In fact, at the time of the Order's establishment in the mid-14th century, garters were predominantly an item of male attire. However, the earliest written version of this story dates from the 1460s, and it seems to have been conceived as a retrospective explanation for the adoption of what was then seen as an item of female underclothing as the symbol of a band of knights. When the surrounding courtiers snickered, the king picked it up and returned it to her, exclaiming, ' Honi soit qui mal y pense!' ('Shame on him who thinks ill of it!'), which phrase has become the Order's motto. The most popular involves the 'Countess of Salisbury', whose garter is said to have slipped from her leg while she was dancing at a court ball at Calais. Various legends account for the origin of the Order. Legendary origins Statutes of the Order of the Garter, this copy having once belonged to Emperor Alexander III of Russia They are all depicted by individual portraits in the Bruges Garter Book compiled c.

John, 1st Baron Grey de Rotherfield ( c.Thomas Holland, 1st Earl of Kent (1314–60).Roger Mortimer, 2nd Earl of March (1328–60).William de Montacute, 2nd Earl of Salisbury (1328–97).Ralph de Stafford, 1st Earl of Stafford (1301–72).Jean de Grailly, III Captal de Buch (d.Thomas de Beauchamp, 11th Earl of Warwick (d.Henry of Grosmont, 4th Earl of Lancaster ( c.Edward, the Black Prince, Prince of Wales (1330–76).List of Founder Knights Īt the time of its foundation, the Order consisted of King Edward III, together with 25 Founder Knights, listed in ascending order of stall number in St George's Chapel: Its foundation is likely to have been inspired by the Castilian Order of the Band, established in about 1330.

Also, its original statutes required that each member of the Order already be a knight (what would now be referred to as a knight bachelor) and some of the initial members listed were only knighted that year. The King's wardrobe account shows Garter habits first issued in the autumn of 1348.

Other dates from 1344 to 1351 have also been proposed. The list includes Sir Sanchet d'Abrichecourt, who died on 20 October 1345. However, The Complete Peerage, under 'The Founders of the Order of the Garter', states the order was first instituted on 23 April 1344, listing each founding member as knighted in 1344. The traditional year of foundation is usually given as 1348 (when it was formally proclaimed). King Edward III founded the Order of the Garter around the time of his claim to the French throne. History 'Roy' Edward III, King of England. Members of the order wear it on ceremonial occasions. The order's emblem is a garter circlet with the motto Honi soit qui mal y pense ( Anglo-Norman for 'Shame on him who thinks evil of it') in gold script. The order also includes Supernumerary Knights and Ladies (e.g., members of the British royal family and foreign monarchs). Membership of the order is limited to the sovereign, the Prince of Wales, and no more than 24 living members, or Companions. The Order of the Garter is dedicated to the image and arms of Saint George, England's patron saint.Īppointments are at the Sovereign's sole discretion, typically made in recognition of national contribution, service to the Crown, or for distinguished personal service to the Monarch.

The most senior order of knighthood in the British honours system, it is decoration outranked in precedence only by the Victoria Cross and the George Cross. The Most Noble Order of the Garter is an order of chivalry founded by Edward III of England in 1348. 1430 by William Bruges, first Garter King of Arms Illuminated miniature from the Bruges Garter Book c. 1361), the second appointee of the Order, shown wearing a tabard displaying the royal arms of England over which is his blue mantle or garter robe. Badge of the Order embroidered onto the left shoulder of a Knight's blue velvet mantle Henry of Grosmont, Earl (later Duke) of Lancaster (d.

Usher badges for church