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Order of the Southern Cross

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National Order of the Southern Cross
Grand Collar of the National Order of the Southern Cross
Awarded by the Government of Brazil
TypeNational Order
MottoBenemerentium Præmium[1]
EligibilityForeign nationals[2]
Awarded for"As a token of gratitude and recognition for those who have rendered significant service to the Brazilian nation."[2]
StatusCurrently awarded
FounderPedro I of Brazil
Grand MasterThe President of Brazil[3] (the national order)
ChancellorThe Minister of Foreign Affairs[3]
GradesGrand Collar
Grand Cross
Grand Officer
Commander
Officer
Knight
Statistics
First inductionDecember 1, 1822[4]

Ribbon bar of the National Order of the Southern Cross

The National Order of the Southern Cross (Portuguese: Ordem Nacional do Cruzeiro do Sul) is a Brazilian order of chivalry and Brazil's main decoration of honour awarded exclusively to foreign nationals.

Founded by Emperor Pedro I on 1 December 1822 and reinstated in its current form by president Getúlio Vargas in 1932,[5] its name derives from the constellation of the Southern Cross, visible from the Southern Hemisphere and in Brazil in particular.[4]

History

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Emperor Pedro I of Brazil commissioned the establishment of the Imperial Order of the Cross (Portuguese: Ordem Imperial do Cruzeiro) on the day of his coronation, 1 December 1822. On the same date, the first knights of the order were appointed, to commemorate the crowning of the Empire's first monarch; it was the first Brazilian Order.

After the fall of the monarchy, Brazil's first republican Constitution, enacted on 24 February 1891, abolished all titles of nobility and all Imperial Orders and decorations.[4] The Order was later re-established by the government of Getúlio Vargas on December 5, 1932, as the National Order of the Southern Cross.[4]

During the Old Republic period (from the Proclamation of the Republic until the Revolution of 1930), National Orders did not exist and the Brazilian State bestowed only military medals.[6] Restored in 1932, the Order of the Southern Cross was the first Order to be created in the re-established, republican honours system. It is considered the senior Brazilian National Order.

Just as the Emperor of Brazil was ex officio the Grand Master of the Imperial Order, the Presidents of Brazil is ex officio the Grand Master of the successor National Order. Accordingly, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is the Order's current Grand Master.

Queen Elizabeth II displays the "Grand Collar" and star of the National Order of the Southern Cross, 2006

Criteria

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Unlike the Imperial Order, which was awarded to Brazilians and foreigners alike, the republican National Order is awarded to foreigners only. When the Order was re-established by presidential decree on January 13, 1932,[7] it was restricted to foreigners only, with the stipulation that all awards of the Order constitute an act of foreign relations on the part of the Brazilian Government.[8]

Brazil's National Order of the Southern Cross, portraying the five main stars of the Southern Cross constellation, also known as Crux

Brazilians were excluded deliberately. In the Old Republic, the State regarded Orders and decorations as contrary to the principles of republicanism, and thus maintained no honours system; the creation of an Order that would admit Brazilians to its ranks was a step too far. However, the Brazilian State also resented the lack of a decoration with which to honour foreign dignitaries, as is sometimes almost required by diplomatic protocol. For instance, during the celebrations of the Centennial of Brazilian Independence in 1922, several foreign dignitaries, including the King and Queen of the Belgians, came to Brazil for the celebrations. The King of the Belgians bestowed Belgian honours on some Brazilians. Brazilian nationals needed authorization from the Government to accept foreign titles of honour, or else faced loss of citizenship, and under normal circumstances permission to accept appointment to an Order of Chivalry would not have been granted. While the government of Brazil relaxed its practice and authorized both accepting induction into foreign Orders and the wearing of foreign insignia, it lacked any decorations with which to reciprocate the Belgian gesture. The National Order of the Southern Cross was intended as an Order that would fill that gap. Today, accepting foreign honours and insignia without the need of prior Government approval is allowed, and several Brazilian Orders have been established to which Brazilians may be admitted, starting with the National Order of Merit (Ordem Nacional do Mérito), created in 1946. Even so, the governing statutes of the National Order of the Southern Cross have never been reformed, and it thus remains unavailable to Brazilians. Paradoxically, therefore, the Order's Grand Master — the sitting President of the Republic — is never a member of the Order he or she oversees, and the President's connection with the Order is severed once the President leaves office.

The Grand Cross (second highest level) of Brazil's National Order of the Southern Cross

The Decree that re-created the Order (Decree 22.165, signed by Vargas on 5 December 1932) does not mention the creation of a new Order, but rather the reestablishment of the former Order of the Southern Cross, which had been "created upon the advent of the political independence of Brazil". This was done to improve the prestige of the Order by linking it with the past, that is, by associating it with an Order that had been created more than a century earlier.[9]

In 1932, the republican version of the Order had the same five grades as the old imperial version. In 1939, by a statute issued on 17 July of that year, the additional grade of the Grand Collar was created.[10] Until the creation of the Grand Collar, awards of which are restricted to Heads of State, the Grand Cross was the Order's highest rank.

Awards of, and promotions in, the National Order of the Southern Cross are made by decree of the President of the Republic, in his capacity as the Order's Grand Master. The decree of appointment or promotion is, like all presidential decrees, published in the Federal Government's Official Journal, and, as per the Order's regulations, the appointment or promotion is also recorded in a book kept by the Order's secretary.

The Brazilian Minister of Foreign Affairs (currently Ambassador Mauro Vieira) serves as the Chancellor of the Order, and the diplomat who heads the ceremonial and protocol division of the Ministry serves as the Secretary to the Order. The Order also has a Council, chaired by its Chancellor, that recommends awards and promotions.

Classes

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Under its current regulations, the Order consists of the Grand Master and six Classes of members:[11]

RankInsignia and notes
Grand Collar
(Grande-Colar)		 The adorned "Grand Collar", a chain from which the badge of the Order is suspended. The recipient is also allowed to combine the wearing of the Grand Collar with either of the following insignia, or with both:
  • the "Star" of the Order (a plaque modelled after the badge of the Order, to be worn on the left breast); and
  • the Sash of the Order, that is proper to those of Grand Cross rank (a light blue sash, to be worn on the right shoulder).

Awards of the Grand Collar are restricted to foreign Heads of State.

Grand Cross
(Grã-Cruz)		 The Sash of the Order, and the badge of the Order hangs from the bottom part of that sash (given that the sash is worn on the right shoulder, the badge hangs close to the left leg, by the waist line). The recipient further wears the "star" of the Order, displayed on the left breast.
Grand Officer
(Grande-Oficial)		 The badge of the Order around the neck suspended from a blue ribbon necklet, and the star of the Order is displayed on the left breast.
Commander
(Comendador)		 The badge of the Order around the neck, suspended from a blue ribbon necklet.
Officer
(Oficial)		 The badge of the Order on the left breast suspended from a ribbon with a rosette.
Knight
(Cavaleiro)		 The badge of the Order on the left breast suspended from a simple ribbon.
Ribbon bars
Knight
Officer
Commander
Grand Officer
Grand Cross
Grand Collar

Notable recipients

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Cities

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References

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  1. ↑ Ordem Nacional do Cruzeiro do Sul Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine Banco Central do Brasil. Retrieved on 2010-10-10. (in Portuguese).
  2. 1 2 National Order of the Southern Cross Medal-Medaille. Retrieved on 2010-10-10.
  3. 1 2 Condecorações: Cruizeiro do Sul – Conselho Archived 2012-03-11 at the Wayback Machine Ministério das Relações Exteriores. Retrieved on 2010-10-10. (in Portuguese).
  4. 1 2 3 4 Condecorações: Cruizeiro do Sul – Histórico Archived 2010-09-02 at the Wayback Machine Ministério das Relações Exteriores. Retrieved on 2010-10-10. (in Portuguese).
  5. ↑ White, William. Notes and queries, Volume 78. London: 1888, p. 173.
  6. ↑ Even the short-lived republican Ordem de Colombo (Order of Columbus) that had been established by the Provisional Government of the Republic as a replacement to the Imperial Orders, was abolished when Congress promulgated Brazil's first republican Constitution on 24 February 1891, declaring all Orders abolished and stating that the Republic would maintain no Orders. Only after the 1891 Constitution had ceased to operate due to the 1930 Revolution was a republican honours system created, beginning with the recreation of the Order of the Southern Cross in 1932.
  7. ↑ "- no title specified". Archived from the original on 2011-07-18.
  8. ↑ "Cerimonial". Archived from the original on 2010-09-02. Retrieved 2010-10-10.
  9. ↑ [link removed] Decree that "Reestablishes the National Order of the Southern Cross".
  10. ↑ "Portal da Câmara dos Deputados".
  11. ↑ Condecorações: Cruizeiro do Sul – Regulamento Ministério das Relações Exteriores. Retrieved on 2010-10-10. (in Portuguese).
  12. ↑ "Brazil confers its highest honour 'Grand Collar of the National Order of the Southern Cross' on PM Modi". Times of India. 8 July 2025. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
  13. ↑ "Na véspera de viagem, Lula concede comenda a imperador do Japão" [On the eve of his trip, Lula awards honor to the Emperor of Japan]. Metropoles (in Portuguese). 22 March 2025.
  14. ↑ "No Uruguai, Lula condecora Mujica com maior honraria brasileira". CNN Brazil. 5 December 2024.
  15. ↑ "Mattarella in Visita di Stato in Brasile incontra il Presidente Lula". quirinale.it. 15 July 2024.
  16. ↑ da Silva, Luiz Inácio Lula [@LulaOficial] (22 April 2023). "Reunião com o presidente de Portugal, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. Condecorei o amigo com a Ordem do Cruzeiro do Sul, uma comenda que nosso país atribui a personalidades estrangeiras" (Tweet) (in Brazilian Portuguese) – via Twitter.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 "Bolsonaro condecora líderes do Oriente Médio antes de viagem à região". UOL. 12 November 2021.
  18. ↑ "17/11/2021 - Reunião Ampliada | (Doha - Qatar, 17/11/2021) P… | Flickr". 17 November 2021.
  19. ↑ "Bolsonaro recebe presidente da Colômbia no Palácio do Planalto nesta terça-feira". 19 October 2021.
  20. ↑ "DSC_7871 | Almoço em homenagem ao Excelentíssimo Senhor Iván… | Flickr". 19 October 2021.
  21. ↑ "Governo brasileiro condecora ex-premiê Abe e vice-premiê Aso em Tóquio". Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  22. ↑ "Shinzo Abe e Taro Aso são condecorados pelo Brasil". Retrieved 9 July 2022.
  23. ↑ "Netanyahu in Brazil: Israel is forming an alliance with a superpower - Israel News - Jerusalem Post". Archived from the original on 2018-12-29.
  24. ↑ "About Sukyo Mahikari｜Sukyo Mahikari".
  25. ↑ "Temer e Horácio Cartes reafirmam decisão de suspender Venezuela do Mercosul". Agência Brasil. 21 August 2017. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
  26. ↑ "Diário Oficial da União". 13 April 2017. Retrieved 21 August 2017.
  27. ↑ "Brazil and Argentina agree to move closer to Pacific Alliance". Agência Brasil. 7 February 2017. Retrieved 12 February 2017.
  28. ↑ Ministério das Relações Exteriores - Decreto de 1º de Fevereiro de 2016. Published by Imprensa Nacional in Section 1 of the Diário Oficial da União on February 2, 2016. ISSN 1677-7042.
  29. ↑ "Dilma Rousseff se emocionó al condecorar a Cristina con la "Orden del Sur de Brasil" - Los Andes Diario". www.losandes.com.ar. Archived from the original on 2015-07-22.
  30. ↑ Ministério das Relações Exteriores - Decreto de 11 de Dezembro de 2015. Published by Imprensa Nacional in Section 1 of Diário Oficial da União of December 14, 2015. ISSN 1677-7042.
  31. ↑ "Otorga Peña Orden del Águila Azteca a Rousseff; recibe la Cruz del Sur". Quadratin (in Spanish). 26 May 2015.
  32. ↑ "De vido: "Argentina, Brasil, y la región están muchísimo mejor que hace diez años" - Télam - Agencia Nacional de Noticias". www.telam.com.ar. Archived from the original on 2014-05-17.
  33. ↑ "El maestro Abreu fue galardonado con la Orden Nacional Cruzeiro do Sul por Dilma Rousseff". Archived from the original on 2013-05-13. Retrieved 2013-05-02.
  34. ↑ "Decreto". 19 December 2012. Archived from the original on 5 January 2018. Retrieved 3 March 2019.
  35. ↑ Presidente Dilma é condecorada com a mais alta ordem da Bulgária Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine GazetaOnline. Retrieved on 2011-10-05. (in Portuguese).
  36. ↑ "EBC".
  37. ↑ "Decorations and Medals". Archived from the original on 13 April 2012. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  38. ↑ "G1 > Mundo - NOTÍCIAS - Lula e Sarkozy reforçarão associação militar entre França e Brasil".
  39. ↑ United States Department of State
  40. ↑ "Pág. 7. Seção 1. Diário Oficial da União (DOU) de 06 de Setembro de 2007". 5 September 2007. Retrieved 21 February 2017.
  41. 1 2 "6280020 - Search".
  42. 1 2 DECRETO DE 3 DE DEZEMBRO DE 2007 - website JusBrasil
  43. ↑ "Dr Jacques Diouf, Director-General Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)". FAO website. Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). July 2007. Archived from the original on 2009-05-18. Retrieved 2009-09-26.
  44. ↑ "Chairman James Hurlock and Founder James Sherwood to Retire from Orient-Express Board of Directors" (Press release).
  45. ↑ "Diário Oficial da União". 19 March 2003. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  46. 1 2 "Diário Oficial da União". 7 October 2003. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  47. ↑ "The Japan Times Online". www.japantimes.co.jp. Archived from the original on 21 April 2003. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  48. ↑ "Ann Hartness to receive Brazil's National Order of the Southern Cross". News releases. Nettie Lee Benson Latin American Collection, University of Texas. April 10, 2003. Archived from the original on June 30, 2016. Retrieved 2009-09-26.
  49. ↑ "Diário Oficial da União". 28 October 2002. Retrieved 3 March 2017.
  50. ↑ "Diário Oficial da União". 17 April 2002. Retrieved 20 February 2017.
  51. ↑ "UOL - Brasil Online - FHC condecora Fujimori e se reúne com empresários 22/07/99 10h07".
  52. ↑ "Viu a receita de Albert Fishlow para o Brasil crescer? | EXAME.com". Archived from the original on 2015-08-13.
  53. ↑ "'Santa': Consegnato al politologo Sartori il premio Isaiah Berlin". 18 September 2013. Archived from the original on 6 August 2020. Retrieved 2 March 2015.
  54. ↑ "Ricardo Salgado: O banqueiro há mais tempo no ativo".
  55. ↑ "Folha de S.Paulo - Rei chama de querido FHC - 19/05/98".
  56. ↑ "Diário Oficial". 29 July 1996. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  57. ↑ "A maldição do amianto". 6 January 2014.
  58. ↑ "Curriculum Vitae Runaldo R. Venetiaan". Cabinet of the President of the Republic of Suriname (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 2006-11-02. Retrieved 2006-11-02.
  59. ↑ "State Decorations". Retrieved 9 February 2017.
  60. ↑ "Curriculum Vitae | Daisaku Ikeda Website".
  61. ↑ "Viagem do PR Geisel à França" (PDF). Retrieved 19 January 2019.
  62. ↑ "Brazilian President Emilio Garrastazu Medici decorates Bolivian". 4 October 2004.
  63. 1 2 "Armstrong lembrou Dumont como pioneiro da aviação". Estadão. 26 August 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2018.
  64. ↑ "Jeanne Behrend, 76, a Pianist; Specialized in Music of Americas," The New York Times, April 15, 1988.
  65. ↑ "Ressaltada a amizade frança–brasil". Correio da Manhã. 14 October 1964. Retrieved 2 April 2017.
  66. ↑ "Special feature | Fifty years later, remembering a golden album by Stan Getz and Charlie Byrd -". 22 February 2012.
  67. 1 2 "DOU 19/09/1963 - Pág. 4 - Seção 1 - Diário Oficial da União". Archived from the original on 2012-12-08.
  68. ↑ "Janio condecora Guevara". Folha de S. Paulo. 20 August 1961. Retrieved 2010-08-24.
  69. ↑ "อาจศึก ดวงสว่าง. การพัฒนาลิกไนท์ในประเทศไทย. 2507". Archived from the original on 2021-04-19. Retrieved 2020-06-11.
  70. ↑ "Mala Diplomática". Correio da Manhã. 4 May 1956. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  71. ↑ "Viagem do Presidente Geisel ao Japão". September 1976. Retrieved 15 May 2018.
  72. ↑ "27 de junho, nasce Helen Keller, a mulher que viu para além da cegueira | 2014/06/26/". Archived from the original on 2015-04-02. Retrieved 2015-03-02.
  73. ↑ "Condecorada com a Ordem Nacional do Mérito a Senhora Eva Peron". A Noite. 23 April 1952. Retrieved 30 December 2018.
  74. ↑ Avenius, Sheldon H. Jr. (April 1967). "Charles Lyon Chandler: A Forgotten Man of Inter-American Cultural Relations". Journal of Inter-American Studies. 9 (2): 169–183. doi:10.2307/165091.
  75. ↑ Ira C. Eaker#Awards and decorations
  76. ↑ "Condecorados com a Ordem do Cruzeiro do Sul". O Imparcial. 11 February 1940. Retrieved 21 March 2017.
  77. ↑ Montenegro, Carlos (2015). Baptista Gumucio, Mariano (ed.). Germán Busch y otras páginas de historia de Bolivia (in Spanish) (2nd ed.). La Paz: Librería Editorial LewyLibros. p. 303 – via the Internet Archive.
  78. ↑ My Life, by Jean Batten, George G. Harrap & Co. Ltd., 1938
  79. ↑ "Governo condecora colombianos que resgataram vítimas da Chapecoense". 16 December 2016.
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