (vacant)
1897 – 1901: Albert Edward, prince de Galles (the future king Edouard VII)
1901 – 1942: Arthur, duke of Connaught and Strathearn
1942 – 1974: Henry, duke of Gloucester
1974 – now: the prince Charles.

In the beginning, a prince of royal blood, as a Principal Knight-Companion, was second by order of importance in the Order. This station was amalgamated with that of Large Master in the statutes of 1847. The Large Master and Principal Knight are from now on is downward of George I or " another character exalté". It is in load of the bucket of the Order and is responsible for the good application of the statutes.

Officers

The order of Bath has six leaders now:

the senior
the king of weapons
the clerk and secretary
the assistant secretary
the genealogist
the gentleman usher of the scarlet rod

The post of senior is held by the senior of Westminster. The king of weapons about the Bath, in other words the person in charge of the Heraldic , is not member of the College of weapons, contrary to much of heralds. The usher of the Order is known under the name of “gentleman usher of the scarlet rod”. Contrary to its counterpart about the Jumper, the Gentleman usher of the black rod, it does not have any role within the House of Lords.

In the beginning, there were seven officers who received emoluments on behalf of the Knights Companion during their nomination, then each year thereafter. The station of messenger was removed in 1859. That of genealogist was removed at the same time, before being restored in 1913. The stations of preserving and secretary formally amalgamated in 1859, although the two positions were occupied by only one and even nobody during the previous century. The posts of officer of weapons and secretary for the knights Commanders and the Companions were established in 1815, the station of secretary , as for him, was created in 1925.

Under the reign of the house of Hanover, some of the officers were also holder of a heraldic function. The office of the “ Blanc Dispach rider Herald off Arms ” (literally the herald of the White Dispach rider) was attached to that of the genealogist, that of the “ Brunswick Herald off Arms ” (herald of Brunswick) with that of the Usher Gentleman, and the king of the weapons of the Bath was also made king of the weapons of Gloucester with the jurisdiction on the heraldic one of Wales. This comes owing to the fact that Anstis wished to give of advantage of financial safety the holders of these sinecures. The nominations for the offices about the Bath were with the discretion of the Large Master, whereas those of the heraldic positions were allocated to the sovereign with affixing of the Large Seal and were nominations with life.

Members

The access to the Order is reserved to the citizens of the the United Kingdom and the countries of the the Commonwealth. The members of civil division owe " by their services with the crown or the performance of their public responsibilities to have deserved the favor royale". The nominations within military division are limited by the military row of the person. Thus, the knights Grand Cross must have the row of Rear Admiral, Major General or Air Vice-Marshall. The Commandeurs knights must have the rank of Capitaine in the Navy, of Colonel in the Army or at the Marines, or Group Captain in the Air Force. The companions must be Lieutenant Commander, Major or Squadron Leader, and they must in addition be mentioned in the Dépêche S in distinction for their position of command in situation of combat. The officers who do not evolve/move in first line (like the engineers or the doctors) can be named only in the event of service méritoire in time of war.

The people out it the Commonwealth can reach the order as honorary members. The Elizabeth II queen established the habit to grant the rank of Large honorary Crosses to the Heads of State in official visit. It is in particular the case of Gustav Heinemann (in 1972), Ronald Reagan (in 1989), Lech Walesa (in 1991) the foreign generals are also often promoted honorairement within the Order. That was the case of Dwight Eisenhower and Douglas MacArthur after the Second world war, Norman Schwarzkopf and Colin Powell after the Guerre of the Gulf. A member more discussed of the Order, Robert Mugabe, saw his case studied by a committee indicated by the Foreign Affairs to withdraw this distinction in 2003 to him, but no action was taken.

The numbers of members in each class is fixed. The Order is composed thus of:

120 knights or ladies Large Cross (shortened in GCB),
355 knights or ladies Commanders (respectively KCB or DCB)
: 1925 Companions (CB).

The honorary members are not deducted numerical limits of each class. In addition, the statutes authorize the sovereign to exceed the quotas imposed in time of war or of exceptional circumstances.

Clothing and decorum

The members of the Order carry costumes refined at the time of the important ceremonies (as initiation which takes place every four years or crownings). The attributes of the knights vary according to their row:

the coat , carried only by the knights and the ladies Large Cross, is made of crimson Satin, spillplate of white Taffetas. On the left side a representation of star appears (see below). The coat is tied thanks to two large nipples.
the hat , carried only by the knights and the ladies Large Cross and To order, is carried out black Velours. It is provided with a Plume on the right-sided.
the collar , carried only by the knights and the ladies Large Cross, is out of gold and weighs 933 grams. It represents the nine imperial crowns and eight whole of flowers (of the pinks for England, the thistles for Scotland and clover for Ireland), connected by seventeen silver nodes. However, they all are suspended not a crimson ribbon. Large the Crosses carry it on a ribbon or a belt which passes by the right shoulder and the left hip. Every four years, a ceremony of initiation chaired by the Large Master, as well as a religious service is held within the vault. The sovereign witnesses only one ceremony out of two (either every 8 years) whose last proceeded in May 2006. even if the statutes of 1847 give the possibility to the three classes of being able to make the request for erection of a plate in the vault with their name, the date of nomination as well as the escutcheon for the two highest classes.

Precedence and privileges

A position in the order of precedence to the throne is assigned with each member about the Bath. The wives of the members also appear in the order of precedence. It is the case also children of knights Grand Cross and Commandeurs knights. On the other hand, the close relations of the female members do not have the same privilege and do not appear in the order of succession. Generally, people can acquire a precedence of their father or their husband, but not of their mother or their wife.

The knights Large Cross and the Commandeurs knights can make precede their name by the prefix " Sir". In the same way, the Ladies Large Cross and the Ladies Commanders can add " Dame" in front of their name. The women of knight can add the prefix " Lady" with their name, but there does not exist equivalent privilege for the husbands of the Ladies. The knights and the ladies Grand Cross use post-nominal letters “GCB”, the Commanders, “KCB” or “DCB” (according to whether they are knight or lady), and the Companions use “CB”.

The knights and the ladies Grand Cross are also authorized to use heraldic supports on their weapons. In addition, they can surround their weapons of a bearing red circle mention of the currency with the badge which hangs, as well as the collar which appears either around or above this last.

Knights and the ladies Commanders, as well as the Companions can post the ring, but not the collar, around their weapons. The badge is illustrated in suspension on the collar or the ring. Lastly, the members of military division have the possibility of framing the ring with two branches of outgoing bay-tree of a band of parchment azure, on which the words “Ich dien are registered”, as on the badge.

Revocation

According to the statutes of 1725, it is possible to revoke a member of the Order under the reasons according to: heresy, high treason, or the escape of a battle field by cowardice. The Compagnons knights could then be degraded during the following meeting of the Chapter. It was then of the responsibility for the gentleman usher to withdraw the brass plate of the stall and to throw it out of the vault with all the “regards” due to its infamy. However, only two people were ever degraded, namely Thomas Cochrane in 1813 and Eyre Coote in 1816. In both cases, it was about advantage of purely political reasons, that reasons evoked in the statutes. Consequently, Lord Cochrane was restored in his right a few years later. As for Coote, it mourrut only a few years after its revocation and thus could not profit from a repair

According to the statutes of the 1847, signed not Victoria queen, guilty member a “of treason, crime, or any infamous offense which would carry damage to its honor of knight, or then shown without to be judged within times reasonable, will be degraded Order by a special ordinance signed by the sovereign”. The sovereign was then the only judge entitled to make such a decision, and to restore it, if necessary.

The current location is that adhesion can be made null and not avenue (the entry in the register is thus erased) by an ordinance signed of the hand of the sovereign and sealed with the seal of the order, on the recommendations of the suitable minister. There remains however possible to reconsider this cancellation.

Appendices

Phaléristique
military Order of knighthood
Order
List of civil and military natures

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