The state order was awarded to nationals and foreigners for meritorious achievements in the field of religion, education, science and the arts as well as for social and relief work. It was abolished in 1945 with the proclamation of the People’s Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the end of the monarchy, while continuing as a dynastic order, with appointments currently made by Alexander, Crown Prince of Yugoslavia.
The ecclesiastic order is awarded to ecclesiastic and secular persons with special merits.
History
The Order of Saint Sava was established by Milan I of Serbia, four years after the country gained independence and its transformation from a principality into a kingdom in March 1882. It was first awarded in January 1883 to recognised civilians for meritorious achievements benefitting the Church, the arts and sciences, the royal house, and the state. In 1914, a change to the Order was made to allow soldiers of the Serbian Army who served with distinction to receive the honour, as well as to women for war merit and humanity[1] The Order of St. Sava was thereafter awarded by the kings of Serbia and its successor Yugoslavia until the abolition of the monarchy in 1945.[2]
Five grades were awarded: Knight Grand Cross, Knight, Grand Officer, Commander and Officer.
The first grade was a jewel, worn with a sash over the shoulder and also with a breast star. The second and third-grade laureates wore the Order on a neckband. The fourth grade was a medal with a triangular suspension, a rosette attached to the ribbon above the medal. The fifth grade had a triangular suspension without a rosette. The medals of the fourth and fifth grades were worn on the breast. All white ribbons had two light blue stripes.[3][4]
Several Order of St. Sava were bestowed to members of the British medical team during the First World War for "humanity and gallantry performed under fire", after their volunteer medical units followed the Serbian army during the Great Retreat through the mountains of Albania.[1]
Since 1985, the Order has been awarded on the occasion of the 800th anniversary of St. Sava. This order is dedicated to ecclesiastic and secular persons, who have special merits for the Serbian Orthodox Church. According to the ordinance of the church, each person who received a medal of third grade may receive the medal of the higher grade as well as the first grade for future merits, provided that three years have passed at least since the previous award. The order is determined in three grades: the first one is white, the second red and the third blue coloured.[5]
^ a b c d e ffor SRBIN info, Milica (2019-10-08). "Tesla, Palma, Djokovic, Kusturica, Karić: All Decorated With The Order Of Sv. Sava". СРБИН.ИНФО (in Serbian). Retrieved 2020-01-06.
^"Alois Jirásek". www.payne.cz (in Czech). Retrieved 18 December 2023.
^Mandić, Hrvoje (2020). Hercegovačka franjevačka provincija u Drugom svjetskom ratu i poraću [Franciscan Province of Herzegovina in the Second World War and the Postwar period] (in Croatian). Zagreb: Sveučilište u Zagrebu. p. 27.
^Acović 2013, p. 344
^Barun, Anđelko (13 June 2018). "Franjevci biskupi iz BiH – poslije uspostave redovite crkvene hijerarhije" [Franciscan bishops from BiH - after the establishment of the regular church hierarchy]. Svjetlo riječi (in Croatian). Sarajevo. Archived from the original on 4 October 2022. Retrieved 22 January 2021.
^London Gazette
^Radulovic, Nemanja. "Rerihov pokret u Kraljevini Jugoslaviji". Godišnjak Katedre za srpsku književnost sa južnoslovenskim književnostima, XI, 2016.
^"Vreme - Kultura i politika: Selidba trajne pozajmice". www.vreme.com.
^Tesla Society Switzerland, Man Who Illuminated The Planet, p. 7
^Katherine Storr (2009). Excluded from the Record: Women, Refugees, and Relief, 1914-1929. Peter Lang. pp. 215–. ISBN 978-3-03911-855-7.
^Association of Serbian Banks, Knight of Serbia, Georg I. Weifert p. 181
^"Serbs Recognize Work of Late Miss Tileston". The Boston Globe. 20 February 1921. p. 7. Retrieved 30 August 2024 – via Newspapers.com. This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
^Gale, Cengage Learning (2016). A Study Guide for Rebecca West's "Black Lamb and Grey Falcon: A Journey through Yugoslavia". Gale, Cengage Learning. p. 7. ISBN 9781410341457.
^"Aleksandr Karelin, Order of St Sava: Neka Bog čuva Srbiju i Rusiju..." www.novosti.rs (in Serbian (Latin script)).
^Acović 2013, p. 601
^"Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin awarded the Serbian Orthodox Church's highest distinction | Serbian Orthodox Church [Official website]". Archived from the original on 2019-11-16. Retrieved 2019-11-16.
References
Dragomir M. Acović (2013). Glory and Honour: Decorations among Serbs (Slava i čast: odlikovanja među Srbima) (in Serbian). Službeni Glasnik. ISBN 978-86-519-1750-2.[better source needed]
John Clarke (12 September 2000). Gallantry Medals & Decorations of the World. Pen and Sword. ISBN 978-1-4738-1451-6.
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