The Royal Victorian Chain is an award, instituted in 1902 by King Edward VII as a personal award of the Monarch (i.e. not an award by the British or any other Commonwealth Realm Government). Although it is similar in appearance to the Royal Victorian Order, this highly coveted award does not constitute part of that Order of Knighthood.
The Royal Victorian Chain does not confer upon its recipients any style or title - in fact, the Chain is not even given a precedence within any Commonwealth honours system - but it represents a personal token of high distinction and esteem from the Monarch.
The Chain can be conferred upon men and women, both of the Realms and foreign. There are at least 13 recipients living, of whom only three were not Heads of State at creation: the Earl of Airlie, former Lord Chamberlain of the Queen's Household; former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey, who advised The Queen during her "Annus Horribilis"; and HM's husband, the Duke of Edinburgh. Heads of State who are recipients of the Chain include King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden, Sultan Qaboos bin Said Al Said of Oman, King Bhumibol Adulyadej of Thailand, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands, King Harald V of Norway, Portuguese former President António Ramalho Eanes, German former President Dr. Richard von Weizsäcker and King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.
It has normally served as the senior award for Canadians, who are generally ineligible to receive knighthoods under Prime Ministerial policy (see the defunct Nickle Resolution). Only two Canadians have thus far received the Chain: Vincent Massey and Roland Michener – both former Governors General.
The Chain is in gold, decorated with motifs of Tudor rose, Thistle, Shamrock and Lotus Flower (symbolizing England, Scotland, Ireland and India respectively), and a crowned, red enamelled cypher of King Edward VII "ERI" (Edwardus Rex Imperator), surrounded by a gold wreath for men, upon which the badge is suspended. The Chain is worn around the collar by men, or with the four motifs and some chain links fixed to a riband in the form of bow (blue with red-white-red edges) on the left shoulder by women. However The Queen's sister the late Princess Margaret in later life chose to wear her Chain around the collar, as male recipients do.
The badge is a gold, white enamelled Maltese Cross; the oval-shaped central medallion depicts Victoria's Royal and Imperial Cypher, "VRI" (Victoria Regina Imperatrix) on a red background, surrounded by a crown-surmounted blue ring bearing the word "Victoria". Both the crown and Queen Victoria's cypher are studded with diamonds.
The Royal Victorian Chain must be returned to the Monarch upon the death of the recipient.
Famous quotes containing the words royal, victorian and/or chain:
“An Englishman, methinks,—not to speak of other European nations,—habitually regards himself merely as a constituent part of the English nation; he is a member of the royal regiment of Englishmen, and is proud of his company, as he has reason to be proud of it. But an American—one who has made tolerable use of his opportunities—cares, comparatively, little about such things, and is advantageously nearer to the primitive and the ultimate condition of man in these respects.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“Apart from letters, it is the vulgar custom of the moment to deride the thinkers of the Victorian and Edwardian eras; yet there has not been, in all history, another age ... when so much sheer mental energy was directed toward creating a fairer social order.”
—Ellen Glasgow (1873–1945)
“Oft, in the stilly night, Ere Slumber’s chain has bound me, Fond Memory brings the light Of other days around me.”
—Thomas Moore (1779–1852)