Order of Merit

Order of Merit
Insignia of the Order of Merit presented to Dorothy Hodgkin, displayed in the Royal Society in London
Awarded by the sovereign of the Commonwealth realms
Type	Dynastic order
Royal house	House of Windsor
Motto	FOR MERIT
Eligibility	All living citizens of the Commonwealth realms
Awarded for	At the monarch's pleasure
Status	Currently awarded
Sovereign	Charles III
Grades (w/ post-nominals)	Member (OM)
Established	1902
Precedence
Next (higher)	Dependent on state
Next (lower)	Dependent on state
Ribbon of the Order of Merit

The Order of Merit (French: Ordre du Mérite)^{[n 1]} is an award, for notable work in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. The order was set up in 1902, by Edward VII. Membership of the order is a personal gift of its Sovereign (the monarch does not take advice from politicians about who should be a member). The sovereign of the order is the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms. The award is limited to 24 living recipients at any one time from these countries, plus a small number of honorary members.^[1]

Whilst all members can use the post-nominal letters OM and a medallion for life,^[2] the Order of Merit's precedence, amongst other honours, differs between Commonwealth realms.
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1. ↑ The Royal Household. "The Queen and the UK > Queen and Honours > Order of Merit". Queen's Printer. Archived from the original on 18 July 2009. Retrieved 28 July 2009.
2. ↑ Jackson, Michael D. (2007). "The Order of Merit 1902-2002: One Hundred Years of Matchless Honour" (PDF). Canadian Monarchist News. Toronto: Monarchist League of Canada. p. 15. Archived from the original (PDF) on 25 June 2008. Retrieved 28 July 2009.