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Jordan

Taking a look at the Supreme Order of the Renaissance

The Supreme Order of the Renaissance (Wisam al-Nahda) is the middle Jordanian royal order; the Order of Al-Hussein bin Ali is the highest order while the Order of the Star of Jordan and the Order of Independence are the third and fourth highest, respectively.

It was created in 1917 by the then Emir Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca as a form of commemoration for the Arab Revolt that began in 1916. It was not first handed out until the end of the conflict in 1918. Initially, it was only supposed to be distributed to those who had taken part in the Arab Revolt.

The Supreme Order of the Renaissance is divided up into six classes. These are the Special First Class Grand Cordon with Brilliants, First Class Grand Cordon, Second Class Grand Officer, Third Class Commander, Fourth Class Officer and Fifth Class Knight. Additionally, a medal is also handed out.

The original equal black, green and white version of the order, which was distributed from 1917 to 1952, had a slim red stripe down the centre of the green on the ribbon. In its current form, the colours are the same; however, the narrow red stripe is now located on the white part of the ribbon.

Various royals from across the globe have been granted the Supreme Order of the Renaissance in its different classes. Some of those who have received the order include Queen Silvia and Crown Princess Victoria of Sweden, Prince Joachim of Denmark, Professor Pieter van Vollenhoven (husband of Princess Margriet of the Netherlands and uncle to King Willem-Alexander), Queen Sonja and Crown Prince Haakon of Norway, the Duke of Kent and the Crown Prince of Bahrain.

It is now handed out by Jordan’s current monarch, His Majesty King Abdullah II.

About author

Brittani is from Tennessee, USA. She is a political scientist and historian after graduating with a degree in the topics from the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, in December 2014. She also holds a master's degree from Northeastern University. She enjoys reading and researching all things regarding the royals of the world. She's been researching, reading, and writing on royalty for over a decade. She became Europe Editor in October 2016, and then Deputy Editor in January 2019, and has been featured on several podcasts, radio shows, news broadcasts and websites including Global News Canada, ABC News Australia, WION India and BBC World News.