The Order of New Zealand is the highest honour in the New Zealand royal honours system, created "to recognise outstanding service to the Crown and people of New Zealand in a civil or military capacity". It was instituted by royal warrant on 6 February 1987. The order is modelled on the Order of Merit and the Order of the Companions of Honour.[1]

Order of New Zealand
Badge of a Member of the Order of New Zealand (neck ribbon and bow)
Awarded by the Monarch of New Zealand
TypeOrder
EligibilitySubjects of the Crown
Awarded forOutstanding service to the Crown and people of New Zealand in a civil or military capacity
StatusCurrently constituted
FounderElizabeth II
SovereignCharles III
GradesMember (ONZ)
Statistics
First induction6 February 1987
Last induction5 June 2023
Total inductees46 ordinary members
21 additional members
2 honorary members
Precedence
Next (higher)Order of Merit
Next (lower)New Zealand Order of Merit

Ribbon of the Order of New Zealand

Composition

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The order comprises the Sovereign and ordinary, additional and honorary members. The ordinary membership is limited to 20 living members, and at any time there may be fewer than 20. Additional members may be appointed to commemorate important royal, state or national occasions, and such appointments were made in 1990 for the 150th anniversary of the Treaty of Waitangi, in 2002 for the Queen's Golden Jubilee, in 2007 for the 20th anniversary of the institution of the Order, in 2012 for the Queen's Diamond Jubilee, in 2022 for the Queen's Platinum Jubilee, and in 2023 to mark the coronation of King Charles III. Additional members have the same status as ordinary members. Honorary membership is for citizens of nations of which the Sovereign is not head of state.[1] Members are entitled to the post-nominal letters "ONZ".

Appointments to the order are made by royal warrant under the monarch's sign manual on the prime minister's advice. The order is administered by a Secretary and Registrar (the Clerk of the Executive Council).

Richie McCaw represented the Order at the coronation of Charles III and Camilla in 2023, and took part in the procession of the King and Queen at the beginning of the ceremony.[2]

Insignia

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Elizabeth II wearing the insignia of the Sovereign of the Order of New Zealand (the bow on her shoulder)

The insignia is made up of an oval medallion of the coat of arms of New Zealand in gold and coloured enamel, worn on a white and ochre ribbon around the neck for men or a bow for women on their left shoulder.

Current members

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Name Portrait Date of appointment Age Known for
Ordinary members
1 Dame Kiri Te Kanawa
ONZ CH DBE AC
  17 June 1995 80 Opera singer
2 Jim Bolger
ONZ PC
  31 December 1997 89 Former Prime Minister of New Zealand
3 Sir Lloyd Geering
ONZ GNZM CBE
  30 December 2006 106 Theologian
4 Sir Kenneth Keith
ONZ KBE KC PC
  4 June 2007 87 Judge of International Court of Justice
5 Sir Don McKinnon
ONZ GCVO PC
  31 December 2007 85 Former Commonwealth Secretary-General
6 Helen Clark
ONZ SSI PC
  31 December 2009 74 Former Prime Minister of New Zealand
7 Sir Bob Charles
ONZ KNZM CBE
  31 December 2010 88 Golfer
8 Albert Wendt
ONZ CNZM
  3 June 2013 85 Writer
9 Sir Ron Carter
ONZ KNZM
  2 June 2014 89 Businessman
10 Sir Peter Gluckman
ONZ KNZM
  1 June 2015 75 Scientist
11 Richie McCaw
ONZ
  31 December 2015 43 Rugby union player
12 Joy Cowley
ONZ DCNZM OBE
  30 December 2017 88 Writer
13 Sir Mason Durie
ONZ KNZM
  31 December 2020 85 Psychiatrist
14 Dame Anne Salmond
ONZ DBE
  31 December 2020 79 Historian
15 Vacant
16 Vacant
17 Vacant
18 Vacant
19 Vacant
20 Vacant
Additional members
1 Michael Duffy
ONZ
  6 February 1990 86 Former Attorney-General of Australia
2 C. K. Stead
ONZ CBE
  6 February 2007 92 Writer
3 Dame Margaret Bazley
ONZ DNZM
  4 June 2012 86 Public servant
4 Sir Peter Jackson
ONZ KNZM
  4 June 2012 63 Film director
5 Dame Malvina Major
ONZ GNZM DBE
  4 June 2012 81 Opera singer
6 Dame Silvia Cartwright
ONZ PCNZM DBE QSO DStJ
  6 June 2022 81 Jurist and former governor-general
7 Sir Tipene O'Regan
ONZ
  6 June 2022 85 Māori leader
8 Queen Camilla
LG LT ONZ GCVO GBE CD PC
  5 June 2023 77 Queen of New Zealand

Deceased members

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Name Portrait Date of appointment Date of death Known for
Ordinary members
1[n 1] Sir Arnold Nordmeyer
ONZ KCMG
  6 February 1987 2 February 1989 Minister of Finance
2 C. E. Beeby
ONZ CMG
  6 February 1987 10 March 1998 Educationalist
3 Dame Te Atairangikaahu
ONZ DBE OStJ
  6 February 1987 15 August 2006 Māori Queen (Kīngitanga)
4 Sir Edmund Hillary
KG ONZ KBE
  6 February 1987 11 January 2008 First official ascent of Mount Everest
5 Sonja Davies
ONZ JP
6 February 1987 12 June 2005 Trade union leader and politician
6 Jim Knox
ONZ JP
  6 February 1988 1 December 1991 Trade union leader
7 Frederick Turnovsky
ONZ OBE
  6 February 1988 12 December 1994 Manufacturer and arts leader
8 Richard Matthews[5]
ONZ
6 February 1988 19 February 1995 Microbiologist
9 Douglas Lilburn
ONZ
6 February 1988 6 June 2001 Composer
10 June, Lady Blundell
ONZ QSO GCStJ
  6 February 1988[6] 31 October 2012 Viceregal consort
11 Manuhuia Bennett
ONZ CMG
6 February 1989 20 December 2001 Anglican bishop
12 Henry Lang
ONZ CB
6 February 1989 17 April 1997 Economist
13 Dame Whina Cooper
ONZ DBE
  15 June 1991 26 March 1994 Māori leader
14 Jack Somerville
ONZ CMG MC ChStJ
  15 June 1991 5 October 1999 Presbyterian leader
15 Whetu Tirikatene-Sullivan
ONZ
  6 February 1993 20 July 2011 Politician
16 Margaret Mahy
ONZ
  6 February 1993 23 July 2012 Children's author
17 Dame Miriam Dell
ONZ DBE JP
  6 February 1993 22 March 2022 Women's welfare
18 Sir Thaddeus McCarthy
ONZ KBE
6 February 1994 11 April 2001 President of the Court of Appeal
19 Sir Roy McKenzie
ONZ KBE
  17 June 1995 1 September 2007 Philanthropist
20 Sir Miles Warren
ONZ KBE
  17 June 1995 9 August 2022 Architect
21 Sir James Fletcher
ONZ
2 June 1997 29 August 2007 Industrialist
22 Ivan Lichter
ONZ
2 June 1997 15 June 2009 Surgeon
23 Cliff Whiting
ONZ
  31 December 1998 16 July 2017 Artist
24 Ken Douglas
ONZ
  31 December 1998 14 September 2022 Trade union leader
25 Mike Moore
ONZ AO PC
  31 December 1999 2 February 2020 Prime Minister
26 Tom Williams
ONZ ChStJ
  5 June 2000 22 December 2023 Emeritus Catholic Archbishop of Wellington
27 Alan MacDiarmid
ONZ
  31 December 2001 7 February 2007 Chemist, Nobel laureate
28 David Lange
ONZ CH PC
  2 June 2003 13 August 2005 Prime Minister
29 Jonathan Hunt
ONZ PC
  31 December 2004 8 March 2024 Speaker of the House of Representatives
30 Dame Doreen Blumhardt
ONZ DNZM CBE
  30 December 2006 17 October 2009 Ceramicist
31 Sir Murray Halberg
ONZ MBE
  2 June 2008 30 November 2022 Olympic runner
32 Ralph Hotere
ONZ
  31 December 2011 24 February 2013 Artist
Additional members
1 Sir Guy Powles
ONZ KBE CMG ED
6 February 1990 24 October 1994 Public servant and diplomat
2 Allen Curnow
ONZ CBE
6 February 1990 23 September 2001 Poet
3 Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother
LG LT ONZ GCVO GBE CI CC RRC CD
  6 February 1990 30 March 2002 Mother of Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand
4 Janet Frame
ONZ CBE
  6 February 1990 29 January 2004 Author
5 Arthur Lydiard
ONZ OBE
  6 February 1990 11 December 2004 Athletics coach
6 Dame Ann Ballin
ONZ DBE
3 June 2002 2 September 2003 Psychologist
7 The Lord Cooke of Thorndon
ONZ KBE PC QC
3 June 2002 30 August 2006 Jurist
8 Sir Hugh Kāwharu
ONZ
  3 June 2002 19 September 2006 Māori leader
9 Dame Catherine Tizard
ONZ GCMG GCVO DBE QSO DStJ
  3 June 2002 31 October 2021 Governor-General of New Zealand
10 Sir Paul Reeves
ONZ GCMG GCVO QSO KStJ
  6 February 2007 14 August 2011 Anglican bishop and governor-general
11 Sir Owen Woodhouse
ONZ KBE DSC PC
  6 February 2007 15 April 2014 Jurist
12 Sir Brian Lochore
ONZ KNZM OBE
  6 February 2007 3 August 2019 Rugby union player and coach
13 The Duke of Edinburgh
KG KT OM ONZ GCVO GBE AK QSO PC
  4 June 2012 9 April 2021 Consort of Elizabeth II, Queen of New Zealand
Honorary members
1 Sir Shridath Ramphal
ONZ OE GCMG OCC AC KC
  6 February 1990 30 August 2024 Commonwealth Secretary-General
2 Bill Pickering
ONZ KBE
  2 June 2003 15 March 2004 Rocket scientist

Notes

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  1. ^ The number shown is the individual's place in the wider order of appointment since the Order of New Zealand's inception.

References

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  1. ^ a b "The Order of New Zealand". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 5 June 2023.
  2. ^ "Coronation order of service in full". BBC News. 5 May 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
  3. ^ "Appointment of new Secretary of the Cabinet and Clerk of the Executive Council". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. 4 November 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
  4. ^ "Rachel Hayward". Government House. 3 December 2022. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
  5. ^ "Richard Matthews". New Zealand Microbiological Society. Archived from the original on 7 February 2013. Retrieved 4 September 2012.
  6. ^ "ONZ Biographical Notes". Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 1 November 2012.
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