Prince Harry has been appointed a Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (KVCO) by his grandmother, The Queen.
Harry was presented with the medal, sash and breast badge (see below) in a private ceremony with Her Majesty at Buckingham Palace earlier today. The Royal Victorian Order was founded by Queen Victoria in 1896, and is given by The Queen to those who have served her or the Monarchy in a personal way; this can include officials, ambassadors and members of the Royal Family.
Here’s a photo of the #KCVO Insignia that The Queen presented to Prince Harry privately at #BuckinghamPalace today pic.twitter.com/u3jlMB5Kio
— Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) June 4, 2015
The 30-year-old Army Captain didn’t hold any personal appointments from his grandmother – until today. His position is the second highest personal award The Queen can give, the top being Knight/Dame Grand Cross.
Harry is yet to receive a Knighthood to the Order of the Garter, which his brother, Prince William, did in 2008. A Garter appointment is a mark of particular favour, so it could be seen the KVCO is a more personal appointment for Prince Harry, in recognition of his work. This includes his army service (The Queen is of course Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces) his charity work, as well as the support of The Queen overseas; Harry recently returned from a tour of New Zealand, following a secondment to the Australian Army.
Services of praise, dedication and remembrance are held at St George’s Chapel, Windsor, which is also where the Order of the Garter services are held, as the spiritual home of the order. George VI, however, ordained that Chapel of the Savoy should become the Chapel of the Order, but the number of members has grown significantly, giving need for a larger venue.
The motto for the orders is simply ‘Victoria’.
Feature photo: Land Rover Mena
1 comment
Well done HRH Prince Harry