Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana
Encyclopedia
The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana was instituted in 1995 to honour the independence of the Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...

n state. The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana is bestowed upon the President of the Republic. Presidents of the Republic who have ceased to hold office shall keep the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana. The Collar of the Order was used de facto as the badge
Badge
A badge is a device or fashion accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath , a sign of legitimate employment or student status, or as a simple...

 of office of the President of the Republic, since the original Presidential collar, that of the Order of the National Coat of Arms
Order of the National Coat of Arms
The Order of the National Coat of Arms was instituted by Konstantin Päts on 7 October 1936 to commemorate 24 February 1918, the day on which Estonian independence was declared...

 was taken from Estonia to the Kremlin
Kremlin
A kremlin , same root as in kremen is a major fortified central complex found in historic Russian cities. This word is often used to refer to the best-known one, the Moscow Kremlin, or metonymically to the government that is based there...

 after the Soviet occupation of the country in 1940, where it remains to this day. However a new collar of that order was made in 2008. The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana is also given as a decoration of the highest class on foreigners who have rendered special services to the Republic of Estonia. As such it is the highest and most distinguished order granted to non-Estonian citizens.

Classes

The Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana comprises six classes:
  • One special class – The Collar of the Cross of Terra Mariana;
  • Five basic classes – 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th and 5th class.


The crosses and shields of all the classes of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana have the same design and are of the same size.

The blue colour tone of the moiré ribands belonging to the decorations of all the classes of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana is determined according to the international PANTONE
Pantone
Pantone Inc. is a corporation headquartered in Carlstadt, New Jersey, USA. The company is best known for its Pantone Matching System , a proprietary color space...

 colour-table as 300 C.
Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana ribbon bars

1st Class

2nd Class

3rd Class

4th Class

5th Class

Recipients of the Collar

  • Nursultan Nazarbayev
    Nursultan Nazarbayev
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    , 2011
  • Traian Băsescu
    Traian Basescu
    Traian Băsescu is the current President of Romania. After serving as the mayor of Bucharest from June 2000 until December 2004, he was elected president in the Romanian Presidential Elections of 2004 and inaugurated on December 20, 2004...

    , 2011
  • Valdis Zatlers
    Valdis Zatlers
    Valdis Zatlers is a Latvian politician and former physician who served as the seventh president of Latvia from 2007 to 2011. He won the Latvian presidential election of 31 May 2007...

    , 2009
  • Albert II of Belgium
    Albert II of Belgium
    Albert II is the current reigning King of the Belgians, a constitutional monarch. He is a member of the royal house "of Belgium"; formerly this house was named Saxe-Coburg-Gotha...

    , 2008
  • Beatrix of the Netherlands
    Beatrix of the Netherlands
    Beatrix is the Queen regnant of the Kingdom of the Netherlands comprising the Netherlands, Curaçao, Sint Maarten, and Aruba. She is the first daughter of Queen Juliana of the Netherlands and Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld. She studied law at Leiden University...

    , 2008
  • Aníbal Cavaco Silva
    Aníbal Cavaco Silva
    Aníbal António Cavaco Silva, GCC , is the President of Portugal. He won the Portuguese presidential election on 22 January 2006 and was re-elected on 23 January 2011, for a second five-year term. Cavaco Silva was sworn in on 9 March 2006....

    , 2008
  • Juan Carlos I, 2007
  • Akihito
    Akihito
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    , 2007
  • Mikheil Saakashvili
    Mikheil Saakashvili
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    , 2007
  • Elizabeth II, 2006
  • Toomas Hendrik Ilves
    Toomas Hendrik Ilves
    Toomas Hendrik Ilves is the fourth and current President of Estonia. He is a former diplomat and journalist, was the leader of the Social Democratic Party in the 1990s and later a member of the European Parliament...

    , 2006
  • László Sólyom
    László Sólyom
    László Sólyom is a Hungarian political figure, lawyer, and librarian who was President of Hungary from 2005 to 2010. Previously he was President of the Constitutional Court of Hungary from 1990 to 1998....

    , 2006
  • Ivan Gašparovič
    Ivan Gašparovic
    Ivan Gašparovič is a Slovak politician and law professor who has been the President of Slovakia since 15 June 2004. He is also the first Slovak president to be re-elected.-Biography:...

    , 2005
  • Carlo Azeglio Ciampi
    Carlo Azeglio Ciampi
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    , 2004
  • Tassos Papadopoulos
    Tassos Papadopoulos
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    , 2004
  • Ion Iliescu
    Ion Iliescu
    Ion Iliescu served as President of Romania from 1990 until 1996, and from 2000 until 2004. From 1996 to 2000 and from 2004 until his retirement in 2008, Iliescu was a Senator for the Social Democratic Party , whose honorary president he remains....

    , 2003
  • Georgi Parvanov
    Georgi Parvanov
    Georgi Sedefchov Parvanov is a President of Bulgaria, whose second and last mandate expires on January 22, 2012; he was elected after defeating his predecessor Petar Stoyanov in the second round of the presidential elections in November 2001 and he came into office on January 22, 2002...

    , 2003
  • Jorge Sampaio, 2003
  • Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
    Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
    Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg OIH is the head of state of Luxembourg. He is the eldest son of Jean, Grand Duke of Luxembourg and Princess Joséphine-Charlotte of Belgium. His maternal grandparents were King Leopold III of Belgium and Astrid of Sweden...

    , 2003
  • Ahmet Necdet Sezer
    Ahmet Necdet Sezer
    - External links :* , Presidency of the Republic of Turkey...

    , 2002
  • Arnold Rüütel
    Arnold Rüütel
    Arnold Rüütel OIH was the third President of the Republic of Estonia from October 8, 2001 to October 9, 2006. He was the second President since Estonia regained its independence in 1991....

    , 2001
  • Jacques Chirac
    Jacques Chirac
    Jacques René Chirac is a French politician who served as President of France from 1995 to 2007. He previously served as Prime Minister of France from 1974 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988 , and as Mayor of Paris from 1977 to 1995.After completing his studies of the DEA's degree at the...

    , 2001
  • Mary McAleese
    Mary McAleese
    Mary Patricia McAleese served as the eighth President of Ireland from 1997 to 2011. She was the second female president and was first elected in 1997 succeeding Mary Robinson, making McAleese the world's first woman to succeed another as president. She was re-elected unopposed for a second term in...

    , 2001
  • Guido de Marco
    Guido de Marco
    Guido de Marco was a Maltese politician, who served as the sixth President of Malta from 1999 to 2004. A noted statesman and lawmaker, de Marco also served as Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of the Interior, Justice, and Minister for Foreign Affairs.He is widely regarded as one of the great...

    , 2001
  • Ferenc Mádl
    Ferenc Mádl
    Ferenc Mádl was the second President of the third Republic of Hungary, having served from 4 August 2000 to 5 August 2005.-University studies and scientific activities:...

    , 2000
  • Johannes Rau
    Johannes Rau
    Johannes Rau was a German politician of the SPD. He was President of Germany from 1 July 1999 until 30 June 2004, and Minister-President of North Rhine-Westphalia from 1978 to 1998.-Education and work:...

    , 2000
  • Tarja Halonen
    Tarja Halonen
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    , 2000
  • Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga
    Vaira Vike-Freiberga
    Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga was the sixth President of Latvia, the first female President of Latvia and the first female leader in eastern Europe. She was elected President of Latvia in 1999 and re-elected in 2003.Dr...

    , 2000
  • Valdas Adamkus
    Valdas Adamkus
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    , 1999
  • Konstantinos Stephanopoulos, 1999
  • Harald V, 1998
  • Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson
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    , 1998
  • Aleksander Kwaśniewski
    Aleksander Kwasniewski
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    , 1998
  • Algirdas Brazauskas
    Algirdas Brazauskas
    Algirdas Mykolas Brazauskas was the first President of a newly independent post-Soviet Union Lithuania from 1993 to 1998 and Prime Minister from 2001 to 2006....

    , 1997
  • Süleyman Demirel
    Süleyman Demirel
    Sami Süleyman Gündoğdu Demirel, better known as Süleyman Demirel , is a Turkish politician who served as Prime Minister seven times and was the ninth President of Turkey.-Life:Demirel was born in İslamköy, a town in Isparta Province...

    , 1997
  • Oscar Luigi Scalfaro
    Oscar Luigi Scalfaro
    Oscar Luigi Scalfaro , Italian politician and magistrate, was the ninth President of the Italian Republic from 1992 to 1999, and is currently a senator for life...

    , 1997
  • Árpád Göncz
    Árpád Göncz
    Árpád Göncz is a Hungarian liberal politician and former President of Hungary . Göncz played a role in the Hungarian Revolution of 1956...

    , 1997
  • Milan Kučan
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    Milan Kučan is a Slovenian politician and statesman. He was the first President of Slovenia.-Early life and political beginnings:...

    , 1997
  • Guntis Ulmanis
    Guntis Ulmanis
    Guntis Ulmanis is a Latvian politician and was the fifth President of Latvia from 1993 to 1999.-Early life:Guntis Ulmanis was born in Riga on September 13, 1939. His grandfather was the brother of then-President and Prime Minister Kārlis Ulmanis. In 1941 Guntis Ulmanis and his family were exiled...

    , 1996
  • Václav Havel
    Václav Havel
    Václav Havel is a Czech playwright, essayist, poet, dissident and politician. He was the tenth and last President of Czechoslovakia and the first President of the Czech Republic . He has written over twenty plays and numerous non-fiction works, translated internationally...

    , 1996
  • Margrethe II, 1995
  • Carl XVI Gustaf, 1995
  • Ernesto Zedillo Ponce de León, 1995
  • Martti Ahtisaari
    Martti Ahtisaari
    Martti Oiva Kalevi Ahtisaari is a Finnish politician, the tenth President of Finland , Nobel Peace Prize laureate and United Nations diplomat and mediator, noted for his international peace work....

    , 1995


External links

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