Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
Happy Birthday to Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, who turned 70 yesterday! The Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau is the illustrious Dynastic Order of the House of Nassau, which is also the highest Honour of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, headed by Grand Duke Henri!
Established by King William III of the Netherlands (and Grand Duke of Luxembourg) and Adolphe, Duke of Nassau in 1858, the Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau is shared by the Walramian and Ottonian branches of the House of Nassau.
While only a Dynastic Order in the Netherlands, the Order became the highest national order in Luxembourg, when the Duke of Nassau succeeded his cousin as the Grand Duke of Luxembourg in 1890. Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg and King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands are joint Grand Masters of the Order.
The Sash is orange with a narrow blue stripe along each edge, worn from the right shoulder to the left hip, with a badge at the hip.
The Badge is a white-enameled Maltese Cross, with a gold monogram ‘N’ between the arms, with a central blue enameled disc bearing the gold lion of the House of Nassau. The reverse of the disc is also blue-enameled and contains the motto ‘Je Maintiendrai’ (I Shall Maintain).
The Star is an 8-point silver star, bearing the same disc as the badge, surrounded with the motto and a laurel wreath in gold on white-enamel.
Princes of the House receive the Order upon Birth, while Princesses receive the Order upon reaching the age of Majority. The Order of the Gold Lion of the House of Nassau is awarded to foreign Heads of State by the Grand Duke, while the Dutch King usually only awards the Order to family members.
Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg
Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg
Hereditary Grand Duke Guillaume of Luxembourg
King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands
Queen Máxima of the Netherlands
Princess Beatrix of The Netherlands
Prince Felix, Prince Louis, and Prince Sebastian of Luxembourg
Princess Alexandra of Luxembourg
King Philippe of Belgium
Queen Mathilde of Belgium
King Albert II of Belgium
Queen Paola of Belgium
Queen Margrethe II of Denmark
King Harald V of Norway
Queen Sonja of Norway
King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden
Queen Silvia of Sweden
King Juan Carlos of Spain
Queen Sofia of Spain
Emperor Naruhito of Japan
Empress Masako of Japan
Emperor Akihito of Japan
Empress Michiko of Japan