Royal Family Order

Royal Family Order of King/Queen (name)
Royal Family Order of King Gustaf V
Awarded by King Carl XVI Gustaf
Type	Royal Family Order
Eligibility	Female members of the Swedish Royal Family
Sovereign	King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden
Grades	Member 1st Class Member 2nd Class Member 3rd Class
Statistics
Established	1952
Ribbon of the Order

A royal family order is an order conferred by the sovereign of a royal family in a monarchy to female members of the royal family, since female members of the royal family traditionally do not wear the commemorative medals that men wear. Such an order is considered more of a personal memento than a state decoration, although it may be worn during official state occasions. The only way to know whom the order has been bestowed is to see the recipient wearing it.

The tradition is maintained notably in the royal families of United Kingdom, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, and Tonga.

The badge of a royal family order consists of a portrait of the sovereign set in diamonds, which is suspended from a ribbon. In the United Kingdom, the colour of the ribbon changes with each reign, the only kingdom that has this trait. On the back of the portrait frame is an engraving with the sovereign's monogram. A hidden pin attaches it to the wearer's clothes.

Kungens miniatyrporträtt (literally the "King's miniature portrait") is a Royal Order unofficially given to members of the Swedish Royal Family. The Royal Family Order is an order awarded by the sovereign to female members of the royal family, as female members of the family typically do not wear the commemorative medals that men do. It is similar to the Royal Family Order of other European monarchies, although the Swedish royal court refers to it as "The King's portrait".

The earliest known Swedish order is that of King Oscar II. At that time, orders did not have to be attached to the Seraphim blue ribbon that is the case today. As there are no earlier records of royal family orders in Sweden, it might be assumed that the orders were not introduced in Sweden until the reign of Oscar II. Sofia of Nassau started "Sophiahemmet", a Red Cross nurse training program. At the graduation of the nurses, she presented a miniature portrait of the king on a white ribbon with a red cross. On the back was DSF inscribed in gold enamel on blue background. In the 1900s Gustav V and his wife Victoria made a special form of the order with both of them in the portrait as a gift to their friend Countess Anna Brahe (born Anna Nordenfalk) when she visited them. Currently recipients of the order wear it as part of their formal dress, often when their male counterparts wear medals.