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Order of St Catherine

Imperial Order of Saint Catherine
Императорский Орден Святой Екатерины
Order of St Ekaterin Star.jpg
Star of the Order
Awarded by Greater coat of arms of the Russian empire.png Head of the House of Romanov
Type Dynastic Order
Royal house House of Romanov
Religious affiliation Russian Orthodox
Ribbon Red with Silver thread on either side.
Motto "For Love and Fatherland"
Status Rarely constituted
Sovereign Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia
Grand Mistress Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia
Grades Dame Grand Cordon
Dame
Statistics
Established 24 November 1714
1714 – 1918 (National Order)
1918 - Present (House Order)
Precedence
Next (higher) Imperial Order of St. Andrew
Next (lower) Imperial Order of St. Prince Alexander Nevsky
Band to Order St Ekaterin.png
The ribbon of the Order

The Order of Saint Catherine (Russian: Императорский Орден Святой Екатерины) was an award of Imperial Russia. Instituted on 24 November 1714 by Peter the Great on the occasion of his marriage to Catherine I of Russia. For the majority of the time of Imperial Russia, it was the only award for women; the Order of Saint Olga existed briefly from 1916–1917, but ceased with the fall of the Romanov dynasty.

The statutes of the Order were first published in 1713, and the order was under the patronage of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, the patron saint of the Empress. On 24 November 1714, on the Empress' name day, Peter the Great personally bestowed the insignia of the Order upon the Empress Catherine, creating her Grand Mistress of the Order. However, no further members were inducted until 1726. Dowager Empress Maria Fyodorovna, who died in 1928, was the last pre-Revolutionary Grand Mistress of the Order of Saint Catherine. Today, claimant to the Headship of the Imperial House Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna claims the right to award the Order.

The award was bestowed in two classes:

Every Russian Grand Duchess was conferred the Grand Cross of the Order at her christening (or marriage into the Romanov family), and Princesses of the Imperial Blood were invested upon attaining their majority at 18.

In addition to the royal members, a fixed number (106) of other members were permitted by the statutes:

The 12 Dames Grand Cross were typically female members of foreign ruling houses. Queen Alexandra of Great Britain was made a Dame Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Catherine by Alexander II, and Princess Alice of Greece was also a member of the Order.


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