Kate Middleton was just honoured with a high rank in chivalry denoted by a Maltese cross
The queen had a special gift for Kate Middleton on her eighth wedding anniversary to Prince William. The sovereign appointed the Duchess of Cambridge as Dame Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO). That's quite the mouthful, but what does it mean?
The honour is a form of chivalry given by the queen herself for “services to the sovereign,” Buckingham Palace said in a statement. This honour was originally established by Queen Victoria in 1896 to “personally thank and honour people who had helped her directly, or represented her across the Empire,” royal correspondent Omid Scobie reports.
Omid Scobie states that the order is denoted by a Maltese cross, which varies in size according to rank. “It is the symbol of the Royal Victoria Order and there are different sizes depending on which of the five rankings the holder is at – with the GCVO being the biggest of them all.”
The honour that Kate received is the highest ranking in the order. In addition to the Duchess, other royal family members with this title include Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall (appointed in 2012), Sophie, Countess of Wessex (appointed in 2010), and Prince Philip (appointed in 2017). Prince Harry was appointed a Knight Commander of the order in 2015.
Duchess Kate previously received a Royal Family Order from the queen, which is a small portrait of the monarch attached to a ribbon and gifted to members of the royal family. She publicly debuted the badge during a state dinner at Buckingham Palace in October 2018.
Congrats Duchess Kate!