| Order of New Zealand | |
| Awarded By: | the Monarch of New Zealand |
| Type: | Order |
| Eligibility: | Subjects of the Crown |
| For: | Outstanding service to the Crown and people of New Zealand in a civil or military capacity |
| Status: | Currently constituted |
| Founder: | Elizabeth II |
| Head Title: | Sovereign |
| Head: | Charles III |
| Grades: | Member (ONZ) |
| Date: | 6 February 1987 |
| First Induction: | 6 February 1987 |
| Last Induction: | 5 June 2023 |
| Total: | 46 ordinary members 21 additional members 2 honorary members |
| Higher: | Order of Merit |
| Lower: | New Zealand Order of Merit |
The Order of New Zealand is the highest honour in the New Zealand royal honours system, created "to recognise outstanding service to the Crown and people of New Zealand in a civil or military capacity". It was instituted by royal warrant on 6 February 1987. The order is modelled on the British Order of Merit and the Order of the Companions of Honour.[1]
The order comprises the Sovereign and ordinary, additional and honorary members. The ordinary membership is limited to 20 living members, and at any time there may be fewer than 20. Additional members may be appointed to commemorate important royal, state or national occasions, and such appointments were made in 1990 for the 150th anniversary of the Treaty of Waitangi, in 2002 for the Queen's Golden Jubilee, in 2007 for the 20th anniversary of the institution of the Order, in 2012 for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, in 2022 for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee, and in 2023 to mark the coronation of King Charles III. Additional members have the same status as ordinary members. Honorary membership is for citizens of nations of which the Sovereign is not head of state.[1] Members are entitled to the post-nominal letters "ONZ".
Appointments to the order are made by royal warrant under the monarch's sign manual on the prime minister's advice. The order is administered by a Secretary and Registrar (the Clerk of the Executive Council).
Richie McCaw represented the Order at the coronation of Charles III and Camilla in 2023, and took part in the procession of the King and Queen at the beginning of the ceremony.[2]
The insignia is made up of an oval medallion of the coat of arms of New Zealand in gold and coloured enamel, worn on a white and ochre ribbon around the neck for men or a bow for women on their left shoulder.
| Name | Portrait | Date of appointment | Date of death | Known for | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ordinary members | ||||||
| 1 | Sir Arnold Nordmeyer | 2 February 1989 | Minister of Finance | |||
| 2 | C. E. Beeby | 10 March 1998 | Educationalist | |||
| 3 | Dame Te Atairangikaahu | 15 August 2006 | Māori Queen (Kīngitanga) | |||
| 4 | Sir Edmund Hillary | 11 January 2008 | First official ascent of Mount Everest | |||
| 5 | Sonja Davies | 12 June 2005 | Trade union leader and politician | |||
| 6 | Jim Knox | 1 December 1991 | Trade union leader | |||
| 7 | Frederick Turnovsky | 12 December 1994 | Manufacturer and arts leader | |||
| 8 | Richard Matthews[5] | 19 February 1995 | Microbiologist | |||
| 9 | Douglas Lilburn | 6 June 2001 | Composer | |||
| 10 | June, Lady Blundell | 6 February 1988[6] | 31 October 2012 | Viceregal consort | ||
| 11 | Manuhuia Bennett | 20 December 2001 | Anglican bishop | |||
| 12 | Henry Lang | 17 April 1997 | Economist | |||
| 13 | Dame Whina Cooper | 26 March 1994 | Māori leader | |||
| 14 | Jack Somerville | 5 October 1999 | Presbyterian leader | |||
| 15 | Whetu Tirikatene-Sullivan | 20 July 2011 | Politician | |||
| 16 | Margaret Mahy | 23 July 2012 | Children's author | |||
| 17 | Dame Miriam Dell | 22 March 2022 | Women's welfare | |||
| 18 | Sir Thaddeus McCarthy | 11 April 2001 | President of the Court of Appeal | |||
| 19 | Sir Roy McKenzie | 1 September 2007 | Philanthropist | |||
| 20 | Sir Miles Warren | 9 August 2022 | Architect | |||
| 21 | Sir James Fletcher | 29 August 2007 | Industrialist | |||
| 22 | Ivan Lichter | 15 June 2009 | Surgeon | |||
| 23 | Cliff Whiting | 16 July 2017 | Artist | |||
| 24 | Ken Douglas | 14 September 2022 | Trade union leader | |||
| 25 | Mike Moore | 2 February 2020 | ||||
| 26 | Tom Williams | 22 December 2023 | Emeritus Catholic Archbishop of Wellington | |||
| 27 | Alan MacDiarmid | 7 February 2007 | Chemist, Nobel laureate | |||
| 28 | David Lange | 13 August 2005 | Prime Minister | |||
| 29 | Jonathan Hunt | 8 March 2024 | Speaker of the House of Representatives | |||
| 30 | Dame Doreen Blumhardt | 17 October 2009 | Ceramicist | |||
| 31 | Sir Murray Halberg | 30 November 2022 | Olympic runner | |||
| 32 | Ralph Hotere | 24 February 2013 | Artist | |||
| Additional members | ||||||
| 1 | Sir Guy Powles | 24 October 1994 | Public servant and diplomat | |||
| 2 | Allen Curnow | 23 September 2001 | Poet | |||
| 3 | Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother | 30 March 2002 | Mother of Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand | |||
| 4 | Janet Frame | 29 January 2004 | Author | |||
| 5 | Arthur Lydiard | 11 December 2004 | Athletics coach | |||
| 6 | Dame Ann Ballin | 2 September 2003 | Psychologist | |||
| 7 | The Lord Cooke of Thorndon | 30 August 2006 | Jurist | |||
| 8 | Sir Hugh Kāwharu | 19 September 2006 | Māori leader | |||
| 9 | Dame Catherine Tizard | 31 October 2021 | Governor-General of New Zealand | |||
| 10 | Sir Paul Reeves | 14 August 2011 | Anglican bishop and governor-general | |||
| 11 | Sir Owen Woodhouse | 15 April 2014 | Jurist | |||
| 12 | Sir Brian Lochore | 3 August 2019 | Rugby union player and coach | |||
| 13 | The Duke of Edinburgh | 9 April 2021 | Consort of Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand | |||
| Honorary members | ||||||
| 1 | Bill Pickering | 15 March 2004 | Rocket scientist | |||