Order of Constantine
| Sacro Militare Ordine Costantiniano di San Giorgio | |
|---|---|
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| information | |
| protectorate | House of the Bourbon Sicilies |
| Foundation year | 313 |
| motto | In hoc signo vinces |
| Strap buckle | 
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The Order of Constantine ( Italian: Sacro Militare Ordine Costantiniano di San Giorgio ; officially: Religious and Military Constantine Order of St. George ) is a secular order of knights with Roman Catholic members.
Goals of the religious community
The aims of the order are to uphold the faith, defend the Holy Catholic Church and support the Holy See . The ladies and knights of the order see themselves in loyalty and devotion to the Holy Father and for the teachings and dogmas of the Roman Catholic Church.
history
The order is said to have been founded by Emperor Constantine in 313. The foundation is historically guaranteed by the Byzantine emperor Isaak Angelos in 1190. His later descendant Prince Andreas Angelikus Flavius of Macedonia introduced the order to Parma with papal approval after his loss of power in 1699 . Later, the Order was to Farneser Duke Francis I sold. Again documented, Duke Carlos introduced the order in the Kingdom of Naples . That was a result of his accession to the throne in 1735. The order was thus awarded in two states at the time. In these the order existed with interruption during the Napoleonic rule until its fall in 1860. After a not undisputed revival, the center of the order moved to Rome.
Originally the order was under the protectorate of the King of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies .
After Carlos Maria of Bourbon-Sicily, as a possible candidate for the Spanish royal throne, renounced his claims to the Sicilian throne in order to be able to become king of Spain, but not he, but finally Juan Carlos I became king of Spain, the House of Bourbon Sicily a succession dispute. Don Carlo of Bourbon-Sicily, Duke of Castro (* 1963) ( Napoleonic Obedience ), and Don Pedro of Bourbon-Sicily, Duke of Calabria (* 1968) ( Spanish Obedience ), each claim sole boss in rivalry of the House of Bourbon-Sicily and therefore Grand Master of the Order of Constantine. In fact there are therefore two obediences of the Constantinian Order.
Order ranks and classes
Ranks
The Order of Constantine has three ranks:
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Grand Cross
-
Commander (with star) -
Knight (with star)
A breast star is awarded as recognition for personal service to the Order and the Kingdom / Royal House.
Classes
The members of the order are divided into the following classes:
- Justicia ( high nobility )
- Gracia ( nobility )
- Merito ( merit class )
- Ufficio ( Donats class )
The order has state recognition in Italy and Spain as well as in some other countries.
Order clothing and insignia
insignia
The decoration is a red enamelled Constantinian lily cross with a gold border. A large gold monogram of Christ X and P is applied in the center and at its ends the letters IHSV These stand for the motto of the order in hoc signo vinces ( Latin , 'under this sign you will win'). The Greek alpha and omega on the horizontal cross bar is supposed to symbolize the beginning and the end. The ribbon is sky blue.
The cross is carried on a ribbon. Knights wear the medal in their buttonholes, the Grand Cruisers as a neck medal . First class wears a breast star that resembles the decoration. Silver, pointed, gilded short rays are inserted in the cross angles.
Ceremonial clothing
A sky-blue, white-lined atlas silk cloak is tied with a white and blue cord. The white skirt also includes a vest and so-called trousers, which are made of sky-blue silk. White stockings and black shoes with sky-blue ribbons complete the clothing. The red velvet hat with white silk lining is decorated with colored feathers. The shape of the hat is created by a fourfold lapel and is visibly embroidered with the golden Christ monogram on the front. The important sword hanging is made of carmine red velvet.
literature
- Gregor Gatscher-Riedl : In Hoc Signo Vinces - The History of the Holy Constantinian Order of Knights of Saint George. Between religious myth and political claim from Byzantium to Naples. Neue Welt Verlag, Vienna 2012. ISBN 978-3-9503061-2-5 .
- Order of Constantine . In: Brockhaus Konversations-Lexikon 1894–1896, Volume 10, p. 588.
Web links
- Official website of the Order
- Website of the Order ( Spanish Obedience )
- Website of the Order ( Parma Obedience )
Individual evidence
- ↑ Order of Constantine . In: Brockhaus Konversations-Lexikon 1894–1896, Volume 10, p. 588.
- ↑ The Constantine Order of St. George - Two Obediences. In: ordenskreuz.com, accessed on July 27, 2016.
- ↑ Description of all orders, the images of which are included in the color print work: “The orders, coats of arms and flags of all regents and states”. Leipzig 1883–1887.