The "Wilhelmsorden" of Hesse-Kassel

Hesse-Kassel

The Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel or Hesse-Cassel was a state in the Holy Roman Empire under Imperial immediacy that came into existence when the Landgraviate of Hesse was divided in 1567 upon the death of Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse. His eldest son William IV inherited the northern half and the...

 (or Hesse-Cassel) was instituted by the Elector

Prince-elector

The Prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire were the members of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Roman king or, from the middle of the 16th century onwards, directly the Holy Roman Emperor.The heir-apparent to a prince-elector was known as an...

 Friedrich Wilhelm I

Frederick William, Elector of Hesse

Frederick William I was, between 1847 and 1866, the last Elector of Hesse-Kassel .- Life :...

 on 20 August 1851 as a civil and military Order of Merit. It was composed of the three lower grades of the Order of the Golden Lion and a Grand Cross was added.
In total the order was awarded more than 450 times in the 16 years of its existence.

The motto of the Order was Virtuti et Fidelitate, and the ribbon was Carmine-red with red and white borders.

On 1 August 1866, Hesse-Kassel was annexed by Prussia

Prussia

Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...

 and on 3 October of that same year the Hesse-Kassellian orders were incorporated into the Prussian system of honours. On 27 August 1875 the Order was abolished. Although there were no new awards by the Prussian Kings in the 1866-1875 era, the exiled Elector Friedrich Wilhelm I. awarded the order approximately 8 times until his death in 1875.

The Order is not to be confused with the exclusive

• Military Order of William of the Netherlands

or

• The Wilhelm-Orden
  Wilhelm-Orden
  The Wilhelm-Orden was instituted on the 18th January 1896 by the Emperor of Germany and King of Prussia William II, and was dedicated to the memory of his grandfather Emperor William I "the Great"...
  
  of Prussia.