Order of Australia
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The Order of Australia is an order of chivalry established by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia on 14 February 1975 "for the purpose of according recognition to Australian citizens and other persons for achievement or for meritorious service". Awards made to people who are not Australian citizens are called honorary awards.
The Order is divided into general and military divisions, with the following grades in descending order of seniority:
- Knight or Dame (AK or AD; granted 1976-1986)
- Companion (AC)
- Officer (AO)
- Member (AM)
- Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM; from 1976).
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[edit] History
The Order was established on 14 February 1975 by Letters patent of Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, and countersigned by the then Labor Prime Minister Gough Whitlam. Before the establishment of the Order, Australian citizens received British honours. The original Order had only three grades: Companion (AC), Officer (AO) and Member (AM).
On 24 May 1976, the further categories of Knight (AK), Dame (AD), and Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) were established by the Queen on the advice of Whitlam's Liberal successor Malcolm Fraser.
Labor's Bob Hawke abolished the Knight and Dame categories. Following his 1983 election, on 3 March 1986 the Queen signed Letters Patent countersigned by Prime Minister Hawke, revoking the category of Knight or Dame. Existing Knights and Dames were not affected by the new patent. The Prince of Wales is a Knight of the Order of Australia.
The Queen of Australia is Sovereign of the Order while the Governor-General of Australia is Principal Companion and Chancellor of the Order. The Governor-General's Official Secretary is Secretary of the Order.
The Order of Australia is modelled closely upon the Order of Canada. However, when compared with the Order of Canada, the Order of Australia has been awarded rather more liberally, especially in regard to honorary awards for foreigners. While the Order of Canada has only been awarded to twelve non-Canadians to date, more non-Australians have received the Order of Australia honour by comparison.[citation needed]
[edit] Appointment
The Order formerly consisted of four grades and a medal, in both general and military divisions. Knighthood of the Order was made in the general division only.
While State Governors can present the Officer, Member and Medal of the Order of Australia to his or her state's residents, only the Governor-General can present the Companion level of the order. [1]
The different grades of the Order are awarded according to the recipients' levels of achievement:
- Companion
- for eminent achievement and merit of the highest degree in service to Australia or to humanity at large
- Officer
- for distinguished service of a high degree to Australia or to humanity at large
- Member
- for service in a particular locality or field of activity or to a particular group
- Medal of the Order of Australia
- for service worthy of particular recognition .
Any person may nominate any Australian citizen for an award. The nominations are reviewed by the Order of Australia Council, independent of any political interference, and then approved by the Governor-General. The Order is awarded twice annually: on Australia Day, and on the Queen's Birthday public holiday in June, when public announcements are made about new awards.
Appointments to the Order are not made posthumously; however, if a nominee dies after accepting an appointment but before the relevant announcement date, the appointment still stands and it is announced as having effect from the date of the nominee's death.
[edit] Insignia
The badge of the Order of Australia is a convex disc (gold for ACs, gilt for AOs, AMs and OAMs) representing the Golden Wattle flower. At the centre is a ring, representing the sea, with the word 'Australia' below two branches of golden wattle. The whole disc is topped by the Royal crown of St Edward. The AC badge is decorated with citrines, blue enamelled ring, and enamelled crown. The AO badge is similar, without the citrines. For the AM badge only the crown is enamelled, and the OAM badge is plain.
The star for knights and dames is a convex golden disc decorated with citrines, with a blue royally crowned inner disc bearing an image of the Coat of Arms of Australia.
The ribbon of the Order is blue with a central stripe of golden wattle flower designs; that of the military division has additional golden edge stripes. Male ACs and AOs wear their badges on a necklet; male AMs and OAMs wear them on a ribbon on the left chest. Women usually wear their badges on a bow on the left shoulder, although they may wear the same insignia as males, if so desired.
The Order's insignia were designed by Stuart Devlin.
[edit] Officials of the Order
- Sovereign of the Order: HM The Queen
- Chancellor and Principal Companion: Quentin Bryce AC (Governor-General of Australia)
- Secretary: Stephen Brady (Official Secretary to the Governor-General of Australia)
[edit] Knights and Dames
The category of Knight (AK) or Dame (AD) of the order was created on 24 May 1976, and was abolished on 3 March 1986. Existing knights and dames were not affected by the removal of the category. During this period, twelve knights and two dames were created, of whom nine of the knights and both of the dames are now deceased.
This is a complete list of the knights and dames of the Order of Australia. It is shown in order of appointment; living knights are shown in bold:
Name | Date of Appointment | Date of Death |
---|---|---|
Sir John Kerr AK GCMG GCVO | 24 May 1976[2] | 24 March 1991 |
Sir Robert Menzies KT AK CH QC | 7 June 1976 | 15 May 1978 |
Sir Colin Syme AK | 6 June 1977 | 1986 |
Sir Zelman Cowen AK GCMG GCVO QC | 8 December 1977[3] | living |
Sir MacFarlane Burnet OM AK KBE | 26 January 1978 | 31 August 1985 |
Dame Alexandra Hasluck AD | 6 June 1978 | 18 June 1993 |
Dame Enid Lyons AD GBE | 26 January 1980 | 2 September 1981 |
HRH The Prince of Wales KG KT GCB OM AK SOM GCL QSO PC ADC | 14 March 1981 | living |
Sir Roden Cutler VC AK KCMG KCVO CBE | 7 April 1981 | 22 February 2002 |
Sir Garfield Barwick AK GCMG | 8 June 1981 | 14 July 1997 |
Sir Charles Court AK KCMG OBE | 14 June 1982 | 22 December 2007 |
Sir Ninian Stephen KG AK GCMG GCVO KBE QC | 29 July 1982[4] | living |
Sir Roy Wright AK | 26 January 1983 | 28 February 1990 |
Sir Gordon Jackson AK | 13 June 1983 | 1 June 1991 |
[edit] The Order of Australia Association
On 26 January 1980 recipients of awards in the Order formed the Order of Australia Association. This organisation seeks to aid the members of the Order in their pursuits related to the development and maintenance of Australia's culture and traditions. The organisation also attempts to increase awareness of those honoured by the Order, since many of their number are not household names, despite their contributions. Branches of the Association can be found in all the states and territories of Australia.
[edit] Honorary awards
Awards in the Order of Australia are sometimes made to people who are not citizens of Australia, to honour extraordinary achievements. These achievements, or the people themselves, are not necessarily associated with Australia, although they often are. Notable honorary awards include:
- Honorary Companion:
- Honorary Officer:
- Ali Alatas, Edo de Waart, Mel Gibson, Maina Gielgud, Romaldo Giurgola, Hiroyuki Iwaki, Clive Lloyd, Jerzy Toeplitz, Malcolm Williamson, and James Wolfensohn.
- Fred Hollows, then a New Zealand citizen, was made an honorary Officer in 1985. He became an Australian citizen in 1989, and in 1991 was appointed a substantive Companion of the order.
- Honorary Member:
- Terri Irwin, and Robyn Williams.
[edit] References
- ^ Honours of the Crown p.11
- ^ Sir John Kerr was the Governor-General and, as Principal Knight of the Order, his knightood took effect immediately the category of Knight was established.
- ^ The date of Sir Zelman Cowen's appointment as Governor-General.
- ^ The date of Sir Ninian Stephen's appointment as Governor-General.
[edit] See also
- Australian campaign medals
- Australian Honours System
- Australian Honours Order of Precedence
- Australian knights and dames a list of living knights and dames
- British and Commonwealth orders and decorations
- Order of Canada
- Order of New Zealand
- Bunyip aristocracy, a term coined in relation to the attempt to introduce a hereditary peerage system into New South Wales in the 1850s. As a result of the popular reaction to the proposed introduction of this form of colonial honours, it took many years before an Australian honours system was created.
[edit] Recipient categories
- Companions of the Order of Australia
- Category:Dames of the Order of Australia
- Category:Knights of the Order of Australia
- Category:Companions of the Order of Australia
- Category:Officers of the Order of Australia
- Category:Members of the Order of Australia
- Category:Recipients of the Order of Australia Medal
[edit] External links
- Australian Honours Secretariat
- Order of Australia including list of the Order, its history and its "Constitution" (statutes).
- Order of Australia Association
- ODM of Australia -- has images of insignia, including Knight's insignia