The Order given for personal service to the Sovereign
The Royal Victorian Order is in the Monarch’s own gift. We design, make and supply its insignia across all five grades, together with the Chancery items that go with them.
What the Order is
The Royal Victorian Order is the honour the Monarch confers personally, without ministerial advice, for service rendered to the Sovereign. It runs to five grades, and the badge at every grade takes the form of a Maltese cross.
Because the Order is in the Monarch’s own gift, its insignia is worn by members of the Royal Family, by foreign royalty and dignitaries, and by officials across the Commonwealth.
All the insignia are handcrafted using noble materials such as gold, silver, and vitreous enamels.
How we make it
We work in gold, silver and vitreous enamel, by hand, and we make every grade rather than a selection of them. The grades have to differ from one another in ways a viewer can read at a glance, and those differences only hold if the whole family is designed and made together.
We also produce the associated Chancery items, which are the pieces the Order needs in order to administer and present the honour rather than to wear it.
The Garter Star made for the thousandth Knight Companion
Queen Elizabeth II appointed Cleave to produce a new Garter Star for Prince William, who entered the Order’s register as its thousandth Knight Companion.
2003 and 2023The Lieutenancy badges
Cleave has been involved in the Lieutenancy badges since the re-design of 2003, and again with His Majesty The King in 2023.
2023The King’s and Queen’s Messenger badges
The badge a King’s Messenger carries traces to Charles II in exile. We drew the change from Queen’s Messengers to King’s Messengers in 2023.