New Zealand royal honours system

The New Zealand Royal Honours system, a system of orders, decorations and medals, recognises achievements of, or service by, New Zealanders or others in connection with New Zealand. Until 1975 New Zealand used the British honours system. Since then the country has introduced a number of uniquely New Zealand honours, and as of 2018 only the dynastic British honours continue in active use in New Zealand, with the exception of the Order of the Companions of Honour (Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, a New Zealand soprano, was given the award in 2018).

David Ledson, former chief of the Royal New Zealand Navy, wearing the badge for the Officer rank of the New Zealand Order of Merit
Governor-General Sir Paul Reeves knights Sir Ron Brierley at an investiture ceremony at Government House, Wellington in May 1988

The Queen of New Zealand awards honours on ministerial advice. However, certain awards remain in the exclusive gift of the Queen.[1]

The Honours Unit of the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet administers the New Zealand honours system.[2]

History

Since the beginning of settlement in the mid nineteenth century, British honours were awarded in New Zealand. In 1848, Governor George Grey received the first honour granted to a New Zealand resident, becoming a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath.[1] For more than a hundred years the British honours system was used for New Zealand. In appropriate cases, this included peerages and baronetcies.

Bernard Freyberg, although not born in New Zealand and resident outside New Zealand for a considerable portion of his life, had significant connections with New Zealand, and was ennobled while serving as Governor-General of New Zealand in 1951. The current bearer of the title, Valerian Freyberg, 3rd Baron Freyberg, is based in the United Kingdom and is one of the 92 hereditary peers elected to sit in the House of Lords.

Arthur Porritt, a New Zealand-born physician, surgeon, statesman and athlete, became a baronet in 1963 and was appointed Governor-General of New Zealand in 1967 (the first person born in New Zealand to serve in this post), serving until 1972. He moved to live in England upon the expiry of his term as Governor-General, and was later ennobled in 1973. Porritt was resident in England at the time he was made a baronet and at the time he received his peerage. His son, Jonathon Porritt, is resident in England and is entitled to register his claim to his father's baronetcy (but not to his peerage, since it was a life peerage). He has so far declined to do so, however.

In 1975, after a review of the system, two uniquely New Zealand honours were integrated into it: the Queen's Service Order, and its affiliated Medal. In 1987, the Order of New Zealand was instituted as the supreme New Zealand honour.

In 1996, Robin Cooke, a New Zealand judge, was awarded a life peerage. Following his ennoblement until his retirement at the age of 75, Lord Cooke sat in the British House of Lords as a Law Lord, and ex officio also in the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, which at that time was the highest authority in the New Zealand judicial system. Lord Cooke is the only Commonwealth judge from outside Britain to have attained this distinction (Lord Atkin was born in Australia but only spent the first three years of his life there before returning permanently to England and Wales). The discontinuance of appeals to the Privy Council from New Zealand in 2003 (combined with the cessation of the judicial functions of the House of Lords since then) makes it unlikely that a similar honour will be granted in future on the strength of judicial services rendered in New Zealand.

A further review of the New Zealand Honours system in 1996 and 1997 resulted in the termination of awards of almost all British honours and the creation of a new five-level New Zealand Order of Merit to replace them.[3] In 2000, Prime Minister Helen Clark announced that no further awards of knighthoods and damehoods would be made in the New Zealand Honours system.

In March 2009, Prime Minister John Key announced the restoration of knighthoods and damehoods to the New Zealand Honours system, with past recipients of the two highest grades of the New Zealand Order of Merit to be eligible to receive titles.[4]

Orders and other honours
Complete name Ranks / Letters Ribbon Established Founder Motto Awarded to/for Associated awards Refs
The Most Noble Order of the Garter KG/LG 23 April 1348 Edward III Honi soit qui mal y pense ("shame upon him who thinks evil of it") Relating to England and Wales None [5][6]
The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle KT/LT 29 May 1687 James VII and II Nemo me impune lacessit ("No one provokes me with impunity") Relating to Scotland None [7]
The Royal Victorian Order GCVO,
KCVO/DCVO,
CVO,
LVO,
MVO		 21 April 1896 Victoria Victoria Services to the Crown The Royal Victorian Medal, The Royal Victorian Chain [8][9]
The Order of Merit OM 23 June 1902 Edward VII For merit Military, science, art, literature, culture None [10]
Order of New Zealand ONZ 6 February 1987 Elizabeth II None Outstanding service to the Crown and people of New Zealand in a civil or military capacity None [11]
New Zealand Order of Merit GNZM,
KNZM/DNZM,
CNZM,
ONZM,
MNZM		 30 May 1996 Elizabeth II None Meritorious service to the Crown and the nation or who have become distinguished by their eminence, talents, contributions, or other merits None [3]
Queen's Service Order QSO 13 March 1975 Elizabeth II For service — Mō nga mahi nui For valuable voluntary service to the community or meritorious and faithful services to the Crown or similar services within the public sector, whether in elected or appointed office Queen's Service Medal [12]
Queen's Service Medal QSM 13 March 1975 Elizabeth II For service — Mō nga mahi nui Voluntary service to the community or services to the Crown in the public sector, in elected or appointed office. New Zealand Antarctic Medal [12]
New Zealand Antarctic Medal NZAM 1 September 2006 Elizabeth II None For outstanding contribution to exploration, scientific research, conservation, environmental protection, or knowledge of the Antarctic region; or in support of New Zealand’s objectives or operations, or both, in the Antarctic region. None [13]
New Zealand Distinguished Service Decoration DSD 14 May 2007 Elizabeth II None Distinguished military service, by regular, territorial and reserve members of the New Zealand Defence Force None [14]
New Zealand Memorial Cross — 12 September 1947 George VI None Next of kin of New Zealand service personnel who, since September 1939, have been killed on active service or later die of wounds None [15]
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See also

References
  1. "Overview of The New Zealand Royal Honours System". www.dpmc.govt.nz/honours. Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  2. http://www.dpmc.govt.nz/honours
  3. "The New Zealand Order of Merit". www.dpmc.govt.nz/honours. Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  4. "Titles of Dames, Knights to be restored - Key". The New Zealand Herald. 8 March 2009.
  5. Statutes of the Order of the Garter (1814)
  6. "Order of the Garter". www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/TheMonarchyToday.aspx. The Royal Household. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  7. "Order of the Thistle". www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/TheMonarchyToday.aspx. The Royal Household. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  8. Galloway, Royal Service (1996)
  9. "Royal Victorian Order". www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/TheMonarchyToday.aspx. The Royal Household. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  10. "Order of Merit". www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/TheMonarchyToday.aspx. The Royal Household. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  11. "The Order of New Zealand". www.dpmc.govt.nz/honours. Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  12. "The Queen's Service Order". www.dpmc.govt.nz/honours. Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  13. "The New Zealand Antarctic Medal". www.dpmc.govt.nz/honours/. Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  14. "The Distinguished Service Decoration". www.dpmc.govt.nz/honours/. Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet. Retrieved 27 March 2013.
  15. "Other New Zealand Medals and Awards - New Zealand Memorial Cross". NZ Defence Force. Retrieved 24 Jan 2020.
  16. Press release of 2 May 1996 at the New Zealand Executive Government News Release Archive (govt.nz). Retrieved 28 February 2006.
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