The Order of the Dragon (German: Drachenorden; Latin: Societas Draconistrarum) is an order of selected nobles modeled on the Order of St. George of Burgundy. The order was originally commissioned by Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund (while still king of Hungary) and his second wife (Barbara Cilli) in order to protect the royal family. Sigismund (February 14/15, 1368 - December 9, 1437) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1433 to 1437. ...

Origins of the Order

Milos Obilic with a dragon on his helmet

Miloš Obilić, a Serbian knight, had created the secret order of the Dragon of St George. His shield represented the sun with twelve rays and there were 12 knights, himself included, belonging to this order. As a distinctive sign, they wore a dragon on their helmet. The aim of the order was the death of the Ottoman sultan Murad I. According to a Serbian epic poetry, Miloš Obilić was the name of the Serbian knight who, at the Battle of Kosovo, between Serbia and the Ottoman Empire, assassinated the Ottoman sultan Murad I. On June 15th, 1389, Miloš made his way into the Ottoman camp on the pretext of being... For alternate uses, see Saint George (disambiguation) Saint George on horseback rides alongside a wounded dragon being led by a princess, late 19th century engraving. ... A sultan (Arabic: سلطان) is an Islamic monarch ruling under the terms of shariah. ... Sultan Murat I Murad I (1319 (or 1326) – 1389; nick-named Hüdavendiğar, the God-like one) was the ruler of the Ottoman Empire from 1359 to 1389. ...

On June 15th, 1389,at the Battle of Kosovo, Miloš made his way into the Ottoman camp on the pretext of being a deserter, forced his way into the Sultan's tent and stabbed him to death. Miloš Obilic was later executed together with all other Serbian prisoners by Murad's son, Beyazid I. June 15 is the 166th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (167th in leap years), with 199 days remaining. ... Events February 24 - Margaret I seizes Albert, thus becoming ruler of Denmark, Norway and Sweden June 15 - Battle of Kosovo between Serbs and Ottomans. ... This page is about the Battle of Kosovo of 1389; for other battles, see Battle of Kosovo (disambiguation) The Battle of Kosovo Polje was fought on St. ... Beyazid I Beyazid I (ca 1354–1403; Bayezıt, nicknamed Yıldırım, the Thunderbolt) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1389 to 1402. ...

Only one of the twelve knights of the Dragon survived. He later became a trainer of Serbian prince - Despot Stefan Lazarevic. Despot Stefan Lazarević (1374-1427) was the son and heir to Lazar , the Serbian prince who died at the Battle of Kosovo against the Turks in 1389. He was the first European-style knight in Serbia. Stefan became a vassal of Hungary and a knight of a special order, so when the Hungarian king Sigismund created the Order of the Dragon in 1408 Despot Stefan Lazarević was the first on the list of members. Despot Stefan Lazarevićs Coat of Arms 1415 AD Despot Stefan Lazarević (in Cyrillic: Стефан Лазаревић) (1374-1427) was the son and heir to Lazar (Cyrillic: Лазар), the Serbian prince who died at the Battle of Kosovo against the Turks in 1389, and princess Milica (Cyrillic: Милица) from the subordinate... Events King Gongmin is assassinated and King U ascends to the Goryeo throne Births Thomas Holland, 1st Duke of Surrey. ... Events Lincoln College in Oxford is founded. ... Prince Lazar, Photo courtesy of [http://www. ... Serbia and Montenegro  – Serbia    – Kosovo and Metohia        (UN administration)    – Vojvodina  – Montenegro Official language Serbian1 Capital Belgrade Area  – Total  – % water  88,361 km²  n/a Population  – Total (2002)     (without Kosovo)  – Density  7. ... This page is about the Battle of Kosovo of 1389; for other battles, see Battle of Kosovo (disambiguation) The Battle of Kosovo Polje was fought on St. ... Events February 24 - Margaret I seizes Albert, thus becoming ruler of Denmark, Norway and Sweden June 15 - Battle of Kosovo between Serbs and Ottomans. ... A statue of an armoured knight of the Middle Ages For the chess piece, see knight (chess). ... Sigismund (February 14/15, 1368 - December 9, 1437) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1433 to 1437. ... Events December 13 - The Order of the Dragon is officially formated under King Sigismund of Hungary. ...

Order of the Dragon Renewed

On December 13, 1408, the charter for the Order was publicly announced, dedicating the Order to the defense of the cross from its enemies, particularly the Turks. The founding twenty-four members were indoctrinated in 1408, including: December 13 is the 347th day of the year (348th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Events December 13 - The Order of the Dragon is officially formated under King Sigismund of Hungary. ...

• Sigismund of Luxembourg, King of Hungary
• Stefan Lazarevic of Serbia
• King Alfonso of Aragon and Naples
• King Ladislaus II of Poland
• Grand Prince Vitovd of Lithuania
• Duke Ernst of Austria
• Christopher III, Duke of Bavaria and King of Denmark

Sigismund (February 14/15, 1368 - December 9, 1437) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1433 to 1437. ... Despot Stefan Lazarevićs Coat of Arms 1415 AD Despot Stefan Lazarević (in Cyrillic: Стефан Лазаревић) (1374-1427) was the son and heir to Lazar (Cyrillic: Лазар), the Serbian prince who died at the Battle of Kosovo against the Turks in 1389, and princess Milica (Cyrillic: Милица) from the subordinate... Wladislaus II on Jan Matejkos painting Wladislaus II Jagiello (Polish Władysław II Jagiełło, Lithuanian Jogaila, and in Belarusian as Jahajla (Ягайла)) (c. ...

Symbol of the Order

Insignia of the order

For their symbol, the Order designed an insignia of a dragon with its tail coiled around its neck. On the back of the dragon from the base of the neck to the tail is the red cross of St. George, with the entire image on a silver field. The dragon represented the Beast of the Book of Revelation while the red cross represented the victory of Christ over the forces of darkness. Members were required to wear the symbol (often as a medallion) at all times and were often buried with the symbol. This image is in the public domain because its copyright has expired in the United States and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years. ... Saint George versus the dragon, Gustave Moreau, c. ... For alternate uses, see Saint George (disambiguation) Saint George on horseback rides alongside a wounded dragon being led by a princess, late 19th century engraving. ... A beast, in the English language, is most often used as a synonym for animal. ... The Book of Revelation or The Apocalypse of John (from apokalypsis / αποκάλυψις, the Greek for revelation), is the last book and the only prophetical book of the New Testament in the Bible. ... Christ, from the Greek Χριστός, or Khristós, means anointed, and is equivalent to the Hebrew term Messiah. ...

Growth of the Order

In 1431, Sigismund chose to expand the ranks of the Order. To achieve this, he invited a number of politically influential and militarily useful vassals and nobles for indoctrination into the Order. Included in this ceremony was Vlad II Dracul, father of Vlad Ţepeş, who was serving as frontier commander guarding the passes from Transylvania to Wallachia. (The post-title "Dracul" refers to being invested with the Order of the Dragon.) Events February 21 - The trial of Joan of Arc March 3 - Eugenius IV becomes Pope May 30 - In Rouen, France, 19-year old Joan of Arc is burned at the stake. ... Vlad II, Dracul (c. ... Portrait of Vlad III Vlad III Dracula (Also known as Vlad Ţepeş /tsepesh/ in Romanian or Vlad the Impaler) born November/December, 1431 - died December 1476, and reigned as Prince of Wallachia 1448, 1456-1462 and 1476. ... Transylvania ( Romanian: Transilvania or Ardeal, Hungarian: Erdély, German: Siebenbürgen, Serbian: Transilvanija, Turkish: Erdel, Slovak: Sedmohradsko or Transylvania, Polish: Siedmiogród) is a historic region that forms the western and the central parts of Romania. ... Map of Romania with Wallachia in yellow. ...

The addition of new members caused the creation of many classes within the Order. Each class had a slight variation on the symbol of the order, although the dragon motif was dominant in each variation. Common changes included the addition of inscriptions like "O quam misericors est Deus" ("Oh, how merciful God is") and "Justus et paciens" ("Justifiably and peacefully"). The order remained prominent until the death of Sigismund in 1437. Without a strong sponsor, the Order quickly lost influence and prestige. Events foundation of All Souls College, University of Oxford. ...

Modern day

Few historical artifacts of the Order remain today, although the symbol of the Order has been adopted for many family crests throughout Europe. A copy of the edict forming the Order dating to 1707 is the oldest historical artifact of the Order and is stored at the University of Bucharest. Events March 26 - Act of Union with Scotland becomes law, making the separate Kingdoms of England and Scotland into one country, the Kingdom of Great Britain. ... University of Bucharest is a university founded in 1864 by decree of Prince Alexander John Cuza to convert the former St. ...

The spurious "Prince Michael of Albany" (real name: Michael LaFosse) heads up a fantasy "Order of the Dragon" among other fantastic self styled orders.

External links

• The Dragon Society (http://www.thedragonsociety.com)
• The Royal House of Stewart (http://www.royalhouseofstewart.org.uk/dragon.htm)