Order of Pope Pius IX explained

Order of Pope Pius IX
Native Name Lang:it
Awarded By:the
Type:Papal order of knighthood
Religion:Catholic
Motto:
    Status:Currently constituted
    First Head:Pope Pius IV
    Head Title:Sovereign
    Classes:
    • Knight/Dame with the Collar (GCCPO)
    • Knight/Dame Grand Cross (GCPO)
    • Knight/Dame Commander with Star (KC*PO/DC*PO)
    • Knight/Dame Commander (KCPO/DCPO)
    • Knight/Dame (KPO/DPO)
    Higher:Order of the Golden Spur
    Lower:Order of St. Gregory the Great

    The Order of Pope Pius IX (Italian: Ordine di Pio IX), also referred as the Pian Order (Italian: Ordine Piano, pronounced as /it/), is a papal order of knighthood originally founded by Pope Pius IV in 1560. Currently, it is the highest honor conferred by the Holy See (being the Order of Christ and the Order of the Golden Spur currently dormant). The awarding of the order fell into disuse and was re-instituted by Pope Pius IX as a continuation on 17 June 1847.

    The highest rank awarded by the Pope is the Collar of the Order, usually to Catholic heads of state on the occasion of official visits to the Holy See. The Grand Cross is the highest Papal award given to lay men and women, ordinarily given to resident Ambassadors accredited to the Holy See after two years in post and rarely to exceptional Catholics in the wider world for particular services, mainly in the international field and for outstanding deeds for Church and society.

    The rank of Knight is almost never awarded, and when it happens, it is given in recognition of high-profile services rendered to the Holy See or directly to the person of the Pontiff, by Catholic faithful of distinguished status, almost always belonging to ancient European noble families.

    The other two ranks (Commander and Commander with Star) are granted sparingly to lay Catholics, usually in diplomatic roles, for extraordinary merit or deeds for the Church and society. The order is awarded to Catholics and, on occasion and only for diplomatic reasons, to non-Catholics and non-Christians as well.

    History of the Order

    The Order was founded on 17 June 1847, by Pope Pius IX with the decree Romanis Pontificibus, placing it as the continuation of the ancient order established by Pope Pius IV with the bull Pii patris amplissimi on March 1559. These noble knights formed the lay court of the Roman Pontiff, being defined participants, since they "participated" in the life of the Pontiff, offering him an escort and often residing in the Apostolic Palace; they often shared the table with the Pontiff and accompanied him during his daily tasks.

    The subsequent decree Cum Hominum Mentes of 17 June 1849, confirmed the ancient privilege of personal nobility through membership in the Pian Order, thus creating it the only ennobler of the Holy Apostolic See. With another decree dated 11 November 1856, the Roman Pontiff himself divided the Order into three classes: Knight Grand Cross, Commander, and Knight.

    Pope Pius X reformed the Pontifical orders with the decree Multum ad excitandos of 7 February 1905,[1] the new class of Commander with star (correspondent to the class of Grand Officer) was created.

    The Pian Order was then reformed again by Pope Pius XII, with a Bull dated 11 November 1939, which suppressed the privilege of nobility.[2] From the historical point of view, the Knighthood of the Grand Cross of the Pian Order has held the role that was of the Militia Aurata before the reform of Gregory XVI, namely that of title of rank and ennobling of the Holy See from the sixteenth century to 1841.

    Order of Classes

    The Order comprises five classes:[3]

    Insignia and uniform

    The decoration is a regular octagram made of blue enamel, the spaces between the rays filled with gold flames. On the white medallion in the center the name of the founder surrounded by the words Virtuti et Merito ("Virtue and Merit") is engraved. The reverse side is the same save for the substitution of Anno 1847 for Pius IX. The rarely worn official uniform consists of an elaborately embroidered dark blue evening coat with golden epaulettes, white trousers, and a white-plumed bicorne.

    Knights with the Collar wear a gold decorated chain around the neck, and a star on the left side of the breast; Knights Grand Cross wear a sash and a star on the left side of the breast; Commanders wear a cross around the neck; and Knights wear a smaller cross on the left breast of the uniform:

    Notable members

    Royal houses and nobility

    Heads of State and Politicians

    Diplomats to the Holy See

    Other notable members

    See also

    External links

    Notes and References

    1. Web site: Acta Sanctae Sedis: ephemerides romanae a SS.mo D. N. Pio PP. X. 31 January 2022. Vatican.va. 565.
    2. Book: Direzione dell'Annuario Pontificio presso la Segreteria di Stato Vaticana. Annuario Pontificio. LEV - Libreria Editrice Vaticana. 1968. Città del Vaticano. 1103. Italian.
    3. Web site: The Papal Order of Pius IX . live . July 19, 2024 . The Christian Knighthood Information Center.
    4. Web site: Order of Pius IX (Pian Order) . live . 19 July 2024 . Association of Papal Orders in Ireland.
    5. Book: Henneresse, Dominique. Ordres et Décorations du Saint-Siège. LEV Libreria Editrice Vaticana (Vatican Publishing House). 2019. 978-88-266-0241-7. Città del Vaticano. 89–90; 104–105. French.
    6. Book: Michele D'Andrea, Fabio Cassani Pironti. Vestire gli onori. In.edit. 2005. 88-89452-00-5. Roma. 106–109. Italian.
    7. News: 17 December 1962. King of Burundi Praised by Pope in Vatican Visit. 2. The New York Times.
    8. Bouyerdene 2012, chapter 5
    9. Web site: President Anastasiades receives the highest honour of the Holy See . 2022-11-04 . ΚΥΠΕ.
    10. Web site: Cronología de Marco Fidel Suárez | Centro de Historia de Bello. 2021-09-29. 2021-09-29. https://web.archive.org/web/20210929124751/http://www.centrodehistoriadebello.org.co/content/cronologia-de-marco-fidel-suarez. dead.

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