Grand Order of Queen Jelena - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Grand Order of Queen Jelena
Jelena of Zadar
Helen I , also known as Helen of Zadar or Helen the Glorious, was the queen consort of the Kingdom of Croatia, the wife of King Michael Krešimir II. They jointly ruled from 946 to 969, a period which was allegedly marked by "peace, order and expeditious growth"...

, or more fully the Grand Order of Queen Jelena with Sash and Morning Star (Velered kraljice Jelene s lentom i Danicom), is an order

Order (decoration)

An order or order of merit is a visible honour, awarded by a government, dynastic house or international organization to an individual, usually in recognition of distinguished service to a nation or to humanity. The distinction between orders and decorations is somewhat vague, except that most...

of the Republic of Croatia. It was established in 1995. It ranks second in the Croatian order of precedence after the Grand Order of King Tomislav

Grand Order of King Tomislav

The Grand Order of King Tomislav , or more fully the Grand Order of King Tomislav with Sash and Great Morning Star , is the highest state order of the Republic of Croatia...

.

The order, along with the Grand Order of King Petar Krešimir IV

Grand Order of King Petar Krešimir IV

The Grand Order of King Petar Krešimir IV , or more fully the Grand Order of King Petar Krešimir IV with sash and Morning Star , is an order of the Republic of Croatia. It ranks third in the Croatian order of precedence after the Grand Order of Queen Jelena. The next order in rank is the Grand...

, is awarded to dignitaries, other state officials and heads of international organizations for their contributions to the international reputation and status of the Republic of Croatia; to Croatian and foreign statesmen and parliamentary and government leaders for exceptional contributions to the independence and integrity of the Republic of Croatia, the development and construction of the Republic of Croatia, and for their personal exceptional contributions to the development of relationships between Croatia and the Croatian people and other countries and peoples; and to senior armed forces officers for exceptional contributions in the formulation of military strategy and doctrine, for merit in developing the Croatian armed forces, and for particular accomplishment in the leadership and command of the Croatian armed forces

Military of Croatia

Croatian military is officially called Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia and it consists of three branches:* Croatian Army * Croatian Navy...

Description

The badge of the order is a blue trefoil

Trefoil

Trefoil is a graphic form composed of the outline of three overlapping rings used in architecture and Christian symbolism...

edged in gold. The trefoil is topped by a crown in the form of the upper part of the Croatian coat of arms (five shields representing the five geographical regions that comprise Croatia) with the words "KRALJICE JELENE" at the base. The badge is suspended from a sash of equal stripes of blue, white and red, with an interwoven wattle

Croatian wattle

The Croatian wattle, known as the pleter or troplet in Croatian, is a type of interlace, most characteristic for its three-ribbon pattern. It is one of the most often used patterns of pre-romanesque Croatian art...

pattern on the red and blue stripes.

The star of the order has the badge above on a star with eight longer and eight shorter silver rays, with gold rays between.

Foreign officials

2011 - Queen Sonja of Norway
Queen Sonja of Norway
Queen Sonja of Norway is the wife of King Harald V of Norway.-Prior to marriage:Sonja was born in Oslo on 4 July 1937 as the daughter of clothing merchant Karl August Haraldsen and Dagny Ulrichsen .Queen Sonja grew up in the district of Vinderen in Oslo and completed her lower secondary schooling...

(as Queen of Norway)

2008 - Yasuo Fukuda
Yasuo Fukuda
was the 91st Prime Minister of Japan, serving from 2007 to 2008. He was previously the longest-serving Chief Cabinet Secretary in Japanese history, serving for three and a half years under Prime Ministers Yoshirō Mori and Junichiro Koizumi....

(as Prime Minister of Japan
Prime Minister of Japan
The is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...

)

2007 - Mikuláš Dzurinda
Mikuláš Dzurinda
Mikuláš Dzurinda is a Slovak politician who was Prime Minister of Slovakia from 30 October 1998 to 4 July 2006. He was a founder and leader of the Slovak Democratic Coalition and the Slovak Democratic and Christian Union...

(as former Prime Minister of Slovakia)

2007 - Wolfgang Schüssel
Wolfgang Schüssel
Wolfgang Schüssel is an Austrian People's Party politician. He was Chancellor of Austria for two consecutive terms from February 2000 to January 2007...

(as former Chancellor of Austria
Chancellor of Austria
The Federal Chancellor is the head of government in Austria. Its deputy is the Vice-Chancellor. Before 1918, the equivalent office was the Minister-President of Austria. The Federal Chancellor is considered to be the most powerful political position in Austrian politics.-Appointment:The...

)

2006 - Gerhard Schröder
Gerhard Schröder
Gerhard Fritz Kurt Schröder is a German politician, and was Chancellor of Germany from 1998 to 2005. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany , he led a coalition government of the SPD and the Greens. Before becoming a full-time politician, he was a lawyer, and before becoming Chancellor...

2006 - Helmut Kohl
Helmut Kohl
Helmut Josef Michael Kohl is a German conservative politician and statesman. He was Chancellor of Germany from 1982 to 1998 and the chairman of the Christian Democratic Union from 1973 to 1998...

2006 - Josep Borrell Fontelles

2006 - Wilfried Martens
Wilfried Martens
Wilfried Martens is a Belgian politician. He was born in Sleidinge . Martens was the 44th Prime Minister of Belgium from 3 April 1979 to 6 April 1981 and 17 December 1981 to 7 March 1992....

2006 - Hans-Gert Pöttering
Hans-Gert Pöttering
Hans-Gert Pöttering is a German conservative politician , and was the President of the European Parliament from January 2007 to July 2009...

2003 - Prince Henrik of Denmark
Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark
Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark , is the husband of the Queen of Denmark, Margrethe II.-Early life:Henrik was born in Talence, Gironde, France...

2002 - József Antall
József Antall
József Antall was the first democratically-elected Prime Minister of Hungary after the fall of Communism , teacher, librarian, historian and political figure...

2000 - Madeleine Albright
Madeleine Albright
Madeleine Korbelová Albright is the first woman to become a United States Secretary of State. She was appointed by U.S. President Bill Clinton on December 5, 1996, and was unanimously confirmed by a U.S. Senate vote of 99–0...

1995 - Mother Teresa of Calcutta
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa , born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu , was a Roman Catholic nun of Albanian ethnicity and Indian citizenship, who founded the Missionaries of Charity in Calcutta, India, in 1950...

1995 - Alija Izetbegović
Alija Izetbegovic
Alija Izetbegović was a Bosniak activist, lawyer, author, philosopher and politician, who, in 1990, became the first president of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He served in this role until 1996, when he became a member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina, serving until 2000...

(as President of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina is the head of state of Bosnia and Herzegovina.-Overview:...

)

1995 - Krešimir Zubak
Krešimir Zubak
Krešimir Zubak is a Bosnian Croat politician.At the beginning of the Bosnian War in 1992, he joined the Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina. After Mate Boban left the position of president of the Croatian Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia, Zubak succeeded him...

(as President of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
President of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The president of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina serves as it head. The post was established in 1994.-Presidents:...

)

Croatian dignitaries

2008 - Luka Bebić
Luka Bebic
Luka Bebić was the speaker of the Croatian Parliament from January 11, 2008 to October 28, 2011. He is a member of the Croatian Democratic Union and has been a representative in the Croatian Parliament since the nation's independence in 1991, being elected into office six consecutive times.He...

(as President of Sabor
Parliament of Croatia
The Parliament of Croatia or the Sabor is the unicameral representative body of the citizens of the Republic of Croatia and legislature of the country. Under the terms of the Croatian Constitution, represents the people and is vested with the legislative power...

)
2008 - Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader
Ivo Sanader |Split]]) is a Croatian politician who served as the Prime Minister of Croatia from 2003 to 2009.Sanader obtained his education in comparative literature in Austria, where he also later worked in the 1980s. He worked as a journalist, in marketing, publishing and also as a private...

(as Prime Minister of Croatia)
2008 - Josip Manolić
Josip Manolic
Josip Manolić is a Croatian politician who was one of the most important public figures in 1990s Croatia. He was prime minister of the Republic of Croatia from August 24, 1990 to July 17, 1991.-Background and political career:...

(as former Prime Minister of Croatia)
2008 - Ivica Račan
Ivica Racan
Ivica Račan was a Croatian career politician, leader of the League of Communists of Croatia and later Social Democratic Party from 1989 to 2007...

(as former Prime Minister of Croatia) - awarded posthumously
1998 - Franjo Kuharić
Franjo Kuharic
Franjo Kuharić was a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church.He was ordained in 1945 and became a bishop in 1964. He was appointed Archbishop of Zagreb in 1970. In 1983 he was made a Cardinal by Pope John Paul II...

Description

Foreign officials

Croatian dignitaries

Further reading