| Order of Merit (Orden del Mérito) | |
|---|---|
| Awarded by Republic of Chile | |
| Type | Order of merit |
| Status | Current |
| President | President of Chile |
| Chancellor | Chilean Foreign Minister |
| Grades (w/ post-nominals) | Collar of the Grand Cross Grand Cross Grand Officer Commander Officer Knight |
| Established | 1906 |
The Order of Merit (Spanish language: Orden del Mérito ) is a Chilean military order and was created in 1929. Succeeding the Medal of the Merit, it was created during the term of the President Germán Riesco through the Minister of War decree No. 1350 on September 4, 1906. This new national distinction was created to recognise the meritorious service provided by foreign military personnel to Chilean officials.
The first 200 military medals were minted in gold and silver, giving them the title of First and Second Class. They were minted at the Casa de la Moneda, having a tricolor ribbon. The order had three classes: First Class, Second Class, and Third Class; but later a new class was added (Grand Officer) that would be awarded to heads of state. In 1925, all the classes were renamed to:
Collar of the Grand Cross (Spanish language: Collar de la Gran Cruz
)
- Grand Cross (Spanish language: Gran Cruz
)
Grand Officer (Spanish language: Gran Oficial
)
Commander (Spanish language: Comendador
)
- Officer (Spanish language: Oficial
)
- Knight (Spanish language: Caballero
)
The order is only awarded to foreigners.
External links[]
- Condecoraciones, Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores de Chile.
The original article can be found at Order of Merit (Chile) and the edit history here.