Royal Honors: “Military William Order”

Backgrounder

For Whom

According to the law, the Military William Order (MWO) is intended for those who “have distinguished themselves in battle by performing acts of excellent bravery, leadership and loyalty.” Incidentally, this is not necessarily at a time of war. The word ‘war’ is not mentioned in the law.

From the beginning, the Military William Order has had a strong democratic character. Anyone, from high to low, can be eligible through excellent acts of ‘bravery, leadership and loyalty’. Originally intended exclusively for servicemen, the Military William Order was opened up to civilians from 1940. Over the years, the MWO has been conferred a total of over 6000 times, the last time being in 1955.

At the moment, the conferral of bravery decorations, including the Military William Order, is being reviewed in light of the current deployment of the Armed Forces. This does not change the criteria for conferring the MWO and other bravery decorations, but they are interpreted on the basis of current circumstances. Even in these circumstances, such as peacekeeping operations, battle situations are still conceivable.

The history of the Military William Order (MWO) begins in 1815. Hence, the MWO, together with the (civil) Order of the Netherlands Lion, is the oldest merit-based order of our country. It is the highest Dutch decoration for bravery. Her Majesty the Queen is Grand Master of the Order.

The Order has four grades:

• Grand Cross

• Commander

• Knight third class

• Knight fourth class

The Advisory Commission of the Military William Order advises the minister of Defence on nominations or requests to honour servicemen or civilians who have distinguished themselves in battle through excellent acts of courage, leadership and loyalty.

History

In April of 1815, there was every reason for the rapid creation of a military order. The young Kingdom of the Netherlands was facing the French advance led by Napoleon, who had recently returned from Elba. King Willem I needed a royal decoration for bravery to reward acts of courage in the imminent battle. As a result, the creation of the Military William Order (MWO) only took a few months. Like the Legion of Honour, the MWO was a so-called ‘merit order’, disconnected from nobility and available to all ranks.

Since then, the Military William Order has had four classes: Grand Cross, Commander, Knight third class and Knight fourth class. The campaign against Napoleon in 1815, with battles at Quatre Bras and Waterloo, was the first occasion for which the Military William Order was conferred. Heir to the throne Willem Frederik George Lodewijk van Oranje-Nassau received the first honour, a Grand Cross of the Order. A total of over 1000 people were decorated in response to the campaign in 1815.

Over the years, the MWO has been conferred a total of over 6000 times. The main events in this respect, following the campaign of 1815, are:

• The Belgian uprising of 1830

• The entire Netherlands East Indies period, with the emphasis on the Atjeh period

• The Second World War, 1940-1945

• The Policing Actions, 1946-1948

• The Korean War, 1950-1954

Originally intended exclusively for servicemen, the MWO was opened up to civilians from 1940.

At the moment, the conferral of bravery decorations, including the Military William Order, is being reviewed in light of the current deployment of the Armed Forces. This does not change the criteria for conferring the MWO and other bravery decorations, but they are interpreted on the basis of current circumstances. Even in these circumstances, such as peacekeeping operations, battle situations are still conceivable. It does not have to be in a war situation; this term is not mentioned in the Rules of Procedure of the MWO.

Her Majesty the Queen, Grand Master of the Military William Order

photo archive of the Netherlands Government Information Service

King Willem I, founder of the Military William Order, miniature portrait after J.W. Pieneman (Collection of the Foundation for Historical Collections of the House

of Orange-Nassau, The Hague)

Decorations

The order has four grades

– Grand Cross

– Commander

– Knight 3rd class

– Knight 4th class

The basis for the decorations of the Military William Order is the ‘decoration’, a white enamel cross covered by a Royal crown. The four framed arms of the cross are of equal length; they widen from the middle and have notches at the end with beaded points. On the front and back, the arms carry the following words in gold letters:

VOOR (for)
MOED (bravery)	BELEID (leadership)
TROUW (loyalty)

Between the arms of this cross are the arms of a green enamel Burgundian (St. Andrew’s) cross. In the heart of both crosses lies on the front a gold ‘spark rod’, on the back a blue enamel medal, in the middle of which there is a laurel wreath circling the letter ‘W’. The ribbon with the medal is orange with two narrow Nassau blue stripes.

The medals are hung or pinned on conferral. They are only worn in a limited number of other situations. The person being honoured receives a so-called miniature or ribbon for everyday dress.

In addition to the decorations, the person being honoured receives a deed stating his/her name and the grade of the honour. The date and the number of the relevant Royal decree are also shown on the deed.

The following are all medals and minatures of the various grades.

Grand Cross

Features of decorations:

The medal – without crown – is attached to an eight-pointed convex silver star consisting of 40 rays. The star has a diameter of 80 millimetres and the points are beaded. The star must be worn without ribbon on the left breast or around the neck on a 55 millimetre wide ribbon, or as a sash over the right shoulder to the left hip. The width of the sash is 101 millimetres.

The diameter of the white enamel cross is 50 millimetres, that of the Burgundian cross is 42 millimetres. The surround of the first cross and the medal, the beaded points, the laurel wreath, the ‘W’ and the crown are gold. The ribbon has a rosette. It is 27 millimetres wide and 48 millimetres wide when made up.

Commander

Features of medals:

The medal must be worn without ribbon on the left-hand side of the chest or around the neck on a 55 millimetre wide ribbon. The diameter of the white enamel cross is 50 millimetres, that of the Burgundian cross is 42 millimetres. The surround of the first cross and the medal, the beaded points, the laurel wreath, the ‘W’ and the crown are gold. The ribbon has a rosette. It is 27 millimetres wide and 48 millimetres wide when made up.

Knight 3rd class

Features of decorations:

The medal must be worn on the ribbon on the left breast. The diameter of the white enamel cross is 42 millimetres, that of the Burgundian cross is 36 millimetres. The surround of the first cross and the medal, the beaded points, the laurel wreath, the ‘W’ and the crown are gold. The ribbon has a rosette. It is 27 millimetres wide and 48 millimetres wide when made up.

Knight 4th class

Features of decorations:

The medal must be worn on the ribbon on the left breast. The diameter of the white enamel cross is 42 millimetres, that of the Burgundian cross is 36 millimetres. The surround of the first cross and the medal, the beaded points, the laurel wreath, the ‘W’ and the crown are silver. The ribbon is 27 millimetres wide and 48 millimetres wide when made up.