Order of Merit of the Italian Republic
The Order of Merit of the Italian Republic was founded as the senior order of knighthood by the second President of the Italian Republic, Luigi Einaudi in 1951.
The highest ranking honour of the Republic, it is awarded for "merit acquired by the nation" in the fields of literature, the arts, economy, public service, and social, philanthropic and humanitarian activities and for long and conspicuous service in civilian and military careers. The post-nominal letters for the order are OMRI.
The order effectively replaced national orders such as the Civil Order of Savoy, the Order of the Crown of Italy, the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus and the Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation.
Grades
Investiture takes place biannually on 2 June, the anniversary of the foundation of the Republic and on 27 December, the anniversary of the promulgation of the Italian Constitution. However, those awards on Presidential motu proprio, related to termination of service or granted to foreigners may be made at any time.The badge, modified in 2001, bears the inscription Al Merito della Repubblica encircling the national coat of arms on the obverse and the Latin Patriæ Unitati and Civium Libertati encircling the head of Italia Turrita on the reverse. The six degrees with corresponding ribbons are as follows :
| Ribbon | Ribbon | Class | Full title in Italian | Awards |
| Knight Grand Cross with Collar | Cavaliere di Gran Croce Decorato di Gran Cordone Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana | 199 | ||
| 1st Class / Knight Grand Cross | Cavaliere di Gran Croce Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana | 9,178 | ||
| 2nd Class / Grand Officer | Grande Ufficiale Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana | 24,830 | ||
| 3rd Class / Commander | Commendatore Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana | 48,184 | ||
| 4th Class / Officer | Ufficiale Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana | 33,442 | ||
| 5th Class / Knight | Cavaliere Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana | 146,390 |
The order is bestowed by decree of the President of the Italian Republic, as head of the orders of knighthood, on the recommendation of the President of the Council of Ministers. Except in exceptional circumstances, no one can be awarded for the first time a rank higher than Knight. The minimum age requirement is normally 35.
The Knight Grand Cross with Collar is awarded just to heads of state.
Recipients
Grand Cross with Collar
- Presidency of Luigi Einaudi :
| Date | Recipient |
| 28 December 1952 | – King Paul I |
| 11 March 1953 | – President Getúlio Vargas |
| 30 May 1953 | – Prince Rainier III |
| 16 July 1953 | – President Camille Chamoun |
| 6 October 1953 | – President Marcos Pérez Jiménez |
| 16 November 1953 | – President Juan Domingo Perón |
| 31 December 1953 | – President Theodor Heuss |
| 13 February 1954 | – President Paul Magloire |
| 31 July 1954 | – President Rafael Trujillo |
| 6 September 1954 | – President Carlos Ibanez del Campo |
| 17 November 1954 |  Sovereign Order of Malta – Liutenant Grand Master Fra' Antonio Hercolani Fava Simonetti |
| 6 December 1954 | – President René Coty |
| 12 February 1955 | – President Oscar Osorio |
- Presidency of Giovanni Gronchi :
| Date | Recipient |
| 11 May 1955 | – Former President Luigi Einaudi |
| 21 October 1955 | – Emperor Haile Selassie |
| 16 January 1956 | – President Juscelino Kubitschek |
| 5 June 1956 | – Former President Enrico De Nicola |
| 20 September 1956 | – President William Tubman |
| 15 November 1956 | – President Manuel Prado Ugarteche |
| 18 January 1957 | – President José Figueres Ferrer |
| 6 March 1957 | Sovereign Order of Malta – Liutenant Grand Master Fra' Ernesto Paternò Castello di Carcaci |
| 11 March 1957 | — President Seán T. O'Kelly |
| 13 May 1957 | – President Celal Bayar |
| 11 June 1957 | – President Ernesto de la Guardia |
| 26 August 1957 | Pahlavi dynasty – Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi |
| 1 October 1957 | – President José María Lemus |
| 9 May 1958 | – Queen Elizabeth II |
| 16 June 1959 | – President Charles De Gaulle |
| 11 June 1960 | – President Arturo Frondizi |
| 8 September 1960 | – President Urho Kaleva Kekkonen |
| 22 September 1960 | – King Bhumibol Adulyadej |
| 29 November 1960 | – President Benito Nardone |
| 6 April 1961 | – President Eduardo Víctor Haedo |
- Presidency of Antonio Segni :
| Date | Recipient |
| 25 May 1962 | – President Habib Bourguiba |
| 2 October 1962 | – President Léopold Sédar Senghor |
| 8 October 1962 | Sovereign Order of Malta – Prince and Grand Master Fra' Angelo de Mojana di Cologna |
| 27 November 1962 | – Prince Constantine |
| 25 September 1963 | – President Kwame Nkrumah |
| 2 October 1963 | – President Aden Adde |
| 20 April 1964 | – King Frederick IX |
| 18 June 1964 | – President Luis Giannattasio |
- Presidency of Giuseppe Saragat :
| Date | Recipient |
| 16 June 1965 | – President Fernando Belaúnde Terry |
| 20 June 1965 | – President Gustavo Díaz Ordaz |
| 21 June 1965 | – King Olav V |
| 2 July 1965 | – President Eduardo Frei Montalva |
| 8 August 1965 | – President Heinrich Lübke |
| 8 September 1965 | – President Raúl Leoni |
| 8 September 1965 | – President Arturo Umberto Illia |
| 8 September 1965 | – President Humberto de Alencar Castelo Branco |
| 21 October 1965 | PPR – Chairman of the Council of State Edward Ochab |
| 11 June 1966 | – King Baudouin |
| 14 June 1966 | – King Gustaf VI Adolf |
| 28 November 1966 | – President Julio Adalberto Rivera Carballo |
| 8 August 1969 | – President Félix Houphouët-Boigny |
| 2 October 1969 | – President Josip Broz Tito |
- Presidency of Giovanni Leone :
| Date | Recipient |
| 30 December 1971 | – President Franz Jonas |
| 23 November 1972 | – President Suharto |
| 21 March 1973 | – President Gustav Heinemann |
| 8 May 1973 | – President Mobutu Sese Seko |
| 21 May 1973 | – President of the State Council Nicolae Ceausescu |
| 8 June 1973 | – King Faisal |
| 1 October 1973 | – President Georges Pompidou |
| 23 October 1973 | – Queen Juliana |
| 23 October 1973 | – Prince Bernhard |
| 26 October 1973 | – Grand Duke Jean |
| 21 November 1973 | – President Omar Bongo |
| 8 February 1974 | – President Luis Echeverría |
| 22 April 1974 | – Sultan Qaboos bin Said al Said |
| 15 December 1974 | Pahlavi dynasty – Prince Reza Pahlavi |
| 15 December 1974 | Pahlavi dynasty – Shahbanu Farah Pahlavi |
| 6 April 1976 | – President Anwar Sadat |
| 17 November 1976 | – President Carlos Andrés Pérez |
| 8 November 1977 | – Queen Margrethe II |
| 29 April 1978 | – President Fahri Koruturk |
- Presidency of Sandro Pertini :
| Date | Recipient |
| 18 September 1979 | – President Karl Carstens |
| 14 May 1980 | – President António Ramalho Eanes |
| 26 May 1980 | – King Juan Carlos I |
| 18 November 1980 | – President Konstantinos Karamanlis |
| 17 December 1980 | – President Cvijetin Mijatović |
| 30 March 1981 | – President José López Portillo |
| 30 March 1981 | – President Rodrigo Carazo Odio |
| 1 April 1981 | – President Julio César Turbay Ayala |
| 14 October 1981 | – President Samora Machel |
| 30 January 1982 | – President Hosni Moubarak |
| 9 March 1982 | – Emperor Hirohito |
| 5 July 1982 | – President François Mitterrand |
| 26 November 1983 | – King Hussein |
| 20 June 1984 | – President Luis Alberto Monge |
| 11 March 1985 | – President Raúl Alfonsín |
| 27 March 1985 | – Queen Beatrix |
| 27 March 1985 | – Prince Claus |
- Presidency of Francesco Cossiga :
| Date | Recipient |
| 24 April 1986 | – President Richard von Weizsäcker |
| 25 July 1986 | – President Patrick John Hillery |
| 5 October 1987 | – President Vigdís Finnbogadóttir |
| 6 June 1988 | – President Jaime Lusinchi |
| 16 June 1988 | – President Corazon Aquino |
| 5 April 1989 | – President Mario Soares |
| 12 May 1989 | – President Wojciech Jaruzelski |
| 22 May 1990 | Sovereign Order of Malta – Prince and Grand Master Fra' Andrew Bertie |
| 11 June 1990 | – Captain Regent Ottaviano Rossi |
| 11 June 1990 | – Captain Regent Aldemiro Bartolini |
| 8 April 1991 | – King Carl XVI Gustav |
| 17 April 1991 | – President Patricio Aylwin |
| 15 July 1991 | – President Árpád Göncz |
| 18 September 1991 | – President Censu Tabone |
| 19 December 1991 | – President Boris Yeltsin |
| 28 April 1992 | – President Francesco Cossiga self-awarded |
- Presidency of Oscar Luigi Scalfaro :
| Date | Recipient |
| 5 October 1992 | – President Carlos Menem |
| 27 January 1993 | – President Thomas Klestil |
| 14 September 1993 | – President Mauno Koivisto |
| 3 May 1995 | – President Leonid Kuchma |
| 24 June 1995 | – President Fernando Henrique Cardoso |
| 29 June 1995 | – President Rafael Caldera |
| 19 July 1995 | – President Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle |
| 21 July 1995 | – President Julio María Sanguinetti |
| 16 November 1995 | – President Ugo Mifsud Bonnici |
| 26 March 1996 | – President Ernesto Zedillo |
| 23 April 1996 | – President Sali Berisha |
| 28 May 1996 | – President Aleksander Kwaśniewski |
| 7 October 1996 | – President Süleyman Demirel |
| 28 January 1997 | – President Martti Ahtisaari |
| 20 April 1997 | – President Roman Herzog |
| 2 May 1997 | – President Islam Karimov |
| 4 May 1997 | – President Nursultan Nazarbayev |
| 20 May 1997 | – President Algirdas Brazauskas |
| 21 May 1997 | – President Guntis Ulmanis |
| 22 May 1997 | – President Lennart Meri |
| 19 July 1997 | – King Fahd |
| 5 November 1997 | – President Elias Hrawi |
| 13 November 1997 | – President Michal Kovac |
| 3 March 1998 | – Captain Regent Marino Zanotti |
| 3 March 1998 | – Captain Regent Luigi Mazza |
| 12 April 1998 | – Emperor Akihito |
| 12 May 1998 | – King Albert II |
| 19 January 1999 | – President Leonel Fernández |
| 19 February 1999 | Palestine – President Yasser Arafat |
| 23 February 1999 | – President Valdas Adamkus |
- Presidency of Carlo Azeglio Ciampi :''
| Date | Recipient |
| 21 October 1999 | – President Jacques Chirac |
| 15 November 1999 | – President Abdelaziz Bouteflika |
| 2 March 2000 | – President Kim Dae-Jung |
| 3 March 2000 | – President Ricardo Lagos |
| 11 April 2000 | – King Mohammed VI |
| 26 April 2000 | – Emir Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani |
| 23 January 2001 | – President Konstantinos Stephanopoulos |
| 9 February 2001 | – King Abdullah II |
| 7 March 2001 | – President Fernando de la Rúa |
| 7 March 2001 | – President Jorge Batlle |
| 19 October 2001 | – King Harald V |
| 27 November 2001 | – President Jorge Sampaio |
| 14 January 2002 | – President Vojislav Koštunica |
| 6 March 2002 | – President Thabo Mbeki |
| 11 March 2002 | – Captain Regent Gino Giovagnoli |
| 11 March 2002 | – Captain Regent Alberto Cecchetti |
| 22 March 2002 | – President Johannes Rau |
| 27 March 2002 | – President Vaclav Havel |
| 17 June 2002 | – President Ferenc Mádl |
| 28 June 2002 | – President Rudolf Schuster |
| 4 December 2002 | – President Alejandro Toledo |
| 14 March 2003 | – Grand Duke Henri |
| 9 June 2003 | – King Sirajuddin of Perlis |
| 16 January 2004 | – President Guido de Marco |
| 8 April 2004 | – President Vaira Vīķe-Freiberga |
| 8 April 2004 | – President Arnold Ruutel |
| 5 April 2005 | – President Georgi Parvanov |
| 11 May 2005 | – President Edward Fenech Adami |
| 12 December 2005 | – Prince Albert II |
| 18 January 2006 | – President Karolos Papoulias |
| 15 March 2006 | – President Horst Kohler |
- Presidency of Giorgio Napolitano :
| Date | Recipient |
| 11 October 2006 | – President John Agyekum Kufour |
| 20 February 2007 | – President Ivan Gašparovič |
| 8 June 2007 | – President Heinz Fischer |
| 9 October 2007 | – President Michelle Bachelet |
| 30 October 2007 | – King Abdullah bin Abdul-Aziz al Saud |
| 1 September 2008 | – President Tarja Halonen |
| 14 October 2008 | – President Michel Suleiman |
| 27 October 2008 | Sovereign Order of Malta – Prince and Grand Master Fra' Matthew Festing |
| 2 September 2009 | – President Lee Myung-bak |
| 30 October 2009 | – President Abdullah Gül |
| 11 March 2010 | – Revoked by the President of the Republic on 28 September 2012 for "indignity" |
| 25 April 2010 | – President George Abela |
| 26 April 2010 | – Emir Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah |
| 11 January 2011 | – President Danilo Türk |
| 6 July 2011 | – President Ivo Josipović |
| 7 September 2011 | – President Traian Băsescu |
| 10 June 2012 | – President Bronisław Komorowski |
| 15 November 2012 | – President François Hollande |
| 20 February 2013 | – President Joachim Gauck |
| 4 March 2014 | – President Bujar Nishani |
| 5 May 2014 | – President Borut Pahor |
| 4 June 2014 | – Captain Regent Luca Beccari |
| 4 June 2014 | – Captain Regent Valeria Ciavatta |
- Presidency of Sergio Mattarella :
| Date | Recipient |
| 23 November 2015 | – President Prokopis Pavlopoulos |
| 11 March 2016 | – President Paul Biya |
| 30 May 2016 | – President Klaus Iohannis |
| 21 June 2016 | – President Enrique Peña Nieto |
| 4 August 2016 | – President Rosen Plevneliev |
| 23 January 2017 | – President Beji Caid Essebsi |
| 2 May 2017 | – President Mauricio Macri |
| 19 June 2017 | – King Willem-Alexander |
| 7 September 2017 | – President Marie Louise Coleiro Preca |
| 18 September 2017 | – President Sauli Niinistö |
| 29 November 2017 | – President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa |
| 5 June 2018 | – President Kersti Kaljulaid |
| 22 June 2018 | – President Dalia Grybauskaitė |
| 26 June 2018 | – President Raimonds Vējonis |
| 12 July 2018 | – President Ilham Aliyev |
| 25 July 2018 | – President Armen Sarkissian |
| 27 June 2019 | – President Alexander Van der Bellen |
| 17 September 2019 | – President Frank-Walter Steinmeier |