Order of Charles XIII


The Royal Order of Charles XIII is a Swedish order of merit, founded by King Charles XIII in 1811.

Membership

The Lord and Master of the Order is the King of Sweden, currently King Carl XVI Gustaf. Membership of the order can only be conferred on Freemasons of the Protestant faith. The membership of the order comprises:
There can never be more than 33 persons who are members at the same time..

Insignia and regalia

The insignia consists of a red St George cross, in the centre a white globe with the monogram of the institutor, two opposite letters C surrounding XIII, in gold. On the reverse the globe has the letter B in gold in an equilateral black and gold edged triangle. The cross is surmounted by a closed golden crown. The insignia is worn around the neck in a red ribbon. There is also red breast red cross: the insignia hence is the same as a Commander 1st Class and recipients rank after the Commanders 1st Class of the Swedish Royal Orders.
The order uses a habit, introduced 1822, and new knights are dubbed.