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 organizations, 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 Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded on 4 June 1917 by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements. It was founded on the same date as the Order of the British Empire.
The Order of Merit is an order of merit for the Commonwealth realms, recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by Edward VII, admission into the order remains the personal gift of its Sovereign—currently Edward VII's great-great-grandson Charles III—and is restricted to a maximum of 24 living recipients from the Commonwealth realms, plus honorary members. While all members are awarded the right to use the post-nominal letters OM and wear the badge of the order, the Order of Merit's precedence among other honours differs between countries.
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.
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the monarch. The present monarch, King Charles III, is the sovereign of the order. The order's motto is Victoria. The order's official day is 20 June. The order's chapel is the Savoy Chapel in London.
The title of Knight Bachelor is the basic rank granted to a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not inducted as a member of one of the organised orders of chivalry; it is a part of the British honours system. Knights Bachelor are the most ancient sort of British knight, but Knights Bachelor rank below knights of chivalric orders. A man who is knighted is formally addressed as "Sir [First Name] [Surname]" or "Sir [First Name]" and his wife as "Lady [Surname]".
An order is a visible honour awarded by a sovereign state, monarch, dynastic house or organisation to a person, typically in recognition of individual merit, that often comes with distinctive insignia such as collars, medals, badges, and sashes worn by recipients.
The Darjah Utama Temasek is Singapore's second most prestigious national honour and was instituted in 1962. It is an Order conferred by the President of Singapore only to citizens of Singapore. It may be awarded to non-citizens only under special circumstances.
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 Order of Merit is part of the Jamaican honours system, and it is the fourth-highest honour awarded by the nation of Jamaica. The Order of Merit is conferred upon Jamaicans or distinguished citizens of other countries who have achieved international distinction in the field of science, the arts, literature or any other endeavour. The award can be held by no more than 15 living persons. It is not given to more than two people in any one year.
The Order of the National Hero is an honour awarded by the government of Jamaica. It is a part of the Jamaican honours system that has been in place since 1969.
The Jamaican honours system has developed as a unique entity since the passage of the National Honours and Awards Act by the Parliament of Jamaica in 1969. The system is modelled largely on the British honours system, which was formerly conferred on Jamaicans.
The Order of Distinction (OD) is a national order in the Jamaican honours system. It is the sixth in order of precedence of the Orders of Societies of Honour, which were instituted by an Act of Parliament in 1968. The motto of the Order is "Distinction Through Service".
Honorary citizenship is a status bestowed by a city or other government on a foreign or native individual whom it considers to be especially admirable or otherwise worthy of the distinction. The honour usually is symbolic and does not confer any change to citizenship or nationality.
Ireland has no formal honours system. Proposals to introduce one have been made by various groups at different times. The Order of St. Patrick, established by the British monarchy in the Kingdom of Ireland in 1783, has been in abeyance for decades. The Constitution of Ireland mandates that "Titles of nobility shall not be conferred by the State", but this does not preclude the creation of chivalric orders or other civic awards.
The National Order of Merit is a state order of the Republic of Malta. The order is divided into four grades that may be awarded to Maltese citizens.
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