Order of the Bath
British order of chivalry established in 1725 / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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The Most Honourable Order of the Bath[2] is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I on 18 May 1725.[3] The name derives from an elaborate medieval ceremony for preparing a candidate to receive his knighthood, of which ritual bathing (as a symbol of purification) was an element. While not all knights went through such an elaborate ceremony, knights so created were known as "knights of the Bath".[4]
Most Honourable Order of the Bath | |
---|---|
Awarded by the monarch of the United Kingdom | |
Type | Order of chivalry |
Established | 18 May 1725; 298 years ago (1725-05-18) |
Country | United Kingdom |
Motto | Tria juncta in uno ('Three joined in one') (Civil Division) Ich dien (Military Division) |
Awarded for | Service to the Crown |
Status | Currently constituted |
Founder | George I |
Sovereign | Charles III |
Great Master | William, Prince of Wales |
Grades | Knight/Dame Grand Cross (GCB) Knight/Dame Commander (KCB/DCB) Companion (CB) |
Former grades | Knight Companion (KB) |
Precedence | |
Next (higher) | Order of St Patrick |
Next (lower) | Order of the Star of India |
Order of the Bath ribbon bar |
George I constituted the Knights of the Bath as a regular military order.[5] He did not revive the order,[6] which did not previously exist, in the sense of a body of knights governed by a set of statutes and whose numbers were replenished when vacancies occurred.[7][8]
The Order consists of the Sovereign of the United Kingdom (currently King Charles III), the Great Master (currently William, Prince of Wales), and three Classes of members:[9]
- Knight Grand Cross (GCB) or Dame Grand Cross (GCB);
- Knight Commander (KCB) or Dame Commander (DCB); and
- Companion (CB).
Members belong to either the Civil Division or the Military Division.[10] Knight Companion (KB), the order's only class prior to 1815, is no longer an option.[11] Recipients of the Order are now usually senior military officers or senior civil servants.[12][13] Commonwealth citizens who are not subjects of the British monarch and foreign nationals may be made Honorary Members.[14]
The Order of the Bath is the fourth-most senior of the British orders of chivalry, after the Order of the Garter, the Order of the Thistle, and the (dormant) Order of St Patrick.[15]