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The Most Noble Order of the Garter, founded in 1348, is the highest order of chivalry and the third most prestigious honour (after the Victoria Cross and George Cross) in England and of the United Kingdom, and is dedicated to the image and arms of St. George as England's patron saint. It is awarded at the Sovereign's pleasure as a personal gift on recipients from the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms. Membership of the Order is limited to the Sovereign, the Prince of Wales, and no more than 24 members, or Companions. The order also includes supernumerary knights and ladies (e.g. members of the British Royal Family and foreign monarchs). New appointments to the Order of the Garter are always announced on St George's Day, 23 April, as Saint George is the patron saint of England. The order's emblem is a garter with the motto ''Honi soit qui mal y pense'' (Middle French: "shame on him who thinks evil of it") in gold lettering. Members of the order wear it on ceremonial occasions. ==History== King Edward III founded the Order of the Garter around the time of his claim to the French throne.〔(【引用サイトリンク】title=College of St George – Windsor Castle – The Order of the Garter )〕 The year is usually presumed to be 1348, however, the ''Complete Peerage'', under "The Founders of the Order of the Garter", states the order was first instituted on 23 April 1344, listing each founding member as knighted in 1344. The list includes Sir Sanchet D'Abrichecourt, who died on 20 October 1345. Other dates from 1344 to 1351 have also been proposed. The King's wardrobe account shows Garter habits first issued in the autumn of 1348. Also, its original statutes required that each member of the Order already be a knight (what would now be referred to as a knight bachelor) and some of the initial members listed were only knighted that year. The earliest written mention of the Order is found in ''Tirant lo Blanch'', a chivalric romance written in Valencian mainly by Joanot Martorell. It was first published in 1490. This book devotes a chapter to the description of the origin of the Order of the Garter. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Order of the Garter」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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