Order of the Elephant
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2008-06-22T03:43:58Z
64.61.157.50
/* Other notable knights */
[[Image:Våbenskjold Rosenborg.jpg|thumb|right|300px|Coat of arms of [[Frederick IV of Denmark|Frederick IV of Denmark and Norway]] surrounded by the collars of the Order of the Elephant and the [[Order of the Dannebrog]]. From the Long Hall of [[Rosenborg Castle]], Copenhagen.]]
The '''Order of the Elephant''' ({{lang-da|Elefantordenen}}) is the highest [[Order (decoration)|order]] of [[Denmark]]. The order is of ancient origin, but was instituted in its current form on [[1 December]] [[1693]] by [[King Christian V]]. The statute of the order was amended in [[1958]] by a Royal Ordinance so that both men and women could be members of the order.
The Danish monarch is the head of the order. The order is worn by members of the royal family, and may also be bestowed on foreign heads of state. In very exceptional circumstances the order may also be bestowed on a commoner. The only living holder of the order who is neither a former head of state nor royal born is [[Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller]], a leading industrialist and philanthropist.
The order of the Elephant has one class: Knight of the Order of the Elephant (''Ridder af Elefantordenen'').
==Insignia==
[[Image:Keten Olifant.jpg|thumb|Collar of the Order of the Elephant.]]
* The ''collar'' of the order is of gold. It consists of alternating elephants and towers. On the cover of the elephants there is a D which stands for ''Dania'', mediaeval [[Latin]] for Denmark. According to the statutes of the order, the collar can only be worn on New Years Day (during the Danish monarch's New Years Cour) and on the Monarch's birthday.
* The ''badge'' of the order is the elephant made of white-enamelled gold. It is about 5 cm high. On its back the elephant is bearing a watch tower; in front of the tower a [[Moors|Moor]] is sitting, holding a golden spear; on the right side of the elephant there is a cross of diamonds and on the left the elephant bears the monogram of the bestowing monarch.
* The ''star'' of the order is an eight-pointed silver star. At its center there is a red disc with a cross, surrounded by a laurel wreath in silver. It is worn on the left side of the chest.
* The ''sash'' of the order is of light-blue silk moiré and 10 cm wide. It is placed on the left shoulder with the elephant resting against the right hip. The collar is not worn when the sash is used.
Women's sash is about 6-7 cm wide.
Upon the death of a Knight of the Order of the Elephant, the insignia of the order must be returned.
== Current knights and officers ==
====Sovereign of the Royal Danish Orders of Chivalry====
*HM [[Margrethe II of Denmark|The Queen of Denmark]]
====Knights of the Elephant====
*HE [[Martti Ahtisaari]], former President of the Republic of Finland
*HIM [[Akihito]], Emperor of Japan
*HM [[Albert II of Belgium|Albert II]], King of The Belgians
*HE [[Princess Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg|Alexandra]], Countess of Frederiksborg (the former Princess Alexandra of Denmark)
*HM [[Queen Anne-Marie of Greece|Anne-Maria]], Queen of The Hellenes
*HM [[Beatrix of the Netherlands|Beatrix]], Queen of The Netherlands
*HRH [[Princess Benedikte of Denmark|Benedikte]], Princess of Denmark
*HM [[Bhumibol Adulyadej]], King of Thailand
*HE [[Algirdas Brazauskas]], former President of the Republic of Lithuania
*HE [[Felipe Calderón]], current President of the Mexico
*HE [[Fernando Henrique Cardoso]], former President of the Federative Republic of Brazil
*HM [[Carl XVI Gustaf]], King of Sweden
*HE [[Carl Johan Bernadotte]], Count of Wisborg, former Prince of Sweden
*HRH [[Charles, Prince of Wales|Charles]], Prince of The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Prince of Wales
*HE [[Count Christian of Rosenborg|Christian]], Count of Rosenborg, former Prince of Denmark
*HE Princess [[Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnusson|Christina]], Mrs Magnuson, Princess of Sweden
*HM [[Constantine II of Greece|Constantine II]], King of The Hellenes
*HE [[Emil Constantinescu]], former President of Romania
*HH [[Princess Elisabeth of Denmark|Elisabeth]], Princess of Denmark
*HM [[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom|Elizabeth II]], Queen of The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
*HIM [[Farah Pahlavi]], Empress of Iran (deposed)
*HE [[Vigdís Finnbogadóttir]], former President of the Republic of Iceland
*HRH [[Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark|Frederik]], Crown Prince of Denmark
*HE [[Valéry Giscard d'Estaing]], former President of the French Republic
*HE [[Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson]], President of the Republic of Iceland
*HRH [[Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway|Haakon]], Crown Prince of Norway
*HE [[Tarja Halonen]], President of the Republic of Finland
*HM [[Harald V of Norway|Harald V]], King of Norway
*HRH [[Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg|Henri]], Grand Duke of Luxembourg
*HRH [[Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark|Henrik]], Prince Consort of Denmark
*HIH [[Prince Hitachi|Hitachi]], Prince of Japan
*HE [[Ion Iliescu]], former President of Romania
*HE [[Count Ingolf of Rosenborg|Ingolf]], Count of Rosenborg, former Prince of Denmark
*HRH [[Irene|Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark]], Princess of Greece and Denmark
*HRH [[Jean, Grand Duke of Luxembourg|Jean]], Grand Duke of Luxembourg
*HRH [[Prince Joachim of Denmark|Joachim]], Prince of Denmark
*HM [[Juan Carlos I of Spain|Juan Carlos]], King of Spain
*HE [[Mauno Koivisto]], former President of the Republic of Finland
*HE [[Milan Kučan]], former President of the Republic of Slovenia
*HR [[Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva]], President of the Federative Republic of Brazil
*HE [[Nelson Mandela]], former President of the Republic of South Africa
*HRH [[Maria Teresa, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg|Maria Teresa]], Grand Duchess of Luxembourg
*HH Princess [[Princess Märtha Louise of Norway|Märtha Louise]], Princess of Norway
*HRH [[Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark|Mary]], Crown Princess of Denmark
*HRH [[Prince Michael of Greece|Michael]], Prince of Greece and Denmark
*HIM [[Empress Michiko|Michiko]], Empress of Japan
*HIH [[Prince Mikasa|Mikasa]], Prince of Japan
*HE [[Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller]]
*HE [[Hosni Mubarak]], President of the Arab Republic of Egypt
*HIH [[Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan|Naruhito]], Crown Prince of Japan
*HM [[Noor of Jordan|Noor al-Hussein]], Queen of Jordan
*HE [[Karolos Papoulias]], President of the Hellenic Republic
*HM [[Queen Paola of Belgium|Paola]], Queen of The Belgians
*HE [[Georgi Parvanov]], President of the Republic of Bulgaria
*HRH [[Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece|Pavlos]], Crown Prince of Greece, Prince of Denmark
*HRH [[Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh|Philip]], Prince of The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Duke of Edinburgh
*HRH [[Prince Philippe, Duke of Brabant|Philippe]], Prince of Belgium, Duke of Brabant
*HE [[António Ramalho Eanes]], former President of the Portuguese Republic
*HSH [[Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg|Richard]], Prince of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg
*HE [[Oscar Luigi Scalfaro]], former President of Italian Republic
*HM [[Queen Silvia of Sweden|Silvia]], Queen of Sweden
*HM [[Sirikit]], Queen of Thailand
*HE [[Mário Soares]], former President of the Portuguese Republic
*HM [[Queen Sofia of Spain|Sofía]], Queen of Spain
*HM [[Queen Sonja of Norway|Sonja]], Queen of Norway
*HE [[Petar Stoyanov]], former President of the Republic of Bulgaria
*HE [[Guntis Ulmanis]], former President of the Republic of Latvia
*HRH [[Vajiralongkorn]], Crown Prince of Thailand
*HRH [[Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden|Victoria]], Crown Princess of Sweden, Duchess of Västergötland
*HE [[Lech Wałęsa]], former President of the Republic of Poland
*HE [[Richard von Weizsäcker]], former President of the Federal Republic of Germany
*HRH [[Willem-Alexander]], Prince of The Netherlands, Prince of Orange
*HE [[Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg]], former Princess of Denmark
====Knights of the Elephant listed by date of appointment====
*21 May 1935: HE Count [[Carl Johan Bernadotte|Carl Johan Bernadotte of Wisborg]], former Prince of [[Sweden]]
*20 April 1947: HRH Princess [[Princess Benedikte of Denmark|Benedikte]] of [[Denmark]]
*20 April 1947: HM Queen [[Queen Anne-Marie of Greece|Anne-Maria]], former Queen of the [[Grece|Hellenes]], Princess of [[Denmark]]
*16 November 1947: HM Queen [[Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom|Elizabeth II]] of the [[United Kingdom|United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland]]
*16 November 1947: HRH Prince [[Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh|Philip]] of the [[United Kingdom|United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland]], Duke of Edinburgh
*8 August 1953: HIM Emperor [[Akihito]] of [[Japan]]
*5 March 1957: HIH Prince [[Prince Mikasa|Mikasa]] of [[Japan]]
*21 February 1958: HM King [[Harald V of Norway|Harald V]] of [[Norway]]
*21 April 1958: HM King [[Bhumibol Adulyadej]] of [[Thailand]]
*6 September 1960: HM Queen [[Sirikit]] of [[Thailand]]
*17 February 1961: HE [[Count Ingolf of Rosenborg]], former Prince of [[Denmark]]
*4 January 1962: HM King [[Constantine II of Greece|Constantine II]], former King of the [[Greece|Hellenes]]
*11 March 1962: HH Princess [[Princess Elisabeth of Denmark|Elisabeth]] of [[Denmark]]
*3 May 1963: HIM Empress [[Farah Pahlavi|Farah]], former Empress of Iran
*20 October 1963: HE [[Count Christian of Rosenborg]], former Prince of [[Denmark]]
*11 September 1964: HRH [[Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark]]
*11 September 1964: HRH [[Prince Michael of Greece|Prince Michael of Greece and Denmark]]
*12 January 1965: HM King [[Carl XVI Gustaf]] of [[Sweden]]
*28 September 1965: HIH Prince [[Prince Hitachi|Hitachi]] of [[Japan]]
*10 June 1967: HRH Prince [[Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark|Henrik]] of [[Denmark]]
*3 February 1968: HH [[Prince Richard of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Berleburg]]
*18 June 1968: HM King [[Albert II of Belgium|Albert II]] of the [[Belgium|Belgians]]
*14 January 1972: HRH Crown Prince [[Crown Prince Frederik of Denmark|Frederik]] of [[Denmark]]
*14 January 1972: HRH Prince [[Prince Joachim of Denmark|Joachim]] of [[Denmark]]
*16 January 1973: Princess [[Princess Christina, Mrs. Magnusson|Christina, Mrs Magnusson]]
*12 February 1973: HM Queen [[Queen Sonja of Norway|Sonja]] of [[Norway]]
*30 April 1974: HRH Prince [[Charles, Prince of Wales|Charles]] of the [[United Kingdom|United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland]], Prince of Wales
*29 October 1975: HM Queen [[Beatrix of the Netherlands|Beatrix]] of the [[Netherlands]]
*22 November 1976: HRH Grand Duke [[Jean, Grand Duke of Luxembourg|Jean]] of [[Luxembourg]]
*12 October 1978: HE [[Valéry Giscard d'Estaing]], former President of the [[France|French Republic]]
*17 March 1980: HM King [[Juan Carlos I of Spain|Juan Carlos]] I of [[Spain]]
*17 March 1980: HM Queen [[Queen Sofia of Spain|Sofía]] of [[Spain]]
*25 February 1981: HE [[Vigdís Finnbogadóttir]], former President of the [[Iceland|Republic of Iceland]]
*20 April 1983: HE [[Mauno Koivisto|Mauno Henrik Koivisto]], former President of the [[Finland|Republic of Finland]]
*25 June 1984: HE [[António Ramalho Eanes|António Santos Ramalho Eanes]], former President of the [[Portugal|Portuguese Republic]]
*3 September 1985: HM Queen [[Queen Silvia of Sweden|Silvia]] of [[Sweden]]
*19 February 1986: HE [[Hosni Mubarak|Mohamed Hosni Mubarak]], President of the [[Egypt|Arab Republic of Egypt]]
*25 April 1989: HE [[Richard von Weizsäcker]], former President of the [[Germany|Federal Republic of Germany]]
*20 July 1991: HRH Crown Prince [[Haakon, Crown Prince of Norway|Haakon]] of [[Norway]]
*6 May 1992: HE [[Mário Soares|Mário Alberto Nobre Lopes Soares]], former President of the [[Portugal|Portuguese Republic]]
*13 October 1992: Princess [[Princess Märtha Louise of Norway|Märtha Louise]] of [[Norway]]
*5 July 1993: HE [[Lech Wałęsa]], former President of the [[Poland|Republic of Poland]]
*19 October 1993: HE [[Oscar Luigi Scalfaro]], former President of the [[Italy|Italian Republic]]
*7 September 1994: HE [[Martti Ahtisaari]], former President of the [[Finland|Republic of Finland]]
*16 May 1995: HM Queen [[Queen Paola of Belgium|Paola]] of the [[Belgium|Belgians]]
*14 July 1995: HRH Crown Princess [[Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden|Victoria]] of [[Sweden]]
*17 November 1995: HE [[Princess Alexandra, Countess of Frederiksborg|Alexandra]], Countess of Frederiksborg
*18 February 1996: HE [[Nelson Mandela]], former President of the [[South Africa|Republic of South Africa]]
*9 October 1996: HE [[Algirdas Brazauskas]], former President of the [[Lithuania|Republic of Lithuania]]
*18 November 1996: HE [[Ólafur Ragnar Grímsson]], President of the [[Iceland|Republic of Iceland]]
*14 January 1997: HRH [[Pavlos, Crown Prince of Greece|Crown Prince Pavlos of Greece, Prince of Denmark]]
*18 March 1997: HE [[Guntis Ulmanis]], former President of the [[Latvia|Republic of Latvia]]
*31 January 1998: HRH Prince [[Willem-Alexander]] of the [[Netherlands]], Prince of Orange
*27 April 1998: HM Queen [[Noor of Jordan|Noor al-Hussein]] of the Hashemite [[Jordan|Kingdom of Jordan]]
*2 June 1998: HIM Empress [[Empress Michiko|Michiko]] of [[Japan]]
*3 May 1999: HE [[Fernando Henrique Cardoso]], former President of the [[Brazil|Federative Republic of Brazil]]
*23 May 2000: HE [[Emil Constantinescu]], former President of the [[Romania|Republic of Romania]]
*17 October 2000: HE [[Petar Stoyanov]], former President of the [[Bulgaria|Republic of Bulgaria]]
*15 December 2000: HE [[Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller]]
*7 February 2001: HRH Crown Prince [[Vajiralongkorn]] of [[Thailand]]
*3 April 2001: HE [[Tarja Halonen]], President of the [[Finland|Republic of Finland]]
*10 October 2001: HE [[Milan Kučan]], former President of the [[Slovenia|Republic of Slovenia]]
*24 April 2002: HE [[Johannes Rau]], former President of the [[Germany|Federal Republic of Germany]]
*28 May 2002: HRH Prince [[Prince Philippe, Duke of Brabant|Philippe]] of [[Belgium]], Duke of Brabant
*20 October 2003: HRH Grand Duke [[Henri, Grand Duke of Luxembourg]]
*20 October 2003: HRH Grand Duchess [[Maria Teresa, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg|Maria Teresa]]
*16 March 2004: HE [[Ion Iliescu]], former President of the [[Romania|Republic of Romania]]
*9 May 2004: HRH Crown Princess [[Mary, Crown Princess of Denmark|Mary]] of [[Denmark]]
*16 November 2004: HIH Crown Prince [[Naruhito, Crown Prince of Japan|Naruhito]] of [[Japan]]
*29 March 2006: HE [[Georgi Parvanov]], current President of the [[Bulgaria|Republic of Bulgaria]]
*24 May 2006: HE [[Karolos Papoulias]], current President of the [[Greece|Hellenic Republic]]
*12 September 2007: HE [[Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva]], current President of the [[Brazil|Federative Republic of Brazil]][http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v398/gigi_ho/drws/fb10bde8.jpg]
*18 February 2008: HE [[Felipe Calderón|Felipe Calderón Hinojosa]], current President of the [[Mexico]]
====Officers of the Chapter of the Royal Danish Orders of Chivalry====
*Chancellor: HRH Prince [[Henrik, Prince Consort of Denmark|Henrik]], The Prince Consort
*Secretary: Mr Niels Eilschou Holm, LL.D., Chamberlain, Private Secretary to HM The Queen
*Treasurer: Ambassador Paul Fischer, LL.D., Chamberlain
*Secretary of the Chapter: Mr Per Thornit, Chamberlain, Chief of TRH The Crown Prince and The Crown Princess's Household
*Historiographer of the Chapter: Professor Knud J.V. Jespersen, Dr. Phil.
==Recently deceased knights==
* HE [[Lennart Meri]], President of the Republic of Estonia (d. 2006)
* HE [[Johannes Rau]], former President of the Federal Republic of Germany (d. 2006)
==Other notable knights==
Previous knights have included:
* [[Tycho Brahe]], astronomer (1578)<ref>[http://runeberg.org/dbl/2/0615.html Salmonsens Konversationsleksikon], entry "Tycho Brahe" {{da icon}}</ref>
* [[Heinrich Rantzau]], German-Danish humanist writer and statesman (1580)
* [[Jacob van Wassenaer Obdam]], Dutch lieutenant-admiral (1659)
* [[Egbert Bartholomeusz Kortenaer]], Dutch vice-admiral (1659)
* [[Cornelis Tromp]], Dutch and Danish admiral-general (1676)
* [[Jacob Brønnum Scavenius Estrup|J.B.S. Estrup]], Danish landowner, politician and President of the Council of State (1878)
* [[Vilhelm Thomsen]], Professor, Dr. Phil., Danish linguist (1912)
* [[Hans Niels Andersen|H.N. Andersen]], Danish businessman, Consul-General, titular Councilor of State (1919)
* [[Carl Gustaf Emil Mannerheim|C.G.E. Mannerheim]], President of the Republic of Finland, Marshal of Finland (1919)
* [[Stanisław Wojciechowski]], President of the Republic of Poland (1923)
* [[Tomáš Masaryk]], President of the Czechoslovak Republic (1925)
* [[Miklós Horthy]], Austro-Hungarian vice-admiral, Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary (1940)
* [[Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein]], British Field Marshal (1945)
* [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]], President of the United States of America, General of the Army (1945)
* [[Niels Bohr]], Professor, Dr. Phil. & Scient. & Techn., Danish physicist and Nobel laureate, Manifested Copenhagen interpretation ("atom theory") (1947)
* [[Sir Winston Churchill]], British prime minister and Nobel laureate (1950)
* [[Haile Selassie I]], Emperor of Ethiopia (1954)
* [[Julius Nyerere]], President of the United Republic of Tanzania (1970)
* [[Josip Broz Tito]], President of the Socialist Federative Republic of Yugoslavia (1974)
* [[Nicolae Ceauşescu]], President of the Socialist Republic of Romania (Note: Awarded on the November 1980 state visit to Denmark but revoked by the Queen on [[December 23]], [[1989]] for the first time in history. The insignia have been returned to Denmark and Ceauşescu's name has been deleted from the official rolls)
==References==
{{reflist}}
==See also==
* [[Order of the Dannebrog]]
==External links==
* [http://www.royaldenmark.us Royal Danish Orders.] Unofficial site. Pictures of the Order of the Elephant, history and recipients.
* [http://foa.danmark.dk/portal/page?_pageid=33,23735&_dad=portal&_schema=PORTAL&entiId=10633543&ettyId=130&ettyName=PERSON&lityName=PERSONORDEN&selectedTab=1&linkDirection=TO&rangeSize=500 www.danmark.dk] Official site listing the Knights of the Elephant.
[[Category:Order of the Elephant| ]]
[[Category:Orders of knighthood of Denmark]]
[[Category:Monarchical orders|Elephant]]
[[Category:History of Denmark]]
[[Category:1693 establishments|Elephant, Order of]]
[[be-x-old:Ордэн Слана]]
[[ca:Orde de l'Elefant]]
[[da:Elefantordenen]]
[[de:Elefanten-Orden]]
[[es:Orden del Elefante]]
[[fr:Ordre de l'Éléphant]]
[[it:Ordine dell'Elefante]]
[[nl:Orde van de Olifant]]
[[no:Elefantordenen]]
[[pl:Order Słonia]]
[[ru:Орден Слона]]
[[fi:Elefanttiritarikunta]]
[[sv:Elefantorden]]