Legion of Honour facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Legion of HonourLégion d'honneur |
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Awarded by France | |
Type | Order of merit |
Established | 19 May 1802 |
Motto | Honneur et patrie ("Honour and Motherland") |
Eligibility | French citizen |
Awarded for |
Excellent civil or military conduct
delivered, upon official investigation |
Founder | Napoleon Bonaparte |
Grand Master | President of France |
Grand chancelier | Benoît Puga |
Secretary-General | Luc Fons |
Classes |
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Statistics | |
First induction | 14 July 1804 |
Precedence | |
Next (higher) | None |
Next (lower) |
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Ribbon bars of the order |
The Legion of Honour (French: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur) is the highest French award.
It was established by Napoleon Bonaparte on 19 May 1802.
The Order is the highest decoration in France and is divided into five degrees: Chevalier (Knight), Officier (Officer), Commandeur (Commander), Grand Officier (Grand Officer) and Grand Croix (Grand Cross).
The order's motto is Honneur et Patrie ('Honour and Country'), and its seat is the Palais de la Légion d'Honneur on the left bank of the River Seine in Paris.
Images for kids
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Louis Philippe I, King of the French, wearing the sash of the order.
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Philippe Pétain and John J. Pershing were decorated with the Grand-croix of the Legion of Honor, as were several US generals with the Commandeur and Chevalier medal shortly after World War I in 1919.
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Insignia of the Grand Master at the Élysée Palace.
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Notice of posthumous award of the Croix de Chevalier to Lieutenant Tessier—Mort pour la France ("Died for France") in World War I.
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Louis XVIII era (1814) Knight insignia: the front features Henry IV's profile and the rear, the arms of the French Kingdom (three fleurs-de-lis). A royal crown joins the cross and the ribbon.
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Chiang Kai-shek's Légion d'honneur plaque. In his day, the plaque was made of silver.
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Charles Lindbergh's Legion of Honour.
See also
In Spanish: Legión de Honor para niños