History

The Order was initially designed by Peter the Great in 1698, but it was not officially instituted until 1699.

It was considered the highest Order of Chivalry in the Russian Empire, and it was awarded for acts of extraordinary military or civil merit.

Recipients of this Order were automatically conferred the Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky, the Order of the White Eagle, the Order of Saint Anne (I Class only), and the Order of Saint Stanislaus (I Class only).

Low ranking recipients automatically moved up to the position of Lieutenant General or Vice Admiral.

The statutes for the Order were created in 1720, but were never officially approved by Peter the Great. Since the Tsar controlled the production of this Order, a number of variations exist.

This Order was discontinued during the USSR, and re-instituted as the most prestigious Russian Order by the Russian Federation in 1998.

The Order awards with diamonds were a special distinction and they were added to the award at the expense of the recipient.

The collar was only worn on state occasions.

There is limited information regarding this item.