The Australian honours and awards system refers to all orders, decorations, and medals, as instituted by letters patent from the Monarch of Australia and countersigned by the Australian prime minister at the time, that have been progressively introduced since 14 February 1975. The Australian honours and awards system excludes all state and local government, and private, issued awards and medals (although a few can be recognised in the order of wearing, like those in the Order of St John). [1]
Honours and awards have been present in Australia since pre-Federation, primarily from the Imperial honours and awards system. [2] This Imperial system remained in place until its full phase out in 1994 (although the Monarch of Australia may still confer some of these honours to Australians in their personal capacity). [3] Between 1975 and 1992, the Australian honours and awards system and the Imperial honours and awards system operated in parallel, although the last Imperial awards to be made were in June 1989. [3]
The Australian honours and awards system consists of honours, which are appointments to orders of chivalry (namely the Order of Australia), and awards (which are decorations and medals – decorations are medals for valour, gallantry, bravery, and distinguished or conspicuous service). [4] Medals include meritorious service medals, operational service medals, campaign medals, long service medals, commemorative medals, and the Champion Shots medal.
Both the Order of Australia, which has a General Division and Military Division (distinguished by gold banding on the edges of the ribbon), and the Australian Operational Service Medal, which has a special civilian ribbon for Defence civilians awarded it, are unique in the Australian honour and awards system in distinguishing between military and civilian awardees (although some awards in the Australian honours and awards system can only be earned by military personnel).
The Australian honours and awards system recognises the contributions of individuals, and for the Group Bravery Citation, Unit Citation for Gallantry, and Meritorious Unit Citation, the efforts of individuals as a group (the unit citations for meritorious service and gallantry also recognise members currently posted to those units, so long as they remain posted there, but without the display of the Federation Star device on those decorations that signifies personal contribution to the granting of that award). [5] Most honours and awards are announced on Australia Day (26 January) and the King's Birthday holiday (June), with the exception of the bravery awards (typically announced in March and August), and the Australian Antarctic Medal (announced on 21 June), although some military medals are awarded all year round (as most are not gazetted).
The Australian states and the Commonwealth of Australia originally used the Imperial honours system, also known as the British honours system. The creation in 1975 of the Australian honours and awards system saw Australian recommendations for the Imperial awards decline, with the last awards being gazetted in 1989. The Commonwealth of Australia ceased making recommendations for Imperial awards in 1983, with the last Queen's Birthday Australian Honours list submitted by Queensland and Tasmania in 1989. The Queen continued to confer honours upon Australians that emanate from her personally such as the Royal Victorian Order. Only a handful of peerages and baronetcies were created for Australians. Some were in recognition of public services rendered in Britain rather than Australia. Hereditary peerages and baronetcies derive from Britain. There have never been Australian peerages or baronetcies created under the Australian Crown. [6]
Individual Australian states, as well the Commonwealth government, were full participants in the Imperial honours system. Originally there was bipartisan support, but Australian Labor Party (ALP) governments, both national and state, ceased making recommendations for Imperial awards – in particular, appointments to the Order of the British Empire mainly after 1972. During the Second World War, the Governor-General, on the advice of wartime Labor governments, made recommendations for gallantry awards, including eleven for the Victoria Cross. Appointments to the Order of the British Empire were for officers and men engaged in operational areas.
In 1975, the ALP (which had been out of power federally from 1949 until 1972) created the Australian honours and awards system. Recommendations were processed centrally, but state governors still had the power, on the advice of their governments, to submit recommendations for Imperial awards. From 1975 until 1983, the Liberal Party was in power federally, under Malcolm Fraser and, although it retained the Australian Honours and Awards System, it reintroduced recommendations for meritorious Imperial awards, but not for Imperial awards for gallantry, bravery or distinguished service. Recommendations for Imperial awards by the federal government ceased with the election of the Hawke Labor government in 1983. In 1989, the last two states to make Imperial recommendations were Queensland and Tasmania. [7] The defeat of both governments at the polls that year marked the end of Australian recommendations for Imperial awards.
Following the UK New Year Honours List in 1990, which contained no Australian nominations for British honours, the Queen's Private Secretary, Sir William Heseltine, wrote to the Governor-General, saying "this seems a good moment to consider whether the time has not arrived for Australia, like Canada, to honour its citizens exclusively within its own system". There followed more than two years of negotiations with state governments before the Prime Minister, Paul Keating, made the announcement on 5 October 1992 that Australia would make no further recommendations for British honours. [8] The Australian Order of Wear states that "all imperial British awards made to Australian citizens after 5 October 1992 are foreign awards and should be worn accordingly". [9]
The Australian honours and awards system has faced various criticisms over the years. [10] Most criticisms however are to do with who receives honours and awards, reflecting comments such as those made by Nicholas Gruen, where he said the honours and awards system had "far too much to do with how much status you've already got ... [It's about] seniority, power, privilege and patronage... [with] systematic selection in favour of people who just do their job, rather than go out of their way to do something selfless". [11] Controversy attended these awards in 2021 when former tennis player Margaret Court received the Companion of the Order of Australia. Court is known for her homophobic and transphobic views, and GP Clara Tuck Meng Soo, journalist Kerry O'Brien, and artist Peter Kingston have rejected or returned their awards in protest. [12] [13] [14]
Australians become recipients of each of the 55 different types of Australian awards and honours through one of two separate processes; by nomination or by application. [15]
The Australian honours and awards system consists of the following: [4]
There are two broad categories of honours and awards.
The honours and the awards in the Australian system are, and have been:
Awards of the British Empire/United Kingdom conferred after 5 October 1992 are foreign awards. [18]
The Australian Defence Force has a system of battle honours, theatre honours, honour titles and honour distinctions to recognise exemplary service by units (not individuals) in combat and combat-related roles. Normally, Defence Honours are not awarded below sub-unit level (an organisation normally commanded by a Major or equivalent). The recommendation for the award of battle honours, theatre honours, honour titles and honour distinctions is made by a Battle Honours Committee. [19]
There are four categories of honours in the Defence system as follows: [19]
It is common that units claim Honours from original units with a historical connection to a military predecessors of the current Unit. For example, 4th/3rd Battalion, Royal New South Wales Regiment which is a modern amalgamated unit, is entitled to the previous Honours of the 3rd Battalion, the 4th Battalion as well as the World War I Honours of the 3rd and 4th Battalions First Australian Imperial Force. The term Battle Honour can be used to denote both battle and theatre honours. [19]
Historically the system was drawn from the British system adopted during World War I but has been modified since. A relatively recent change is the introduction of the Honours for recognition of outstanding service in dangerous operations short of declared theatres of war. [24] Defence also has a process of Defence and Service Commendations and other honours including the Army Combat Badge and Infantry Combat Badge which are awarded by Army Headquarters. [25] [26]
The Order of Australia insignia were designed by Stuart Devlin in 1976. Devlin used the livery colours of the Australian Coat of Arms, gold and royal blue. He also translated an individual ball of wattle blossom into a simple convex golden disc with a rich texture of beads and radiating lines accentuating a ring of blue enamel representing the sea.
The disc is surmounted by an enamel Crown. The sovereign is Head of the Order of Australia. The Governor-General is Principal Companion, Knight or Dame, and Chancellor, of the Order of Australia. The blue and gold theme is continued in the ribbon. Most of the insignia pieces are produced by the Royal Australian Mint in Canberra. The actual pieces for the two divisions of the Order are identical: it is only the ribbon which differentiates an award between the General and the Military divisions. In the Military Division the ribbon is distinguished by the addition of a narrow gold band on each edge.
When established, only the grades of Member, Officer and Companion of the Order existed. In 1976, Malcolm Fraser recommended to Queen Elizabeth II the addition of the medal and grade of Knight and Dame in the order. The grade of Knight and Dame was removed on the advice of Prime Minister Bob Hawke in 1986 without prejudice to any person who had been admitted to the order at that grade. The grade of Knight and Dame was restored on the advice of Tony Abbott (a prominent monarchist) in March 2014. In November 2015, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull (a prominent republican) announced that the Queen had accepted his request to amend the order's letters patent and cease awards in this class, after Cabinet had agreed that he should advise that these titles are no longer appropriate in the Australian honours and awards system. [27] [28] Currently there are four grades within the Order in both Military and General Divisions. People cannot be admitted to the Order posthumously; if a person is successfully nominated but dies prior to the scheduled announcement, the date of effect of the award is deemed to be a date before they died.
The Council for the Order of Australia makes recommendations to the Governor-General as to the appropriateness of a nominee to be admitted to the Order and at what grade. It is up to the Honours Secretariat to provide the council with as much fully verified information as is possible on each nominee so that appropriate consideration may be given to each case. This is a long process and up to eighteen months can elapse between the original submission and publication of a successful nomination.
Appointments to this class of the Order ceased from November 2015. A maximum of four knights and dames were appointed each year. See the full list of knights and dames of the Order of Australia.
Appointments are made for eminent achievement and merit of the highest degree in service to Australia or to humanity at large. Excluding honorary appointments, no more than 35 Companions shall be appointed in any calendar year. See the full list of companions of the Order of Australia.
Appointments made for distinguished service of a high degree to Australia or to humanity at large. Excluding honorary appointments, no more than 140 Officers shall be appointed in any calendar year.
Appointment made for service in a particular locality or field of activity or to a particular group. Excluding honorary appointments, no more than 340 Members shall be appointed in any calendar year.
Awarded for service worthy of particular recognition. There is no quota limit on awards of the Medal of the Order.
Names in bold format are living recipients. These have included:
Order | Foundation | Motto | Officer | |
---|---|---|---|---|
| Order of Australia | 1975 – Elizabeth II | None | Sam Mostyn (Chancellor) |
Knights/Dames (AK/AD): Sir John Kerr (1976), Sir Robert Menzies (1976), Sir Colin Syme (1977), Sir Zelman Cowen (1977), Sir Macfarlane Burnet (1978), Dame Alexandra Hasluck (1978), Dame Enid Lyons (1980), Charles, Prince of Wales (as he then was) (1981), Sir Roden Cutler (1981), Sir Garfield Barwick (1981), Sir Charles Court (1982), Sir Ninian Stephen (1982), Sir Roy Wright (1983), Sir Gordon Jackson (1983), Dame Quentin Bryce (2014), Sir Peter Cosgrove (2014), Dame Marie Bashir (2014), Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (2015), Sir Angus Houston (2015) |
The Sovereign confers honours upon Australians in exercise of the royal prerogative (rather than through the government). Such honours remain formally part of the imperial honours system and are administered by the UK. [38] Bold names are living recipients. These have included:
Order | Foundation | Motto | Officer(s) | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Most Noble Order of the Garter | 1348 – Edward III | Honi soit qui mal y pense "Shame upon him who thinks evil upon it" | The Baroness Manningham-Buller (Chancellor) | |
Knights/Ladies Companion (KG/LG): Richard Casey, Baron Casey (1969), Sir Paul Hasluck (1979), Sir Ninian Stephen (1994) | |||||
| Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle | 1687 – James VII of Scotland (James II of England) | Nemo me impune lacessit "No one provokes me with impunity" | The Duke of Buccleuch and Queensberry (Chancellor) | |
Knights/Ladies (KT/LT): Sir Robert Menzies (1963) | |||||
| Order of Merit | 1902 – Edward VII | "For Merit" | The Lord Janvrin (Registrar and Secretary) | |
Members (OM): Samuel Alexander (1930), Gilbert Murray (1941), Sir Macfarlane Burnet (1958), Sir Owen Dixon (1963), Howard Florey, Baron Florey (1965), Sir Sidney Nolan (1983), Dame Joan Sutherland (1991), Robert May, Baron May of Oxford (2002), John Howard (2012) | |||||
| Royal Victorian Order | 1896 – Victoria | "Victoria" | The Princess Royal (Grand Master) The Lord Benyon (Chancellor) | |
Knights/Dames Grand Cross (GCVO): Sir Paul Hasluck (1970), Sir John Kerr (1977), Sir Zelman Cowen (1980), Sir Ninian Stephen (1982), Sir William Heseltine (1990) Knights/Dames Commander (KCVO/DCVO): Sir Brudenell White (1920), Sir Bertram Mackennal (1921), Sir George Pearce (1927), Sir Leighton Bracegirdle (1947), Sir Frank Berryman (1954), Sir Eric Harrison (1954), Sir John Lavarack (1954), Sir John Northcott (1954), Sir Percy Spender (1957), Sir Robert Jackson (1962), Sir Roy Dowling (1963), Sir Eric Woodward (1963), Sir Murray Tyrrell (1968), Sir Roden Cutler (1970), Sir Alan Mansfield (1970), Sir Reg Pollard (1970), Sir Stanley Burbury (1977), Sir Colin Hannah (1977), Sir Douglas Nicholls (1977), Sir James Scholtens (1977), Sir Wallace Kyle (1977), Sir Henry Winneke (1977), Sir John Yocklunn (1977), Sir Keith Seaman (1981), Sir James Ramsay (1981), Sir David Smith (1990) | |||||
Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem | Royal charter 1888 – Victoria | Pro fide and Pro utilitate hominum "For the faith" and "For utility of men" | The Duke of Gloucester (Grand Prior) Mark Compton (Lord Prior) | ||
Bailiffs/Dames Grand Cross (GCStJ): Villis Raymond Marshall (1999), John David Spencer (2006), Neil Conn (2012), John Pearn (2014), Mark Compton (2017) | |||||
Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (2002) | Awarded by the Queen to living holders of the Victoria Cross (2) [39] and George Cross (1) | ||||
Awarded to: Edward Kenna, Keith Payne , Michael Pratt | |||||
Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal (2012) | Awarded by the Queen to living holders of the Victoria Cross (1), Victoria Cross for Australia (3), George Cross (1) and the Cross of Valour (5) [40] | ||||
Awarded to: Keith Payne , Mark Donaldson , Ben Roberts-Smith , Daniel Keighran , Michael Pratt , Darrell Tree, Victor Boscoe, Allan Sparkes , Timothy Britten , Richard Joyes | |||||
Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal (2022) | Awarded by the Queen to living holders of the Victoria Cross (1), Victoria Cross for Australia (3), George Cross (1) and the Cross of Valour (5) | ||||
Awarded to: Keith Payne , Mark Donaldson , Ben Roberts-Smith , Daniel Keighran , Michael Pratt , Darrell Tree, Victor Boscoe, Allan Sparkes , Timothy Britten , Richard Joyes | |||||
King Charles III Coronation Medal (2023) | Awarded by the King to living holders of the Victoria Cross (1), Victoria Cross for Australia (3), George Cross (1) and the Cross of Valour (5) and to members of the Australian Defence Force | ||||
Approximately 180 [41] |
Imperial honours awarded to Australians, if awarded since 5 October 1992, are no longer part of the Australian honours and awards system, and are foreign awards. Bold names are living recipients.
Prior to 6 October 1992, such honours were part of the Australian system (and awards made prior to that date still retain legal recognition in Australia):
Specific foreign awards are not mentioned on the Order of Wear document – just the general comment that foreign awards appear after the awards mentioned.
A list of foreign honours commonly awarded to Australians appears at Australian Honours Order of Wearing#Foreign awards.
A list of foreign awards commonly awarded to Australians for campaign and peacekeeping service appears at Australian Campaign Medals#Foreign awards.
Permission for formal acceptance and wearing of foreign awards is given by the Governor-General on the recommendation of the Prime Minister or the minister responsible for Australian honours. [42]
Additional information regarding UN medals can be found on the Australian Defence Force website. [43]
In the United Kingdom and the British Overseas Territories, personal bravery, achievement, or service are rewarded with honours. The honours system consists of three types of award:
The Order of Australia is an Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of then prime minister Gough Whitlam. Before the establishment of the order, Australians could receive British honours, which continued to be issued in parallel until 1992.
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two of which make the recipient either a knight if male or a dame if female. There is also the related British Empire Medal, whose recipients are affiliated with, but not members of, the order.
The New Zealand royal honours system, a system of orders, decorations and medals, recognises achievements of, or service by, New Zealanders or others in connection with New Zealand. Until 1975, New Zealand used the British honours system. Since then the country has introduced a number of uniquely New Zealand honours, and as of 2021, only the dynastic British honours continue in active use in New Zealand, with the exception of the Order of the Companions of Honour.
The Distinguished Service Order (DSO) is a military decoration of the United Kingdom, as well as formerly of other parts of the Commonwealth, awarded for operational gallantry for highly successful command and leadership during active operations, typically in actual combat. Since 1993 it has been awarded specifically for "highly successful command and leadership during active operations", with all ranks being eligible. It is a level 2A decoration (order) in the British system of military decorations.
To be mentioned in dispatches describes a member of the armed forces whose name appears in an official report written by a superior officer and sent to the high command, in which their gallant or meritorious action in the face of the enemy is described.
The Military Medal (MM) was a military decoration awarded to personnel of the British Army and other arms of the armed forces, and to personnel of other Commonwealth countries, below commissioned rank, for bravery in battle on land. The award was established in 1916, with retrospective application to 1914, and was awarded to other ranks for "acts of gallantry and devotion to duty under fire". The award was discontinued in 1993, when it was replaced by the Military Cross, which was extended to all ranks, while other Commonwealth nations instituted their own award systems in the post war period.
The British Empire Medal is a British and Commonwealth award for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Crown. The current honour was created in 1922 to replace the original medal, which had been established in 1917 as part of the Order of the British Empire.
The King's Police Medal (KPM) is awarded to police in the United Kingdom for gallantry or distinguished service. It was also formerly awarded within the wider British Empire, including Commonwealth countries, most of which now have their own honours systems. The medal was established on 7 July 1909, initially inspired by the need to recognise the gallantry of the police officers involved in the Tottenham Outrage. Renamed the King's Police and Fire Services Medal (KPFSM) in 1940, it was replaced on 19 May 1954 by the Queen's Police Medal (QPM), when a separate Queen's Fire Service Medal was also instituted. The current award was renamed the King's Police Medal following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in 2022 and the accession of King Charles III to the throne of the United Kingdom.
The orders, decorations, and medals of Canada comprise a complex system by which Canadians are honoured by the country's sovereign for actions or deeds that benefit their community or the country at large. Modelled on its British predecessor, the structure originated in the 1930s, but began to come to full fruition at the time of Canada's centennial in 1967, with the establishment of the Order of Canada, and has since grown in both size and scope to include dynastic and national orders, state, civil, and military decorations; and various campaign medals. The monarch in right of each Canadian province also issues distinct orders and medals to honour residents for work performed in just their province. The provincial honours, as with some of their national counterparts, grant the use of post-nominal letters and or supporters and other devices to be used on personal coats of arms.
The Fijian honours system dates from the granting of Dominion status in 1970, when the Fijian Independence Medal was awarded to participants in the Fijian independence celebrations. Prior to two military coups, which deposed Elizabeth II as Queen of Fiji, ending the monarchy of Fiji, Fiji also had use of the British Honours System.
The Star of Gallantry (SG) is a military decoration awarded to personnel of the Australian Defence Force (ADF) and other persons recognised by the Minister for Defence. It is awarded for acts of great heroism or conspicuous gallantry in action in circumstances of great peril. It is the second highest of the military gallantry awards in the Australian Honours System, only surpassed by the Victoria Cross or Victoria Cross for Australia (VC).
The Governor-General of Australia publishes the order of wearing of Australian orders, decorations and medals in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette. The Order of Wearing Australian Honours and Awards was last published in 2007.
The National Medal is an Australian award given for long service by operational members of specified eligible organisations. It was introduced in 1975, as an original component of the new Australian honours system, and replaced a range of medals available to military and civilian uniformed services for long service and good conduct. The eligible groups have in common that their members serve or protect the community at the risk of death, injury or trauma, hence it is only available to members of the eligible organisations who are operationally deployed. In the case of corrective services, eligibility is restricted to officers with custodial duties.
The Victoria Cross for Australia is the highest award in the Australian honours system, superseding the British Victoria Cross for issue to Australians. The Victoria Cross for Australia is the "decoration for according recognition to persons who in the presence of the enemy, perform acts of the most conspicuous gallantry, or daring or pre-eminent acts of valour or self-sacrifice or display extreme devotion to duty".
The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious decoration of the British decorations system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously awarded to service personnel in the broader British Empire, with most successor independent nations now having established their own honours systems and no longer recommending British honours. It may be awarded to a person of any military rank in any service and to civilians under military command. No civilian has received the award since 1879. Since the first awards were presented by Queen Victoria in 1857, two thirds of all awards have been personally presented by the British monarch. The investitures are usually held at Buckingham Palace.
The British Armed Forces recognises service and personal accomplishments of individuals while a member of the Royal Navy, British Army or Royal Air Force with the awarding of various awards and decorations.
The Order of Wearing of Australian honours includes Imperial honours if they were awarded prior to 6 October 1992. Imperial honours awarded after 5 October 1992 are considered foreign.
In 1993 two separate reviews reported on the British honours system. The first, under prime minister John Major, reported in March and focused on civilian awards. The second was started in March, at Major's suggestion, and carried out by the Ministry of Defence. Major's review abolished the minimum rank requirements for certain civilian awards when made to military personnel and ended the practice of making awards purely on the basis of the recipient holding a certain appointment in the public or private sector. Major's review also ended the award of the British Empire Medal (BEM) and Imperial Service Order (ISO), compensated for by increasing the number of awards made to the Order of the British Empire. As a means of increasing the proportion of awards made to community figures and the voluntary sector he introduced direct nominations from the general public.
The King can still recognise Australians through the British Imperial system within his own gift (see Orders in the personal gift of the Sovereign).