Order of Isabella the Catholic

Order of Isabella the Catholic

Awarded by His Majesty The King of Spain
Type	Civil Order of Merit
Awarded for	Services that benefit Spain
Sovereign	King Felipe VI
Chancellor	Minister of Foreign Affairs
Grades (w/ post-nominals)	Knight Grand Cross with Collar, Knight with Collar, Knight/Dame Grand Cross, Knight/Dame Grand Officer, Knight/Dame Grand Commander, Knight/Dame Commander, Knight/Dame, Silver Cross, Gold/Silver/Bronze Medal
Established	14 March 1815
Precedence
Next (higher)	Order of Charles III
Next (lower)	Order of Civil Merit

Sash of "Collar" / Ribbon of the Order

Collar granted to Czech President Václav Havel.

The Order of Isabella the Catholic (Spanish: Orden de Isabel la Católica) is a Spanish civil order granted in recognition of services that benefit the country. The Order is not exclusive to Spaniards, and many foreigners have been awarded it.

The Order was created on 14 March 1815 by King

1 Officials and grades
2 Order Decoration
3 Notable members
4 References and links

Officials and grades

The King of Spain (currently Felipe VI) is Grand Master of the Order. The Chancellor of the Order is the Minister of Foreign Affairs. All deeds granting decorations of the Order must bear the signatures of both. Beneath these two officials of the Order, there are currently several grades:

First Class

Knight of the Collar (Caballeros del Collar) (limited to 25 people)
Knight Grand Cross (Caballeros Gran Cruz) (limited to 500 people)

Second Class

Commander by Number (Encomienda de Número) (limited to 800 people)
Commander (Encomienda)

Third Class

Officer's Cross (Cruz de Oficial)

Fourth Class

Knight's Cross (Cruz de Caballeros)

Fifth Class

Silver Cross (Cruz de Plata)

Sixth Class

Silver Medal (Medalla de Plata)
Bronze Medal (Medalla de Bronce)^[3]

The original statues of the order of 24 March 1815 established the order in three classes. The structure of the order has varied several times since then. The following is a summary of the history of the various grades and medals of the order:

Knights of the Collar (Caballeros del Collar) – Established 22 June 1927.
Knights Grand Cross (Caballeros Gran Cruz) – Established 24 March 1815.
Knight First Class (Caballeros de Primera Clase) – Established 24 March 1815, retitled Commander (Comdador) on 24 July 1815.
Officer (Oficial) – Established 10 October 1931, abolished 15 June 1938 and restored 5 June 1971.
Knight Second Class (Caballeros de Segunda Clase) – Established 24 March 1815, retiled Knight (Caballeros) on 24 July 1815.
Silver Cross (Cruz de Plata) – Established 16 March 1903 to reward civil and palace officials.
Gold Medal with Laureate (Medal de Oro pero Laureada) – Established on 24 July 1815 for award to European sergeants and enlisted men. Subsequently abolished.
Gold Medal (Medal de Oro) – Established on 24 July 1815 for award to non-European 'natives'. Subsequently abolished.
Silver Medal (Medal de Plata) – Established 15 April 1907 to reward non-commissioned officers and junior civil officials.
Bronze Medal (Medal de Bronce) – Established 15 April 1907 to reward non-commissioned officers and junior civil officials.^[4]

Women appointed to an applicable grade are not called Knights (Caballeros). Women are instead appointed as Dames of the Collar (Damas del Collar), Dames Grand Cross (Damas Gran Cruz) or Dame's Cross (Cruz de Damas).^[3]

Order Decoration

The decoration is a red-enameled cross, with a golden frame. The outer peaks are fitted with small gold balls. The center of the medallion contains the inscription "A La Lealtad Acrisolada" (To Proven Loyalty) and "Por Isabel la Católica" (For Isabella the Catholic) on white enamel. Above the cross is a green enameled laurel wreath with the band ring.

The ribbon is yellow with a white central stripe,^[5] except the "Collar" for which the wearing of the collar can be replaced by a gold-yellow sash with white stripes on the edges.

Insignia

Collar	Collar Grade Star	Grand Cross Star	Commander by Number	Commander

Dame-Commander Bow (Optional)	Officer's Cross	Dame-Officer's Bow (Optional)	Knight's Cross	Dame Bow (Optional)

Silver Cross	Dame's Silver Cross Bow (Optional)	Silver Medal	Dame's Silver Medal Bow (Optional)	Bronze Medal

Dame's Bronze Medal Bow (Optional)

Notable members

Domingo de Monteverde, Spanish governor of Venezuela
Xavier Cortés Rocha
Joseph W. Revere (1851), American Brigadier General
Jacob Aaron Westervelt (1859), American shipbuilder
Pedro Duro, Spanish industrialist
Samuel Morse (1859), American inventor and painter
Ignacio Mariscal, Mexican diplomat
John Owen Dominis, Hawaiian prince consort^[6]
Carlos Luis de Ribera y Fieve (1870), Spanish painter
Emilio Arrieta (1871)
Henry Wikoff (1871), American writer, reporter and diplomatic agent^[7]
João Henrique Ulrich Junior (1880)
Fredrik Pacius (1882)
Pedro Paterno (1893), Filipino politician^[8]^:412
Jan Szczepanik, Polish inventor of ballistic vest^[9]
Primitivo González del Alba (1906)
Alexander Kircher (1909), Austro-German marine and landscape painter, illustrator ^[10]
Ludovic Lazarus Zamenhof (1909)
Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma^[11]
Encarnación López Júlvez (La Argentinita), Argentinian dancer
Esteban de Bilbao Eguía, Cortes speaker 1943-1965^[12]
Eva Duarte de Perón (1947), First Lady of Argentina^[13]
Gaspar Rivera Cestero (1959), Puerto Rican politician^[14]
Antonio Iturmendi Bañales, Cortes speaker 1965-1969^[15]
Cayetana Fitz-James Stuart (1964), Duchess of Alba^[16]
Alejandro Roces (1965), Filipino historian, writer, and journalist ^[17]
Peter Rafael Bloch (1969), art historian and writer^[18]
Farah Pahlavi (1969), Empress of Iran^[19]
Saddam Hussein (1974), Vice President of Iraq (later President)^[20]^[21]
Imelda Marcos (1974), First Lady of Philippines^[22]
Basma bint Talal (1977), Princess of Jordan^[23]^[24]
José López Portillo (1977), President of Mexico^[25]
Alfredo Pareja Diezcanseco (1979), Ecuadorian diplomat^[26]
Ramón Xirau (1979), Spanish poet and philosopher^[27]

Joseph Perez, French historian of Spain^[28]
Hugo Gutiérrez Vega (1983), Mexican poet and diplomat^[29]
Fidel Villarroel (1985), Spanish historian and theologian^[30]
Qaboos bin Said al Said (1985), Sultan of Oman^[31]
Sila María Calderón (1987), 7th Governor of Puerto Rico
Gyanendra of Nepal (1987), King of Nepal
Dulce María Loynaz (1993), Cuban poet^[32]
Alicia Alonso (1993), Cuban dancer^[33]
Gustavo Cisneros, Venezuelan businessman^[34]
John Griffiths (musician) (1993), Australian vihuelist and musicologist
Fidel V. Ramos (1995), President of the Philippines^[35]
Celin, Pepe, and Ángel Romero (2000), Spanish/American classical guitarists^[36]
Chavela Vargas (2000), Mexican singer^[37]
Jan G.F. Veldhuis (2001), Dutch University President
Estanislao Rodríguez-Ponga (2004), Spanish economist^[38]
Juan Soriano (2006), Mexican painter^[39]
Ferenc Gyurcsány (2007), Prime Minister of Hungary^[40]
Traian Băsescu and Maria Băsescu (2007), President and First Lady of Romania^[41]^[42]
Fernando Botero (2007), Colombian artist^[43]
Rafael Arráiz Lucca (2007), Venezuelan writer^[44]
Les Luthiers (2007), Argentine comedians/musicians^[45]
María Luisa Elío Bernal (2007), Spanish writer and actress, exiled in Mexico^[46]
Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo (2007), President of the Philippines ^[47]
Felipe Calderón (2008), President of Mexico^[48]
Carlos Fuentes (2008), Mexican author^[49]^[50]
Enrique Krauze (2008), Mexican historian^[49]^[50]
Brad Owen (2008), Lieutenant Governor of Washington State, USA^[51]
José Woldenberg (2008), Mexican political scientist^[49]^[50]
Mario Molina (2008), Mexican chemist^[49]^[50]
Luis Fortuño (2009), Governor of Puerto Rico^[52]
Ashok Seth (2010), Indian cardiologist^[53]
[54]
Diego Forlán (2011), Uruguayan football player^[55]

References and links

^ Real y Americana Orden de Isabel la Católica
^ "premiar la lealtad acrisolada a España y los méritos de ciudadanos españoles y extranjeros en bien de la Nación y muy especialmente en aquellos servicios excepcionales prestados en favor de la prosperidad de los territorios americanos y ultramarinos"
^ ^a ^b 1998 Statutes of the Order of Isabella the Catholic.
^ Essay on the history of the Order of Isabella the Catholic.
^ Spain: Order of Isabella the Catholic
^ Liliuokalani. Hawaii's Story By Hawaii's Queen
^ Caleb Grain (2006) American Literary History 18 (4): pp. 659-94 The Courtship of Henry Wikoff
^ Foreman, J., 1906, The Philippine Islands, A Political, Geographical, Ethnographical, Social and Commercial History of the Philippine Archipelago, New York: Charles Scribner's Sons
^ Jan Szczepanik - "Polish Edison"
^
^ Fox-Davies, Arthur C. (1929). Armorial Families, Vol. 2, Seventh Ed., London: Hurst & Blackett, Ltd., p. 90.
^ 24 September 1970La Vanguardia
^
^ Concesión de motivo leí Día de la Victoria' Informacion Nacional. 1 April 1959. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
^ 5 March 1976La Vanguardia
^ Imágenes
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado, 5 April 1965
^ Fallece hispanista alemán Peter Bloch
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado, 13 November 1969
^ Sadam Husein y la medalla de la que nunca se habló
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado, 10 December 1974
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado
^ Awards and Honours of Basma bint Talal
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado, 9 May 1977
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado
^ Baldomera: Las pequeñas estaturas, About the Author section.
^ El Colegio Nacional: Miembros
^ Joseph Pérez biography
^
^ The Varsitarian Website. UST Historian named Master of Theology 1 May 2012.
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado, 16 December 1985
^ Dulce María Loynaz: Cronología
^ Biografía Alicia Alonso
^ Entrevista Exclusiva con Gustavo Cisneros: El Rey del Entretenimiento
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado, 1 April 1995.
^ Los Romero Conciertos Daniel. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
^ Queering the Popular Pitch. By Whiteley, Sheila and Rycenga, Jennifer.
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado, 7 May 2004
^ Recibirá Soriano Orden Isabel la Católica de España
^ Referencia del Consejo de Ministros, 25 April 2007.
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado, 16 November 2007 (Traian).
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado, 16 November 2007 (Maria).
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado, 16 November 2007.
^ Condecoraciones embajada de Espana April 2008. Retrieved 14 July 2014.
^ Nacion, 28 November 2007
^
^ [1]
^ Boletín Oficial del Estado
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Boletín Oficial del Estado, 1 August 2008.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Mexicanos reciben la Gran Cruz de Isabel La Católica
^ King of Spain to bestow Spanish knighthood on Lt. Governor Owen
^ Medalla para Fortuño, El Vocero de Puerto Rico
^
^
^ [2]

Condecoraciones: Las órdenes dependientes del Ministerio , Order rules and brief history from the Foreign Ministry of Spain.

Order of Isabella the Catholic