The French government gives out the Legion of Honour awards, to both French[1] and foreign[2] nationals, based on a recipient's exemplary services rendered to France, or to the causes supported by France. This award is divided into five distinct categories (in ascending order[3]), i.e. three ranks: Knight, Officer, Commander, and two titles: Grand Officer and Grand Cross. Knight is the most common and is awarded for either at least 20 years of public service or acts of military or civil bravery.[3] The rest of the categories have a quota for the number of years of service in the category below before they can be awarded. The Officer rank requires a minimum of eight years as a Knight, and the Commander, the highest civilian category for a non-French citizen, requires a minimum of five years as an Officer. The Grand Officer and the Grand Cross are awarded only to French citizens, and each requires three years' service in their respective immediately lower rank.[4] The awards are traditionally published and promoted on 14 July.[5]
The following is a non-exhaustive list of recipients of the Legion of Honour awards, since the first ceremony in May 1803.[3] 2,550 individuals can be awarded the insignia every year.[5] The total number of awards was close to 1 million[6] (estimated at 900,000 in 2021,[5] including over 3,000 Grand Cross recipients[7]), with some 92,000 recipients alive today.[8] Only until 2008 was gender parity achieved amongst the yearly list of recipients, with the total number of women recipients since the award's establishment being only 59 at the end of the second French empire and only 26,000 in 2021.[5]
| Recipient | Dates (birth – death) |
General work & reason for the recognition | Award category (date) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Michelle Yeoh | 1962 – Present | Malaysia actress | Knight (Awarded: 23 April 2007; Present: 03 October 2007)[9][10] Officer (14 March 2012),[11] Commander (28 March 2017).[12][13] |
| Steven C. Yevich | TBA[citation needed] | ||
| Alvin York | 1887 – 1964[14] | TBA[15] | |
| Andrew Young | 1982 – 1990 | United States Ambassador to the United Nations | TBA[citation needed] |
| Mark Young | United Kingdom revolutionary | TBA[citation needed] | |
| William Young | 1900 – 2007 | World War I Veteran. Recognised for his service in France in 1918. | TBA (1998)[16] |
See also
edit
- Legion of Honour
- List of Legion of Honour recipients by name
- List of foreign recipients of Legion of Honour by name
- List of foreign recipients of the Legion of Honour by country
- List of British recipients of the Legion of Honour for the Crimean War
- Legion of Honour Museum
- Ribbons of the French military and civil awards
- War Cross (France)
References
edit- ^ Légion Code, article 16.
- ^ Les étrangers qui se seront signalés par les services qu’ils ont rendus à la France ou aux causes qu’elle soutient, Légion Code, art. 128.
- ^ a b c "France train attack: Chris Norman awarded Legion d'honneur". BBC News. 24 August 2015. Archived from the original on 27 July 2021. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
- ^ DM, Florey (29 March 2017). "Michelle Yeoh receives France's highest civilian honour". Cinema Online. Archived from the original on 19 July 2021. Retrieved 20 July 2021. Alt URL
- ^ a b c d "The Grand Chancellery is co-producing a film on women and the Legion of Honor". The Grand Chancellery of the Legion of Honour. Archived from the original on 24 July 2021. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
- ^ "Legion of Honour". Australian Government – Department of Veteran's Affairs. 31 January 2021. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
- ^ Wattel, Michel; Wattel, Béatrice (2009). "Les Grand Croix de la Légion d'honneur. De 1805 à nos jours, titulaires français et étrangers". Archives & Culture.
- ^ Benoist, Chloé (18 December 2020). "Explained: Sisi, Macron and the dubious history of France's Legion of Honour". Middle East Eye. Archived from the original on 26 July 2021. Retrieved 27 July 2021.
- ^ "Actress Michelle Yeoh gets top French award". Reuters. 3 October 2007. Archived from the original on 19 July 2021. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
- ^ "Yeoh receives France's top honour". BBC News. 4 October 2007. Archived from the original on 19 July 2021. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
- ^ "Michelle Yeoh receives Legion of Honour from France". Bernama via mysinchew.com. 16 March 2012. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
- ^ DM, Florey (29 March 2017). "Michelle Yeoh receives France's highest civilian honour". Cinema Online. Archived from the original on 19 July 2021. Retrieved 20 July 2021. Alt URL
- ^ "Michelle Yeoh now a Commander of the Legion of Honour". The Star. 28 March 2017. Archived from the original on 19 July 2021. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
- ^ Owens, Ron (2004). Medal of Honor: Historical Facts & Figures. Turner Publishing Company. ISBN 9781563119958. Archived from the original on 14 October 2019. Retrieved 14 October 2019.
Exclusive of the five Marines who earned double awards of the Medal, Lt. Samuel Parker was the most highly decorated soldier of WWI.
- ^ "Sergeant York, War Hero, Dies". The New York Times. 3 September 1964. p. 1 and 26. Archived from the original on 18 July 2021. Retrieved 20 September 2010.
- ^ "Great War veteran dies aged 107". The Daily Telegraph. 26 July 2007. Archived from the original on 1 February 2008. Retrieved 5 September 2018.