National Order of Merit (France)

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National Order of Merit
Mérite national officier FRANCE.jpg
Officer of the National Order of Merit (obverse)
Awarded by  France
Type Order of Merit with five degrees
Awarded for Distinguished civil and military achievements
Status Active
Statistics
Established 3 December 1963
Precedence
Next (higher) Military Medal
Next (lower) Croix de guerre
Knight of the Order
Star and riband of a Grand-Croix

The National Order of Merit (French: Ordre national du Mérite) is an Order of State with membership (about 187,000 members) awarded by the President of the French Republic. It was founded on 3 December 1963 by President Charles de Gaulle. The reason for the Order’s establishment was twofold: to replace the large number of ministerial orders previously awarded by the ministries; and to create an award that can be awarded at a lower level than the Légion d'honneur (Legion of Honour), which is generally reserved for French citizens.[1]

Statute of the Order[edit]

French citizens as well as foreign nationals, men and women, can be received into the Order, for distinguished civil or military achievements, though of a lesser level than that required for the award of the Légion d'honneur. The President of the French Republic is the Grand Master of the Order and appoints all other members of the Order, by convention, on the advice of the Government. The Order has a common Chancellor and Chancery with the Légion d'honneur. Every Prime Minister of France is made a grand cross of the order after 24 months of service.[1]

Award criteria The Order has five classes, the same as the Légion d’honneur:[1]

  • Chevalier (Knight): to be of a minimum age of 35, have a minimum of 10 years of public service (although, in practice, 15 years is the minimum commonly needed to be conferred the rank of Chevalier), and "distinguished merits" (for active duty commissioned officers, this is achieved after fifteen years of meritorious service).
  • Officier (Officer): minimum of 5 years in the rank of Chevalier (for active duty commissioned officers, this is achieved after seven years in the rank of Chevalier).
  • Commandeur (Commander): minimum of 5 years in the rank of Officier (for active duty commissioned officers, this is achieved after five years the rank of Officier).
  • Grand Officier (Grand Officer): minimum 3 years in the rank of Commandeur.
  • Grand-Croix (Grand Cross): minimum 3 years in the rank of Grand Officier.

Defunct ministerial orders[edit]

The Ordre National du Mérite replaced the following ministerial and colonial orders:[1]

Colonial orders
Special ministerial orders of merit

Insignia and wear[edit]

  • Grand-Croix - wears the badge on a sash on the right shoulder, plus the star on the left chest;
  • Grand Officier - wears the badge on a ribbon with rosette on the left chest, plus the star on the right chest;
  • Commandeur - wears the badge on a ribbon around the neck;
  • Officier - wears the badge on a ribbon with rosette on the left chest;
  • Chevalier - wears the badge on a ribbon on the left chest.
Wear of the National Order of Merit of France.gif
Reverse of the Knight's insignia of the Order

The medal and the plaque of the Order were designed by the French sculptor Max Leognany.[1]

  • The medal of the Order is a six-armed Maltese asterisk in gilt (silver for chevalier) enamelled blue, with laurel leaves between the arms. The obverse central disc features the head of Marianne, surrounded by the legend République française (Republic of France). The reverse central disc has a set of crossed tricolores, surrounded by the name of the Order and its foundation date. The badge is suspended by a laurel wreath.
  • The star (plaque) is worn by Grand-Croix (in gilt on the left breast) and Grand Officier (in silver on the right breast) respectively; it is a twelve-armed sunburst, with rays (formerly plain, now in blue enamel) between the arms. The central disc features the head of Marianne, surrounded by the legend République française and the name of the Order, and in turn surrounded by a wreath of laurel.
  • The ribbon for the medal is a solid blue field. For the grade of Officier and above, a rosette is centered in the field. For the grades of Commandeur, Grand Officier, and Grand-Croix, the rosette is centered bar of silver; silver and gold, and a solid gold respectively.
Undress ribbons
Ordre national du Merite Chevalier ribbon.svg
Chevalier
Ordre national du Merite Officier ribbon.svg
Officier
Ordre national du Merite Commandeur ribbon.svg
Commandeur
Ordre national du Merite GO ribbon.svg
Grand Officier
Ordre national du Merite GC ribbon.svg
Grand-Croix

Notable members[edit]

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

The individuals listed below have been admitted as members of the Ordre national du Mérite:
Commandant Jacques Cousteau, a Grand-Croix of the Ordre national du Mérite. 
Actor, director and writer Jacques Weber, a Chevalier of the Ordre national du Mérite. 
US Navy Admiral Frank Bowman, an Officier of the Ordre national du Mérite 

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e Battini, Jean; Zaniewicki, Witold (2003). Guide pratique des décorations françaises actuelles. Paris: LAVAUZELLE. pp. 37–48. ISBN 2-7025-1030-2. 

Sources

External links[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ordre national du mérite.
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