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Pour le Mérite
Pour le Mérite

The Pour le Mérite, known informally during World War I as the Blue Max (German: Blauer Max), was the Kingdom of Prussia's highest military order until the end of World War I. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. The Kingdom of Prussia (Königreich Preußen was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918 and from 1871 was the leading state of the German Empire, comprising An Order is a Decoration, awarded by a government a dynastic house, or a religious body to an individual usually for distinguished service to a nation or to humanity World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All

The award was a blue-enameled Maltese Cross with eagles between the arms based on the symbol of th Johanniter Order, the Prussian royal cypher, and the French legend Pour le Mérite ("for Merit") arranged on the arms of the cross. The Maltese cross or Amalfi cross is identified as the symbol of an order of Christian warriors known as the Knights Hospitaller or Knights of Malta Eagles are large birds of prey which are members of the Bird order Falconiformes and family Accipitridae, and belong to several genera The Order of St John in Germany is known as "der Johanniterorden", and officially known as the Brandenburg Bailiwick of the Knights' Order of the Hospital A Royal Cypher, or Royal and Imperial Cypher is the sovereign 's Monogram or the initials of their name and title usually surmounted by a crown French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people

A civil version of the order, for accomplishments in the arts and sciences, still exists in the Federal Republic of Germany. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe.

Contents

Military order

The Pour le Mérite was first founded in 1740 by King Frederick II of Prussia, named in French, the language of the Prussian royal court at the time. Year 1740 ( MDCCXL) was a Leap year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap Frederick II (Friedrich II January 24 1712 August 17 1786) was a King of Prussia (1740&ndash1786 from the Until 1810, the Order was both a civilian and military honor. Year 1810 ( MDCCCX) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year In January of that year, King Frederick William III decreed that the award could be presented only to serving military personnel. Early life The son of King Frederick William II of Prussia, Frederick William was born in Potsdam and became Crown Prince in 1786 when his father ascended The Pour le Merite is correctly called an Order, to which one is awarded membership, and should not be referred to as a "Medal".

In March 1813, Frederick William III added an additional distinction, a spray of gilt oak leaves attached above the cross. Award of the oak leaves originally indicated extraordinary achievement in battle, and was usually reserved for high-ranking officers. The original regulations called for the capture or successful defense of a fortification, or victory in a battle. By World War I, the oak leaves often indicated a second or higher award of the Pour le Mérite, though in most cases the recipients were still high-ranking officers (usually distinguished field commanders fitting the criteria above; the few lower ranking recipients of the oak leaves were mainly general staff officers responsible for planning a victorious battle or campaign). World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All In early 1918, it was proposed to award the oak leaves to Germany's top flying ace, Manfred von Richthofen, but he was deemed ineligible under a strict reading of the regulations. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout Instead, Prussia awarded von Richthofen a slightly less prestigious honor, the Order of the Red Eagle, 3rd Class with Crown and Swords. The Order of the Red Eagle (Roter-Adler-Orden was an order of chivalry of the Kingdom of Prussia. This was still a high honor, as the 3rd Class was normally awarded to colonels and lieutenant colonels, and von Richthofen's award was one of only two of the 3rd Class with Crown and Swords during World War I.

In 1866, a special military Grand Cross class of the award was established. Year 1866 ( MDCCCLXVI) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common This grade of the award was given to those who, through their actions, caused the retreat or destruction of an army. There were only five awards of the Grand Cross: to King William I in 1866, to Crown Prince Frederick William of Prussia (later Emperor Frederick III) and Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia in 1873, to Tsar Alexander II of Russia in 1878, and to Helmuth Graf von Moltke in 1879. Frederick III (German Friedrich Wilhelm Nikolaus Karl, English Frederick William Nicholas Charles; October 18 1831 – June 15 1888 (German Friedrich Alexander (Aleksandr II Nikolaevich (Александр II Николаевич ( Moscow, 29 April 1818 – 13 March 1881 in St Helmuth Karl Bernhard Graf After the Franco-Prussian War Moltke superintended the preparation of its history which was published between 1874 and 1881 by the great general staff

Flying ace Manfred von Richthofen, the "Red Baron", wearing his Pour le Mérite
Flying ace Manfred von Richthofen, the "Red Baron", wearing his Pour le Mérite

The Pour le Mérite gained international fame during World War I. WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft. Please see WikipediaWikiProject Aircraft/page content for recommended layout World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Although it could be awarded to any military officer, its most famous recipients were the pilots of the German Army Air Service (Luftstreitkräfte), whose exploits were celebrated in wartime propaganda. The Deutsche Luftstreitkräfte or Imperial German Army Air Service ( Die Fliegertruppen des deutschen Kaiserreiches) was the over-land air arm of the German Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behaviors of large numbers of people In aerial warfare, a fighter pilot was initially entitled to the award upon downing eight enemy aircraft. A fighter aircraft is a Military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other Aircraft, as opposed to a Bomber, which is designed Aces Max Immelmann and Oswald Boelcke were the first airmen to receive the award, on January 12, 1916. A flying ace or fighter ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down several enemy Aircraft during aerial combat } Max Immelmann ( September 21, 1890 – June 18, 1916) was a German World War I Flying ace. Oswald Boelcke (ˈbœlkə 19 May, 1891 &ndash 28 October, 1916) was a German Flying ace of the First World Events 475 - Basiliscus becomes Byzantine Emperor, with a coronation ceremony in the Hebdomon palace in Constantinople Year 1916 ( MCMXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year Because of Immelmann's renown among his fellow pilots and the nation at large, the Pour le Mérite became known, due to its color and this early famous recipient, as the Blue Max.

The number of aerial victories necessary to receive the award continued to increase during the war; by early 1917, it generally required destroying 16 enemy airplanes, and by war's end the approximate figure was 30. However, other aviation recipients included Zeppelin commanders, bomber and observation aircrews, and at least one balloon observer. A Zeppelin is a type of Rigid airship pioneered by the German Count Ferdinand von Zeppelin in the early 20th century based on designs he had outlined World War I Observation Balloon HD-SN-99-02269JPEG|200px|thumb|right|Close-up view of an American major in the basket of an observation balloon flying over territory near front lines during World

Although many of its famous recipients were junior officers, especially pilots, more than a third of all awards in World War I went to generals and admirals. Junior officers (army captains and lieutenants and their navy equivalents) accounted for only about 25% of all awards. Senior officer awards tended to be more for outstanding leadership in combat than for individual acts of bravery.

Recipients of the Blue Max were required to wear the award whenever in uniform.

The Order became extinct with Kaiser William II's abdication as King of Prussia on 9 November 1918, and was never awarded again to a new member. Kaiser is the German title meaning " Emperor " with Kaiserin being the female equivalent " Empress " Events 694 - Egica, a king of the Visigoths of Hispania, accuses Jews of aiding Muslims sentencing all Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common

The last (un-official) issued Pour le Merite was made by Rothe of Vienna in 1964 for Theo Osterkamp in recognition for being named Chancellor of the Order. Theodor "Theo" Osterkamp ( 15 April 1892 - 2 January 1975) was a World War I and World War II Luftwaffe The medal had the 50 year crown attached to the ribbon above the Order.

Notable recipients

Civil Class

In 1842, King Frederick William IV of Prussia founded a civil class of the order, the Order Pour le Mérite for Sciences and Arts (Orden Pour le Mérite für Wissenschaften und Künste), with the three sections: humanities, natural science, and fine arts. Life Frederick William was educated by private tutors many of whom were experienced civil servants such as Friedrich Ancillon. The humanities are academic disciplines which study the Human condition, using methods that are primarily Analytic, Critical, or Speculative In Science, the term natural science refers to a naturalistic approach to the study of the Universe, which is understood as obeying rules or law of Fine art is any Art form developed primarily for Aesthetics rather than Utility. Among famous recipients of the civil class of the Pour le Mérite in the first group of awards in 1842 were Alexander von Humboldt, Carl Friedrich Gauss, Jakob Grimm, Felix Mendelssohn, Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling and August Wilhelm Schlegel. (September 14 1769 &ndash May 6 1859 was a German naturalist and explorer, and the younger brother of the Prussian minister philosopher and linguist Johann Carl Friedrich Gauss (ˈɡaʊs, Gauß Carolus Fridericus Gauss ( 30 April 1777 – 23 February 1855) was a German Jacob Ludwig Carl Grimm ( Hanau, January 4, 1785 &ndash September 20, 1863 in Berlin) German Philologist Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, born and generally known as Felix Mendelssohn (February 3 1809 &ndash November 4 1847 was a German Composer Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling ( January 27, 1775 – August 20, 1854) later von Schelling, was a German Philosopher August Wilhelm (later von) Schlegel ( September 8, 1767 &ndash May 12, 1845) was a German Poet, Foreign recipients in the "class of 1842" included François-René de Chateaubriand, Louis Daguerre, Michael Faraday, Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres, and Franz Liszt. Michael Faraday, FRS ( September 22 1791 – August 25 1867) was an English When a vacancy occurred the Academy of Arts and Sciences nominated three candidates, one of whom the king appointed. Later recipients included Thomas Babington Macaulay (1853), John C. Frémont (1860), Theodor Mommsen (1868), Charles Darwin (1868), Thomas Carlyle (1874) (who never accepted any other honor), Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1875), Lord William Thomson Kelvin (1884), Heinrich von Treitschke (1887), Johannes Brahms (1887), Giuseppe Verdi (1887), Camille Saint-Saëns (1901), John Singer Sargent (1908), Ferdinand von Zeppelin (1910), Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1911), Sir William Ramsay (1911), Max Planck (1915), Albert Einstein (1923), Gerhart Hauptmann (1923), Richard Strauss (1924), Wilhelm Furtwängler (1929), Käthe Kollwitz (1929), and Ernst Barlach (1933). John Charles Frémont ( January 21, 1813 July 13, 1890) was an American military officer, explorer, the Christian Matthias Theodor Mommsen ( 30 November 1817 &ndash 1 November 1903) was a German classical scholar, Charles Robert Darwin (February 12 1809 &ndash April 19 1882 was an English naturalist, who realised and demonstrated that all Species of life Thomas Carlyle (4 December 1795 – 5 February 1881 was a Scottish essayist satirist and historian whose work was highly influential during the Victorian era. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (February 27 1807 &ndash March 24 1882 was an American educator and Poet whose works include " Paul Revere's Ride " William Thomson 1st Baron Kelvin (or Lord Kelvin) OM, GCVO, PC, PRS, FRSE, (26 June 1824 &ndash 17 December 1907 thumb Heinrich Gotthard von Treitschke ( September 15, 1834 &ndash April 28, 1896) was a nationalist German Johannes Brahms ( pronounced ˈbʁaːms (May 7 1833 &ndash April 3 1897 was a German Composer Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (/ʃaʁl kamij sɛ̃sɑ̃s/ (9 October 1835 &ndash 16 December 1921 was a French Composer, Organist, conductor, and John Singer Sargent (January 12 1856 &ndash April 14 1925 was the most successful portrait painter of his era During his career he created roughly 900 oil paintings and more than Ferdinand Adolf August Heinrich Graf von Zeppelin mostly called Count Zeppelin) ( July 8, 1838 – March 8, 1917) was a Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (27 March 1845 &ndash 10 February 1923 was a German physicist, who on 8 November 1895 produced and detected Electromagnetic Sir William Ramsay (2 October 1852 &ndash 23 July 1916 was a Scottish chemist who discovered the Noble gases and received the Nobel Prize in Albert Einstein ( German: ˈalbɐt ˈaɪ̯nʃtaɪ̯n; English: ˈælbɝt ˈaɪnstaɪn (14 March 1879 – 18 April 1955 was a German -born theoretical Gerhart Hauptmann ( November 15, 1862 — June 6, 1946) was a German Dramatist who received the Nobel Prize in Literature Richard Georg Strauss (11 June 1864 &ndash 8 September 1949 was a German Composer of the late Romantic era and early modern era particularly noted WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Wilhelm Furtwängler (January 25 1886 &ndash November 30 1954 was a Käthe Schmidt Kollwitz ( July 8, 1867 – April 22, 1945) was a German painter, Printmaker, and Sculptor Ernst Barlach ( January 2, 1870 &ndash October 24, 1938) was a German expressionist sculptor, printmaker As a Jew, Einstein was forced to give up his award by the Nazi government in 1933, and a number of others, such as Kollwitz and Barlach, also were deprived of the award by the Nazi regime. Nazism, which was a short name for National Socialism (Nationalsozialismus refers primarily to the Ideology and practices of the National Socialist German

In 1952, the President of West Germany, Theodor Heuss, revived the civil order as an autonomous organization under the protection of the German President (although it is not a state order like the Bundesverdienstkreuz). West Germany ( Inf German: Westdeutschland or West-Deutschland) was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany ( Theodor Heuss ( 31 January 1884 &ndash 12 December 1963) was a German politician Bundesverdienstkreuz (Federal Cross of Merit officially Verdienstorden der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany is the only This revived civil order is awarded for achievements in the arts and sciences. Active membership is limited to thirty German citizens, ten each in the fields of humanities, natural science, and medicine and the arts. Honorary membership can be conferred on foreigners, again to the limit of thirty. When a vacancy occurs the membership selects a new member. [1] Among those inducted in 1952 were Otto Hahn, Paul Hindemith and Emil Nolde. Otto Hahn (8 March 1879 &ndash 28 July 1968 was a German Chemist who received the 1944 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for discovering Nuclear fission Paul Hindemith (16 November 1895 &ndash 28 December 1963 was a German Composer, Violist, violinist teacher music theorist and conductor. Emil Nolde (7 August 1867 – 13 April 1956 was a German painter and Printmaker. Later recipients include Arthur Compton (1954), Hermann Hesse (1954), Albert Schweitzer (1954), Thomas Mann (1955), Oskar Kokoschka (1955), Carl Orff (1956), Erwin Schrödinger (1956), Thornton Wilder (1956), Karl Schmidt-Rottluff (1956), Werner Heisenberg (1957), Gerhard Ritter (1957), Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (1957), Percy Ernst Schramm (1958), Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker (1961), Karl Jaspers (1964), Otto Klemperer (1967), Carl Zuckmayer (1967), Henry Moore (1972), Raymond Aron (1973), George F. Kennan (1976), Friedrich Hayek (1977), Karl Popper (1980), Eugène Ionesco (1983), Hans Bethe (1984), Gordon A. Craig (1990), Rudolf Mößbauer (1996), Umberto Eco (1998), Hans Magnus Enzensberger (1999), and Wim Wenders (2005). Arthur Holly Compton (September 10 1892 &ndash March 15 1962 was an American physicist and Nobel laureate in physics for his discovery of the Compton effect Hermann Hesse (ˈhɛʀman ˈhɛsə ( 2 July, 1877 — 9 August, 1962) was a German - Swiss poet novelist and painter Albert Schweitzer, MD, OM, (January 14 1875 &ndash September 4 1965 was an Alsatian theologian, Musician, Philosopher Paul Thomas Mann ( June Oskar Kokoschka (1 March 1886 – 22 February 1980 was an Austrian Artist, Poet and Playwright, best known for his intense expressionistic Carl Orff ( &ndash) was a 20th-century German Composer, most famous for Carmina Burana (1937 Thornton Niven Wilder ( April 17, 1897 &ndash December 7, 1975) was an American Playwright and Novelist. Karl Schmidt-Rottluff ( December Werner Heisenberg (5 December 1901 in Würzburg &ndash1 February 1976 in Munich) was a German theoretical physicist best known for enunciating the Gerhard Albert Ritter ( April 6, 1888 - July 1, 1967) was a Conservative German Historian. Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (ˈlʊdvɪç miːs faːn dɛʀ ˈʀoːɐ born Maria Ludwig Michael Mies ( March 27, 1886 &ndash August 17, 1969 Percy Ernst Schramm (October 14 1894 &ndash November 21 1970 was a German Historian of medieval political symbolism and ritual Carl Friedrich Freiherr von Weizsäcker ( June 28, 1912 &ndash 28 April 2007) was a German Physicist and Philosopher Karl Theodor Jaspers ( February 23, 1883 – February 26, 1969) was a German Psychiatrist and Philosopher who WikipediaWikiProject Classical music#Biographical_infoboxes --> Otto Klemperer (born Breslau, May 14, 1885 Carl Zuckmayer ( December 27, 1896 &ndash January 18, 1977) was a German Writer and Playwright. Henry Spencer Moore OM CH FBA (30 July 1898 – 31 August 1986 was an English artist and sculptor. Raymond-Claude-Ferdinand Aron ( March 14, 1905 &mdash October 17, 1983) was a French Philosopher, Sociologist and George Frost Kennan (February 16 1904 &ndash March 17 2005 was an American Advisor, Diplomat, Political scientist, and Historian, best Friedrich August von Hayek CH ( May 8, 1899 March 23, 1992) was an Austrian British Economist Sir Karl Raimund Popper ( July 28 1902  &ndash September 17 1994) was an Austrian and British Philosopher and a professor Eugène Ionesco, born Eugen Ionescu ( November 26, 1909 – March 28, 1994 Hans Albrecht Bethe (/hans ˈalbʀɛçt ˈbeːtə/ ( July 2 1906 &ndash March 6, 2005) was a German - American Physicist Gordon Alexander Craig ( November 13, 1913 &ndash October 30, 2005) was a Scottish-American historian of German, Swiss Rudolf Ludwig Mössbauer (Rudolf Ludwig Mößbauer born January 31, 1929) is a German Physicist who studied Gamma rays from Umberto Eco (born 5 January 1932 is an Italian Medievalist, semiotician, Philosopher, literary critic and Novelist, best Hans Magnus Enzensberger (born 11 November 1929 in Kaufbeuren) is a German Author, Poet, translator and editor Ernst Wilhelm ("Wim" Wenders (born August 14, 1945) is a German Film director, Playwright, Author, The most recent recipients, in 2006, were economist Reinhard Selten, historian James J. Reinhard Selten ( October 5, 1930) is a German economist. Selten was born in Breslau (Wrocław in Lower Silesia Sheehan, and legal scholar Christian Tomuschat.

Only three persons received both the military and civil versions of the Pour le Mérite. These were Helmuth von Moltke the Elder, who received the military class in 1839 and the civil class in 1874, Otto von Bismarck, who received the military class in 1884 and the civil class in 1896, and Hermann von Kuhl, who received the military class in 1916 and the civil class in 1924. Helmuth Karl Bernhard Graf After the Franco-Prussian War Moltke superintended the preparation of its history which was published between 1874 and 1881 by the great general staff Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen Duke of Lauenburg Prince of Bismarck ( April 1, 1815 July 30, 1898)

Similar orders in other countries

Besides Prussia, several other states of the former German Empire also conferred similar awards for the arts and sciences. These included the Kingdom of Bavaria's Maximilian Order for Art and Science (Maximiliansorden für Kunst und Wissenschaft), the Duchy of Anhalt's Order of Merit for Science and Art (Verdienstorden für Wissenschaft und Kunst), and the Principality of Lippe's Lippe Rose Order for Art and Science (Lippische Rose, Orden für Kunst und Wissenschaft). The Kingdom of Bavaria (Königreich Bayern was a German state that existed from 1806&ndash1918 Anhalt is a historical County (after 1806 Duchy) in central Germany, located between the Harz Mountains and the river Elbe Lippe and later Lippe-Detmold was a historical state in Germany.

A number of other countries have founded similar high civic honors for accomplishments in the arts and sciences. The United Kingdom confers the Order of Merit and Order of the Companions of Honour. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The Order of Merit is a British and Commonwealth Order bestowed by the Monarch. The Order of the Companions of Honour is a British and Commonwealth Order. The Republic of Austria confers the Austrian Decoration of Honor for Science and the Arts (Österreichisches Ehrenzeichen für Wissenschaft und Kunst), founded in 1955. Austria (Österreich ( officially the Republic of Austria (Republik Österreich Like the Order Pour le Mérite for Sciences and Arts, this was in a sense a revival of an earlier imperial award, in this case the Austro-Hungarian Decoration of Honor for Art and Science (Österreichisch-Ungarisches Ehrenzeichen für Kunst und Wissenschaft), which existed from 1887 to 1918. Unlike the German award, however, the design of the modern Austrian award is unlike that of its imperial predecessor.

Other countries also may recognize accomplishments in the arts and sciences, but with more general orders also awarded for accomplishments in other fields. France's Légion d'honneur is an example of a decoration often conferred for accomplishment in many fields, including the arts and sciences. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. Belgium awards either its Order of Léopold or Order of the Crown for oustanding accomplishments in the arts and sciences, and may award its Civil Decoration for lesser accomplishments in these fields. The Kingdom of Belgium is a Country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters as well as those Order of Leopold ( Leopoldsorde in Dutch, Ordre de Léopold in French) is one of the three Belgian national honorary Orders The Order of the Crown is an Order of Belgium which was first created in the year 1897

References

  1. ^ Paul Hieronymussen, "Orders and Decorations of Europe in Color", page 171. The Macmillan Company, New York, 1967.

See also

External links

The Blue Max is a 1966 British film about a German Fighter pilot on the Western Front during World War I.
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