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Order of the British Empire

The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British
Most Excellent
order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences,
Order of the British Empire
work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service
outside the Civil service.[2] It was established on 4 June 1917 by
King George V, and comprises five classes across both civil and
military divisions, the most senior two of which make the recipient
either a knight if male or dame if female.[3] There is also the
related British Empire Medal, whose recipients are affiliated with,
but not members of, the order.

Recommendations for appointments to the Order of the British

Empire were at first made on the nomination of the United
Kingdom, the self-governing Dominions of the Empire (later
Commonwealth) and the Viceroy of India. Nominations continue
today from Commonwealth countries that participate in
recommending British (Imperial) honours. Most Commonwealth
countries, such as India, Pakistan, Nigeria and Canada ceased
recommendations for appointments to the Order of the British
Empire when they created their own honours.[4]

Contents
1 Current classes CBE neck decoration (in civil division)
2 Styles and honorary knighthoods Awarded by the sovereign of the United
3 History Kingdom
4 Composition Type Order of chivalry
5 Gallantry
Established 1917
6 Vestments and accoutrements
Motto For God and the Empire
7 Chapel
Eligibility British nationals, or anyone who
8 Precedence and privileges
has made a significant
9 Current Knights and Dames Grand Cross
9.1 Knights and Dames Grand Cross
achievement for the United
9.2 Honorary Kingdom

10 Recommendations by Commonwealth countries Awarded Prominent national or regional

11 Criticism for achievements[1]

12 See also Status Currently constituted

13 Footnotes Sovereign Queen Elizabeth II
13.1 Notes
Grand Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
13.2 References
Master
14 Further reading
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15 External links Grades Knight/Dame Grand Cross (GBE)

Knight/Dame Commander
(KBE/DBE)
Current classes Commander (CBE)
Officer (OBE)
The five classes of appointment to the Order are, in descending
Member (MBE)
order of precedence:
Former Medal of the Order of the British
1. Knight Grand Cross or Dame Grand Cross of the Most grades Empire for Gallantry
Excellent Order of the British Empire (GBE)[a] Medal of the Order of the British
2. Knight Commander or Dame Commander of the Most Empire for Meritorious Service
Excellent Order of the British Empire (KBE or DBE)
3. Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire Precedence
(CBE)
Next Royal Victorian Order
4. Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire
(OBE) (higher)
5. Member of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire Next Varies, depending on rank
(MBE)
(lower)

Styles and honorary

Military ribbon
knighthoods
The senior two ranks of Knight or Dame Grand Cross, and Knight Civil ribbon
or Dame Commander, entitle their members to use the title of Sir
for men and Dame for women before their forename. Most members are citizens of the
United Kingdom or the Commonwealth realms that use the Imperial system of honours
and awards.

Honorary knighthoods are appointed to citizens of nations where the Queen is not head
of state, and may permit use of post-nominal letters but not the title of Sir or Dame.
Occasionally, honorary appointees are, incorrectly, referred to as Sir or Dame Bob
Geldof, for example. Honorary appointees who later become a citizen of a
Commonwealth realm can convert their appointment from honorary to substantive,
then enjoy all privileges of membership of the order, including use of the title of Sir and
Dame for the senior two ranks of the Order. An example is Irish broadcaster Terry
Wogan, who was appointed an honorary Knight Commander of the Order in 2005, and
on successful application for British citizenship, held alongside his Irish citizenship,
was made a substantive member and subsequently styled as Sir Terry Wogan.[5][6]

History
King George V founded the Order to fill gaps in the British honours system:
MBE as awarded in 1918
The Orders of the Garter, Thistle, and of St Patrick honoured royals, peers,
statesmen, and eminent military commanders;
The Order of the Bath honoured senior military officers and civil servants;
The Order of St Michael and St George honoured diplomats and colonial officials;
The Order of the Star of India and the Order of the Indian Empire honoured Indian rulers and British and Indian
officials of the British Indian Empire; and
The Royal Victorian Order, in the personal gift of the monarch, honoured those who had personally served the royal
family.
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In particular, King George V wished to create an Order to honour many

thousands of those who had served in a variety of non-combatant roles during
the First World War. When first established, the Order had only one division.
However, in 1918, soon after its foundation, it was formally divided into
Military and Civil Divisions.[7] The Order's motto is For God and the
Empire.[2]

At the foundation of the Order, the 'Medal of the Order of the British Empire'
was instituted, to serve as a lower award granting recipients affiliation but not
membership. In 1922, this was renamed the 'British Empire Medal' (BEM). It
stopped being awarded by the United Kingdom as part of the 1993 reforms to
the honours system, but was again awarded beginning in 2012, starting with Grand Cross star of the Order of the
293 BEMs awarded for Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee.[8] In addition, British Empire
the BEM is awarded by the Cook Islands and by some other Commonwealth
nations. In 2004, a report entitled "A Matter of Honour: Reforming Our
Honours System" by a Commons committee recommended to phase out the
Order of the British Empire, as its title was "now considered to be
unacceptable, being thought to embody values that are no longer shared by
many of the country's population".[9]

Composition
The British monarch is Sovereign of the Order, and appoints all other members
of the Order (by convention, on the advice of the governments of the United
Kingdom and some Commonwealth realms). The next most senior member is
the Grand Master, of whom there have been three: Prince Edward, the Prince
of Wales (19171936); Queen Mary (19361953); and the current Grand
Master, the Duke of Edinburgh (since 1953).

The Order is limited to 300 Knights and Dames Grand Cross, 845 Knights and
Close-up of an MBE from 1945
Dames Commander, and 8,960 Commanders. There are no limits applied to showing the "For God and the
the total number of members of the fourth and fifth classes, but no more than Empire"
858 Officers and 1,464 Members may be appointed per year. Foreign
appointees, as honorary members, do not contribute to the numbers restricted
to the Order as full members do. Although the Order of the British Empire has by far the highest number of members of
the British Orders of Chivalry, with over 100,000 living members worldwide, there are fewer appointments to
knighthoods than in other orders.[2]

Though men can be knighted separately from an order of chivalry, women cannot, and so the rank of Knight/Dame
Commander of the Order is the lowest rank of damehood, and second-lowest of knighthood (above Knights Bachelor).
Because of this, an appointment as Dame Commander is made in circumstances in which a man would be created a Knight
Bachelor. For example, by convention, female judges of the High Court of Justice are created Dames Commander after
appointment, while male judges become Knights Bachelor.

The Order has six officials: the Prelate; the Dean; the Secretary; the Registrar; the King of Arms; and the Usher. The
Bishop of London, a senior bishop in the Church of England, serves as the Order's Prelate. The Dean of St Paul's is ex
officio the Dean of the Order. The Order's King of Arms is not a member of the College of Arms, as are many other heraldic

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officers. The Usher of the Order is known as the Gentleman Usher of the Purple Rod; he
does not unlike his Order of the Garter equivalent, the Gentleman Usher of the Black
Rod perform any duties related to the House of Lords.

From time to time, individuals are appointed to a higher grade within the Order,
thereby ceasing usage of the junior post-nominal letters.

Gallantry
The institution of the Order of the British Empire in 1917 was for meritorious service
but from the beginning some appointments and some promotions were for acts of
gallantry. There were an increased number of cases in the Second World War for
service personnel and civilians including the merchant marine, police and emergency
Lieutenant General Sir
services and civil defense mostly MBEs but a small number of CBEs and OBEs. Such
Robert Fulton, KBE
awards were for gallantry that did not reach the standard of the George Medal, but, as
an Order, were listed before it on the Order of Wear. Awards for meritorious service
usually appear without a citation but there were often citations for gallantry awards, some detailed and graphic.[10] From
14 January 1958, these awards were designated Commander, Officer or Member of the Order of the British Empire for
Gallantry.[11]

Any individual made a member of the Order for gallantry could wear an emblem of two crossed silver oak leaves on the
same riband, ribbon or bow as the badge. It could not be awarded posthumously, and was replaced in 1974 with the
Queen's Gallantry Medal (QGM). If recipients of the Order of the British Empire for Gallantry received promotion within
the Order, whether for gallantry or otherwise, they continued to wear also the insignia of the lower grade with the oak
leaves.[12] However, they only used the post-nominal letters of the higher grade.

Vestments and accoutrements

Members of the Order wear elaborate vestments on important occasions (such as quadrennial services and coronations),
which vary by rank (the designs underwent major changes in 1937):

The mantle, worn by only Knights and Dames Grand Cross, was originally made of yellow satin lined with blue silk,
but is now made of rose pink satin lined with pearl-grey silk. On the left side is a representation of the star (see
below).
The collar, also worn by only Knights and Dames Grand Cross, is made of gold. It consists of six medallions depicting
the Royal Arms, alternating with six medallions depicting the Royal and Imperial Cypher of George V (GRI, which
stands for "Georgius Rex Imperator"). The medallions are linked with gold cables depicting lions and crowns.
Knight/Dame Grand Cross insignia

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Mantle worn by Knights and Dames Grand Close-up of the star on the mantle
Cross (GBE)

Collar and star of a Knight or Dame Grand

Cross of the Order of the British Empire

On certain "collar days" designated by the Sovereign, members attending formal events may wear the Order's collar over
their military uniform, formal day dress, or evening wear. When collars are worn (either on collar days or on formal
occasions such as coronations), the badge is suspended from the collar. Collars are returned upon the death of their
owners, but other insignia may be retained.

At less important occasions, simpler insignia are used:

The star is an eight-pointed silver star used by only Knights and Dames Grand Cross and Knights and Dames
Commander. It is worn pinned to the left breast. Varying in size depending on class, it bears a crimson ring with the
motto of the Order inscribed. Within the ring, a figure of Britannia was originally shown. Since 1937, however, the
effigies of George V and Mary of Teck have been shown instead.
The badge is the only insignia used by all members of the Order. Until 1937, it was suspended on a purple ribbon,
with a red central stripe for the military division; since then, the ribbon has been rose-pink with pearl-grey edges, with
the addition of a pearl-grey central stripe for the military division. Knights and Dames Grand Cross wear it on a riband
or sash, passing from the right shoulder to the left hip. Knights Commander and male Commanders wear the badge
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from a ribbon around the neck; male Officers and Members wear the
badge from a ribbon on the left chest; all females other than Dames Grand
Cross wear it from a bow on the left shoulder. The badge is in the form of
a cross patonce (having the arms growing broader and floriated toward
the end), the obverse of which bears the same field as the star (that is,
either Britannia or George V and Queen Mary); the reverse bears George
V's Royal and Imperial Cypher. Both are within a ring bearing the motto of
the Order. The size of the badges varies according to rank: the higher
classes have slightly larger badges. The badges of Knights and Dames
Grand Cross, Knights and Dames Commander and Commanders are
enamelled with pale blue crosses and crimson rings; those of Officers are
plain gold; those of Members are plain silver.
The British Empire Medal is made of silver. On the obverse is an image of
Britannia surrounded by the motto, with the words "For Meritorious
Service" at the bottom; on the reverse is George V's Imperial and Royal
Cypher, with the words "Instituted by King George V" at the bottom. The
name of the recipient is engraved on the rim. This medal is nicknamed 'the
Gong', and comes in both a full-sized and miniature versions the latter
for formal white-tie and informal black-tie occasions.
A lapel pin for everyday wear was first announced at the end of December
2006, and is available to recipients of all levels of the Order, as well as to
holders of the British Empire Medal. The pin design is not unique to any
level. The pin features the badge of the Order, enclosed in a circle of
ribbon of its colours of pink and grey. Lapel pins must be purchased
separately by a member of the Order.[13] The creation of such a pin was
recommended in Sir Hayden Phillips' review of the honours system in
2004.[14]

Order of the British Empire ribbon bars

Civil Military
1917
1935

Since
1936

Chapel
The chapel of the Order is in the far eastern end of the crypt of St Paul's
Cathedral, but it holds its great services upstairs in the main body of the
Cathedral. (The Cathedral also serves as the home of the chapel of The Most
Distinguished Order of St Michael and St George.) Religious services for the
whole Order are held every four years; new Knights and Dames Grand Cross
are installed at these services. The chapel was dedicated in 1960.

Precedence and privileges

Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander prefix Sir, and Dames Grand
Chapel of the Order in the crypt of
Cross and Dames Commander prefix Dame, to their forenames.[c] Wives of
St Paul's Cathedral
Knights may prefix Lady to their surnames, but no equivalent privilege exists
for husbands of Knights or spouses 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. Clergy of the Church of
England or the Church of Scotland do not use the title Sir or Dame as they do not receive the accolade (i.e., they are not
dubbed "knight" with a sword), although they do append the post-nominal letters.

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Knights and Dames Grand Cross use the post-nominal, GBE; Knights Commander, KBE;
Dames Commander, DBE; Commanders, CBE; Officers, OBE; and Members, MBE. The
post-nominal for the British Empire Medal is BEM.

Knights, Dames and
Commanders may
display the circlet of the
Order on the coat of
arms, with the badge of
the Order suspended
from it.[b]
Members of all classes of the Order are assigned positions in the order of precedence.
Wives of male members of all classes also feature on the order of precedence, as do sons,
daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander;
relatives of Ladies of the Order, however, are not assigned any special precedence. As a
general rule, 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 and Dames Grand Cross are also entitled to be granted heraldic supporters. They
may, furthermore, encircle their arms with a depiction of the circlet (a circle bearing the
motto) and the collar; the former is shown either outside or on top of the latter. Knights
and Dames Commander and Commanders may display the circlet, but not the collar,
surrounding their arms. The badge is depicted suspended from the collar or circlet.

Current Knights and Dames Grand Cross

Sovereign: Queen Elizabeth II
Grand Master: Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh
King of Arms: Lieutenant General Sir Robert Fulton, KBE

Knights and Dames Grand Cross

Military ranks listed denotes the awarded being in the military division.

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Year
Military rank Name Post-nominals
appointed
Admiral of the KG KT OM GCVO ONZ GBE AK QSO GCL CC CMM PC
The Duke of Edinburgh 1953
Fleet CD ADC(P)

Air Chief
Sir Peter Le Cheminant GBE KCB DFC* 1978
Marshal
General Sir Hugh Beach GBE KCB MC 1985

General Sir Frank Kitson GBE KCB MC* DL 1985

Sir Sze Yuen Chung GBE GBM 1989

Sir Thomas Eichelbaum GBE PC QC 1989

Air Chief
Sir David Harcourt-Smith GBE KCB DFC 1989
Marshal
The Lord Vincent of
Field Marshal GBE KCB DSO 1990
Coleshill
Sir Alexander Graham GBE 1990

Air Chief
Sir Patrick Hine GCB GBE 1991
Marshal
Sir Brian Jenkins GBE 1991

Sir Francis McWilliams GBE 1992

Air Chief
Sir Anthony Skingsley GBE KCB 1992
Marshal
Admiral Sir Kenneth Eaton GBE KCB 1994

Air Chief
Sir Bill Wratten GBE CB AFC 1998
Marshal
The Lord Rothschild OM GBE 1998

Sir Stephen Brown GBE 1999

Air Chief
Sir Anthony Bagnall GBE KCB 2002
Marshal
Sir Michael Sydney
GBE 2002
Perry
Sir Ronnie Flanagan GBE QPM 2002

Sir Cyril Taylor GBE 2004

The Baroness Butler-

GBE PC 2005
Sloss
Sir David Cooksey GBE 2007

Sir Timothy Granville-

General GBE KCB 2011
Chapman
The Lord King of
KG GBE 2011
Lothbury
The Earl of Selborne GBE DL 2011

Sir John Parker GBE 2012

The Baroness Hayman GBE PC 2012

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Year
Military rank Name Post-nominals
appointed
Sir Keith Mills GBE DL 2013

Sir Alan Budd GBE 2013

Sir John Bell GBE FRS 2015

Air Chief
Sir Stuart Peach GBE KCB ADC DL 2016
Marshal
Sir Ian Wood GBE 2016

Sir Cyril Chantler GBE 2017

Sir Michael Rawlins GBE 2017

Sir David Weatherall GBE FRS 2017

Honorary

Name Post-nominal Country Year appointed

George J. Mitchell GBE United States 1999

Ratan Tata GBE India 2014

Recommendations by Commonwealth countries

Recommendations for appointments to the Order of the British Empire continue to be made by some Commonwealth
realms. In 2016, Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, Saint Christopher and
Nevis, Saint Lucia, Solomon Islands, and Tuvalu all included Order of the British Empire awards in their New Year and/or
Queen's Birthday honours lists.[15][16] Since the Second World War, most Commonwealth realms have established their
own national system of honours and awards and have created their own unique orders, decorations and medals. Canada
seldom made recommendations for appointments to the Order of the British Empire except for the Second World War and
Korea but continued to recommend gallantry awards for both military and civilians until the creation of the Order of
Canada.[17] Australia continued to recommend the Order of the British Empire until the 1989 Queen's Birthday Honours,
nearly 15 years after the creation of the Order of Australia.[18]

Criticism
The Order has attracted some criticism for its naming having connection with the idea of the now-extinct British
Empire.[19] Benjamin Zephaniah, a British Jamaican poet, publicly rejected appointment as an Officer in 2003 because, he
asserted, it reminded him of "thousands of years of brutality". He also said that "It reminds me of how my foremothers
were raped and my forefathers brutalised".[20]

In 2004, a House of Commons Select Committee recommended changing the name of the award to the Order of British
Excellence, and changing the rank of Commander to Companion; as the former was said to have a "militaristic ring".[19][21]

A notable person to decline the offer of membership was the author C. S. Lewis (18981963), who had been named on the
last list of honours by George VI in December 1951. Despite being a monarchist, he declined so as to avoid association with
any political issues.[22][23]

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The members of The Beatles were appointed as Members in 1965. John Lennon justified the comparative merits of his
investiture by comparing military membership in the Order: "Lots of people who complained about us receiving the MBE
[status] received theirs for heroism in the war for killing people ... We received ours for entertaining other people. I'd say
we deserve ours more". Lennon later returned his MBE insignia on 25 November 1969, as part of his ongoing peace
protests.[24] Other criticism centres on the claim that many recipients of the Order are being rewarded with honours for
simply doing their jobs; critics claim that the Civil Service and Judiciary receive far more orders and honours than leaders
of other professions.[19]

Chin Peng, long-time leader of the Malayan Communist Party, was appointed as an Officer for his share in fighting against
the Japanese during World War II, in close co-operation with the British commando Force 136. His membership was
withdrawn by the British government (and became undesirable for Chin Peng himself) when the Communist leader
headed his party's guerrilla insurgency against the British in the Malayan Emergency after the War.[25]

See also
Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom the British honours system
List of Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
List of Dames Grand Cross of the Order of the British Empire
List of honorary British knights and dames
United Kingdom order of precedence
Honours Committee

Footnotes

Notes
a. It is commonly written without "of the Most Excellent Order" and other words not implied by the post-nominals.
b. In the image provided, the recipient has also been received into the Venerable Order of Saint John, and so that badge
is shown also, on the black ribbon to the right.
c. Never surnames thus Sir Antony Sher may be shortened to Sir Antony, but not to Sir Sher

References
1. "Guide to the Honours" (http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-11990088). BBC News. BBC. 10 June 2015. Retrieved 25 May
2016.
2. "Order of the British Empire" (https://web.archive.org/web/20100327214051/http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/Hon
ours/OrderoftheBritishEmpire.aspx). The Official Website of the British Monarchy. The Royal Household. Archived
from the original (http://www.royal.gov.uk/MonarchUK/Honours/OrderoftheBritishEmpire.aspx) on 27 March 2010.
Retrieved 24 August 2009.
3. "No. 30250" (https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/30250/supplement/8791). The London Gazette (2nd
supplement). 24 August 1917. pp. 87918999.
4. The last Canadian recommendation for the Order of the British Empire was a MBE for gallantry gazetted in 1966, a
year before the creation of the Order of Canada. The Australian Honours System unilaterally created in 1975 did not
achieve bi-partisan support until 1992 when Australian federal and state governments agreed to cease Australian
recommendations for British honours. The last Australian recommended Order of the British Empire appointments
were in the 1989 Queens Birthday Honours.
5. "No. 57855" (https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/57855/supplement/26). The London Gazette (1st
supplement). 31 December 2005. p. 26.
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6. "Radio's Wogan becomes Sir Terry" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/4503018.stm). BBC News. BBC. 6

December 2005. Retrieved 7 February 2009.
7. "No. 31084" (https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/31084/page/15135). The London Gazette. 27 December
1918. p. 15135.
8. "Birthday Honours: 'Working class' British Empire Medal revived" (http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-18456068). BBC
News. BBC. 16 June 2012. Retrieved 20 June 2012.
9. "A Matter of Honour: Reforming Our Honours System" (https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200304/cmselect/cmp
ubadm/212/212.pdf) (pdf). House of Commons Public Administration Select Committee. Parliament.uk. 13 July 2004.
Retrieved 15 January 2016.
10. British gallantry awards by P E Abbott and JMA Tamplin, 1981, Nimrod Dix & Co, London, ISBN-10 0 902633 74 0,
chapters 35 to 38.
11. "No. 41285" (https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/41285/supplement/365). The London Gazette (Supplement).
14 January 1958. p. 365.
12. "No. 56878" (https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/56878/supplement/3353). The London Gazette
(Supplement). 17 March 2003. p. 3353.
13. "Emblem for honours (Archived 4 April 2012)" (http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20120404103105/http://ww
w.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrights/UKgovernment/Honoursawardsandmedals/DG_067923). The
National Archives. DirectGov (UK). Archived from the original (http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Governmentcitizensandrigh
ts/UKgovernment/Honoursawardsandmedals/DG_067923) on 4 April 2012. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
14. "BEM Recipients Entitled to New Emblem" (http://www.berwickshirenews.co.uk/news/local-news/all-local-news/bem-r
ecipients-entitled-to-new-emblem-1-241213). The Berwickshire News. 12 November 2008. Retrieved 26 July 2014.
15. London Gazette 61450, Thu, 31 December 2015, p. N40
16. London Gazette 61608, Sat 11 June 2016, p. B40
17. However, there were awards of the related British Empire Medal for Gallantry, whose recipients are affiliated with, but
not members of the Order of the British Empire, after the creation of the Order of Canada. see
https://www.thegazette.co.uk/London/issue/44630/page/1
18. London Gazette 51778, Sat, 17 June 1989, p. 45
19. A reformed Honours system (https://publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200304/cmselect/cmpubadm/212/21209.htm),
Select Committee on Public Administration, 7 July 2004, Retrieved 13 May 2012
20. Mills, Merope (27 November 2003). "Rasta poet publicly rejects his OBE" (https://www.theguardian.com/uk/2003/nov/
27/iraq.monarchy). The Guardian. Retrieved 31 July 2015.
21. "Honours system outdated, say MPs" (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/3888581.stm), BBC News, 13 July 2004,
Retrieved 28 February 2007
22. "Chronology of the Life of C.S. Lewis" (https://web.archive.org/web/20120206021046/http://www.cslewis.org/resource
s/chronocsl.html). Archived from the original (http://www.cslewis.org/resources/chronocsl.html) on 6 February 2012.
23. C.S., Lewis (1994). W. H. Lewis, Walter Hooper, ed. Letters of C.S. Lewis (https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASI
N/0156508710/heroesofhistory). New York: Mariner Books. p. 528. ISBN 0-15-650871-0.
24. Brian Roylance; George Harrison; John Lennon; Paul McCartney; Ringo Starr (2000). The Beatles Anthology.
Chronicle Books. p. 183. ISBN 0-8118-2684-8.
25. Dead or Alive (http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,806357,00.html),(subscription required) TIME
Magazine, 12 May 1952

Further reading
Galloway, Peter (1996). The Order of the British Empire. Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood. ISBN 0-
907605-65-6.
Hood, Frederic (1967). The Chapel of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, with a foreword by Prince Philip.
"Knighthood and Chivalry" (1911). Encyclopdia Britannica, 11th ed., London: Cambridge University Press.

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External links
Order of the British Empire (https://www.royal.uk/queen-and-honours) official website of the British Monarchy
The Honours system (https://www.gov.uk/honours) UK Government
Queen's Birthday and New Year honours (https://www.TheGazette.co.uk/honours-lists) The London Gazette, lists
recipients of honours
"The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire" (2002) (https://web.archive.org/web/20040420141242/http://www.ca
m.ac.uk/societies/cuhags/orderofc/brit_emp.htm) Cambridge University Heraldic and Genealogical Society
"Order of Precedence in England and Wales", Velde, F. R. (2003) (http://heraldica.org/topics/britain/order_precedenc
e.htm) Heraldica.org
Search recommendations for the Order of the British Empire on the UK National Archives' website (http://www.nationa
larchives.gov.uk/help-with-your-research/research-guides/recommendations-military-honours-awards-1935-1990/)
The Chapel of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire OBE Chapel Exterior detail (http://ianmcgrawphotos.c
o.uk/wp-content/uploads/2010/08/st_pauls_wedding_london_ianmcgrawphotos_2010_146.jpg) jpg image,
IanMcGrawPhotos.co.uk

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