The
Order of Saint Michael was the first
FrenchFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
chivalric order, founded by
Louis XI of FranceLouis XI , called the Prudent and the Universal Spider or the Spider King, was the King of France from 1461 to 1483...
in 1469, in competitive response to the
BurgundianThe Duchy of Burgundy was a feudal territory in Medieval Europe. It roughly conforms to the modern Bourgogne, although it grew to have considerable possessions in the Low Countries as well...
Order of the Golden FleeceNOT to be confused with the Golden Fleece Award.The Order of the Golden Fleece is an order of chivalry founded in Bruges in 1430 by Duke Philip III of Burgundy to celebrate his marriage to the Portuguese princess Isabel of Aviz.- Origin :...
founded by Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, Louis' chief competitor for the allegiance of the great houses of France, the Dukes of Orléans,
BerryThe title of Duke of Berry in the French nobility was frequently created for junior members of the French royal family. The Berry region now consists of the départements of Cher, Indre and parts of Vienne. The capital of Berry is Bourges. The first creation was for John, third son of John II, King...
, and
BrittanyThe Duchy of Brittany was a medieval tribal and feudal state covering the Armorican peninsula west of Mont-Saint-Michel and north of Nantes/Naoned, including Rennes/Roazhon and Vannes/Gwened...
. As a chivalric order, its goal was to confirm the loyalty of its knights to the king. Originally, there were a limited number of knights, at first thirty-one, then increased to thirty-six including the king.
The
Order of Saint Michael was the first
FrenchFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
chivalric order, founded by
Louis XI of FranceLouis XI , called the Prudent and the Universal Spider or the Spider King, was the King of France from 1461 to 1483...
in 1469, in competitive response to the
BurgundianThe Duchy of Burgundy was a feudal territory in Medieval Europe. It roughly conforms to the modern Bourgogne, although it grew to have considerable possessions in the Low Countries as well...
Order of the Golden FleeceNOT to be confused with the Golden Fleece Award.The Order of the Golden Fleece is an order of chivalry founded in Bruges in 1430 by Duke Philip III of Burgundy to celebrate his marriage to the Portuguese princess Isabel of Aviz.- Origin :...
founded by Philip the Good, duke of Burgundy, Louis' chief competitor for the allegiance of the great houses of France, the Dukes of Orléans,
BerryThe title of Duke of Berry in the French nobility was frequently created for junior members of the French royal family. The Berry region now consists of the départements of Cher, Indre and parts of Vienne. The capital of Berry is Bourges. The first creation was for John, third son of John II, King...
, and
BrittanyThe Duchy of Brittany was a medieval tribal and feudal state covering the Armorican peninsula west of Mont-Saint-Michel and north of Nantes/Naoned, including Rennes/Roazhon and Vannes/Gwened...
. As a chivalric order, its goal was to confirm the loyalty of its knights to the king. Originally, there were a limited number of knights, at first thirty-one, then increased to thirty-six including the king. An office of
ProvostA provost is a senior official in a number of Christian churches.-Historical development:The word praepositus was originally applied to any ecclesiastical ruler or dignitary...
was established in 1476. The Order of St Michael was the highest Order in France until it was superseded by the
Order of the Holy SpiritThe Order of the Holy Spirit, also known as the Order of the Knights of the Holy Spirit, was an Order of Chivalry under the French Monarchy. It should not be confused with the Congregation of the Holy Ghost or with the Order of the Holy Ghost...
.
As would be expected, the first
knightA knight was a "gentleman soldier" or member of the warrior class of the Middle Ages in Europe. In other Indo-European languages, cognates of cavalier or rider are more prevalent suggesting a connection to the knight's mode of transport...
s were among the most powerful
noblesNobility is a state-privileged status which is generally hereditary, but which may also be personal only. Titles of nobility are usually associated with present or former monarchies. The term originally referred to those who were "known" or "notable" and was applied to the highest social class in...
in France, close relatives of the king and a few from other royal houses in Europe. Its membership was strictly under the king's control, but under Louis' successors the Order was less selective: in 1565, during the
Wars of ReligionThe French Wars of Religion is the name given to a period of civil infighting and military operations, primarily fought between French Catholics and Protestants...
, when loyalties were strained and essential, the formal number was increased to fifty but there may have been as many as seven hundred knights under
Henry IIIHenry III of France , was King of France from 1574 to 1589, and as Henry of Valois, first elected Monarch of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth with the dual titles of King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania from 1573 to 1575.-Early years:Henry was born at the Royal Château de...
in 1574 (Sainty).
The Order of St. Michael dedicated to the Archangel Michael conveyed to every member a gold badge of the image of the saint standing on a rock (Mont Saint Michel) in combat with the
serpentSerpent is a word of Latin origin that is commonly used in a specifically mythic or religious context, signifying a snake that is to be regarded not as a mundane natural phenomenon nor as an object of scientific zoology, but as the bearer of some potent symbolic value.-Cross-cultural symbolic...
. It was suspended from an elaborate gold collar made of cockleshells (the badge of
pilgrimA pilgrim is one who undertakes a pilgrimage, literally 'far afield'. This is traditionally a visit to a place of some religious or historic significance; often a considerable distance is traveled...
, especially those to
Santiago de CompostelaSantiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Located in the north west of Spain in the Province of A Coruña, it was a "European City of Culture" for the year 2000...
) linked with double knots. The statutes state that the badge could be hung on a simple chain, and later it was suspended from a black ribbon.
When the Order of St Michael was founded, the famous illuminator
Jean FouquetJean Fouquet or Jehan Fouquet was the most important French painter of the 15th century, a master of both panel painting and manuscript illumination, and the apparent inventor of the portrait miniature.-Life:Jean Fouquet was born in Tours...
was commissioned to paint the title miniature of the Statutes, showing the king presiding over the knights (Paris, Bibliothèque Nationale, fr. 19819). The original plan was for the knights to meet yearly at
Mont Saint-MichelLe Mont-Saint-Michel is a rocky tidal island and a commune in Normandy, France. It is located approximately one kilometre off the country's north coast, at the mouth of the Couesnon River near Avranches. The population of the island is 50.-Formation:...
in
NormandyNormandy is a geographical region corresponding to the former Duchy of Normandy. It is situated along the English Channel coast of Northern France between Brittany and Picardy and comprises territory in northern France and the Channel Islands.Normandy is divided between French and British...
, but such an isolated location was impractical and the Order met in a chapel consecrated to its use in the royal palace,
ParisParis is the capital of France and the country's most populous city. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
.
The Order of St. Michael was abolished by the French authorities in 1830. However, in 1929-1930 Jaime, Duke of Anjou and Madrid, and in 1960 Jaime II, Duke of Anjou and Segovia, granted membership to their confidants.
Recipients
- James V, King of Scots, in 1534 by Francis I
Francis I may refer to:* Francis I, Duke of Brittany * Francis I, Duke of Lorraine * Francis I of France...
- Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester
Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester , K.G., was a favourite and close friend of Elizabeth I of England from her first year on the throne until his death. For many years he was a suitor for the Queen's hand, she giving him reason to hope...
, in 1565 by Charles IXCharles IX born Charles-Maximilien, was King of France, ruling from 1560 until his death. He is best known as king at the time of the St...
- Francois Caron
François Caron , was a French Huguenot refugee to the Netherlands who served the Dutch East India Company for 30 years, rising from cabin boy to Director-General at Batavia, only one grade below Governor-General...
, in 1672 by Louis XIV.
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