Official Website of The Serbian Royal Family

Royal Orders

Obverse of the GC Badge

GC Star, War Merit Division

King Milan I instituted the Order of the White Eagle on 23 January 1883, concurrently with the Order of St. Sava. Serbia was proclaimed a Kingdom on 22 February (Old Style, in Gregorian calendar 5 March) 1882. The white eagle with wings displayed and inverted was reestablished as the State Arms of Serbia, a majestic symbol descended from the Comnene Emperors of Byzantium, and understood to stand for the Universal Christian Empire. It was used by the Medieval rulers of Serbia, as well as by the Holy Roman Emperors and the Emperors of Russia and Austria; the basic difference was tincture (or metal) of the bird- Argent for Serbia, Gold for Byzantium, Sable for Holy Roman, Russian and Austrian Emperors!

After his accession to the Throne in 1903, King Petar I continued awarding the Order of the White Eagle, but the Founder's cipher was removed from the reverse medallion and substituted with the year of the proclamation of the Kingdom (1882), which at the same time made the date of the proclamation, originally inscribed on the reverse of the flowing infullae of the royal crown suspension, redundant.

The War Merit Division, with crossed swords between the Royal Crown suspension and eagle's heads, was introduced in 1915, and conferred for conspicuous bravery of the officers in the field, as well as for the exception merit during the wartime actions.

The Order was organized in five classes, and was awarded to Serbian citizens and foreign nationals, for peace or wartime merit or significant services rendered to the Crown, State and Nation. Between 1883 and 1898 this was the senior Order of Serbia; in 1898 the Royal Order of Milos the Great got precedence over it, and in 1904 the Order of the Star of Karageorge became the senior award.

The Order is conferred by the Crown. Recent awards include last Grand Master of the Sovereign Order of St. John (Fr. Angelo de Moiana da Cologna), as well as posthumous conferment upon three Crown Council Members (Borislav Pekic, Miodrag-Mica Popovic and Borislav Mihailovic-Mihiz, all GCs).

The Order's insignia were first manufactured in Vienna (Austria), by Rothe & Neffe, Vincent Mayer's Soehne, Karl Fischmeister and Wilhelm Kunz. After the outbreak of the Balkan and Great War, the insignia were manufactured by Arthus Bertrand of Paris (France) and Huguenin Freres of Le Locle (Switzerland).