History

This Order was founded by King Wilhelm I on the day of his coronation and it was awarded in recognition of civil and military merit.

The Order originally featured the I Class Cross with I Class Breast Star, II Class Cross with II Class Breast Star, III Class Cross, and IV Class Cross.

Throughout history, there were three different crown models featured on the obverse medallion of the Order awards.
From 1861 to 1862, the awards featured a tall "heraldic" crown, similar to the Austrian crown.

From 1862 to 1868, the awards featured a small and round crown.

From 1869 to 1916, the awards featured a large crown.

There were many attributes added to the Order grades.

On March 27, 1863, all Order grades could be awarded with Jubilee dates.

On February 27, 1864 crossed swords, through the centre of the cross and on the ring, could be conferred upon awards for military and war merit.

On October 18, 1864, a miniature version of the St. John Cross could be added to Order awards, which were conferred for the meritorious service of caring for sick and wounded military personnel during the German-Danish War of 1864 and the Austro-Prussian War of 1866.

On January 18, 1865, Order grades could feature the enamelled ribbon of the Order of the Red Eagle (ORE) surrounding the centre medallion.

On June 22, 1871, an enamelled red cross on the upper cross arm could be awarded on the III Class Cross and IV Class Cross for merit in voluntary nursing during the Franco-Prussian War.

The motto of the Order was "Gott Mit Uns,” which translates to "God be with us.”

The Type II Order awards featured the large crown.

The Small Decoration (Kleindekoration) was added as an Order grade in April 1914. This decoration featured a smaller version of the Order Cross on a triangular ribbon, and the ribbon was decorated with a miniature version of the Order Breast Star.

The Small Decoration was worn as a less formal version of the Order grades.