Contents
Regulations respecting Foreign Orders (1812-46)
British and Foreign State Papers, 10:1019-20.
Regulations of the British Government, respecting Foreign Orders
granted to British Subjects.
(Published, December 1823).
Regulations of His Majesty and of His Royal Highness the Prince Regent,
respecting Foreign Orders.
1. That no British Subjects shall accept a Foreign Order, or wear its
Insignia, without having previously obtained a Warrant under the Royal
Sign Manual (directed to the Earl Marshal of England), granting them
His Majesty's permission to accept and wear the same.
2. That the intention of a Foreign Sovereign to decorate a British
Subject with the Insignia of such Order shall be notified to His
Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, either
through the King's Minister abroad, or through the accredited Minister
of the Foreign Sovereign resident at this Court.
3. That when His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs shall have taken His Majest'ys pleasure, and obtained his
consent upon the occasion, he shall then signify the same to His
Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for the Home Department, in
order that he may cause the usual Warrant to be prepared for the Royal
Sign Manual, and take such other steps as may be necessary for carrying
out His Majesty's pleasure into effect accordingly.
4. That when the Warrant is signed by the King, it shall be announced
in the Gazette in the usual manner, and registered in His Majesty's
College of Arms.
In addition to the above Regulations
of the King, His Royal Highness the Prince Regent
deemed it expedient to announce, in
the Year 1812,
5. That no Subject of His Majesty could be allowed to accept the
Insignia of a Foreign Order from any Sovereign of a Foreign State
except they shall be so conferred in
consequence of Active and distinguished services before the Enemy,
either at Sea or in the Field; or unless he shall have been actually
employed in the service of such Foreign Sovereign.
And, in March 1813, HRH was pleased
to command that the following Proviso should be
thereafter inserted in all Royal
Warrants for the acceptance of Foreign Orders:
6. That His Majesty's License and Permission doth not authorize, and
shall not be deemed or construed to authorize, the assumption of any
style, appellation, rank, or privilege, appertaining unto a Knight
Batchelor of these Realms.
N.B. Before the Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs
takes the Prince Regent's pleasure, on any application for an Officer
in the Army to be permitted to accept a Foreign Order, he causes the
same to be referred to the Commander-in-Chief, through His Royal
Highness's Secretary, to know whether or not His Royal Highness sees
any objection to the Prince Regent's pleasure being taken thereupon.
Anf if the application be in favour of a Naval Officer, the Principal
Secretary for Foreign Affairs communicates with the First Lord of the
Admiralty, to the same effect,
previous to the Prince's pleasure being taken thereon.
Castlereagh
British and Foreign State Papers, 35:1151-53.
Foreign Office, August 22, 1843.
Her Majesty has been pleased to
direct,
7th. That if the service for which it is proposed to confer this order
has been performed during war, the notification required by the 2nd
regulation must be made not later than 2 years after the exchange of
the Ratifications of a Treaty of Peace.
If the service has been performed in time of peace, the notification
must be made within 2 years of the date of such service.
8th. When a British subject has received the Royal permission to accept
a foreign order, he will at any future time be allowed to accept the
decoration of a higher class of the same order, to which he may have
become eligible by increase of rank in the foreign service, or in the
service of his own country; or any other distinctive mark of honour
strictly consequent upon the acceptance of the original order, and
common to every person upon whom such order is conferred.
Foreign Office, July 6, 1846
The Queen has made known her pleasure,
9th. That the 8th clause of the regulations respecting foreign
orders shall not be taken to apply to decorations of the Guelphic Order
which were bestowed on British subjects by her predecessors, their
Majesties King George IV and King William IV, on whose heads the Crowns
of Great Britain and Hanover were united.
Decorations so bestowed cannot properly be considered as rewards
granted by a foreign Sovereign for services rendered according to the
purport of the 5th clause of the regulations. They must be rather
considered as personal favours bestowed on British subjects by British
Sovereigns, and as having no reference to services rendered to the
Foreign Crown of Hanover.
Regulations respecting Foreign Orders (1855)
London Gazette Issue 21711
published on the 15 May 1855. Page 1-2.
The Queen has been pleased to direct that the following Regulations
respecting Foreign Orders and Medals shall be substituted for those now
in force :
Regulations respecting Foreign Orders
1. No subject of Her Majesty shall accept a Foreign Order
from the sovereign of any foreign country, or wear the insignia
thereof, without having previously obtained Her Majesty's permission to
that effect, signified by a Warrant under Her Royal Sign Manual.
2. Such permission shall not be granted to any subject of
Her Majesty, unless the Foreign Order shall have been conferred in
consequence of active and distinguished service before the enemy,
either at sea or in the field ; or unless he shall have been actually
and entirely employed, beyond Her Majesty's dominions, in the service
of the foreign sovereign by whom the Order is conferred,
3. The intention of a foreign sovereign to confer upon a
British subject the insignia of an Order, must be notified to Her
Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, either
through the British minister accredited at the court of such foreign
sovereign, or through his minister accredited the court of Her Majesty.
4. If the service for which it is proposed to confer the Order
has been performed during war, the notification required by the
preceding clause must be made not later than two years after the
exchange of the ratifications of a Treaty of Peace.
If the service has been performed in time of peace, the notification
must be made within two years after the date of such service.
5. After such notification shall have been received, Her
Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs shall, if
the case comes within the conditions prescribed by the present
regulations, and arises from naval or military services before the
enemy, refer it to Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for the
War Department, previously to taking Her Majesty's pleasure thereupon,
in order to ascertain whether there be any objection to Her Majesty's
permission being granted.
A similar reference shall also be made to the Commander-in-chief, if
the application relates to an officer in the Army, or to the Lords of
the Admiralty, if it relates to an officer in the Navy.
6. When Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs shall have taken the Queen's pleasure on any such
application, and shall have obtained Her Majesty's permission for the
person in whose favour it has been made to accept the Foreign Order,
and wear the insignia thereof, he shall signify the same to Her
Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for the Home Department, in
order that he may cause the Warrant required by clause 1 to be prepared
for the Royal Sign Manual.
When such Warrant shall have been signed by the Queen, a notification
thereof shall be inserted in the Gazette, stating the service for which
the Foreign Order has been conferred.
7. The Warrant signifying Her Majesty's permission, may, at the
request and at the expense of the person who has obtained it, be
registered in the College of Arms.
8. Every such Warrant as aforesaid shall contain a clause
providing that Her Majesty's licence and permission do not authorize
the assumption of any style, appellation, rank, precedence, or
privilege appertaining to a Knight Bachelor of Her Majesty's realms.
9. When a British subject has received the Royal permission to
accept a Foreign Order, he will at any future time be allowed to accept
the decoration of a higher class of the same Order, to which he may
have become eligible by increase of rank in the foreign service, or in
the service of his own country ; or any other distinctive mark of
honour strictly consequent upon the acceptance of the original Order,
and common to every person upon whom such Order is conferred.
10. The preceding clause shall not be taken to apply to
decorations of the Guelphic Order which were bestowed on British
subjects by Her Majesty's predecessors, King George IV and King William
IV, on whose heads the crowns of Great Britain and of Hanover were
united.
Decorations so bestowed cannot properly be considered as rewards
granted by a foreign sovereign for services rendered according to the
purport of clause 2 of these regulations. They must be rather
considered as personal favours bestowed on British subjects by British
Sovereigns, and as having no reference to services rendered to the
foreign crown of Hanover.
Regulations respecting Foreign Medals.
1. Application for permission to accept and wear medals which,
not being the decoration of any foreign Order, are conferred by a
foreign sovereign on British subjects in the Army or in the Navy for
military or for naval services, should be addressed, as the case may
be, to the Commander-in-chief, the Master-General of the Ordnance, or
the Lords of the Admiralty, who, if they see fit, may submit the same
to Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs for
Her Majesty's sanction ; upon obtaining which, they may grant such
permission without any other formality.
2. Permission to wear a foreign medal cannot be granted to a
British subject, unless such medal is bestowed for military or naval
services performed by the command or with the sanction of Her Majesty.
But no permission is necessary for accepting a foreign medal, if such
medal is not to be worn.
(Signed) CLARENDON.
Foreign Office, May 10, 1855.
Opinion of the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs (1867)
July 23, 1867.
Mr Labouchere said he would beg to ask the Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs, Whether Lord Clarendon's regulations issued by
direction of Her Majesty, which forbid British subjects to accept a
Foreign Order "without previously having obtained Her Majesty's
permission to that effect, signed by a Warrant under Her Royal Sign
Manual," and which lay down as an absolute rule that---
"such permission shall not be granted to any subject of Her Majesty
unless the Foreign Order shall have been conferred in consequence of
active and distinguished service before an enemy, either at sea or in
the field, or unless he shall have been actively or entirely employed
beyond Her Majesty's Dominions, in the service of the Sovereign by whom
the Order is conferred," had been revoked; and if they have not been
revoked, why gentlemen whose services are limited to carying [sic], at
the public cost, an English Order to a Continental Sovereign, are
allowed to accept and wear a Foreign Decoration?
Lord Stanley said, that the regulations from which the hon. Member had
quoted, issued by Lord Clarendon by direction of Her Majesty, had not
been revoked; but he found it on record in the Office that during the
administration of Lord Clarendon and as was stated, at the desire of
Her Majesty, those rules were generally and prospectively dispensed
with in the case of that very limited class of persons who were
referred to in the hon. Member's Question. He (Lord Stanley) was
not
at the time one of Her Majesty's advisers, and he therefore had only to
state the fact. Of course he need not say that it was entirely within
Her Majesty's power to dispense with the observance of any rule of this
kind in any such case as she might think fit. With regard to the
limitation of the acceptance to the Heads Of Missions, that, as he
understood, was always contemplated.
Hansard's Parliamentary Debates. 3d
series, vol. 188, p. 2070.
Regulations respecting Foreign Orders (1911)
Gazette Issue 28493 published on the 12 May 1911. Page 11
Foreign Office,
May 8, 1911.
The KING has been pleased to command that the following Regulations
respecting Foreign Orders and Medals shall be substituted for those
hitherto in force:
1. It is The King's wish that no subject of His Majesty shall
wear the Insignia of any Foreign Order without having previously
obtained His Majesty's permission to do so, signified either:
- By Warrant under the Royal Sign-Manual, or
- By private permission conveyed through His Majesty's Private
Secretary.
2. Permission given by Warrant under the Royal Sign-Manual will
enable the Insignia of the Foreign Order to be worn at all times and
without any restriction.
Private permission will only enable the Insignia to be worn on the
occasions specified in the terms of the letter from The King's Private
Secretary conveying the Royal Sanction.
3. The full and unrestricted permission by Warrant under the
Royal Sign-Manual is designed, subject to the exception mentioned in
Rule 4 (a) respecting British Naval or Military Officers during
hostilities, to meet cases where the Decoration may be said to have
been earned by some valuable service rendered to the Head of the State
conferring it, or to the State itself. The private or restricted
permission is contemplated for Decorations which are more or less of a
complimentary character. In either case, the matter will be submitted
to The King by His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs.
4. Full and unrestricted permission by Warrant under the Royal
Sign-Manual is contemplated in the following cases:—
For a Decoration conferred—
- On an Officer in His Majesty's Naval or Military Forces lent to a
Foreign Government; on an Officer in His Majesty's Naval or Military
Forces attached by his Government to a Foreign Navy or Army during
hostilities; or on any British Official lent to a Foreign Government
and not in receipt of any emoluments from British public funds during
the period of such loan.
- On any person not at the time in the service of the Crown, who,
while himself outside the limits of His Majesty's Dominions, has
rendered valuable services to the Head of the State conferring the
Order, or to the State itself, within the period of two years
immediately preceding the notification of the Decoration to His
Majesty's Government provided for in Rule 5. The term "service of the
Crown " (supra) comprises any person holding a Royal Commission, or any
person in receipt of a salary from public funds in the United Kingdom,
or in any British Dominion, Colony, or Protectorate.
- On any British subject employed in a Foreign Embassy or Legation
in the United Kingdom.
5. The desire of the Head of a Foreign State to confer upon
a British subject the Insignia of an Order, or the fact that he has
done so, must be notified to His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State
for Foreign Affairs either through the British Diplomatic
Representative accredited to the Head of the Foreign State, or through
his Diplomatic Representative at the Court of St. James. His Majesty's
Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs shall be under no
obligation to consider claims that are not brought to his notice
through one of these channels.
6. When His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs shall have taken the King's pleasure on any such
application, and shall have obtained His Majesty's permission for the
person in whose favour it has been made to wear the Insignia of a
Foreign Order, he shall signify the same to His Majesty's Principal
Secretary of State for the Home Department in order that he may cause a
Warrant, if it be a case for the issue of a Warrant as defined in Rule
4, to be prepared for the Royal Sign Manual.
When such Warrant shall have been signed by The King, a notification
thereof shall be inserted in the Gazette, stating the service for which
the Foreign Order has been conferred.
Persons in whose favour such Warrants are issued will be required to
pay to His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for the Home
Department a stamp duty of 10s.
The Warrant signifying His Majesty's permission may, at the request and
at the expense of the person who has obtained it, be registered in the
College of Arms. Every such Warrant as aforesaid shall contain a clause
providing that His Majesty's licence and permission does not authorise
the assumption of any style, appellation, rank, precedence, or
privilege appertaining to a Knight Bachelor of His Majesty's Realms.
7. When a British subject has received the Royal permission
to accept the Decoration of a Foreign Order, he will, at any future
time, be allowed to accept the Decoration of a higher class of the same
Order, to which he may have become eligible by increase of rank in the
Foreign Service, or in the service of his own country; or any other
distinctive mark of honour strictly consequent upon the acceptance of
the original Decoration, and common to every person upon whom such
Decoration is conferred.
8. Medals which constitute a particular class of a Foreign
Order are subject in all respects to the above Regulations in the same
manner as higher grades of the Order, except that permission to wear
will be given by Letter and not by Royal Warrant. The King's permission
must be obtained for any other Medal to be worn. No permission is
needed to accept a Foreign Medal if it is not intended to be worn.
9. Naval and Military Attaches to His Majesty's Missions
abroad may, at the termination of their appointments, be given
restricted private permission to wear, on certain specific occasions,
the Insignia of a Foreign Order conferred upon them by the Chief of the
State only in which their headquarters were situated.
Regulations respecting Foreign Orders (1914)
Gazette Issue 28833 published on the 22 May 1914. Page 10-12
Foreign Office,
May 20, 1914.
The KING has commanded that the following Regulations relating to the
wearing of Foreign Orders and Medals by British subjects shall be
substituted for those previously in force, the text of which was
published in the London Gazette of May 12, 1911:—
Regulations Respecting Foreign Orders and Medals Applicable to
Persons in the Service of the Crown.
Orders.
1. It is the King's wish that no subject of His Majesty in the
Service of the Crown shall accept and wear the Insignia of any Foreign
Order without having previously obtained His Majesty's permission to do
so, signified either:
- By Warrant under the Royal Sign-Manual, or
- By private permission conveyed through His Majesty's
Private Secretary.
2. Permission given by Warrant under the Royal Sign-Manual will
enable the Insignia of the Foreign Order to be worn at all times and
without any restriction.
Private permission will only enable the Insignia to be worn on the
occasions specified in the terms of the letter from the King's Private
Secretary conveying the Royal sanction.
3. Full and unrestricted permission by Warrant under the Royal
Sign-Manual is contemplated in the following cases: —
For a Decoration conferred—
On an Officer in His Majesty's Naval or Military Forces lent to a
Foreign Government; on an Officer in His Majesty's Naval or Military
Forces attached by his Government to a Foreign Navy or Army during
hostilities; or on any British Official lent to a Foreign Government
and not in receipt of any emoluments from British public funds during
the period of such loan..
4. Private or restricted permission is contemplated for
Decorations which have been conferred in recognition of personal
attention to the Head of a Foreign State, and which are therefore of a
more or less complimentary character, and will, as a rule, only be
given on exceptional occasions when in the public interest and for
political reasons it is deemed expedient that the acceptance of a
Foreign Decoration should not be declined. Private: permission will
generally be given in the following cases:—
For a Decoration conferred: —
- On British Ambassadors or Ministers abroad when the King pays a
State visit to the country to which they are accredited;
(Note.—A State visit is defined as one on which the King is accompanied
by a Minister or High Official in attendance.)
- On Members of Deputations of British Regiments to Foreign Heads
of States;
- On Members of Special Missions when the King is represented at a
Foreign Coronation, Wedding, or Funeral; or on any Diplomatic
Representative when specially accredited to represent His Majesty on
such occasions; and such Members of His Staff who actually attend the
ceremonies in their official capacity;
- On Naval and Military Attaches only after completion of five
years' service at the post to which they are appointed in that capacity;
5. Private or restricted permission will not be given to—
- British Ambassadors or Ministers abroad when leaving;
- Members of British Missions announcing the Accession of a
Sovereign;
- British Officers attending Foreign Manoeuvres;
- Naval Officers of British Squadrons visiting Foreign Waters.
6. The desire of the Head of a Foreign State to confer upon a
British subject in the Service of the Crown the Insignia of an Order
must be notified to His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for
Foreign Affairs either through the British Diplomatic Representative
accredited to the Head of the Foreign State, or through his Diplomatic
Representative at the Court of St. James.
7. When His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs shall have taken the King's pleasure on any such application,
and shall have obtained His Majesty's permission for the person in
whose favour it has been made to wear the Insignia of a Foreign Order,
he shall signify the same to His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State
for the Home Department, in order that he may cause a Warrant, if it be
a case for the issue of a Warrant as defined in Rule 2, to be prepared
for the Royal Sign-Manual.
When such Warrant shall have been signed by the King, a notification
thereof shall be inserted in the Gazette, stating the service for which
the Foreign Order has been conferred.
Persons in whose favour such Warrants are issued will be required to
pay to His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for the Home
Department a stamp duty of 10s.
8. The Warrant signifying His Majesty's permission may, at
the request and at the expense of the person who has obtained it, be
registered in the College of Arms. Every such Warrant as aforesaid
shall contain a clause providing that His Majesty's licence and
permission does not authorise the assumption of any style, appellation;
rank, precedence, or privilege appertaining to a Knight Bachelor of His
Majesty's Realms. .
9. When a British subject in the Service of the Crown has
received the Royal permission, full or private, to accept and wear the
Decoration of a Foreign Order, he will not be allowed to accept and
wear the Decoration of a higher class of the same Order without His
Majesty's approval, which will only be given if the higher honour is
being conferred in circumstances contemplated by these Regulations.
Medals.
10. Medals which constitute a particular class of a Foreign Order
are subject in all respects to the Regulations in the same manner as
higher grades of the Order, except that permission to wear will be
given by Letter and not by Royal Warrant.
11. The King's unrestricted permission to accept and wear a
Foreign Medal will only be given in the case of a Foreign Medal
conferred by the Head or Government of a Foreign State for saving or
attempting to save life at sea or on land.
12. The King's unrestricted permission to accept and wear a
Foreign War Medal will only be given to (1) Officers of His Majesty's
Military or Naval Forces if serving with a Foreign Army or Navy with
His Majesty's licence, and (2) Military or Naval Attaches or other
Officers officially attached to Foreign Armies or Navies during
hostilities.
13. In exceptional cases, when for special reasons it is
deemed expedient that the acceptance of the Medal should not be
declined, His Majesty will grant restricted permission. Such cases will
be judged on their merits, and the circumstances in which the Medal may
be worn will be specified in the Letter conveying His Majesty's
permission.
14. The term " person in the Service of the Crown ''
includes persons in receipt of a salary or pension from Public Funds,
or holding a Royal Commission in any part of His Majesty's Dominions,
Protectorates, or Possessions.
15. Ladies are subject to the Regulations in all respects
in the same manner as men.
Foreign Office, March 10, 1914.
Regulations Respecting Foreign Orders and Medals Applicable to
Persons not in the Service of the Crown.
Orders.
1. It is the King's wish that no subject of His Majesty
shall wear the Insignia of any Foreign Order without having previously
obtained His Majesty's permission to do so, signified either:
- By Warrant under the Royal Sign-Manual, or
- By private permission conveyed through His Majesty's Private
Secretary.
2. Permission given by Warrant under the Royal Sign-Manual will
enable the Insignia of the Foreign Order to be worn at all times and
without any restriction.
Private permission will only enable the Insignia to be worn on the
occasions specified in the terms of the letter from the King's Private
Secretary conveying the Royal sanction.
3. The full and unrestricted permission by Warrant under
the Royal Sign Manual is designed to meet cases where the Decoration
may be said to have been earned by some valuable service rendered to
the Head of the State conferring it, or to the State itself.
Application will be made to His Majesty for full permission by His
Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs on behalf of
any person who, not being at the time in the Service of the Crown, is
either in the salaried employment of a Foreign State or has rendered
valuable services within the period of two years immediately preceding
the notification of the Decoration to His Majesty's Government as
prescribed under Rule 5.
The expression ''valuable services'' must be construed as meaning some
service rendered to a Foreign Head of State or Government specifically,
and must be indisputably valuable in the strict sense of the word.
Though such services need not necessarily be gratuitous, as in the case
of a person actually in the employ of a Foreign Government, they must
be unconnected with any transaction of a commercial or financial
character brought about in the ordinary course of business. The term
"valuable services" does not therefore, as a general rule, apply to
services connected with the fulfilment of Government or Municipal
contracts, the financing of Government or Municipal loans. It also does
not include Red Cross Services, presentation of objects of value to
Public Museums and Institutions, pecuniary donations or endowments,
personal performances, services in connection with Exhibitions and
Industrial Congresses, services in the domain of art, literature,
science, education, and agriculture, services rendered by British
subjects in the capacity of honorary foreign Consular Officers.
4. Private or restricted permission is contemplated for
Decorations which have been conferred in recognition of personal
attention to the Head of a Foreign State or Member of a Reigning House,
and which are therefore of a more or less complimentary character.
Private permission is as a rule only given on exceptional occasions,
when in the public interest and for political reasons it is deemed
expedient that the acceptance of a Foreign Decoration should not be
declined.
5. Both in the case of full and in that of private permission the
matter will be submitted to the King by His Majesty's Principal
Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
The desire of the Head of a Foreign State to confer upon a British
subject the Insignia of an Order, or the fact that he has done so, must
be notified to His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs either through the British Diplomatic Representative accredited
to the Head of the Foreign State, or through the Diplomatic
Representative of the latter at the Court of St. James. His Majesty's
Principal Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs shall be under no
obligation to consider claims that are not brought to his notice
through one of these channels.
6. When His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for Foreign
Affairs shall have taken the King's pleasure on any such application,
and shall have obtained His Majesty's permission for the person in
whose favour it has been made to wear the Insignia of a Foreign Order,
he shall signify the same to His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State
for the Home Department, in order that he may cause a Warrant, if it be
a case for the issue of a Warrant as defined in Rule 2, to be prepared
for the Royal Sign-Manual.
When such Warrant shall have been signed by the King, a notification
thereof shall be inserted in the Gazette, stating the service for which
the Foreign Order has been conferred.
Persons in whose favour such Warrants are issued will be required to
pay to His Majesty's Principal Secretary of State for the Home
Department a stamp duty of 10s.
7. The Warrant signifying His Majesty's permission may, at
the request and at the expense of the person who has obtained it, be
registered in the College of Arms. Every such Warrant as aforesaid
shall contain a clause providing that His Majesty's licence and
permission does not authorise the assumption of any style, appellation,
rank, precedence, or privilege appertaining to a Knight Bachelor of His
Majesty's Realms.
8. When a British subject has received the Royal
permission, full or private, to accept and wear the Decoration of a
Foreign Order, he will not be allowed to accept the Decoration of a
higher class of the same Order without His Majesty's approval. His
Majesty will in such cases grant permission only if the promotion in
the Order is conferred for fresh services which come within these
Regulations.
9. These Regulations apply only to Orders of Chivalry.
Decorations conferred by Private Societies and Decorations of a purely
academic nature, and all Decorations not being Orders of Chivalry, may
be accepted without His Majesty's permission, but must not be worn.
Exception is made in the case of a few Foreign Orders, which, though
not in strictness Orders of Chivalry, yet are of such a high
distinction that, for the purpose of these Regulations, they are to be
considered and treated as Orders of Chivalry.
10. Ladies are subject to the Regulations in all respects
in the same manner as men.
Medals.
11. Medals which constitute a particular class of a Foreign
Order are subject in all respects to the Regulations in the same manner
as higher grades of the Order, except that permission to wear will be
given by Letter and not by Royal Warrant.
12. Medals for saving or attempting to save life at sea or
on land conferred on behalf of the Head or Government of a Foreign
State may be accepted without His Majesty's special permission, and may
be worn at Court.
13. Medals conferred by Private Societies or Institutions
and Commemorative Medals may be accepted without permission, but none
of these Medals can be worn.
14. The King's permission must be obtained for any other
Medal to be worn. No permission is needed to accept a Foreign Medal if
it is not intended to be worn.
15. His Majesty will not grant permission to wear any
Foreign War Medal if the person on whom it is to be or has been
conferred was during the war acting in contravention of the Foreign
Enlistment Act.
Foreign Office, March 10, 1914.