Order of the Lion of Bavaria

The Order of the Palatine Lion was from 1768 to 1808 an Electoral Palatinate, Palatinate and Bavarian - Bavarian nobility and Merit. He is considered the first Order of Merit to the princely family of the Wittelsbach family donated. The collection of the Bavarian Army Museum has a copy.

History

The award was sponsored by the Palatine and later Bavarian elector Carl Theodor on January 1, 1768, one day after completion of his 25-year jubilee. In allusion to this, the number of awardees was limited to 25.

In 1808 the Order by Carl Theodor's successor, Max Joseph, who had become in 1806 the Bavarian King, repealed and replaced by the Order of Merit of the Bavarian Crown. Max Joseph's grandson, King Ludwig II of Bavaria, founded in 1866 a medal, which was modeled on the Order of the Palatine Lion, the Military Order of Merit.

Today's Bavarian Order of Merit sees himself as a successor of the Order of the Palatinate Lion and the Order of Merit of the Bavarian Crown.

Order decoration

The golden cross of the Order, in the form of a Maltese cross with flames bundles between the cross arms, pointing to the front of the border according to heraldic lion right Palatinate. The inscription reads MERENTI ( to the Meritorious ). In reverse the monogram of its founder CT under the electoral hat and the name INSTITU.AN.1768 ( institutum anno 1768 - built in 1768 ). The arms of the cross were enamelled in dark blue.

The cross of the Order had a statutory to a 4 finger wide, white band, with sky-blue edging, worn from the left shoulder to the right side down. Clergy was the way to carry a narrower band around the neck, on the chest hanging prescribed.

At the same time the owners should an embroidered fabric star ( in the statutes religious character called ) worn on the left breast, which corresponded in appearance to the rear of the Order of the Cross, but in matt and gloss silver, with golden aufgestickter font.

Awardees

The first Teutonic Knights, appointed on the day of the foundation were:

  • Duke Karl II von Pfalz -Zweibrücken (1746-1795)
  • Duke Johann von Pfalz- Birkenfeld - Gelnhausen (1698-1780)
  • Duke Karl Ludwig von Pfalz- Birkenfeld - Gelnhausen (1745-1789)
  • Duke Wilhelm of Pfalz- Birkenfeld - Gelnhausen (1752-1837)
  • Count Carl Friedrich Wilhelm von Leiningen- Hard Castle (1724-1807)
  • Baron Franz Karl Anton von Dalberg (1717-1781), Electoral Palatinate Privy Council
  • Baron Franz Albert Leopold of Oberdorff (1720-1799), Electoral Palatinate Minister
  • Count Karl Ludwig of Salm- Grumbach (1729-1799)
  • Baron Leopold Max of Hohenhausen (1708-1783), Electoral Palatinate Lieutenant General, Governor of Mannheim
  • Count Friedrich Christoph von Loe, called Winkelhausen († 1796), Electoral Palatinate Lieutenant General,
  • Baron Franz Georg Ernst von Sturmfeder (1727-1793), Electoral Palatinate Colonel chef and travel Marshal
  • Baron Carl Philip of Venningen (1728-1797), Electoral Palatinate Oberappelations Court President
  • Baron Adrian Constantin von Bentinck (1700-1779), Electoral Palatinate Privy Council in the Duchy of Jülich -Berg
  • Count Johann Wilhelm von Effern (1706-1781), Electoral Palatinate Lieutenant General, Governor of Dusseldorf
  • Count Karl Paul Ernst von Bentheim- Steinfurt (1729-1780)
  • Count Franz Graf zu Erbach- Erbach I. (1754-1828)
  • Count Andreas von Riaucour (1722-1794), Electoral Saxon ambassador at the Palatine court
  • Count Ignaz von Sulkowsky, cupbearer of the Province Praclau
  • Count Karl Heinrich of Wied - Runkel (1716-1783)
Charles Theodore, Elector of Bavaria Merit Order of the Bavarian Crown John, Count Palatine of Gelnhausen Duke Wilhelm in Bavaria Charles Paul Ernest, Count of Bentheim-Steinfurt Franz, Count of Erbach-Erbach
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