Wasaorden

The Royal Wasa Order ( Swedish Vasa Order ) is a Swedish Order of Merit , which is also called the Green Ribbon .

Collane with grand cross

Commander 1st class

Wasaorden, 2nd model until 1975

history

The Wasa Order was founded by King Gustav III. donated by Sweden on May 26, 1772, his coronation day . It has not been awarded since 1975, it is a so-called "dormant order".

The name of the order is reminiscent of the Wasa dynasty and was awarded for excellent merits in the fields of agriculture, trade, mining, industry, trade, the arts and education, but also for the dissemination of useful writings in these fields . It could be awarded to nationals and foreigners. The head of the order is the Swedish king.

Order classes

The order consisted of three levels:

• Commanders with the Grand Cross
• Commanders
• Knight

King Gustav IV Adolph established the order on November 26, 1798 and divided the commanders into first and second class. A statute amendment of April 17, 1890 then divided the knights into two classes. The division into commanders with the Grand Cross, commanders I and II class and knights I and II class persisted until the end.

• Grand Cross
• Commander 1st class
• Commander 2nd class
• Knight 1st class
• Knight 2nd class

Order decoration

The medal consists of a white - enameled eight - pointed Maltese cross that is the same for all classes and only different in size . There is a golden royal crown above the cross and a blue oval medallion in the middle . It shows the golden inscription GUSTAV DEN III in a gold-bordered dark red hoop . INSTICTARE MDCCLXXII (Gustav the Third, Stifter, 1772) and the coat of arms of the Wasa house, a bound and tied golden sheaf.

Until the middle of the 19th century, the decoration consisted only of the medallion, which was worn on the order chain or on a ribbon.

The knights of the order are entitled to use the order mark in their coat of arms .

Carrying method

The ribbon is dark green and was worn from the right shoulder to the left hip by the grand crosses, around the neck by the commanders and on the chest by the knights. The Wasa Order also had a special costume . On solemn occasions, the commanders with the grand cross and the commanders wore a costume made of grass-green velvet .

Known owner

• see the category: Holder of the Wasa Order

literature

• Maximilian Gritzner : Handbook of the knight and merit orders. Reprint-Verlag, Leipzig 2000, ISBN 3-8262-0705-X (reprint of the 1893 edition).
• Wasaorden . In: Meyers Konversations-Lexikon . 4th edition. Volume 16, Verlag des Bibliographisches Institut, Leipzig / Vienna 1885–1892, p. 406.

Web links

Commons : Wasaorden  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

• Kungahuset.se - Svärdsorden (Swedish)