King Charles has appointed King Abdullah of Jordan and King Hamad Bin Isa Al Khalifa of Bahrain as Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order. Charles III also appointed Justin Welby, the Archbishop of Canterbury, to the order earlier this year, months before he was forced to stand aside over a child abuse scandal in the Church of England. As it hits the headlines once more, what is the Royal Victorian Order?
Queen Victoria established the Royal Victorian Order in 1896 to mark her Diamond Jubilee. It was founded in the year prior to allow ample time to establish the order and name the first members.
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Victoria created the order to be given to individuals across the British Empire to highlight their personal service. The order does not have a limit on how many members there can be at any given time.
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The highest place of precedence in the Royal Victorian Order is the Knight Grand Cross and the Dame Grand Cross. Individuals who hold this title can use GCVO after their name.
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The King of Jordan and the King of Bahrain have joined an honoured group of monarchs who have received the GCVO title. They include King Albert II of Belgium, Emperor Akihito of Japan, Grand Duke Henri of Luxembourg, the then-Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, King Harald V of Norway, King Felipe VI of Spain, and King Vajiralongkorn of Thailand.
Several members of the Royal Family are also Knights and Dames Grand Cross including The Princess of Wales, The Duchess of Edinburgh, The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester, The Duke of Kent, Princess Alexandra and Prince Michael of Kent. Several of them, including the Princess of Wales and the Duchess of Edinburgh, wore the mantles and insignia of the order to the Coronation of King Charles III and Queen Camilla in 2023.
