Is the Order of Saint Joachim a “real” order of Knighthood?
The English College of Arms thought so. It is a matter of historical record that in the early 1800s it repeatedly and publicly acknowledged The Order of Saint Joachim as a genuine order of knighthood, and our Knights were legally recognized as being entitled to use the title “Sir” in England until new laws were passed regarding foreign knighthoods in the 1820s. The Order was also recognized by other sovereign nations, including the Holy Roman Empire, the kingdoms of Hungary, Prussia, Poland and Russia. There is one contemporary article that also suggests it received Papal recognition as a valid order of knighthood in the late 1700s. In modern times, the formal recognition of orders of knighthood is a sensitive and complex topic. Countries without a monarchy are generally adverse to the concept of titles and distinctions, and countries with a monarchy generally only recognize their own Orders, of which the king or queen is usually the head. The Order has made historically verifiable inf
The English College of Arms repeatedly thought so. It is a matter of historical record that in the early 1800s it publicly acknowledged The Order of Saint Joachim as a genuine order of knighthood, and our Knights were legally recognized as being entitled to use the title “Sir” in England until new laws were passed suspending the general recognition of non-British knighthoods and honours early in the 1800s. The Order was also recognized by other sovereign nations, including the Holy Roman Empire, the kingdoms of Hungary, Prussia, Poland and Russia. There is one contemporary article that also suggests it received Papal recognition as a valid order of knighthood in the late 1700s. In modern times, the formal recognition of orders of knighthood is a sensitive and complex topic. Countries without a monarchy are generally adverse to the concept of titles and distinctions, and countries with a monarchy generally only recognize their own Orders, of which the king or queen is usually the head.
