Who said that awards are they given only in war? What many may not be aware of is that even today the Presidency of the Republic continues to award honorary distinctions of Battalions of Excellence to worthy children of our country (and not only), as a sign of recognition of their contribution to our country.
The most recently honored persons were just last week the 91-year-old poet, novelist and translator Titos Patrikios and the 83-year-old writer and theater critic Costas Georgousopoulos to whom the medals of the Brigadier of the Order of Honor were awarded.
In the past, there were dozens of people who received from the hands of the first citizen of our country similar but also greater distinctions with the maximum of the Grand Cross of the Order of the Savior. This is the supreme honorary distinction that the Greek state gives to a citizen.
The awarding of medals by the Presidency of the Republic "constitutes recognition and reward for excellent services to the homeland or for brilliant performance in a field of public life, letters, arts, science, commerce, industry and shipping" as emphasized by Herod Atticus and its history is very old.
Consider how the establishment of the first Order of Excellence took place in 1829, following the standards of other European countries. Among the honorees are Admiral Andreas Miaoulis, the chiefs of 1821 Theodoros Kolokotronis and Petrobeis Mavromichalis, the four-time prime minister during the first years of the creation of the modern Greek state Alexandros Mavrokordatos, but also the most recent politician Constantine Molyviatis from New Democracy and Giannis Charalambopoulos from PASOK.
According to article 46, paragraph 2 of the Constitution, “o President of the Republic awards the prescribed medals, in accordance with the provisions of the relevant law ".
Behind him is the so-called "Council of Battalions of Excellence", which is formed by decision of the Minister of Foreign Affairs and has a two-year term.
It consists of the President of the Council of State, the President of the Supreme Court, two Greek citizens to whom the Grand Cross has been awarded in the past, by one of the oldest (according to the yearbook of the diplomats of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs) ambassador or plenipotentiary minister , a senior officer appointed by the General Staff of National Defense and a representative of the Presidency of the Republic.
The director of the Etiquette Directorate of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs participates as a rapporteur, without a vote, in the meetings of the Council of the Battalions of Excellence.
The duties of Secretary are performed by a diplomatic officer of the Etiquette Directorate. The Council shall have a quorum when at least five of its members are present, including the incumbent President.
Obviously not all the occasional honorees are known to the general public. During the term of office of the President of the Republic Karolou Papoulias for example, they had received the Order of Excellence, among others, Antonis Vratsanos (his real name was Angeloulis), a leading figure of the Greek People's Liberation Army (ELAS) and by many the most capable saboteur of the National Resistance who died in 2008, the unknown to the general public babysitter Anna Tsakiri (who went to the island of Tilos in 2001 with her husband and contributed with the work she produced at the local nursery and in collaboration with the municipality of the area, to increase births ), as well as the captain of the Greek-flagged cargo ship "Kronos" Michalis Viskadourakis, who saved the lives of five Mexican shipwrecks.
From 1829 until today, a total of 5 Battalions of Excellence have been established: the Battalion of the Savior, the Order of George (abolished), the Order of Honor, the Phoenix and the Euphoria given only to women. Each battalion, in turn, consists of 5 orders: Top is that of the Grand Cross, followed by the Senior Brigadier, the Brigadier, the Knight of the Golden Cross and the Knight of the Silver Cross.
The honored persons have the right to keep the famous ones for life, except those that have been deleted from their battalion register due to cases mentioned in the Criminal Code or by decision of the Council of Battalions of Excellence if it is judged that the preservation of honor and the hanging of medals causes common discomfort and affects the prestige of the Order.
After death they have the right to pass them on to their heirs as a memorial, something that was not the case in the past. In the past, excellence had to be returned to the state.
Hierarchically, it is the first Order of Excellence. Its establishment was decided by the Fourth National Assembly of Argos in 1829 and for about 80 years it was the only battalion. The first to be honored with the Grand Cross of the Order was King Louis I of Bavaria, father of King Otto.
The name and form of the famous man was chosen to remind that thanks to the Divine support of the Savior the National Polygenesis took place. The form of the celebrity has changed in several places in the 170 years since its inception.
Today, the famous one consists of a cross of white enamel, placed on a wreath that represents half an oak branch and the other half a laurel. In the center of the cross there is the image of the Savior, also made of enamel, surrounded by the inscription "YOUR RIGHT HAND LORD, GOD IS RIGHT". On the back of the cross there is the inscription "THE ENGLISH NATIONAL ASSEMBLY OF THE GREEK ASSEMBLY".
The star of the Grand Cross and the Senior Brigadier has eight rays and in the center the famous Savior. The first stars were embroidered. Later, metals made of silver prevailed, as is still the case today. The ribbon that accompanies the famous battalion is blue, with white narrow stripes along the edges.
The relevant law stipulates that the Order of the Savior is awarded to Greek citizens who distinguished themselves in defending the interests of the country or in offering excellent services in the public sector inside or outside Greece. In practice, only the Grand Cross is awarded by this Order to Heads of State.
It was founded in 1975 and replaced the Order of George I, which was abolished. The Order of the Order is awarded to citizens who have distinguished themselves in their struggles for their homeland, in any field of public administration, commerce, shipping, industry, letters, arts and science. It is also awarded to foreigners who distinguished themselves as personalities and contributed to the promotion of Greece.
The final form of the celebrity was determined by Presidential Decree in 1984. The cross of the Order is covered by enamel in deep blue. The head of the goddess Athena is depicted in the center. The head is surrounded by a strip of white enamel, on which is engraved the inscription "THE GOOD ONLY HONORABLE".
The star of the Grand Cross and the Senior Brigadier consists of eight rays and bears on it the cross of the Order. On the back of the cross there is the coat of arms of the Hellenic Republic on white enamel and engraved in gold letters the inscription "HELLENIC REPUBLIC 1975", date of establishment of the Order. The film that accompanies the celebrities has a deep blue color, like the cross, with thin gold stripes along the edges.
It was established in 1926 to replace the one of the (pre-existing) Order of George I (which was re-established in 1935, with the restoration of Basel, to be abolished again in 1975). It took its name from the mythical bird, the Phoenix. In the first year of its establishment, it was awarded to Greeks as well as foreign citizens. However, when, according to the Constitution of 1927, the awarding of medals to Greeks was prohibited, the Order was maintained for the recognition of the offer of only foreign citizens.
After the Restoration of the Monarchy in 1935 and according to A.N. 19-4-1935 (Government Gazette A, 170) Greek citizens were allowed to be re-awarded. It is now awarded to Greeks who excelled in Public Administration, science, arts and letters, trade, industry and shipping, as well as to foreigners who contributed to the rise of Greece's name abroad.
The famous Order of the Phoenix has the shape of a cross. It is made of white enamel and on the cross there is a relief depiction of the mythical Phoenix, with open wings that is reborn through the flames. The Phoenix relief is also depicted in the center of the star. On the back of the cross there is the coat of arms of the Hellenic Republic. The ribbon on which the celebrity hangs is deep yellow with thin black stripes along the edges.
It was established in 1948, after the death of King George II, in execution of his wish. For two years, between 1973-1975 the Order was abolished, but was reconstituted by law 106/1975. It is awarded only to women, Greek and foreigners, for excellent services they offered to our country, for charitable deeds and for excellent performance in letters and arts.
The famous Eupoia has the shape of a flower with five petals of sea enamel, between which are inserted narrow sepals made of green enamel. In the center of the flower there is the image of the Virgin holding the Divine Infant in her arms. The image is surrounded by a strip of white enamel on which is engraved in gold letters the inscription "Eupoia". On the back of the famous there is the coat of arms which is surrounded by the inscription "HELLENIC REPUBLIC".
The star of the Grand Cross as well as of the Senior Brigadier has eight rays and has the Icon of the Virgin Mary on the front. The film that accompanies the celebrity is yellow with blue stripes on the edges.
Face - Year
- Louis I of Bavaria: 1833
- Andreas Miaoulis: 1833
- Richard George: 1833
- Petrobeis Mavromichalis: 1836
- Alexandros Mavrokordatos: 1836
- Lazaros Koundouriotis: 1836
- Andreas Zaimis: 1837
- Theodoros Kolokotronis: 1837
- George Koundouriotis: 1837
- Konstantinos Kanaris: 1864
- Ioannis (Gennaios) Kolokotronis: 1865
- Philip, Duke of Edinburgh: 1947
- Josip Broz Tito: 1954
- Constantine II of Greece: 1958
- Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom: 1963
- Harald V of Norway: 1964
- Charles XVI Gustav of Sweden: 1964
- Margarita B 'of Denmark: 1964
- Akihito, Emperor of Japan: unknown year
- Queen Sonia of Norway: unknown year
- Christos Sartzetakis: 1985
- Konstantinos Stefanopoulos: 1995
- Henry of Luxembourg: 2001
- Karolos Papoulias: 2005
- Michel Suleiman: 2012
- Jean-Claude Juncker: 2013
- Yue Jiafu: 2013
- Patriarch of Antioch John I: 2014
- Prokopis Pavlopoulos: 2015
- Nikos Anastasiadis: 2015
- François Hollande: 2015
- Sergio Matarella: 2015
- Patriarch of Jerusalem Theophilos III: 2016
- Emmanuel Macron: 2017
* George Sarris is a journalist - member of ESIEA, honored by the President of the Republic with the Ath. Botsis Award for the objective and complete presentation of historical political issues.