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Badge of the Most Noble Order of the
Garter
19th century
Silver, rock crystal, enamel
H 12.5 cm, w 7 cm
The order of Garter, one of the oldest secular orders,
was instituted by Edward III in 1348 as a military order
consisting of the king and twenty five knights. St
George was chosen as the order's patron saint and he
is depicted on the order's badge. One of the reasons
given for the institution of the order was the victory
over the French at the Battle of Crecy in 1346 during
the Hundred Years' War. A romantic legend tells how
the king at a court ball chivalrously picked up off the
floor a garter which one of the ladies had accidentally
let slip, and tying it to his leg, said, Honi soit qui mal
y pense! [Shame to him who thinks this evil]. The dark
blue enamelled ribbon bearing this inscription encircles
the depiction of the saint on the order's badge. The
same inscription is on the ribbon, worn, with the
order's robes, by men under the left knee, and by
women around the left upper arm. The order, as the
personal bestowal of the ruling monarch, has retained
its exclusiveness to this day.
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