Page:The Book of Orders of Knighthood and Decorations of Honour of All Nations.djvu/540

Rh nominally independent existence until 1831, when it shared the fate of all the other Polish Orders. The Emperor Nicholas gave it a new form, placed it in the third rank of the Russian Orders, and, having divided it into five classes, decreed the discontinuance of new distributions, thus condemning it, as it were, to a slow extinction.

The badge of the first class consists of a star (Tab. V. No. 21) worn upon the left side of the breast, and of the decoration (No. 22), appended to a ribbon thrown under the uniform across the right shoulder towards the left side. The Knights of the second class wear the same cross suspended by a ribbon round the neck, while those of the three other classes wear it at the button-hole, the only distinction consisting in the appearance of the cross, which is in the third class, of enamelled gold, in the fourth class, of gold with enamel, and in the fifth class of silver (Tab. V. No. 23.

MEDALS AND DECORATIONS OF HONOUR.

1. The Maria Medal, was founded on the 14th October, 1828, in memory of Maria Feodorowna, by her son, the Emperor Nicholas. It is a decoration reserved solely for ladies of unblemished character, for faithful service. It consists of two classes. The decoration of the first is worn on a scarf across the shoulder, and the second on the breast. The badge of the first class consists of a gold blue enamelled cross, the middle of which contains the name 'Maria' and a laurel branch with the number (in Roman cyphers) of the years of service, while that of the second class consists of a blue medal, also with the name and number on it. The ribbon is that of the Vladimir Order. The decoration is usually conferred