Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath ( formerly the Most Honourable Military Order of the Bath ) is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725 . The name derives from the elaborate mediaeval ceremony for creating a knight , which involved bathing ( as a symbol of purification ) as one of its elements . The knights so created were known as " Knights of the Bath " . George I " erected the Knights of the Bath into a regular Military Order " . He did not ( as is often stated ) revive the Order of the Bath , since it had never previously existed as an Order , in the sense of a body of knights who were governed by a set of statutes and whose numbers were replenished when vacancies occurred . The Order consists of the Sovereign ( currently Queen Elizabeth II ) , the Great Master ( currently The Prince of Wales ) , and three Classes of members : Members belong to either the Civil or the Military Division . Prior to 1815 , the order had only a single class , Knight Companion ( KB ) , which no longer exists . Recipients of the Order are now usually senior military officers or senior civil servants . Commonwealth citizens not subjects of the Queen and foreigners may be made Honorary Members . The Order of the Bath is the fourth - most senior of the British Orders of Chivalry , after The Most Noble Order of the Garter , The Most Ancient and Most Noble Order of the Thistle , and The Most Illustrious Order of St Patrick ( now dormant ) . The last of the aforementioned Orders , which relates to Ireland , still exists but has been in disuse since the formation , in December 1922 , of the Irish Free State . History . Knights of the Bath . In the Middle Ages , knighthood was often conferred with elaborate ceremonies . These usually involved the knight - to - be taking a bath ( possibly symbolic of spiritual purification ) during which he was instructed in the duties of knighthood by more senior knights . He was then put to bed to dry . Clothed in a special robe , he was led with music to the chapel where he spent the night in a vigil . At dawn he made confession and attended Mass , then retired to his bed to sleep until it was fully daylight . He was then brought before the King , who after instructing two senior knights to buckle the spur s to the knight - elect ' s heels , fastened a belt around his waist , then struck him on the neck ( with either a hand or a sword ) , thus making him a knight . It was this accolade which was the essential act in creating a knight , and a simpler ceremony developed , conferring knighthood merely by striking or touching the knight - to - be on the shoulder with a sword , or " dubbing " him , as is still done today . In the early medieval period the difference seems to have been that the full ceremonies were used for men from more prominent families . From the coronation of Henry IV in 1399 the full ceremonies were restricted to major royal occasions such as coronations , investitures of the Prince of Wales or royal Dukes , and royal weddings , and the knights so created became known as " Knights of the Bath " . Knights Bachelor continued to be created with the simpler form of ceremony . The last occasion on which Knights of the Bath were created was the coronation of Charles II in 1661 . From at least 1625 , and possibly from the reign of James I , Knights of the Bath were using the motto " Tria iuncta in uno " ( Latin for " Three joined in one " ) , and wearing as a badge three crowns within a plain gold oval . These were both subsequently adopted by the Order of the Bath ; a similar design of badge is still worn by members of the Civil Division . Their symbolism however is not entirely clear . The ' three joined in one ' may be a reference to the kingdoms of England , Scotland and either France or Ireland , which were held ( or claimed in the case of France ) by English and , later , British monarchs . This would correspond to the three crowns in the badge . Another explanation of the motto is that it refers to the Holy Trinity . Nicolas quotes a source ( although he is sceptical of it ) who claims that prior to James I the motto was " Tria numina iuncta in uno " , ( three powers / gods joined in one ) , but from the reign of James I the word " numina " was dropped and the motto understood to mean " Tria [ regna ] iuncta in uno " ( three kingdoms joined in one ) . Foundation of the order . The prime mover in the establishment of the Order of the Bath was John Anstis , Garter King of Arms , England ' s highest heraldic officer . Sir Anthony Wagner , a recent holder of the office of Garter , wrote of Anstis ' s motivations : It was Martin Leake ' s opinion that the trouble and opposition Anstis met with in establishing himself as Garter so embittered him against the herald s that when at last in 1718 he succeeded , he made it his prime object to aggrandise himself and his office at their expense . It is clear at least that he set out to make himself indispensable to the Earl Marshal , which was not hard , their political principles being congruous and their friendship already established , but also to Sir Robert Walpole and the Whig ministry , which can by no means have been easy , considering his known attachment to the Pretender and the circumstances under which he came into office . . . The main object of Anstis ' s next move , the revival or institution of the Order of the Bath was probably that which it in fact secured , of ingratiating him with the all - powerful Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole . The use of honours in the early eighteenth century differed considerably from the modern honours system in which hundreds , if not thousands , of people each year receive honours on the basis of deserving accomplishments . The only honours available at that time were hereditary ( not life ) peerages and baronetcies , knighthoods and the Order of the Garter ( or the Order of the Thistle for Scots ) , none of which were awarded in large numbers ( the Garter and the Thistle are limited to 24 and 16 living members respectively . ) The political environment was also significantly different from today : The Sovereign still exercised a power to be reckoned with in the eighteenth century . The Court remained the centre of the political world . The King was limited in that he had to choose Ministers who could command a majority in Parliament , but the choice remained his . The leader of an administration still had to command the King ' s personal confidence and approval . A strong following in Parliament depended on being able to supply places , pensions , and other marks of Royal favour to the government ' s supporters . The attraction of the new Order for Walpole was that it would provide a source of such favours to strengthen his political position . George I having agreed to Walpole ' s proposal , Anstis was commissioned to draft statutes for the Order of the Bath . As noted above , he adopted the motto and badge used by the Knights of the Bath , as well as the colour of the riband and mantle , and the ceremony for creating a knight . The rest of the statutes were mostly based on those of the Order of the Garter , of which he was an officer ( as Garter King of Arms ) . The Order was founded by letters patent under the Great Seal dated 18 May 1725 , and the statutes issued the following week . The Order initially consisted of the Sovereign , a Prince of the blood Royal as Principal Knight , a Great Master and thirty - five Knights Companion . Seven officers ( see below ) were attached to the Order . These provided yet another opportunity for political patronage , as they were to be sinecure s at the disposal of the Great Master , supported by fees from the knights . Despite the fact that the Bath was represented as a military Order , only a few military officers were among the initial appointments ( see List of Knights Companion of the Order of the Bath ) . They may be broken down into categories as follows ( note that some are classified in more than one category ) : The majority of the new Knights Companions were knighted by the King and invested with their ribands and badges on 27 May 1725 . Although the statutes set out the full medieval ceremony which was to be used for creating knights , this was not performed , and indeed was possibly never intended to be , as the original statutes contained a provision allowing the Great Master to dispense Knights Companion from these requirements . The original knights were dispensed from all the medieval ceremonies with the exception of the Installation , which was performed in the Order ' s Chapel , the Henry VII Chapel in Westminster Abbey , on June 17 . This precedent was followed until 1812 , after which the Installation was also dispensed with , until its revival in the twentieth century . The ceremonies however remained part of the Statutes until 1847 . Although the initial appointments to the Order were largely political , from the 1770s appointments to the Order were increasingly made for naval , military or diplomatic achievements . This is partly due to the conflicts Britain was engaged in over this period . The Peninsular War resulted in so many deserving candidates for the Bath that a statute was issued allowing the appointment of " Extra Knights " in time of war , who were to be additional to the numerical limits imposed by the statutes , and whose number was not subject to any restrictions . Another statute , this one issued some 80 years earlier , had also added a military note to the Order . Each knight was required , under certain circumstances , to supply and support four men - at - arms for a period not exceeding 42 days in any year , to serve in any part of Great Britain . This company was to be captained by the Great Master , who had to supply four trumpeters , and was also to appoint eight officers for this body , however the statute was never invoked . Restructuring in 1815 . In 1815 , with the end of the Napoleonic Wars , the Prince Regent ( later George IV ) expanded the Order of the Bath " to the end that those Officers who have had the opportunities of signalising themselves by eminent services during the late war may share in the honours of the said Order , and that their names may be delivered down to remote posterity , accompanied by the marks of distinction which they have so nobly earned . " The Order was now to consist of three classes : Knights Grand Cross , Knights Commander , and Companions . The existing Knights Companion ( of which there were 60 ) became Knight Grand Cross ; this class was limited to 72 members , of which twelve could be appointed for civil or diplomatic services . The military members had to be of the rank of at least Major - General or Rear Admiral . The Knights Commander were limited to 180 , exclusive of foreign nationals holding British commissions , up to ten of whom could be appointed as honorary Knights Commander . They had to be of the rank of Lieutenant - Colonel or Post - Captain . The number of Companions was not specified , but they had to have received a medal or been mentioned in despatches since the start of the war in 1803 . A list of about 500 names was subsequently published . Two further officers were appointed , an " Officer of arms attendant on the Knights Commanders and Companions " , and a " Secretary appertaining to the Knights Commanders and Companions " The large increase in numbers caused some complaints that such an expansion would reduce the prestige of the Order . The Victorian era . In 1847 , Queen Victoria issued new statutes eliminating all references to an exclusively military Order . As well as removing the word ' Military ' from the full name of the Order , this opened up the grades of Knight Commander and Companion to civil appointments , and the Military and Civil Divisions of the Order were established . New numerical limits were imposed , and the opportunity also taken to regularise the 1815 expansion of the Order . The 1847 statutes also abolished all the medieval ritual , however they did introduce a formal Investiture ceremony , conducted by the Sovereign wearing the Mantle and insignia of the Order , attended by the Officers and as many GCBs as possible , in their Mantles . In 1859 a further edition of the Statutes was issued ; the changes related mainly to the costs associated with the Order . Prior to this date it had been the policy that the insignia ( which were provided by the Crown ) were to be returned on the death of the holder ; the exception had been foreigners who had been awarded honorary membership . In addition foreigners had usually been provided with stars made of silver and diamonds , whereas ordinary members had only embroidered stars . The decision was made to award silver stars to all members , and only require the return of the Collar . The Crown had also been paying the fees due to the officers of the Order for members who had been appointed for the services in the recent war . The fees were abolished and replaced with a salary of approximately the same average value . The offices of Genealogist and Messenger were abolished , and those of Registrar and Secretary combined . The 20th century . In 1910 , after his accession to the throne , George V ordered the revival of the Installation ceremony , perhaps prompted by the first Installation ceremony of the more junior Order of St Michael and St George , held a few years earlier , and the building of a new chapel for the Order of the Thistle in 1911 . The Installation ceremony took place on 22 July 1913 in the Henry VII Chapel , and Installations have been held at regular intervals since . Prior to the 1913 Installation it was necessary to adapt the chapel to accommodate the larger number of members . An appeal was made to the members of the Order , and following the Installation a surplus remained . A Committee was formed from the Officers to administer the ' Bath Chapel Fund ' , and over time this committee has come to consider other matters than purely financial ones . Another revision of the statutes of the Order was undertaken in 1925 , to consolidate the 41 additional statutes which had been issued since the 1859 revision . Women were admitted to the Order in 1971 . In 1975 , Princess Alice , Duchess of Gloucester , an aunt of Elizabeth II , became the first ( and to date only ) woman to reach the highest rank , Dame Grand Cross . Princess Alice ( née Douglas - Montagu - Scott ) was a direct descendant of the Order ' s first Great Master , and her husband , who had died the previous year , had also held that office . Composition . Sovereign . The British Sovereign is the Sovereign of the Order of the Bath . As with all honours except those in the Sovereign ' s personal gift , the Sovereign makes all appointments to the Order on the advice of the Government . Great Master . The next - most senior member of the Order is the Great Master , of which there have been nine : Originally a Prince of the Blood Royal , as the Principal Knight Companion , ranked next after the sovereign . This position was joined to that of the Great Master in the statutes of 1847 . The Great Master and Principal Knight is now either a descendant of George I or " some other exalted personage " ; the holder of the office has custody of the seal of the order and is responsible for enforcing the statutes . Members . The statutes also provide for the following : Regular membership is limited to citizens of the United Kingdom and of other Commonwealth countries of which the Queen is Sovereign . Appointees are usually officers of the armed forces or senior civil servants , such as permanent secretaries . Members appointed to the Civil Division must " by their personal services to [ the ] crown or by the performance of public duties have merited . . . royal favour . " Appointments to the Military Division are restricted by the minimum rank of the individual . GCBs must hold the rank of rear admiral , major general or air vice marshal . KCBs must hold the rank of captain in the Royal Navy , colonel in the Army or Royal Marines , or group captain in the Royal Air Force . CBs must be of the rank of lieutenant commander , major or squadron leader , and in addition must have been mentioned in despatches for distinction in a command position in a combat situation . Non - line officers ( e . g . engineers , medics ) may be appointed only for meritorious service in war time . Commonwealth citizens not subjects of the Queen and foreigners may be made Honorary Members . Queen Elizabeth II has established the custom of awarding an honorary GCB to visiting heads of state , for example Gustav Heinemann , and Josip Broz Tito ( in 1972 ) , Ronald Reagan ( in 1989 ) , Lech Wałęsa ( in 1991 ) , Dr . Censu Tabone , President of Malta , in 1992 , Fernando Henrique Cardoso , George H . W . Bush ( in 1993 ) , Nicolas Sarkozy in March 2008 , In 2012 Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono . Turkish President Abdullah Gül , Slovenian President Dr Danilo Türk Mexican President Felipe Calderón , and South African President Jacob Zuma . Foreign generals are also often given honorary appointments to the Order , for example : Marshal Ferdinand Foch and Marshal Joseph Joffre during World War I ; Marshal Georgy Zhukov , King Abdul - Aziz of Saudi Arabia , General Dwight D . Eisenhower and General Douglas MacArthur during World War II ; and General Norman Schwarzkopf and General Colin Powell after the Gulf War . A more controversial member of the Order was Robert Mugabe , whose honour was stripped by the Queen , on the advice of the Foreign Secretary , David Miliband , on 25 June 2008 as " as a mark of revulsion at the abuse of human rights and abject disregard for the democratic process in Zimbabwe over which President Mugabe has presided . " Honorary members do not count towards the numerical limits in each class . In addition the statutes allow the Sovereign to exceed the limits in time of war or other exceptional circumstances . Officers . The Order of the Bath now has six officers : The office of Dean is held by the Dean of Westminster . The King of Arms , responsible for heraldry , is known as Bath King of Arms ; he is not , however , a member of the College of Arms , like many heralds . The Order ' s Usher is known as the Gentleman Usher of the Scarlet Rod ; he does not , unlike his Order of the Garter equivalent ( the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod ) perform any duties in the House of Lords . There were originally seven officers , each of whom was to receive fees from the Knights Companion both on appointment and annually thereafter . The office of Messenger was abolished in 1859 . The office of Genealogist was abolished at the same time , but revived in 1913 . The offices of Registrar and Secretary were formally merged in 1859 , although the two positions had been held concurrently for the previous century . An Officer of Arms and a Secretary for the Knights Commander and Companions were established in 1815 , but abolished in 1847 . The office of Deputy Secretary was created in 1925 . Under the Hanoverian kings certain of the officers also held heraldic office . The office of Blanc Coursier Herald of Arms was attached to that of the Genealogist , Brunswick Herald of Arms to the Gentleman Usher , and Bath King of Arms was also made Gloucester King of Arms with heraldic jurisdiction over Wales . This was the result of a move by Anstis to give the holders of these sinecures greater security ; the offices of the Order of the Bath were held at the pleasure of the Great Master , while appointments to the heraldic offices were made by the King under the Great Seal and were for life . Habit and insignia . Members of the Order wear elaborate costumes on important occasions ( such as its quadrennial installation ceremonies and coronations ) , which vary by rank : The " mantle " , worn only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross , is made of crimson satin lined with white taffeta . On the left side is a representation of the star ( see below ) . The mantle is bound with two large tassels . The " hat " , worn only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights and Dames Commander , is made of black velvet ; it includes an upright plume of feather s . The " collar " , worn only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross , is made of gold and weighs 30 troy ounces ( 933 g ) . It consists of depictions of nine imperial crowns and eight sets of flowers ( rose s for England , thistle s for Scotland and shamrocks for Ireland ) , connected by seventeen silver knots . On lesser occasions , simpler insignia are used : The " star " is used only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights and Dames Commander . Its style varies by rank and division ; it is worn pinned to the left breast : The star for " military Knights and Dames Grand Cross " consists of a Maltese Cross on top of an eight - pointed silver star ; the star for " military Knights and Dames Commander " is an eight - pointed silver cross pattée . Each bears in the centre three crowns surrounded by a red ring bearing the motto of the Order in gold letters . The circle is flanked by two laurel branches and is above a scroll bearing the words " Ich dien " ( older German for " I serve " ) in gold letters . The star for " civil Knights and Dames Grand Cross " consists of an eight - pointed silver star , " without " the Maltese cross ; the star for " civil Knights and Dames Commander " is an eight - pointed silver cross pattée . The design of each is the same as the design of the military stars , except that the laurel branches and the words " Ich dien " are excluded . The " badge " varies in design , size and manner of wearing by rank and division . The Knight and Dame Grand Cross ' badge is larger than the Knight and Dame Commander ' s badge , which is in turn larger than the Companion ' s badge ; however , these are all suspended on a crimson ribbon . Knights and Dames Grand Cross wear the badge on a riband or sash , passing from the right shoulder to the left hip . Knights Commander and male Companions wear the badge from a ribbon worn around the neck . Dames Commander and female Companions wear the badge from a bow on the left side : The " military badge " is a gold Maltese Cross of eight points , enamelled in white . Each point of the cross is decorated by a small gold ball ; each angle has a small figure of a lion . The centre of the cross bears three crowns on the obverse side , and a rose , a thistle and a shamrock , emanating from a sceptre on the reverse side . Both emblems are surrounded by a red circular ring bearing the motto of the Order , which are in turn flanked by two laurel branches , above a scroll bearing the words " Ich dien " in gold letters . The " civil badge " is a plain gold oval , bearing three crowns on the obverse side , and a rose , a thistle and a shamrock , emanating from a sceptre on the reverse side ; both emblems are surrounded by a ring bearing the motto of the Order . On certain " collar day s " designated by the Sovereign , members attending formal events may wear the Order ' s collar over their military uniform or eveningwear . When collars are worn ( either on collar days or on formal occasions such as coronations ) , the badge is suspended from the collar . The collars and badges of Knights and Dames Grand Cross are returned to the Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood upon the decease of their owners . All other insignia may be retained by their owners . Chapel . The Chapel of the Order is Henry VII Lady Chapel in Westminster Abbey . Every four years , an installation ceremony , presided over by the Great Master , and a religious service are held in the Chapel ; the Sovereign attends every alternate ceremony . The last such service was in May 2006 and was attended by the Sovereign . The Sovereign and each knight who has been installed is allotted a stall in the choir of the chapel . Since there are a limited number of stalls in the Chapel , only the most senior Knights and Dames Grand Cross are installed . A stall made vacant by the death of a military Knight Grand Cross is offered to the next most senior uninstalled military GCB , and similarly for vacancies among civil GCBs . Waits between admission to the Order and installation may be very long ; for instance , Marshal of the Air Force Lord Craig of Radley was created a Knight Grand Cross in 1984 , but was not installed until 2006 . Above each stall , the occupant ' s heraldic devices are displayed . Perched on the pinnacle of a knight ' s stall is his helm , decorated with a mantling and topped by his crest . Under English heraldic law , women other than monarchs do not bear helms or crests ; instead , the coronet appropriate to the dame ' s rank ( if she is a peer or member of the Royal family ) is used . Above the crest or coronet , the knight ' s or dame ' s heraldic banner is hung , emblazoned with his or her coat of arms . At a considerably smaller scale , to the back of the stall is affixed a piece of brass ( a " stall plate " ) displaying its occupant ' s name , arms and date of admission into the Order . Upon the death of a Knight , the banner , helm , mantling and crest ( or coronet or crown ) are taken down . The stall plates , however , are not removed ; rather , they remain permanently affixed somewhere about the stall , so that the stalls of the chapel are festooned with a colourful record of the Order ' s Knights ( and now Dames ) throughout history . When the grade of Knight Commander was established in 1815 the regulations specified that they too should have a banner and stall plate affixed in the chapel . This was never implemented ( despite some of the KCBs paying the appropriate fees ) primarily due to lack of space , although the 1847 statutes allow all three classes to request the erection of a plate in the chapel bearing the member ' s name , date of nomination , and ( for the two higher classes ) optionally the coat of arms . Precedence and privileges . Members of the Order of the Bath are assigned positions in the order of precedence . Wives of male members also feature on the order of precedence , as do sons , daughters and daughters - in - law of Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander ; relatives of female members , however , are not assigned any special precedence . Generally , individuals can derive precedence from their fathers or husbands , but not from their mothers or wives . ( See order of precedence in England and Wales for the exact positions . ) Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander prefix " Sir , " and Dames Grand Cross and Dames Commander prefix " Dame , " to their forenames . Wives of Knights may prefix " Lady " to their surnames , but no equivalent privilege exists for husbands of Dames . Such forms are not used by peers and princes , except when the names of the former are written out in their fullest forms . Furthermore , honorary foreign members and clergymen do not receive the accolade of knighthood , and so are not entitled to the prefix " Sir " , unless the former subsequently become Commonwealth citizens . Knights and Dames Grand Cross use the post - nominal " GCB " ; Knights Commander use " KCB " ; Dames Commander use " DCB " ; Companions use " CB " . Knights and Dames Grand Cross are also entitled to receive heraldic supporters . Furthermore , they may encircle their arms with a depiction of the circlet ( a red circle bearing the motto ) with the badge pendant thereto and the collar ; the former is shown either outside or on top of the latter . Knights and Dames Commander and Companions may display the circlet , but not the collar , around their arms . The badge is depicted suspended from the collar or circlet . Members of the Military division may encompass the circlet with " two laurel branches issuant from an escrol azure inscribed " Ich dien " " , as appears on the badge . Members of the Order of the Bath and their children are able to be married in Westminster Abbey in London . Revocation . It is possible for membership in the Order to be revoked . Under the 1725 statutes the grounds for this were heresy , high treason , or fleeing from battle out of cowardice . Knights Companion could in such cases be degraded at the next Chapter meeting . It was then the duty of the Gentleman Usher to " pluck down the escocheon [ i . e . stallplate ] of such knight and spurn it out of the chapel " with " all the usual marks of infamy " . Only two people were ever degraded — Lord Cochrane in 1813 and General Sir Eyre Coote in 1816 , both for political reasons , rather than any of the grounds given in the statute . Lord Cochrane was subsequently reinstated , but Coote died a few years after his degradation . Under Queen Victoria ' s 1847 statutes a member " convicted of treason , cowardice , felony , or any infamous crime derogatory to his honour as a knight or gentleman , or accused and does not submit to trial in a reasonable time , shall be degraded from the Order by a special ordinance signed by the sovereign " . The Sovereign was to be the sole judge , and also had the power to restore such members . The situation today is that membership may be cancelled or annulled , and the entry in the register erased , by an ordinance signed by the Sovereign and sealed with the seal of the Order , on the recommendation of the appropriate Minister . Such cancellations may be subsequently reversed . William Pottinger , a senior civil servant , lost both his status of CB and Commander of the Royal Victorian Order ( CVO ) in 1975 when he was gaoled for corruptly receiving gifts from the architect John Poulson . Romanian president Nicolae Ceauşescu was stripped of his honorary GCB status by Queen Elizabeth II on 24 December 1989 , the day before his execution . Robert Mugabe , the President of Zimbabwe , was stripped of his honorary GCB status by the Queen , on the advice of the Foreign Secretary , David Miliband , on 25 June 2008 " as a mark of revulsion at the abuse of human rights and abject disregard for the democratic process in Zimbabwe over which President Mugabe has presided . " Vicky Pryce , former wife of Chris Huhne , was stripped of the honour by Queen Elizabeth II on 30 July 2013 , following her conviction for perverting the course of justice . See also . For people who have been appointed to the Order of the Bath , see the following categories :