The Royal Family Order is an order awarded by the sovereign of the United Kingdom to female members of the royal family. The order, therefore, is a personal memento rather than a state decoration. Members of the Royal Family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the Trooping the Colour ceremony The British Royal Family is a group of people closely related to the British monarch. ...

History

The first Royal Family Order was issued during and after the regency of King George IV. Prior to 1820, he started the practice of presenting the order to ladies and gentlemen of the Court, particularly female members of the Royal family. His order was rather ornate in appearance, and the frame that surrounded his portrait was of diamond oak leaves and acorns. The badge was suspended from a white silk bow. As a young woman, Victoria (later Queen Victoria) received this badge from her uncle. George IV (George Augustus Frederick) (12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was king of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Hanover from 29 January 1820 until his death. ... Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria) (24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was the eminent Queen of England, Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837, and Empress of India from 1 January 1877, until her death in 1901. ...

After King George IV, each succeeding sovereign has issued his or her own Royal Family Order. However, the order was limited to female members of the Royal Family only. Members of the Royal Family on the balcony of Buckingham Palace after the Trooping the Colour ceremony The British Royal Family is a group of people closely related to the British monarch. ...

A slight variation in the practice of the Royal Family Order came with the reign of Queen Victoria. When Victoria came to the throne there was no Royal Family Order, until after her marriage she created her Royal Order of Victoria and Albert in 1862, which then served as her Royal Family Order. The order consisted of a cameo portrait of Victoria and Albert, and was suspended from a white ribbon. No other Royal Family Order has depicted both the sovereign and the sovereign's consort. Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria) (24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was the eminent Queen of England, Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837, and Empress of India from 1 January 1877, until her death in 1901. ...

Related to the Royal Family Order is that of Queen Alexandra's ladies' order, which is sometimes mistakenly called Queen Alexandra's Royal Family Order. This is not an official order, but rather one that was personally issued by Queen Alexandra to those in her service or family. This page is about the wife of Edward VII of the United Kingdom. ...

Classes & Insignia

Today, the Royal Family Order appears to hold a single class. Previous Royal Family Orders, however, had three to four classes. Queen Victoria's Royal Order of Victoria and Albert, for example, had four classes. Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria) (24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was the eminent Queen of England, Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837, and Empress of India from 1 January 1877, until her death in 1901. ...

The badge of the order consists of a portrait of the Sovereign set in diamonds, which is suspended from a ribbon. The ribbon of each Royal Family Order changes with each monarch: Edward VII's was variegated of red, blue, and white (similar to the colors of the Royal Victorian Order), George V's was blue, and George VI's was rose pink. Each contained a portrait of the sovereign, usually in uniform (if male), or an evening dress (if female). The reverse of the order contains the royal cypher of the sovereign. Edward VII (Albert Edward) (9 November 1841–6 May 1910) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, King of the Commonwealth Realms, and the Emperor of India. ... George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert) (3 June 1865–20 January 1936) was the last British monarch of the House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, changing the name to the House of Windsor in 1917. ...

The Royal Family Order of Queen Elizabeth II depicts The Queen in evening dress wearing the riband and star of the Order of the Garter. The miniature, painted on ivory, is bordered by diamonds and surmouted by a Tudor crown in diamonds and red enamel. The reverse, in silver-gilt, is patterned with rays and depicts the royal cypher and St Edward's Crown in gold and enamel. The watered silk ribbon is chartreuse yellow and formed into a bow. Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor), born on 21 April 1926, is Queen of sixteen independent nations known as the Commonwealth Realms. ...

Wearing the Order

Princess Margaret wearing three Royal Family Orders.

The Royal Family Orders are worn pinned to the left shoulder at formal evening occasions when other orders and decorations are worn. If a sash is worn also over the left shoulder, the order is pinned to the sash. If more than one Royal Family Order is worn, they are layered, with the most recent always on top. This work is copyrighted. ... This work is copyrighted. ...

More than one Royal Family Order may be worn. The Queen herself wears the Family Orders of her father King George VI and her grandfather King George V; she does not wear her own. Princess Alexandra of Kent has those of King George VI and The Queen. Those who wear that of The Queen only are The Countess of Wessex, The Princess Royal, The Duchess of Gloucester and The Duchess of Kent. Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary Windsor), born on 21 April 1926, is Queen of sixteen independent nations known as the Commonwealth Realms. ... HRH Princess Alexandra Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy (Alexandra Helen Elizabeth Olga Christabel Ogilvy, née Windsor), formerly Princess Alexandra of Kent, is a member of the British Royal Family, a granddaughter of King George V. She was married to the late Sir Angus Ogilvy. ... HRH The Countess of Wessex The Countess of Wessex (Sophie Helen Mountbatten-Windsor, née Rhys-Jones), (born January 20, 1965), is a member of the British Royal Family, the wife of HRH The Prince Edward, Earl of Wessex, the youngest son of Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke... Princess Anne visits the USNS Comfort on July 11, 2002 while the ship was docked in Southampton, England The Princess Anne, Princess Royal, (Anne Elizabeth Alice Louise Laurence, formerly Phillips, née Windsor, later Mountbatten-Windsor, (born August 15, 1950)), is a member of the British Royal Family and the... Image:Birgitte Van Deurs. ... Her Royal Highness Princess Edward, Duchess of Kent (Katharine Lucy Mary Windsor, formerly Worsley), styled HRH The Duchess of Kent, is a member of the British Royal Family the wife of HRH Prince Edward, Duke of Kent, a grandson of King George V and cousin of Queen Elizabeth II. The...

The late Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, wore those of King George V, King George VI, and The Queen. The late Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, also wore those of King George V, King George VI and The Queen. The late Princess Margaret wore the same as her mother, Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother. The late Diana, Princess of Wales wore that of The Queen only. Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon as Queen Elizabeth. ... Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester Her Royal Highness Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester (Alice Christabel Windsor, née Lady Alice Montagu-Douglas-Scott) (December 25, 1901 – October 29, 2004) was the wife of the Duke of Gloucester — the third son of King George V and Queen Mary — and the mother of... The Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, (Margaret Rose Armstrong-Jones, née Windsor) 21 August 1930–9 February 2002) was the younger daughter of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth, and sister of the current British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. She also later held the title Countess of Snowdon by... The Lady Diana Frances Spencer (Diana Frances Mountbatten-Windsor, née Spencer) (July 1, 1961–August 31, 1997) was the first wife of Charles, Prince of Wales. ...

List of Royal Family Orders

• Royal Family Order of King George IV (1811/1821)
• Royal Order of Victoria and Albert (1862)
• Royal Family Order of King Edward VII (1901)
• Royal Family Order of King George V (1911)
• Royal Family Order of King George VI (1937)
• Royal Family Order of Queen Elizabeth II (1953)