[stag_toggle style=”normal” title=”Piece details” state=”closed”]ORDER OF CHARLES III, SPAIN
IN THE GRAND CROSS DEGREE
mean
MODEL 1863
No. inv. : 10046; OV. 78; D 139 a[/stag_toggle]
At the end of 2013, ninety-five years have passed since the historical moment that marked the birth of Greater Romania, on December 1, 1918. The Peleș National Museum chose to pay homage to the most important event in our contemporary history through an exclusive exhibition of orders and decorations issued or received by the Kings of Romania. Arranged on the Ground Floor of Peleș Castle, in the martial setting of the Great Hall of Arms, built at the beginning of the 20th century according to the plans of the Czech architect, Karel Liman (1855-1929), the exhibition also aims to popularize this collection. Visitors to the Museum will have the opportunity to admire until February 10, 2014, almost thirty pieces, such as the Order of the Garter, the Order of Malta, the Order of Saint Stephen, the Order of the Savior, the Royal Order of the House of Hohenzollern, the Military Order of the House of Savoy, the Order of Saint Stanislaus of Russia, the Order of Saint Charles of Monaco, etc., as well as the most important Romanian orders: the Star of Romania, the Crown of Romania, Carol I, Michael the Brave and Ferdinand I, in the rank of Grand Cross.
Among them, an Order that has survived for almost three centuries, despite all the vicissitudes of history, the Order of Charles III (La Real y Distinguida Orden de Carlos III). Taking first place in the current hierarchy of Orders of the Spanish Kingdom, the Order of Charles III is awarded to both Iberian citizens and foreigners, for exceptional merits and services to the Spanish Crown.
The first Spanish national order was founded on 19 September 1771 by King Charles III of Bourbon, Infante of Spain (1759-1788), Duke of Parma (1732-1735, under the title of Charles I) and King of Naples and the Two Sicilies (1734-1759, known as King Charles VII) in honour of the miracle of the birth of his grandson, Infante Carlos – Clemente of Asturias. French by father (he was the son of Philip V (1700-1746), Duke of Anjou and grandson of the Sun King), Charles also had Italian roots. His mother, Elisabeta Farnese (1692-1766), Duchess of Parma, with a choice education and ambition to match, dominated the entire Iberian politics for half a century. Elizabeth's youngest son, Infante Felipe, is the founder of the House of Bourbon–Parma, from which Queen Anne of Romania is directly descended.
An ambitious sovereign, with diverse intellectual interests, equally attracted to science and the arts, he remained in history especially due to his interest in archaeology. Charles initiated excavations in the famous Roman sites of Pompeii and Herculaneum. He founded the Prado Museum and modified the architecture of the city of Madrid, transforming it into one of the most beautiful European capitals. Along with Joseph II of Habsburg, Frederick the Great of Prussia, Gustav III of Sweden and Catherine II of Russia, Charles III formed the vanguard of enlightened despotism of the 18th century.
A Catholic king par excellence, animated by a strong devotion to the Church, inherited from Elisabeta Farnese, fanatical protector of the Jesuits, Charles III places the patronal Order under the spiritual protection of the Holy Virgin and the Immaculate Conception.
On October 24, 1771, by royal decree, the Order was established, and on February 21, 1772, Pope Clement XIV (1705–1774) granted it recognition in the name of the Vatican through the bull “Benedictus Deus”. The Knights of the Order, initially delimited into two classes, meet in the sumptuous setting of the Church of San Gil in Madrid. Watched over by the imposing statue of the Virgin, the knights attend endless ceremonies daily. Their investiture by the Grand Master takes place in the same sacred space.
King Charles III decreed the hereditary and exclusive nature of the title of Grand Master, as well as the composition of the Order limited to 60 knights of the Grand Cross and 200 others of lower rank. The ranks of the first category, formed only by prominent members of the aristocracy and the royal family, were necessarily comprised of four high prelates of the Catholic Church. To each knight of lower rank, the royal treasury undertook to pay a considerable annual annuity in exchange for total loyalty to the Crown. Twenty clerics were admitted to their ranks.
With the support of the Pope, the Order gradually accumulates wealth. The income of the other military Orders recognized by the Vatican until then, as well as valuable assets of wealthy Catholic Churches and monasteries are distributed to the advantage of the new knights, whose positions in the political and religious machinery become intangible. The Order had the permanent services of four ministries: the Grand Chancellor of Spain (the first mandatory title of Knight of the Grand Cross), the Royal Secretary, the Grand Master of Ceremonies and the Grand Treasurer. Practically, through these measures, the Order of Charles III had total and direct control of the State. In turn, the Pope granted numerous spiritual benefits and privileges, which his successor, Pius VI, amplified. By the bull of December 9, 1783, the Pope makes immense concessions out of a desire to consolidate his ecclesiastical position in the Peninsula.
With significant changes, the Order survived until 1808, the year of the Napoleonic invasion and the removal of the Bourbon Dynasty from the throne of Spain. Joseph Bonaparte abolished the Order by decree of 19 September 1809. The Restoration reinstated it during the reign of King Ferdinand VII, on 22 March 1814. In 1847, the Order of Charles III became a distinction of merit, in which proof of nobility was definitively excluded. Now, the division into four classes was established: Grand Cross, Commanders of Number, Commanders and Knights. Significant changes to the statutes took place during the Republican era (1873), as well as during the reign of the two Kings, Alfonso XII and XIII (1875, 1888), during the civil war (1931) and during the Franco era (1936-1975). Franco intervened in the statutes in 1942. The most recent regulations of the Order were adopted on 11 October 2002 and include five degrees: Grand Collar (created in 1878), Grand Cross, Commander of Number, Commander and Knight. Among the illustrious personalities who have received the Order of Charles III are King Juan Carlos of Spain and Queen Sofia, Elizabeth II of Great Britain, Margaret II of Denmark, Charles XVI Gustav of Sweden, Baudouin of Belgium, Queen Juliana of the Netherlands, Jean, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Harald V of Norway, etc.
The order consists of a Maltese cross, with the points ending in eight points, interspersed with the symbol of the lily of Lorraine, on a blue enamel background, with a white enamel border. The colors of the ribbon are blue and white, and between the fastening ring and the insignia, the laurel wreath has been inserted. On the obverse, in a gilded oval medallion, the polychrome relief image of the Virgin is reproduced on a small scale, a copy of an original by Murillo, located in the Prado Museum. Under the silhouette of the Order's protector, Charles III claimed the placement of the motto, "Virtuti et merito", and on the reverse, the royal monogram. The ceremonial costume consisted of a blue silk cloak, with a train trimmed with the Order's motifs, a white tunic, a belt, black tights and a hat with a plume. In 1942, after the Order was relaunched, Franco abolished the uniform. The Order of Charles III in the degree of Grand Cross from the collection of the Peleș National Museum was probably conferred on King Charles I at the end of the 19th century.