The Royal Family Order (RFO) and other Royal Orders and Decorations 1: Ending 2022

[Dman]

Now that the ivory vs glass issue has been solved, we’ll just have to wait and see.

 

[MaiaMia_53]

To me the only reason why the Queen might give Meghan the RFO in less time than Kate was if she knew she wasn't going to live that long. In that case I can see the Queen giving it to Meghan earlier than Kate simply so that she has it.

If the Queen was told by the doctor's for instance, that she had six months to live, I can see her ensuring that all her female descendants and Meghan have her RFO.

Otherwise I would expect Meghan to also have to wait for another six or so years.

Question: Wouldn't Prince Charles as King (once the Queen passes), be able to award the Royal Family Order too?

It's not generally known when a person is going to live or die. Therefore, a scenario where doctors would be informing the Queen in this way is unlikely, unless the Queen takes seriously ill.

So in terms of the Royal Family Order being awarded to Duchess Meghan, it may take a couple more years, or maybe next year after the Sussex baby is born and the Duchess has performed more public duties of a significant nature. Clearly Duchess Meghan has already brought so much of a positive nature to Prince Harry and to his family.

 

[jacqui24]

Question: Wouldn't Prince Charles as King (once the Queen passes), be able to award the Royal Family Order too?

Charles can give his. And likely Meghan will receive his right away. However, he can't give The Queen's. That's why you see some with multiple orders.

 

[O-H Anglophile]

Right. The Queen herself has the RFO from both her father and grandfather. Princess Alexandra and the Queen are the only surviving women to have the RFO from George VI. Princess Alexandra also has the RFO from the Queen.

 

[Dman]

Meghan’s royal service started under the reign of The Queen, so she’ll get The Queen’s Family Order. Next will be Charles’s.

 

[Pranter]

Assuming she gets the RFO before the Queen passes Dman? She wouldn't get the Queen's RFO after that would she?


LaRae

 

[Abbigail]

To me the only reason why the Queen might give Meghan the RFO in less time than Kate was if she knew she wasn't going to live that long. In that case I can see the Queen giving it to Meghan earlier than Kate simply so that she has it.

If the Queen was told by the doctor's for instance, that she had six months to live, I can see her ensuring that all her female descendants and Meghan have her RFO.

Otherwise I would expect Meghan to also have to wait for another six or so years.

Umm, I definitely don't think she will be waiting 6 years or so, whether the Queen is still with us or not. Given how impressive she's been in just 5 months, I suspect she will have it within the next 2 to 3 years.

 

[MaiaMia_53]

Exactly. Duchess Meghan I think has brought increased positive interest to the royals from around the world, revenue to Great Britain's economy, and general goodwill toward the monarchy throughout the Commonwealth. Because many people are interested in Meghan, we are learning more about what all of the royals are doing. Plus I think Meghan is a wonderful role model for everyone, including some members of the royal family. In addition, she's been learning and working hard from Day 1 to support and encourage Prince Harry and to do all she can for humanitarian efforts, which has already had an impact on a number of charities. All of this makes an important difference to the Queen and the British monarchy. Above all, Meghan has made Prince Harry supremely happy, which means a lot to his family.

Charles can give his. And likely Meghan will receive his right away. However, he can't give The Queen's. That's why you see some with multiple orders.

Ah thanks, I see. No doubt then, the Queen will probably wish to extend the RFO to Meghan sometime soon because time is never promised. I do think the Queen is in good health, so maybe within the next two years or so, Meghan will receive the RFO from the Queen.

 

[loonytick]

As much as I wonder what the queen’s current guidelines are for when to give the order, I also wonder how clear her reasoning is to the family. Has she vocalized a hard and fast rule of some sort so everyone in the fold knows why Kate got hers and why Princess Michael doesn’t have one, or are they presented as a complete surprise and mystery to them, too? I doubt we’ll ever know...

She has clearly changed her approach over time, though. I would offer that there is a possibility that she might not need anything as dire as a bad diagnosis to potentially speed up her granting of RFOs *if* she feels like the idea of knowing her order worn by certain women in the years after her passing, or taking some kind of satisfaction of her own in seeing them wear it, becomes as important to her as the concept of using the RFO to mark a woman reaching some sort of milestone seems to have been. It’s just seems like a shift in thinking that could potentially come with thoughts of needing to just take life in the moment rather than betting on there being years or decades left to come. Not out of any sense of morbidity, just a matter-of-fact acceptance that the scale of what time is left to her is very different from anything she’s experienced before, so might as well not bother waiting with things that have a low level of risk like handing out orders.

But that totally depends on how she thinks of the RFOs, what it means to her to give them and and what she gets or enjoys from granting them to a family member.

 

[jacqui24]

I doubt her own mortality is playing a part. I mean she is 92. It's not like she's been a spring chicken for the past 7 years. She gives them when she wants to. Not a moment before.

 

[Dman]

Assuming she gets the RFO before the Queen passes Dman? She wouldn't get the Queen's RFO after that would she?


LaRae

Likely, because she started her royal career “full-time” under Elizabeth II. I don’t think it’s going to take very long for her to get it.

 

[Iluvbertie]

Assuming she gets the RFO before the Queen passes Dman? She wouldn't get the Queen's RFO after that would she?


LaRae

Once the Queen dies her RFO can't be given to anyone else. The monarch has to be alive for their RFO to be given.

If Meghan doesn't get it before the Queen passes she won't get Elizabeth's.

She will get Charles and probably William's and maybe even George's.

 

[Dman]

Once the Queen dies her RFO can't be given to anyone else. The monarch has to be alive for their RFO to be given.

If Meghan doesn't get it before the Queen passes she won't get Elizabeth's.

She will get Charles and probably William's and maybe even George's.

Oh that’s right, but she’ll get it before then.

 

[M. Payton]

Did you personally ask HM about giving the RFO to Meghan? Don't assume something, bad idea for then it rarely happens. HM will do as HM wants regardless of anyone here or elsewhere when it comes to anything pertaining to the royal family. Catherine had to wait 7 years, please correct me if I am wrong, she worked and learned and became the wife of William without fail, the same should be done for all female members whom HM wants to give the RFO to, but then that decision if up to HM, not me....

 

[Dman]

Did you personally ask HM about giving the RFO to Meghan? Don't assume something, bad idea for then it rarely happens. HM will do as HM wants regardless of anyone here or elsewhere when it comes to anything pertaining to the royal family. Catherine had to wait 7 years, please correct me if I am wrong, she worked and learned and became the wife of William without fail, the same should be done for all female members whom HM wants to give the RFO to, but then that decision if up to HM, not me....

She’s gonna get it, don’t you worry.

I think it would be nice if Charles commissioned a sash and star for his family order as well.

 

[Ish]

Do we really need to start arguing about if/when Meghan is going to receive the RFO?

 

[M. Payton]

She’s gonna get it, don’t you worry.

I think it would be nice if Charles commissioned a sash and star for his family order as well.

I am not worried at all for I in my own opinion here, do not think Meghan deserves it at this point in her life, after all what has she done to deserve it, marry Harry....LOL....so maybe a letter to HM or Prince Charles telling them how they should run the Firm is in order perhaps? I thought the royal family was doing a pretty darn good job of running things without outsiders telling them what to do all the time........we have lots of dreamers here with assumptions, not substance, but dreams. Things will happen in the royal families own good time, as it always does, not before!

 

[Lee-Z]

Do we really need to start arguing about if/when Meghan is going to receive the RFO?

Apparently, yes...I think with the DoCambridge wearing hers, people are missing the long winded discussion about hers and have moved on to the next candidate

I do wonder why Princess Michael never got one (assuming she'd wear it if she had), but i don't think she will anymore

Imo QEII treats most royal activities very businesslike, so my guess there is some thought behind who gets it, but we aren't likely to find out soon what
(i do agree with previous posts who noticed that she used to give it quite soon, but changed in the 80's; imo the divorces of her various children she considered as a disappointment to the Firm)

 

[Claire]

Just surprised that no one is wondering when Charlotte will get hers

 

[Ista]

Just surprised that no one is wondering when Charlotte will get hers

Who knows, she may already have one

 

[Osipi]

Its also very possible that when Kate's was made out of glass, there was more than just one made and Meghan's RFO is waiting in the wings for her. We will never know just when Meghan receives it and most likely will be first seen when Meghan attends a white tie banquet to display it.

I do believe that if there had never been the issue of the ivory, Kate would have been wearing one a long time ago and it was the Queen's loan of her personal wedding bracelet that served as a public symbol of Kate's acceptance in the family (which the RFO does).

Should we see Meghan with her RFO in December at the Diplomatic Corps reception, it will not in any way disparage Kate but show that the RFO from the Queen recognizes William's campaign against the illegal poaching and use of ivory in today's world.

I do think we'll see Meghan with The Queen's RFO as she is splendidly representing HM beautifully since her marriage. I also predict that Charles' RFO will have a green ribbon.

 

[Ish]

Apparently, yes...I think with the DoCambridge wearing hers, people are missing the long winded discussion about hers and have moved on to the next candidate



I do wonder why Princess Michael never got one (assuming she'd wear it if she had), but i don't think she will anymore



Imo QEII treats most royal activities very businesslike, so my guess there is some thought behind who gets it, but we aren't likely to find out soon what

(i do agree with previous posts who noticed that she used to give it quite soon, but changed in the 80's; imo the divorces of her various children she considered as a disappointment to the Firm)

I think Princess Michael never received it for the simple reason that she’s never been a working royal. I think had she married into the family well before Diana entered the scene, she probably would have gotten it eventually (perhaps as a 10 year anniversary gift or the like), because it seems like pre-Diana the Queen was freer with orders, but as she’s taken the attitude of “work for the family for a few years then get the orders” since Diana, Princess Michael never got it.

I don’t think the ivory is what prevented Kate from getting the RFO sooner. Glass wasn’t invented in the last year, they could have made her a glass RFO at any point in her marriage. Instead, I think they were waiting for her (and William) to become more full time. I might be wrong (and Bertie can correct me if I am), but I believe we saw an increase in the work that the Cambridge’s were doing in the years since Charlotte’s birth - tampered a bit with Kate’s recent pregnancy and Louis’ birth, but still an increase and an overall push to them being full time royals. I think that is what caused Kate to get the order last year.

I do think that the circumstances are different enough that Meghan is likely to get hers faster than Kate did - simply because when William and Kate married, they were much younger and weren’t full time royals as he was still working for SAR. Harry is already full time, and so Meghan seems to be more on a fast track path to full time working royal than Kate was (not intended as a criticism of either woman or their husbands).

 

[Somebody]

If Meghan isn't a fulltime royals yet, what is her parttime sidekick?

 

[jacqui24]

If Meghan isn't a fulltime royals yet, what is her parttime sidekick?

I don't think anyone is saying she's not. At least not what I've read.

 

[Dman]

Both the Duke and Duchess of Sussex are “full-time” senior royals. So I expect Meghan will get her family Order sooner.

 

[Pranter]

All indications are they are (The Sussexes) full time working royals ....she will take time off to have the baby, figure we won't see much of them next summer but that is a normal thing anyway for the Royals.

I think it will be 2 to 5 years before she gets an order.


LaRae

 

[Gretijean]

Just surprised that no one is wondering when Charlotte will get hers

We don't know that!

 

[Somebody]

I don't think anyone is saying she's not. At least not what I've read.

The post I responded to stated that she was on a fast track path to full time royal, which to me suggested that the poster thought she wasn't yet but it might indeed just be unprecise wording.

 

[Ish]

The post I responded to stated that she was on a fast track path to full time royal, which to me suggested that the poster thought she wasn't yet but it might indeed just be unprecise wording.

Not unprecise wording at all.

Meghan wasn’t a Royal at all prior to May. Prior to May - I would say even throughout the summer - there was a lot of speculation about whether or not Meghan would hit the ground running and quickly become a full time working royal, or if she would be eased into it. If you look at what happened with Kate, with Camilla, with Sophie, and certainly with William and Harry, they were all given the opportunity to ease into it at a slower pace. It was expected Meghan would be given a similar opportunity despite her husband himself being full time (this is most comparable to Camilla, who even now does half the engagements her husband does, although many factors contribute to that).

Instead, we’ve seen her fast track into being a full time royal right away. Pre-tour, we saw her sitting at 40 engagements since May, per Bertie’s numbers, which is fairly reasonable given the summer break and her late start (in comparison, Kate was sitting at 57 despite her mat leave, and Harry and William were at 111 and 189, respectively). The tour has almost doubled Meghan’s numbers.

 

[wartenberg7]

Exactly. Duchess Meghan I think has brought increased positive interest to the royals from around the world, revenue to Great Britain's economy, and general goodwill toward the monarchy throughout the Commonwealth. Because many people are interested in Meghan, we are learning more about what all of the royals are doing. Plus I think Meghan is a wonderful role model for everyone, including some members of the royal family. In addition, she's been learning and working hard from Day 1 to support and encourage Prince Harry and to do all she can for humanitarian efforts, which has already had an impact on a number of charities. All of this makes an important difference to the Queen and the British monarchy. Above all, Meghan has made Prince Harry supremely happy, which means a lot to his family.

Ah thanks, I see. No doubt then, the Queen will probably wish to extend the RFO to Meghan sometime soon because time is never promised. I do think the Queen is in good health, so maybe within the next two years or so, Meghan will receive the RFO from the Queen.

Here we are, again! People still, after having made it clear here in the past week, think the RFO is about merits...
Well, I could name you 100 examples from the past 25 years or so that showed this particular order is not about that at all.
Catherine also was said 7 years ago to have boosted the monarchy and "brought increased positive interest to the royals from around the world". And she and William made similar successful Commonwealth trips with the princely couple received enthusiastically by thousends like the one we witness today! But we live in a fast living world and we quickly seem to forget since there comes a new sensation our ways...

So, I don´t think Meghan will receive the RFO any faster unless the Queen feels she should have it before she dies ( well, HM could still be around the next 8 or 10 years! Just think of the Q Mother!). I rather believe, though, that the Queen is not thinking about the RFO, like some of us may do, all the time and just let things happen as they happen and the Dss of Sussex might or might not receive this order of Elizabeth II one day or not. She surely will have the one of King Charles III.!