The National Order of the Legion of Honour, formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour, is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon Bonaparte, it has been retained by all later French governments and regimes.
The Médaille militaire is a military decoration of the French Republic for other ranks for meritorious service and acts of bravery in action against an enemy force. It is the third highest award of the French Republic, after the Légion d'honneur, a civil and military order, and the ordre de la Libération, a Second World War-only order. The Médaille militaire is therefore the most senior entirely military active French decoration.
The Order of Leopold is one of the three current Belgian national honorary orders of knighthood. It is the oldest and highest order of Belgium and is named in honour of its founder, King Leopold I. It consists of a military, a maritime and a civil division. The maritime division is only awarded to personnel of the merchant navy, and the military division to military personnel. The decoration was established on 11 July 1832 and is awarded by Royal order.
The Imperial Order of the Dragon of Annam was created in 1886 in the city of Huế, by Emperor Đồng Khánh of the Imperial House of Annam, upon the "recommendation" of the President of France as a jointly awarded French colonial order. The Order was designed as a reward for services to the state, the French colonial government, or the emperor.
The Order of the Netherlands Lion, also known as the Order of the Lion of the Netherlands is a Dutch order of chivalry founded by King William I of the Netherlands on 29 September 1815.
The Order of Civil and Military Merit of Adolph of Nassau is an order of merit of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg for meritorious service to the Grand Duke, the Grand-Ducal House and Luxembourg. It was founded in 1858 as a chivalric order of the Duchy of Nassau by Adolphe of Nassau in honor of his namesake and ancestor, Adolf, Count of Nassau, the only member of the House of Nassau to have been Roman King of Germany. After the Duchy of Nassau was annexed by Prussia in 1866 and Adolphe became Grand Duke of Luxembourg in 1890, he revived the order as an order of merit.
The Order of the Holy Spirit, is a French order of chivalry founded by Henry III of France in 1578. Today, it is a dynastic order under the House of France.
Commander, or Knight Commander, is a title of honor prevalent in chivalric orders and fraternal orders.
The Order of La Pléiade is an honorary order of the Organisation internationale de la Francophonie. It recognizes people who particularly distinguished themselves in the service of its ideals of cooperation and friendship, promoting the role of the French language in their own countries or in the world. It was created in 1976 on initiative of the Assemblée parlementaire de la Francophonie.
The Ordre des Palmes académiques is a national order bestowed by the French Republic on distinguished academics and teachers and for valuable service to universities, education and science. Originally established in 1808 by Emperor Napoleon as a decoration to honour eminent members of the University of Paris, it was changed into its current form as an order of merit on 4 October 1955 by President René Coty, making it one of the oldest civil honours bestowed by the French Republic.
A collar also known as collar of an order is an ornate chain, often made of gold and enamel, and set with precious stones, which is worn about the neck as a symbol of membership in various chivalric orders. It is a particular form of the livery collar, the grandest form of the widespread phenomenon of livery in the Middle Ages and Early Modern Period. Orders which have several grades often reserve the collar for the highest grade. The links of the chain are usually composed of symbols of the order, and the badge of the order normally hangs down in front. Sometimes the badge is referred to by what is depicted on it; for instance, the badge that hangs from the chain of the Order of the Garter is referred to as "the George".
The Order of Agricultural Merit is an order of merit bestowed by the French Republic for outstanding contributions to agriculture. When it was created in 1883, it was second in importance only to the Legion of Honour within the French order of precedence.
The Ordre du Mérite Maritime is a French order established on 9 February 1930 for services rendered by seafarers to recognise the risks involved and the services rendered by seamen, and reflect the important economic role of the Merchant Navy to the country. The order was reorganized in 1948, and again by decree on 17 January 2002.
The Order of Tahiti Nui was established on 5 June 1996 by the Assembly of French Polynesia to reward distinguished merit and achievements in the service to French Polynesia.
The Republic of Senegal awards the following orders, decorations and medals.
Laurent Hilaire is a French ballet dancer. Regarded as one of the greatest dancers to emerge from ballet over the past few decades, he was an étoile of the Paris Opera Ballet for 22 years. From 2011, he was the associate artistic director of the Paris Opera Ballet and a ballet master with the company from 2005 to 2014. In 2017, he became the director of dance at Stanislavski and Nemirovich-Danchenko Theatre. He resigned in February 2022 over the Russian invasion of Ukraine. In May, he was appointed the new director at Bavarian State Ballet.
The Ordre national du Mérite is a French order of merit with membership awarded by the President of the French Republic, 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 Legion of Honour, which is generally reserved for French citizens. It comprises about 185,000 members; 306,000 members have been admitted or promoted in 50 years.
The Order of Ivory Merit is the second highest honorary order of the Ivory Coast created in 1970, and is intended to reward distinguished merits acquired in a public, civil, military or private function.
The Ordre du Mérite combattant was a ministerial order of merit of France created on 14 September 1953 to reward individuals who distinguished themselves by their service and dedication in the management of the moral and material interests of veterans and war victims. These individuals' applicable service could be working in the Ministry of Veterans and War Victims or for organizations and associations who work for veterans. The order was administered and awarded the Ministry of Veterans and War Victims.
