Order of St Michael and St George

The Order includes three classes, in descending order of seniority and rank:

• Knight Grand Cross or Dame Grand Cross (GCMG)[1][2]
• Knight Commander (KCMG) or Dame Commander (DCMG)[1][2]
• Companion (CMG)[1][2]

St George and the Dragon by Mattia Preti (1678)

Coat of arms of the British monarch as sovereign of the Order of St Michael and St George

It is used to honour individuals who have rendered important services in relation to Commonwealth or foreign nations. People are appointed to the Order rather than awarded it. British Ambassadors to foreign nations are regularly appointed as KCMGs or CMGs. For example, the former British Ambassador to the United States, Sir David Manning, was appointed a CMG when he worked for the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), and then after his appointment as British Ambassador to the US, he was promoted to a Knight Commander (KCMG). It is the traditional award for members of the FCO.

The Order's motto is Auspicium melioris ævi (Latin for "Token of a better age"). Its patron saints, as the name suggests, are St. Michael the Archangel, and St. George, patron saint of England. One of its primary symbols is that of St Michael trampling over and subduing Satan in battle.

The Order is the sixth-most senior in the British honours system, after The Most Noble Order of the Garter, The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle, The Most Illustrious Order of St Patrick, The Most Honourable Order of the Bath, and The Most Exalted Order of the Star of India. The third of the aforementioned Orders—which relates to Ireland, no longer fully a part of the United Kingdom—still exists but is in disuse; no appointments have been made to it since 1936. The last of the Orders on the list, related to India, has also been in disuse since that country's independence in 1947.

The Order's insignia often depict St Michael subduing Satan

Heraldic collar of the Order of St Michael and St George

The Prince Regent founded the Order to commemorate the British amical protectorate over the Ionian Islands, which had come under British control in 1814 and had been granted their own constitution as the United States of the Ionian Islands in 1817. It was intended to reward "natives of the Ionian Islands and of the island of Malta and its dependencies, and for such other subjects of His Majesty as may hold high and confidential situations in the Mediterranean".[3]

In 1864, however, the protectorate ended and the Ionian Islands became part of Greece. A revision of the basis of the Order in 1868, saw membership granted to those who "hold high and confidential offices within Her Majesty's colonial possessions, and in reward for services rendered to the Crown in relation to the foreign affairs of the Empire". Accordingly, numerous Governors-General and Governors feature as recipients of awards in the order.

In 1965 the order was opened to women,[4] with Evelyn Bark becoming the first female CMG in 1967.[5]

The British Sovereign is the Sovereign of the Order and appoints all other members of the Order (by convention, on the advice of the Government). The next-most senior member is the Grand Master. The office was formerly filled by the Lord High Commissioner of the Ionian Islands; now, however, Grand Masters are chosen by the Sovereign. Grand Masters include:

• 1818–1825: Sir Thomas Maitland
• 1825–1850: Prince Adolphus, Duke of Cambridge
• 1850–1904: Prince George, Duke of Cambridge
• 1904–1910: George, Prince of Wales
• 1910–1917: None
• 1917–1936: Edward, Prince of Wales
• 1936–1957: Alexander Cambridge, 1st Earl of Athlone
• 1957–1959: Edward Wood, 1st Earl of Halifax
• 1959–1967: Harold Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis
• 1967–present: Prince Edward, Duke of Kent

The Order originally included 15 Knights Grand Cross, 20 Knights Commanders, and 25 Companions but has since been expanded and the current limits on membership are 125, 375, and 1,750 respectively. Members of the Royal Family who are appointed to the Order do not count towards the limit, nor do foreign members appointed as "honorary members".

Mantle of the Order.

Representation of the star of a Knight or Dame Grand Cross

Star and badge of a Knight or Dame Commander

Collar worn by a Knight or Dame Grand Cross

Members of the Order wear elaborate regalia on important occasions (such as coronations), which vary by rank:

• The mantle, worn only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross, is made of Saxon blue satin lined with crimson silk. On the left side is a representation of the star (see below). The mantle is bound with two large tassels.
• The collar, worn only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross, is made of gold. It consists of depictions of crowned English lions, Maltese Crosses, and the cyphers "SM" and "SG", all alternately. In the centre are two winged lions of St. Mark, each holding a bible and seven arrows—the emblem of the seven united Ionian Islands.

At less important occasions, simpler insignia are used:

• The star is an insignia used only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights and Dames Commanders. It is worn pinned to the left breast. The Knight and Dame Grand Cross' star includes seven-armed, silver-rayed 'Maltese Asterisk' (for want of a better description—see image of badge), with a gold ray in between each pair of arms. The Knight and Dame Commander's star is a slightly smaller eight-pointed silver figure formed by two Maltese Crosses; it does not include any gold rays. In each case, the star bears a red cross of St George. In the centre of the star is a dark blue ring bearing the motto of the Order. Within the ring is a representation of St Michael trampling on Satan.
• The badge is the only insignia used by all members of the Order; it is suspended on a blue-crimson-blue ribbon. Knights and Dames Grand Cross wear it on a riband or sash, passing from the right shoulder to the left hip. Knights Commanders and male Companions wear the badge from a ribbon around the neck; Dames Commanders and female Companions wear it from a bow on the left shoulder. The badge is a seven-armed, white-enamelled 'Maltese Asterisk' (see Maltese Cross); the obverse shows St Michael trampling on Satan, while the reverse shows St George on horseback killing a dragon, both within a dark blue ring bearing the motto of the Order. In June 2020, discussions started concerning modification of the insignia because they show a dark-skinned Satan defeated by white St Michael.[6]

On certain "collar days" designated by the Sovereign, members attending formal events may wear the Order's collar over their military uniform or morning wear. When collars are worn (either on collar days or on formal occasions such as coronations), the badge is suspended from the collar. All collars which have been awarded since 1948 must be returned to the Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood. The other insignia may be retained.

The chapel of the Order of St Michael and St George in St Paul's Cathedral, London.

The original home of the Order was the Palace of St. Michael and St. George in Corfu, the residence of the Lord High Commissioner of the Ionian Islands and the seat of the Ionian Senate. Since 1906, the Order's chapel has been in St Paul's Cathedral in London. (The cathedral also serves as home to the chapels of The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire and the Imperial Society of Knights Bachelor.) Religious services for the whole Order are held quadrennially; new Knights and Dames Grand Cross are installed at these services.

The Sovereign and the Knights and Dames Grand Cross are allotted stalls in the choir of the chapel, above which their heraldic devices are displayed. Perched on the pinnacle of a knight's stall is his helm, decorated with a mantling and topped by his crest. Under English heraldic law, women other than monarchs do not bear helms or crests; instead, the coronet appropriate to the dame's rank, if there is one, is used. Above the crest or coronet, the stall's occupant's heraldic banner is hung, emblazoned with his or her coat of arms. At a considerably smaller scale, to the back of the stall is affixed a piece of brass (a "stall plate") displaying its occupant's name, arms and date of admission into the Order. Upon the death of a Knight, the banner, helm, mantling and crest are taken down. The stall plates, however, are not removed; rather, they remain permanently affixed somewhere about the stall, so that the stalls of the chapel are festooned with a colourful record of the Order's Knights and Dames Grand Cross since 1906.

The reredos within the chapel was commissioned from Henry Poole in 1927.[7]

The Duke of Kent, Grand Master of the Order, and the Duchess of Kent

German shipping magnate Rickmer Clasen Rickmers (1807–1886) wearing the insignia of a C.M.G. (centre)

Members of the Order of St Michael are assigned positions in the order of precedence in England and Wales. Wives of male members also feature on the order of precedence, as do sons, daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commanders; relatives of female members, however, are not assigned any special precedence. (As a general rule, individuals can derive precedence from their fathers or husbands, but not from their mothers or wives.)

Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commanders prefix "Sir", and Dames Grand Cross and Dames Commanders prefix "Dame", to their forenames. Wives of Knights may prefix "Lady" to their surnames, but no equivalent privilege exists for husbands of Dames. Such forms are not used by peers and princes, except when the names of the former are written out in their fullest forms. Furthermore, honorary (foreign) members and clergymen do not receive the accolade and thus are not entitled to use the prefix "Sir" or "Dame". Knights and Dames Grand Cross use the post-nominal "GCMG"; Knights Commanders and Dames Commanders use "KCMG" and "DCMG" respectively; Companions use "CMG".

Knights and Dames Grand Cross are also entitled to receive heraldic supporters. They may, furthermore, encircle their arms with a depiction of the circlet (a circle bearing the motto) and the collar; the former is shown either outside or on top of the latter. Knights and Dames Commanders and Companions may display the circlet, but not the collar, surrounding their arms. The badge is depicted suspended from the collar or circlet.

Riband (worn incorrectly), star and collar of GCMG worn by Lord Grenfell

In the satirical British television programme Yes Minister, Jim Hacker MP is told an old joke[8] by his Private Secretary Bernard Woolley about what the various post-nominals stand for. From Season 2, Episode 2 "Doing the Honours":

Woolley: In the [civil] service, CMG stands for "Call Me God". And KCMG for "Kindly Call Me God".
Hacker: What does GCMG stand for?

Woolley (deadpan): "God Calls Me God".

Both sexes use the same post-nominal initials, except that there is a distinctly female form of Knight Commander of St Michael and St George. This is Dame Commander of St. Michael and St George (DCMG).

Ian Fleming's spy, James Bond, a commander in the Royal Navy Volunteer Reserve (RNVR) was fictionally decorated with the CMG in 1953. (This is mentioned in the novels From Russia, with Love and On Her Majesty's Secret Service, and on-screen in his obituary in Skyfall.) He was offered the KCMG (which would have elevated him from Companion to Knight Commander in the Order) in The Man with the Golden Gun, but he rejected the offer as he did not wish to become a public figure. Dame Judi Dench's character "M" is "offered" early retirement and a GCMG in Skyfall after a series of events resulting in the loss of a list that named every NATO espionage operative.

Long-time Doctor Who companion Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart wore the ribbon of the order as the highest of his decorations in the series' classic era.

Riband, badge and star of a GCMG worn by Lord Tweedsmuir

(NOTE: For clarity, the table denotes holders of the GCMG only; all other posts-nominal shown, for respective members, are for the sake of completeness alone.)

• Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II
• Grand Master: His Royal Highness The Duke of Kent KG GCMG GCVO CD ADC (1967)

Knights and Dames Grand Cross

Number	Name	Post-nominals	Known for	Year appointed
1	Sayyid Sir Jamshid bin Abdullah of Zanzibar	GCMG	Sultan of Zanzibar	1963
2	The Duke of Kent	KG GCMG GCVO	Royal family	1967
3	Sir Antony Acland	KG GCMG GCVO	British diplomat	1986
4	Sir Crispin Tickell	GCMG KCVO	British diplomat	1989
5	Sir Shridath Ramphal	GCMG AC ONZ OE OM OCC QC	Commonwealth Secretary-General	1990
6	Sir Michael Somare	GCL GCMG CH CF KStJ SSI KSG PC	Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea	1990
7	Dame Catherine Tizard	GCMG GCVO DBE QSO ONZ	Governor-General of New Zealand	1990
8	The Lord Wilson of Tillyorn	KT GCMG	Governor of Hong Kong	1991
9	Sir Wiwa Korowi	GCMG	Governor-General of Papua New Guinea	1992
10	Sir James Carlisle	GCMG	Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda	1993
11	Sir Rodric Braithwaite	GCMG	British diplomat	1994
12	Sir Julius Chan	GCL GCMG KBE	Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea	1994
13	Sir Colville Young	GCMG MBE	Governor-General of Belize	1994
14	The Lord Hannay of Chiswick	GCMG CH	British diplomat	1995
15	Sir Orville Turnquest	GCMG QC	Governor-General of the Bahamas	1995
16	Sir Michael Hardie Boys	GNZM GCMG QSO	Governor-General of New Zealand	1996
17	Sir Christopher Mallaby	GCMG GCVO	British diplomat	1996
18	Sir Tulaga Manuella	GCMG	Governor-General of Tuvalu	1996
19	Sir Daniel Williams	GCMG	Governor-General of Grenada	1996
20	Sir John Coles	GCMG	British diplomat	1997
21	Sir Silas Atopare	GCL GCMG	Governor-General of Papua New Guinea	1998
22	Sir John Lapli	GCMG	Governor-General of the Solomon Islands	1999
23	Dame Pearlette Louisy	GCMG	Governor-General of Saint Lucia	1999
24	Sir Andrew Wood	GCMG	British diplomat	2001
25	Sir John Goulden	GCMG	British diplomat	2001
26	The Lord Kerr of Kinlochard	GCMG	British diplomat	2001
27	Sir Tomasi Puapua	GCMG KBE PC	Governor-General of Tuvalu	2002
28	Sir David Wright	GCMG LVO	British diplomat	2002
29	Sir Jeremy Greenstock	GCMG	British diplomat	2003
30	Sir Rob Young	GCMG	British diplomat	2003
31	The Lord Robertson of Port Ellen	KT GCMG PC	Secretary General of NATO	2004
32	Sir Stephen Wall	GCMG LVO	British diplomat	2004
33	Sir Paulias Matane	GCL GCMG OBE	Governor-General of Papua New Guinea	2005
34	Sir Nathaniel Waena	GCMG CSI KStJ	Governor-General of Solomon Islands	2005
35	The Lord Jay of Ewelme	GCMG	British diplomat	2006
36	Sir Emyr Jones Parry	GCMG	British diplomat	2007
37	Sir Kenneth O. Hall	GCMG OJ	Governor-General of Jamaica	2007
38	Dame Louise Lake-Tack	GCMG	Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda	2007
39	Sir David Manning	GCMG KCVO	British diplomat	2008
40	Sir Carlyle Glean	GCMG	Governor-General of Grenada	2008
41	Sir Patrick Allen	ON GCMG CD	Governor-General of Jamaica	2009
42	Sir Frank Kabui	GCMG OBE CSI	Governor-General of Solomon Islands	2009
43	Sir Arthur Foulkes	GCMG	Governor-General of the Bahamas	2010
44	Sir Iakoba Italeli	GCMG	Governor-General of Tuvalu	2010
45	The Lord Ricketts	GCMG GCVO	British diplomat	2011
46	Sir Nigel Sheinwald	GCMG	British diplomat	2011
47	Sir Elliott Belgrave	GCMG QC	Governor-General of Barbados	2012
48	Dame Cécile La Grenade	GCMG OBE	Governor-General of Grenada	2013
49	Sir Edmund Lawrence	GCMG OBE	Governor-General of Saint Kitts and Nevis	2013
50	Dame Marguerite Pindling	GCMG	Governor-General of the Bahamas	2014
51	Sir Rodney Williams	GCMG	Governor-General of Antigua and Barbuda	2014
52	The Baroness Ashton of Upholland	GCMG PC	British diplomat	2015
53	Sir John Sawers	GCMG	British diplomat	2015
54	Sir Tapley Seaton	GCMG CVO QC JP	Governor-General of Saint Kitts and Nevis	2015
55	Sir Simon Fraser	GCMG	British diplomat	2016
56	Sir Peter Westmacott	GCMG LVO	British diplomat	2016
57	Sir Robert Dadae	GCMG	Governor-General of Papua New Guinea	2017
58	Dame Sandra Mason	GCMG DA QC	Governor-General of Barbados	2017
59	Sir Mark Lyall Grant	GCMG	British diplomat & National Security Adviser	2018
60	Sir Neville Cenac	GCMG	Governor-General of Saint Lucia	2018
61	Sir Cornelius A. Smith	GCMG	Governor-General of the Bahamas	2019
62	Sir David Vunagi	GCMG	Governor-General of Solomon Islands	2019
63	Dame Susan Dougan	GCMG OBE	Governor-General of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines	2020
64	Sir David Attenborough	OM GCMG CH CVO CBE	Television broadcaster and conservationist	2020
65	Sir Tim Barrow	GCMG LVO MBE	British diplomat	2020
66	Sir Julian King	GCMG KCVO	British diplomat	2020

Honorary Knights/Dame Grand Cross (GCMG)

Star and collar of honorary GCMG worn by Serbian Field Marshal Živojin Mišić

Name	Post-Nominals	Known for	Year appointed	Notes
Vigdís Finnbogadóttir	GCB GCMG	Former President of Iceland	1982
Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah of Brunei	GCB GCMG	Sultan of Brunei	1984
Abdelaziz bin Khalifa Al Thani	GCMG	Member of the royal family of Qatar	1985
Gyanendra of Nepal	GCMG	Former King of Nepal	1986
Fidel V. Ramos	GCMG	Former President of the Philippines	1995
Aleksander Kwaśniewski	GCB GCMG	Former President of Poland	1996
Maumoon Abdul Gayoom	GCMG	Former President of the Maldives	1997	[9]
Nawaz Sharif	GCMG	Former Prime Minister of Pakistan	1997
Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani	GCB GCMG	Former Emir of Qatar	1997
Carlos Menem	GCMG	Former President of Argentina	1998
Ernesto Zedillo	GCMG	Former President of Mexico	1998
Alberto Fujimori	GCMG	Former President of Peru	1998
János Martonyi	GCMG	Former Minister of Foreign Affairs	1999	[9]
Abdullah II of Jordan	GCB GCMG KCVO	King of Jordan	1999
Friis Arne Petersen	GCMG	Former Director of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark	2000
Giuliano Amato	GCMG	Former Prime Minister of Italy	2000
Lamberto Dini	GCMG	Former Prime Minister of Italy	2000
Umberto Vattani	GCMG	Former Secretary General of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs	2000
Emil Constantinescu	GCMG	Former President of Romania	2000
Thabo Mbeki	GCB GCMG	Former President of South Africa	2000
Nursultan Nazarbayev	GCMG	Former President of Kazakhstan	2000
Ali Abu al-Ragheb	GCMG	Former Prime Minister of Jordan	2001
Jorge Sampaio	GCMG	Former President of Portugal	2001
Anson Chan	GBM GCMG CBE JP	Former Chief Secretary of Hong Kong	2002	[10]
Vicente Fox	GCMG	Former President of Mexico	2002	[9]
Xanana Gusmão	GCMG, GCL, CNZM	Former Prime Minister of East Timor	2003
Hamid Karzai	GCMG	Former President of Afghanistan	2003
Alfred Moisiu	GCMG	Former President of Albania	2003
Włodzimierz Cimoszewicz	GCMG	Former Prime Minister of Poland	2004
Gianfranco Fini	GCMG	Former Deputy Prime Minister of Italy	2005
Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum	GCMG	Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates	2010	[11]
Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan	GCMG	Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi	2010	[12]
Sabah Al Khalid Al Sabah	GCMG	Deputy Prime Minister of Kuwait	2012	[13]
Manuel Valls	GCMG	Former Prime Minister of France	2014	[14]
Marie Louise Coleiro Preca	GCMG	Former President of Malta	2015	[15]

Honorary Knights/Dames Commander (KCMG/DCMG)

Knight Commander star of the Order of Saint Michael and Saint George

Name	Post-Nominals	Known for	Year appointed	Notes
Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa	KCMG	King of Bahrain	1979
Henry Kissinger	KCMG	Former United States Secretary of State	1995
Frederico Cezar de Araujo	KCMG	Brazilian diplomat	1997
Gelson Fonseca	KCMG	Brazilian diplomat	1997
Affonso Emilio de Alencastro Massot	KCMG	Brazilian diplomat	1997
Takekazu Kawamura	KCMG	Japanese diplomat	1998
Henrik Schmiegelow	KCMG	German diplomat	1998
Carl Bildt	KCMG	Former Prime Minister of Sweden & High Representative for Bosnia	1998	[16]
József Szájer	KCMG	Former Chairman of the European Integration Select Committee	1999
Jan Marcussen	KCMG	Danish diplomat	2000
Carmela Decaro Bonella	DCMG	Former Deputy Director General and Director of the President of Italy's Office	2000
Luigo Guidobono Cavalchini	KCMG	Former Private Secretary to the Foreign Minister of Italy	2000
Francesco Olivieri	KCMG	Former Diplomatic Adviser to the Prime Minister of Italy	2000
Javier Solana	KCMG	Former Secretary General of NATO	2000
Richard Armitage	KCMG, CNZM, AC	Former United States Deputy Secretary of State	2005
Jaap de Hoop Scheffer	KCMG	Former Secretary General of NATO	2010	[17]
Sadako Ogata	DCMG	Japanese academic and diplomat	2011
Efthymios Mitropoulos	KCMG	Former Secretary-General of International Maritime Organization	2011
Marzuki Alie	KCMG	Former Speaker of the Indonesian House of Representatives	2012
Irman Gusman	KCMG	Former Speaker of the Indonesian House of Regional Representatives	2012
Marty Natalegawa	KCMG	Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Indonesia	2012
Sudi Silalahi	KCMG	Former Secretary of State of Indonesia	2012
Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan	KCMG	Minister of Foreign Affairs of the UAE	2013
Yun Byung-se	KCMG	Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of South Korea	2013
Jacques Rogge	KCMG	Former President of the International Olympic Committee	2014
Angelina Jolie	DCMG	American actress, filmmaker, and humanitarian	2014	[18]
Laurent Fabius	KCMG	Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of France	2014
Laurent Stefanini	KCMG	Former Ambassador, Chief of Protocol to President Hollande	2014
Grace Fu	DCMG	Former Minister for Foreign Affairs of Singapore	2014
Anders Fogh Rasmussen	KCMG	Former Prime Minister of Denmark & Secretary General of NATO	2015	[19]
José Antonio Meade Kuribreña	KCMG	Former Secretary of Foreign Affairs of Mexico	2015	[19]
Joseph Muscat	KCMG	Former Prime Minister of Malta	2015	[19]
Peter Piot	KCMG	Belgian microbiologist	2016	[20]
George Vella	KCMG	Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Malta now President of Malta	2018
Zeid Raad Al Hussein	KCMG	Former United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights	2019

• List of people who have declined a British honour
• Order of the Bath
• Order of the British Empire
• Order of the Garter
• Order of the Thistle
• Royal Victorian Order
• Russian Order of St George

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Order of St Michael and St George.

• "Knighthood and Chivalry", (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica, 11th ed. London: Cambridge University Press.
• Orans, L. P. "The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George"
• Velde, F. R. (2003). "Order of Precedence in England and Wales"
• State Library of New South Wales: Nelson Meers Foundation—gallery to full set of insignia, including images of both sides of the badge and a close-up of the star.