83-459: Sir Robert Ho Tung Bosman , KBE JP (22 December 1862 – 26 April 1956, Chinese: 何東), also known as Sir Robert Ho Tung , was a businessman and philanthropist in British Hong Kong . Known as "the grand old man of Hong Kong" ( Chinese : 香港大老 ), he was knighted in 1915 ( Knight Bachelor ) and 1955 ( KBE ). Ho Tung was Eurasian. His father, Charles Henry Maurice Bosman (1839–1892),
166-525: A "co-equal" wife; they married in 1895. Clara Ho Tung later gave birth to three sons and seven daughters. Robert and Margaret were baptised as Christians late in life and interred at the Hong Kong Cemetery . The rest of his family, including Clara, are buried in the Eurasian cemetery, Chiu Yuen Cemetery , located on Mount Davis . He was appointed Knight Bachelor in 1915 and made a Knight Commander of
249-404: A broad riband or sash, passing from the right shoulder to the left hip. Knights Commander and male Commanders wear the badge from a ribbon around the neck; male Officers and Members wear the badge from a ribbon on the left chest; female recipients other than Dames Grand Cross (unless in military uniform) normally wear it from a bow on the left shoulder. An oval eight-pointed star is worn, pinned to
332-449: A circlet bearing the motto of the Order; the reverse bears George V's Royal and Imperial Cypher. (Prior to 1937 Britannia was shown within the circlet.) The size of the badges varies according to rank: the higher classes have slightly larger badges. The badges of Knights and Dames Grand Cross, Knights and Dames Commander, and Commanders are enamelled, with pale blue crosses, crimson circlets and
415-466: A citizen of a Commonwealth realm can convert their appointment from honorary to substantive, and they then enjoy all privileges of membership of the order, including use of the title of Sir and Dame for the senior two ranks of the Order. (An example of the latter is Irish broadcaster Terry Wogan , who was appointed an honorary Knight Commander of the Order in 2005, and on successful application for British citizenship, held alongside his Irish citizenship,
498-731: A fact reflected in his sartorial preference. By the age of 35, he was believed to be the richest man in Hong Kong. He was awarded an honorary Doctorate of Laws by the University of Hong Kong in 1916. In 1927, his wife Clara expanded "The Falls", one of the four Peak houses owned by Ho Tung, into a sumptuous residence now known as Ho Tung Gardens at 75 Peak Road. Ho Tung himself lived in a nearby house named The Neuk, although he did entertain visiting notables such as US vice-president John Nance Garner and playwright George Bernard Shaw at Ho Tung Gardens. Ho Tung identified himself both as Chinese and as
581-443: A gold central medallion. Officers' badges are plain silver-gilt, while those of Members are plain silver. From 1917 until 1937, the badge of the order was suspended on a purple ribbon, with a red central stripe being added for the military division in 1918. Since 1937, the ribbon has been rose-pink with pearl-grey edges (with the addition of a pearl-grey central stripe for the military division). Knights and Dames Grand Cross wear it on
664-711: A permanent resident of British Hong Kong. He gave generously to Dr. Sun Yat-sen 's campaigns to establish the Republic of China , but saw no contradiction in civic participation in British Hong Kong. As a millionaire with significant influence in the colony, he heavily emphasised to the British colonial administration that no part of the Chinese demographic were "purely indigenous". Many were "birds of passage" on their way to Southeast Asia, but many, like himself, became permanent residents,
747-520: A testimony to their "faith in the permanent prosperity of the colony and the safety of domicile under the folds of the British flag ". Ho Tung was the director of many Hong Kong companies, including Hong Kong Land , and served on the boards of influential charitable organisations, including the Tung Wah Hospital . He was founder and first chairman of The Chinese Club , which was created in response to
830-512: Is an image of Britannia surrounded by the motto, with the words "For Meritorious Service" at the bottom; on the reverse is George V's Imperial and Royal Cypher, with the words "Instituted by King George V" at the bottom. The name of the recipient is engraved on the rim. This medal is nicknamed "the Gong", and comes in both full-sized and miniature versions – the latter for formal white-tie and semi-formal black-tie occasions. A lapel pin for everyday wear
913-931: Is not a member of the College of Arms , as are many other heraldic officers; and the Lady Usher of the Purple Rod does not – unlike the Order of the Garter equivalent, the Lady Usher of the Black Rod – perform any duties related to the House of Lords . Since the Second World War, several Commonwealth realms have established their own national system of honours and awards and have created their own unique orders, decorations and medals. A number, though, continue to make recommendations for appointments to
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#1732916496657996-615: Is one of the early Christian cemeteries in Hong Kong dating to its colonial era beginning in 1845. It is located beside the racecourse at Happy Valley , along with the Jewish Cemetery , Hindu Cemetery, Parsee Cemetery, St. Michael's Catholic Cemetery and the Muslim Cemetery. Hong Kong Cemetery is a public cemetery managed by the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department . Hong Kong Cemetery contains 79 scattered Commonwealth burials of
1079-584: The British Empire Medal , and the following year its recipients were granted the right to use the postnominal letters BEM. During the war, the BEM came to be used to recognise acts of bravery which did not merit the award of a George Cross or George Medal , a use which continued until the introduction of the Queen's Gallantry Medal in 1974. The designs of insignia of the order and medal were altered in 1937, prior to
1162-573: The Empire Gallantry Medal , were given permission to use the postnominal letters EGM (and at the same time to add a laurel branch emblem to the ribbon of the medal); however, in 1940, awards of the EGM ceased and all holders of the medal were instructed to exchange it for a new and more prestigious gallantry award: the George Cross . In 1941, the medal of the order 'for meritorious service' was renamed
1245-646: The Hong Kong Club 's unofficial policy of excluding any non-Europeans from joining. His second wife, Clara, was a devout Buddhist . Through her educational charity, to which Sir Robert gave HK$ 100,000 on their 50th wedding anniversary in 1931, the Po Kok Day and Evening School and the Tung Lin Kok Yuen in Happy Valley were founded. Robert Ho Tung had four sisters and five brothers, including: At age 15, Robert
1328-640: The Japanese occupation of Hong Kong , under the protection granted by Portuguese neutrality in Macau . Also, there is a school named after him called Escola Primária Oficial Luso-Chinesa Sir Robert Ho Tung ( 何東中葡小學 ). Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry , rewarding contributions to
1411-582: The New York Stock Exchange and at General Motors before returning to Hong Kong. He married Patricia Anne Shea and they had five sons and three daughters. He died in 2017, aged 91. Robert and Clara's second son, Robbie Ho Shai-lai (1906–1998), was a general under the Kuomintang regime. He renounced his British nationality and became a citizen of the Republic of China. He was also ambassador to Japan for
1494-484: The Order of Canada . On the other hand, the Australian Honours System unilaterally created in 1975 did not achieve bi-partisan support until 1992, which was when Australian federal and state governments agreed to cease Australian recommendations for British honours; the last Australian recommended Order of the British Empire appointments were in the 1989 Queen's Birthday Honours . New Zealand continued to use
1577-709: The Republic of China from 1952 to 1956 and a member of the Nationalist China military delegation to the United Nations from 1956 to 1966. Robbie's son Robert Hung-Ngai Ho , a former journalist and publisher in Hong Kong, is the founder of the Tung Lin Kok-yuen Canada Society, a Buddhist charity. He resides in West Vancouver , Canada, and is a recipient of the Order of British Columbia for his philanthropic work in that province. A third son, Henry,
1660-523: The Royal Artillery in memory of their fallen comrades, which were later moved to the Hong Kong Museum of Coastal Defence . The civilian burials in the cemetery are diverse and exemplify the social structure at the early stage of the colonial era . It is widely understood that the cemetery is for the burial of the privileged group of the society , mostly British. Notable people of that era buried in
1743-444: The coronation of King George VI , 'in commemoration of the reign of King George V and Queen Mary, during which the Order was founded'. The figure of Britannia at the centre of the badge of the order was replaced with an image of the crowned heads of the late King and Queen Mary, and the words 'Instituted by King George V' were added to the reverse of the medal. The colour of the riband was also changed: twenty years earlier, prior to
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#17329164966571826-464: The 21st century quotas were introduced to ensure consistent representation among recipients across nine categories of eligibility: with the largest proportion of awards being reserved for community, voluntary and local service. Non-military awards of the British Empire Medal resumed in 2012, starting with 293 BEMs awarded for Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee . In 2017 the centenary of
1909-788: The British Empire . Rather than using this chapel, the Order now holds its great services upstairs in the nave of the cathedral. In addition to the Chapel of the Order of the British Empire, St Paul's Cathedral also houses the Chapel of the Order of St Michael and St George . Religious services for the whole Order are held every four years; new Knights and Dames Grand Cross are installed at these services. Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander prefix Sir , and Dames Grand Cross and Dames Commander prefix Dame , to their forenames. Wives of Knights may prefix Lady to their surnames, but no equivalent privilege exists for husbands of Knights or spouses of Dames. Such forms are not used by peers and princes, except when
1992-443: The British Empire for Gallantry. Any individual made a member of the order for gallantry after 14 January 1958 wears an emblem of two crossed silver oak leaves on the same ribbon as the badge, with a miniature version on the ribbon bar when worn alone. When the ribbon only is worn the emblem is worn in miniature. It could not be awarded posthumously , and was replaced in 1974 with the Queen's Gallantry Medal (QGM). If recipients of
2075-495: The British-owned trading conglomerate Jardine, Matheson & Co. He later left for England, where he became naturalised in 1888. In Cantonese, Bosman was pronounced Bo-se-man, which transliterated into Cantonese to become Ho Sze Man. When Robert Ho Tung Bosman travelled, he carried a certificate from the governor of Hong Kong stating that his father was Dutch. He was educated at Queen's College, Hong Kong (previously known as
2158-582: The Central School). After graduating from Queen's College in 1878, Ho Tung went to Canton , where he worked as a clerk for the Chinese Imperial Maritime Customs . In 1880, he returned to Hong Kong and joined Jardine Matheson as an assistant in the compradore department. His bilingual skills and business acumen eventually propelled him to become Head Compradore in 1894. Although he was of mixed parentage, Ho Tung considered himself Chinese,
2241-780: The Crown of Italy 1933, Knight Commander of the Crown of Leopold of Belgium 1933, and Knight Commander of the Imperial Order of the Dragon of Annam 1936. Robert and Clara's eldest son, Edward Hotung (1902–1957), became a prominent banker and philanthropist in Hong Kong. He was a founder of the Chinese Gold and Silver Exchange in Hong Kong, as well as Treasurer of the Chinese War Chest in Shanghai during
2324-806: The First World War and 62 from the Second World War, which are maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission . The Protestant Cemetery is built as a series of terraces ascending a hillside. The older graves tend to be at the bottom of the hill; those from the 1930s and 1940s are generally at the top. On a number of occasions, remains in the Protestant Cemetery have been disinterred to make way for road developments, and have been placed in niches in an ossuary, which continues to be used for contemporary cremations. The niches provide basic information on each individual. Some sections of
2407-643: The Japanese occupation. He had two sons, Sir Joseph Hotung KBE (1930–2021) and Eric Hotung CBE (1926–2017); and two daughters, Mary Ketterer, who received the Royal Order of the Golden Ark for her work in conservation, and Antonia. Joseph Hotung was a businessman, philanthropist and art collector who received an LLB from the University of London . He served on the boards of HSBC and Hongkong Electric Holdings Ltd, and
2490-845: The Military Division of the order from the UK and across the Empire. Recommendations for all appointments to the Order of the British Empire were originally made on the nomination of the King's United Kingdom ministers (recommendations for overseas awards were made by the Foreign Office , the Colonial Office , the India Office and the Dominions Office ); but in the early 1940s the system was changed to enable
2573-557: The Order of the British Empire (KBE) in 1955. He was a Justice of the Peace since 1889, Knight of Grace of St. John of Jerusalem (1925), Order of Christ of Portugal (promoted Grand Officer in 1930), First Class Order of the Excellent Crop with Sash of China 1922, Knight Commander of the Legion of Honour 1932, First Class German Red Cross Decoration 1932, Knight Commander of the Order of
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2656-436: The Order of the British Empire for Gallantry received promotion within the order, whether for gallantry or otherwise, they continued to wear also the insignia of the lower grade with the oak leaves; however, they used only the post-nominal letters of the higher grade. When the order was founded in 1917, badges, ribands and stars were appointed for wear by recipients. In 1929 mantles, hats and collars were added for recipients of
2739-513: The Order of the British Empire. In 2024 appointments to the order were made by the governments of: Most members of the order are citizens of the United Kingdom or Commonwealth realms that use the UK system of honours and awards. In addition, honorary awards may be made to citizens of nations where the monarch is not head of state ; these permit use of post-nominal letters, but not the title of Sir or Dame . Honorary appointees who later become
2822-404: The Order, however, are not assigned any special precedence. As a general rule, only wives and children of male recipients are afforded privileges. Knights and Dames Grand Cross are also entitled to be granted heraldic supporters . They may, furthermore, encircle their arms with a depiction of the circlet (a circle bearing the motto) and the collar; the former is shown either outside or on top of
2905-556: The Protestant Cemetery tended to be reserved for particular groups of deceased, e.g., army, navy, Hong Kong Police. There are two main categories of graves that can be found in Hong Kong Cemetery: As the name states, this category of graves for British military dead, spanned from the late 19th century until the early 1960s (when the Government of Hong Kong established another cemetery near Sai Wan for military dead in 1965). At
2988-486: The UK continue to make appointments to the order. Honorary awards may be made to citizens of other nations of which the order's sovereign is not the head of state. The five classes of appointment to the Order are, from highest grade to lowest grade: The senior two ranks of Knight or Dame Grand Cross and Knight or Dame Commander entitle their members to use the titles Sir for men and Dame for women before their forenames, except with honorary awards. King George V founded
3071-533: The UK. Her memoir is called My Memorie s. There are many parks, schools, and buildings named after or founded by Robert Ho Tung in Hong Kong, including Lady Hotung Hall at Hong Kong University , Hotung Secondary School, Tung Lin Kok-yuen Buddhist temple, and King George V School . In Macau , the Sir Robert Ho Tung Library is housed in a mansion once owned by Ho Tung, who resided there during
3154-460: The United Kingdom; those who would formerly have met the criteria for the medal were instead made eligible for the MBE. In 2004, a report entitled A Matter of Honour: Reforming Our Honours System by a Commons select committee recommended phasing out the Order of the British Empire, as its title was "now considered to be unacceptable, being thought to embody values that are no longer shared by many of
3237-403: The arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service . It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two of which make the recipient either a knight if male or a dame if female. There is also the related British Empire Medal , whose recipients are affiliated with, but not members of,
3320-451: The award of medal of the order to Lizzie Robinson, a munitions worker. The order had been established primarily as a civilian award; in August 1918, however, not long after its foundation, a number of awards were made to serving naval and military personnel. Four months later, a 'Military Division' was added to the order, to which serving personnel would in future be appointed. The classes were
3403-666: The beginning of the colonial era, the British garrison force had the same problem as those in India : weather. Some of the members of the force could not adapt to the tropical weather of Hong Kong and died owing to tropical disease, while others fell during the Boxer Rebellion – mainly in 1900. At the time being, it is the major cemetery for military dead along with Stanley Military Cemetery . There are about 100 military graves of World War I – 79 of them are in Hong Kong Cemetery, mainly
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3486-468: The cathedral. That year, Commonwealth awards made up 40% of all OBEs and MBEs awarded (and 35% of all living recipients of the higher awards). Gradually that proportion reduced as independent states within the Commonwealth established their own systems of honours . The last Canadian recommendation for the Order of the British Empire was an MBE for gallantry gazetted in 1966, a year before the creation of
3569-421: The cemetery include Sir Robert Ho Tung and his first wife, Sir Paul Chater and Sir Kai Ho . Most Christian missionaries to Hong Kong are also buried here, a notable example being Karl Friedrich August Gützlaff , a German missionary who helped to establish Lutheran churches in Hong Kong, who is considered the first Lutheran missionary to China. Another notable missionary interred here is Henrietta Hall Shuck ,
3652-402: The centre for awards in the military division). From time to time the order was expanded: there was an increase in the maximum permitted number of recipients in 1933, and a further increase in 1937. During the Second World War, as had been the case during and after World War I, the number of military awards was greatly increased; between 1939 and 1946 there were more than 33,000 appointments to
3735-418: The circlet. In 1929, to bring the order into line with the other orders of chivalry, members of the first class of the order (GBE) were provided with mantles, hats and collars. Only Knights/Dames Grand Cross wear these elaborate vestments; the hat is now rarely, if ever, worn. Use of the mantle is limited to important occasions (such as quadrennial services and coronations ). The mantle is always worn with
3818-488: The civil division were to be divided equally between UK and overseas awards. With regard to the Medal of the Order (but not the order itself), a distinction was made in 1922 between awards 'for gallantry' and awards 'for meritorious service' (each being appropriately inscribed, and the former having laurel leaves decorating the clasp, the latter oak leaves). In 1933 holders of the medal 'for gallantry', which had come to be known as
3901-444: The collar. Although the mantle was introduced in 1929, very few mantles would have been produced prior to the 1937 design changes, as there were few occasions for wearing them in the intervening years. On certain days designated by the sovereign, known as " collar days ", members attending formal events may wear the order's collar over their military uniform, formal day dress, evening wear or robes of office. Collars are returned upon
3984-479: The country's population". The committee further suggested changing the name of the award to the Order of British Excellence, and changing the rank of Commander to Companion (as the former was said to have a "militaristic ring"), as well as advocating for the abolition of knighthoods and damehoods; the government, however, was not of the opinion that a case for change had been made, and the aforementioned suggestions and recommendations were not, therefore, pursued. In
4067-403: The death of their owners, but other insignia may be retained. The six office-holders of the order wear pearl-grey mantles lined with rose-pink, having on the right side a purple shield charged with the roundel from the badge. Each of these office-holders wears a unique badge of office, suspended from a gold chain worn around the neck. The British Empire Medal is made of silver. On the obverse
4150-607: The distinction between ranks in military operational gallantry awards will cease'. The reforms affected the order at various levels: for example the automatic award each year of a GBE to the Lord Mayor of London ceased; the OBE replaced the Imperial Service Order as an award for civil servants and the number of MBEs awarded each year was significantly increased. As part of these reforms the British Empire Medal stopped being awarded by
4233-639: The first American female missionary to China. There are also a number of Chinese burials, all of them Christians, some of them were involved in the late Qing revolution and uprisings led by Sun Yat-sen, including Yeung Ku-wan , who was assassinated by the Qing Government in Hong Kong. A number of Japanese were buried in the cemetery, mostly those who resided in Hong Kong during the early colonial era. Some of them were Christian, but most were followers of Shinto . The Japanese custom of burning incense during memorial rites led to complaints from some Westerners. As
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#17329164966574316-515: The former was to be responsible for recording all proceedings connected with the order, issuing warrants under the seal of the order and making arrangements for investitures, while the latter (at that time the Permanent Secretary to the Treasury ) was responsible for collecting and tabulating the names of those who were to receive an award. The office of Dean was added in 1957. The King of Arms
4399-401: The governments of overseas dominions to make their own nominations; Canada and South Africa began doing so in 1942, followed by Australia, New Zealand and other Commonwealth realms. In May 1957, forty years after the foundation of the order, it was announced that St Paul's Cathedral was to serve as the church of the order, and in 1960 a chapel was dedicated for its use within the crypt of
4482-450: The highest class of the order (GBE). The designs of all these items underwent major changes in 1937. The badge is worn by all members of the order; the size, colour and design depends on the class of award. The badge for all classes is in the form of a cross patonce (having the arms growing broader and floriated toward the end) with a medallion in the centre, the obverse of which bears a crowned image of George V and Queen Mary within
4565-683: The honours system, calling it "a preposterous charade". The order has attracted some criticism for its naming having connection with the idea of the now-extinct British Empire . Benjamin Zephaniah , a British poet of Jamaican and Barbadian descent, publicly rejected appointment as an Officer in 2003 because, he asserted, it reminded him of "thousands of years of brutality". He also said that "it reminds me of how my foremothers were raped and my forefathers brutalised". Hong Kong Cemetery Hong Kong Cemetery , formerly Hong Kong (Happy Valley) Cemetery and before that Hong Kong Colonial Cemetery ,
4648-446: The insignia to Buckingham Palace and by ceasing to make reference to their honour, but they still hold the honour unless and until annulled by the monarch. In 2003, The Sunday Times published a list of the people who had rejected the Order of the British Empire, including David Bowie , John Cleese , Nigella Lawson , Elgar Howarth , L. S. Lowry , George Melly , and J. G. Ballard . In addition, Ballard voiced his opposition to
4731-624: The junior post-nominal letters. The British sovereign is the sovereign of the order and appoints all other officers of the order (by convention, on the advice of the governments of the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth realms ). The second-most senior officer is the Grand Master (a 'Prince of the Blood Royal, or other exalted personage' appointed by the sovereign, who, by virtue of their appointment, becomes 'the First or Principal Knight Grand Cross of
4814-457: The latter. Knights and Dames Commander and Commanders may display the circlet, but not the collar, surrounding their arms. The badge is depicted suspended from the collar or circlet. See List of current honorary knights and dames of the Order of the British Empire Only the monarch can annul an honour. The Honours Forfeiture Committee considers cases and makes recommendations for forfeiture. An individual can renounce their honour by returning
4897-463: The left breast, by Knights and Dames Grand Cross; Knights and Dames Commander wear a smaller star composed of 'four equal points and four lesser'. The star is not worn by the more junior classes. Prior to 1937 each star had in the centre a gold medallion with a figure of Britannia, surrounded by a crimson circlet inscribed with the motto of the order ('For God and the Empire'); since 1937 the effigies of King George V and Queen Mary have been shown within
4980-421: The names of the former are written out in their fullest forms. Male clergy of the Church of England or the Church of Scotland do not use the title Sir (unless they were knighted before being ordained) as they do not receive the accolade (they are not dubbed "knight" with a sword), although they do append the post-nominal letters ; dames do not receive the accolade, and therefore female clergy are free to use
5063-399: The numbers restricted to the order as full members do. Although the Order of the British Empire has by far the highest number of members of the British orders of chivalry, with more than 100,000 living members worldwide, there are fewer appointments to knighthoods than in other orders. From time to time, individuals may be promoted to a higher grade within the Order, thereby ceasing usage of
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#17329164966575146-489: The order alongside its own honours until the establishment of the New Zealand Order of Merit in 1996. Other Commonwealth realms have continued to use the Order of the British Empire alongside their own honours. In 1993 the Prime Minister, John Major , instituted a reform of the honours system with the aim 'that exceptional service or achievement will be more widely recognised; that greater importance will be given to voluntary service; that automatic honours will end; that
5229-463: The order to fill gaps in the British honours system : In particular, George V wished to create an order to honour the many thousands of individuals from across the Empire who had served in a variety of non-combat roles during the First World War . From its foundation the order consisted of five classes (GBE, KBE/DBE, CBE, OBE and MBE) and was open to both women and men; provision was also made for conferring honorary awards on foreign recipients. At
5312-409: The order was celebrated with a service at St Paul's Cathedral. The order is limited to 300 Knights and Dames Grand Cross, 845 Knights and Dames Commander, and 8,960 Commanders. There are no limits applied to the total number of members of the fourth and fifth classes, but no more than 858 officers and 1,464 members may be appointed per year. Foreign appointees, as honorary members, do not contribute to
5395-410: The order's establishment, Queen Mary had made it known that pink would be her preferred colour for the riband of the proposed new order, but, in the event, purple was chosen. Following her appointment as Grand Master of the order in 1936 a change was duly made and since 9 March 1937 the riband of the order has been 'rose pink edged with pearl grey’ (with the addition of a vertical pearl grey stripe in
5478-402: The order. The order was established on 4 June 1917 by King George V , who created the order to recognise 'such persons, male or female, as may have rendered or shall hereafter render important services to Our Empire'. Equal recognition was to be given for services rendered in the UK and overseas. Today the majority of recipients are UK citizens, though a number of Commonwealth realms outside
5561-425: The presence of these two battalions. There are in all 62 military graves of World War II Commonwealth service personnel – mainly from the year 1941 – maintained by the Commonwealth War Graves Commission . The British force in Hong Kong used the cemetery as their burial ground until 1965. One notable military burial is Driver Joseph Hughes, a recipient of the George Cross . There are also two monuments erected by
5644-426: The same Order'). The position of Grand Master has been held by the following people: In addition to the sovereign and the grand master , the order has six further officers: At its foundation the order was served by three officers: the King of Arms, the Registrar & Secretary and the Gentleman Usher of the Purple Rod. In 1922 the Prelate was added, and the office of Registrar was separated from that of Secretary:
5727-402: The same as for the Civil Division (as it was now termed), but military awards were distinguished by the addition of a central vertical red stripe to the purple riband of the civil awards. In 1920 appointment as an MBE 'for an act of gallantry' was granted for the first time, to Sydney Frank Blanck Esq, who had rescued an injured man from a burning building containing explosives. In December 1922
5810-433: The same time, alongside the order, the Medal of the Order of the British Empire was instituted, to serve as a lower award granting recipients affiliation but not membership. The first investiture took place at Ibrox Stadium , as part of a royal visit to the Glasgow shipyards, with the appointment of Alexander Ure, 1st Baron Strathclyde as a GBE (in recognition of his role as chairman of the Scottish War Savings Committee) and
5893-455: The soldiers who died in Hong Kong and Kowloon Military Hospital, which received the sick and wounded from the German-leased territory of Qingdao , on the Shandong peninsula in north-east China. Evidence shows that most of them are naval personnel. Before the Japanese invasion of Hong Kong in 1941, Britain had sent two battalions from the Royal Scots and Middlesex Regiments to Hong Kong for garrison duty. This cemetery provides evidence of
5976-455: The standard of the George Medal (even though, as appointments to an order of chivalry, they were listed before it on the Order of Wear . In contrast to awards for meritorious service, which usually appear without a citation, there were often citations for gallantry awards, some detailed and graphic. From 14 January 1958, these awards were designated Commander, Officer or Member of the Order of
6059-473: The statutes of the order were amended; there having been a large number of awards for war work prior to this date, these amended statutes placed the order on more of a peacetime footing. For the first time numbers of appointments were limited, with the stipulation that senior awards in the Civil Division were to outnumber those in the Military Division by a proportion of six to one. Furthermore appointments in
6142-506: The title Dame . Knights and Dames Grand Cross use the post-nominal GBE; Knights Commander, KBE; Dames Commander, DBE; Commanders, CBE; Officers, OBE; and Members, MBE. The post-nominal for the British Empire Medal is BEM. Members of all classes of the order are assigned positions in the order of precedence . Wives of male members of all classes also feature on the order of precedence, as do sons, daughters and daughters-in-law of Knights Grand Cross and Knights Commander; relatives of Ladies of
6225-744: Was a former lawyer and legislator in Hong Kong who ran against Tung Chee Hwa in the elections for Chief Executive in 1997. Three other daughters – Irene Cheng , Jean Gittins and Florence Yeo – wrote memoirs chronicling their war-time experiences in colonial Hong Kong. Jean Gittins migrated to Melbourne, Australia, after the War, where she worked in the Pathology Department of Melbourne University. She also wrote six books: I Was at Stanley , Eastern Windows – Western Skies , The Diggers from China , Stanley: Behind Barbed Wire , A Stranger No More and Prizes, Books and Papers (1879/1969 ). Irene Cheng (1904–2007)
6308-399: Was born to Clara but died of tuberculosis when he was four. Robert had another son, George Ho Cho-chi, born out of wedlock. George went on to become founder of Commercial Radio Hong Kong . Robert and Clara's eldest daughter, Victoria, married Sir Man-kam Lo , a prominent Eurasian lawyer and legislator who was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II after World War II. Their son, Lo Tak-shing ,
6391-757: Was chair of the Arts Development Council in Hong Kong and member of the SOAS Governing Body. A trustee of the British Museum from 1994 to 2004, he funded the creation of two new galleries, including the Joseph E. Hotung Gallery of Oriental Antiquities. Eric Hotung was a businessman and ambassador-at-large and economic advisor to Timor-Leste ( East Timor ). He was born in Hong Kong and grew up there and in Shanghai. Eric attended Georgetown University in 1947 and graduated in 1951. Afterwards, he worked at
6474-402: Was first announced at the end of December 2006, and is available to recipients of all levels of the order, as well as to holders of the British Empire Medal . The pin design is not unique to any level. The pin features the badge of the order, enclosed in a circle of ribbon of its colours of pink and grey. Lapel pins must be purchased separately by a member of the order. The creation of such a pin
6557-597: Was informally engaged to the Eurasian daughter of Hector Coll Maclean of Jardines, Margaret Mak (aka Maclean, 麥秀英; 1865–1944). They married when he was 18, and she was 16. Since she was unable to bear children, Robert adopted Ho Fook's first son, Ho Wing, following Chinese tradition, and took Chau Yee-man (周綺文) as a concubine in 1891. Still childless after three years (Chau Yee-man later gave birth to Mary Hotung 何純姿), Margaret persuaded her maternal cousin Clara Cheung Lin-kok (張靜容 a.k.a. 張蓮覺; 1875–1938), to accept his hand as
6640-469: Was made a substantive member and subsequently styled as Sir Terry Wogan). Although initially intended to recognise meritorious service, the order began to also be awarded for gallantry. There were an increased number of cases in the Second World War for service personnel and civilians including the merchant navy, police, emergency services and civil defence, mostly MBEs but with a small number of OBEs and CBEs. Such awards were for gallantry that did not reach
6723-622: Was of Dutch Jewish ancestry, while his mother was Sze Tai (施娣), a Chinese woman of Poon (Bao'an) County (present-day Hong Kong and Shenzhen ) heritage. His father was a merchant who owned Bosman and Co., was part-owner of the Hong Kong Hotel that opened in 1868, and was a director of the Hong Kong and Whampoa Dock Company . By 1869, Charles Bosman was also the Dutch consul, running his own marine insurance business with important clients that included
6806-549: Was one of the first female undergraduate students admitted to study English at the University of Hong Kong in 1921. She went on to earn a Diploma in Education at King's College in London in 1925. In 1936, she received her PhD from the University of London . She is the author of Clara Ho Tung. A Hong Kong Lady: Her Family and Her Times and Intercultural Reminiscences . Florence Yeo married Malaysian-born doctor K.C. Yeo and settled in
6889-566: Was recommended in Sir Hayden Phillips ' review of the honours system in 2004. The Chapel of the Order of the British Empire is in St Paul's Cathedral . It occupies the far eastern end of the cathedral crypt and was dedicated in 1960. The only heraldic banners normally on display in the chapel are those of the Sovereign of the Order of the British Empire and of the Grand Master of the Order of
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