The Civil Order of Saxony was established 7 June 1815 by King Frederick Augustus I of Saxony

Frederick Augustus I of Saxony

Frederick Augustus I was King of Saxony from the House of Wettin. He was also Elector Frederick Augustus III of Saxony and Duke Frederick Augustus I of Warsaw...

. It was a general order of merit for the royal subjects of the Kingdom of Saxony

Kingdom of Saxony

The Kingdom of Saxony , lasting between 1806 and 1918, was an independent member of a number of historical confederacies in Napoleonic through post-Napoleonic Germany. From 1871 it was part of the German Empire. It became a Free state in the era of Weimar Republic in 1918 after the end of World War...

for distinguished by their civic service and virtue.

Classes of the order

Upon its founding in 1815 the order was divided into seven classes of merit:

• Knight Grand Cross
• Commander First Class
• Commander Second Class
• Knight
• Small Cross
• Gold Civil Medal
• Silver Civil Medal

With an amendment of 18 March 1858 the Small Cross became the Cross of Honour, eventually becoming Knight Second Class on 31 January 1876. The decree also replaced the gold and silver medals with civilian crosses of distinction, in gold and silver. The classes of the order thus became:

• Knight Grand Cross
• Commander First Class
• Commander Second Class
• Knight First Class
• Knight Second Class
• Golden Civil Cross
• Silver Civil Cross