New Zealand Honours System

From Free net encyclopedia

1 History
2 Orders
3 Other honours and appointments
4 References
5 See also
6 External links

History

Royal honours were awarded in New Zealand from the very beginning of settlement. Governor, George Edward Grey received the first honour granted to a New Zealand resident, becoming a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath, in 1848.

For more than a hundred years the unadulterated British honours system was used for New Zealand. In 1975, after a review of the system, two uniquely New Zealand honours were integrated into it: the Queen's Service Order, and its affiliated Medal. In 1987, the Order of New Zealand was instituted as the supreme New Zealand honour. Finally, in 1995 – 1996, a further review of the system resulted in the termination of awards of almost all British honours and the creation of a multi-tiered New Zealand Order of Merit to replace them.

Locally awarded Knighthoods and Damehoods were initially retained in the upper tiers, but later discontinued after 2000, however, honours personally awarded by the Queen (Dynastic Orders of Knighthood) were not affected, thus New Zealanders are still eligible for membership in the Order of the Garter, Order of the Thistle, Royal Victorian Order, and the Order of Merit (see [[1]])— theoretically making knighthoods still possible in the New Zealand Honours System although future awards are unlikely.

The appellations "The Right Honourable" and "The Honourable" strictly are not honours but distinctions made to certain people due to King or Queen's trust in them (e g the saluation in official correspondence as the "right trusty and well – beloved cousin A.B.").

[edit]

Orders

The Order of New Zealand is the highest locally awarded civilian honour in New Zealand; in heraldic terms, it is a first-level honour. Below it is the New Zealand Order of Merit, its position in the heraldic hierarchy is unclear. Below that lie the Queen's Service Order (a fourth-level honour) and the Queen's Service Medal (a sixth-level honour). Both of the latter are awarded either "for Community Service" or "for Public Service".

The Orders ranked by precedence, are as follows:

Order of the Garter (founded 1348)
Order of Merit (1902)
Order of New Zealand (1987)—intended to be a local version of the Order of Merit and the Order of the Companions of Honour [2]
New Zealand Order of Merit (1996)—substitutes previous Orders as outlined below
Royal Victorian Order (1896)
Queen's Service Order (1975)—intended to be a substitute for the Imperial Service Order

NB: The Queen's Service Order also has an affiliated Medal

In the reorganisation of the New Zealand honours system in 1996, the honours of the Order of the Bath, Order of St Michael and St George, Order of the British Empire, Order of the Companions of Honour and Knight Bachelor were replaced as follows:

Knight Grand Companion and Principal Companion in the New Zealand Order of Merit, and the Order of New Zealand:
- Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
- Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
- Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
- Companion of Honour
Knight Companion and Distinguished Companion in the Order of New Zealand:
- Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
- Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
- Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire
- Knight Bachelor
Companion of the Order of New Zealand:
- Companion of the Order of the Bath
- Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George
- Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Queen's Service Order and Officer of the Order of New Zealand:
- Officer of the Order of the British Empire
Member of the Order of New Zealand:
- Member of the Order of the British Empire

Source: Press release of 2 May 1996 at the New Zealand Executive Government News Release Archive (govt.nz). Accessed 28 February 2006.

Knights in the New Zealand Order of Merit were and remain entitled to use 'Sir' or 'Dame' as appropriate, and the wife of such a knight who uses her husband's surname is entitled to the courtesy title 'Lady'. Now that the knightly grades of the Order have been re-organised, no locally awarded honour now carries a title; those who hold honours from previous systems remain entitled to use their titles.

[edit]

Other honours and appointments

Other orders, decorations and medals which do not carry titles, but entitle the holder to place post nominals after his or her name. There are also a small number of Royal Family Orders.
The Most Venerable Order of St John of Jerusalem (founded 1888). Although it is an independent order of chivalry, though it is officially sanctioned by virtue of the fact that the Queen is the Sovereign of the Order. The Governor-General of New Zealand is the Prior in New Zealand. The members of this semi-official order can wear the Order's insignia, but do not receive any titles of Knighthood or use any post-nominal letters.

Peerage, Baronetcy and Knighthood ("plain" knighthood or Knight Bachelor) have been all but discontinued in New Zealand. In the past numerous high-ranking New Zealand government figues (usually Governors-General) of both British and New Zealand extraction were awarded these distinctions, however since the 1970s they have been ignored.

See: British honours system: Other honours and appointments

[edit]