Order of St. Paul

The order of St. Paul was an order of the Papal States . It was founded by Pope Paul III. in 1540.

The order was financially designed for 200 knights by the donor . The knights had to pay an entry fee. They were also granted a higher rank of nobility. They were allowed to use the lily from the coat of arms of Farnese, the coat of arms of the Pope's house. The knights were called Participantes or Perpetni Commensales because they were allowed to use the free table in the Lateran every day . The knights were guaranteed an annual pension.

Order decoration

The order decoration was a bare arm with a bare sword on the left side of the chest.

The decoration of the order also included two differently colored order clothes . One of the festive attire was black, the other red. The point was to be dressed appropriately on the days of the death and coronation of a Pope. The dressing ceremony was thus similar to that of the Order of St. Peter , which was founded nineteen years earlier.

literature

• Gustav Adolph Ackermann: Order book of all in Europe flourishing and extinct orders and decorations. Verlag von Rudolph & Dieterici, Annaberg 1855, page 182.