In 1350, the English king Edward III returned to his homeland after the glorious victories he won at the city of Calais and at Crécy, where the French were defeated. To glorify his victorious army, the king wanted to establish a knightly order. One of the main goals of the creation of the order was to add more brilliance to the endless war that the king had long been waging with the king of France. Edward III needed the hardships of war to be perceived as wonderful adventures, which noble and brave knights should strive for in order to defeat the enemy who unjustly took away his legitimate inheritance from their overlord.
Chronicles indicate that when the order was established, the English king clearly had in mind the model of the Knights of the Round Table. There is a lot of confusion in the historical chronicles on this score, and as a result, the moment of the creation of a new order and the holding of a large Round Table tournament in Windsor Castle are “fused” into a single one. Chronicler Jean de Belle reports that
The king, in the nobility of his heart, decided that he would rebuild Windsor Castle, which Arthur had once built and where the Round Table was first established, in honor of his valiant knights, who were then with him and who served him so well. The king highly appreciated their service and considered them so noble that, according to him, they could not be found in any other kingdom. And it seemed to him that no matter what honors he showed them, they could not be excessive - he loved them (these knights) so much. And our king announced throughout the kingdom that a great feast and a great reception would be held on the occasion of the establishment of this Round Table, and invited noble ladies and maidens, knights and squires from everywhere to come to this great feast …
An annex for the assembly of the knights had already been built at Windsor Castle, and the name for the knightly union has not yet been found. And then a beautiful lady appears on the stage of history, whom the historical chronicles call differently: Queen Philip, Countess of Kent and Countess of Salisbury. But most likely, the beautiful lady was the Countess of Salisbury - a brave beauty who, several years before the events described, lived with several knights and servants in the castle of Work in the north of England. Her husband then languished in French captivity, and, taking advantage of this circumstance, the Scottish king David laid siege to the castle. The defenders, led by the countess, repulsed all assault attempts, and then the Scots began to prepare for a long siege. It seemed that the castle and its defenders were doomed, but then the English army led by young Edward III came to their rescue.
At a ball in Windsor, the Countess of Salisbury lost the embroidered blue garter from her dress. The garter fell to the stone floor, and the king paused to gaze at an elegant ribbon studded with precious stones. However, many courtiers interpreted the king's gaze with meaning, because his passion for the beautiful countess was no secret. The dancers stopped, and even muffled chuckles began to be heard from all sides. The king understood the reason for the laughter of his courtiers, but he bent down, picked up the garter from the floor and attached it to his sleeve. And then he uttered the words, which later became the motto of the order: "Let him be ashamed who thinks badly about it!"
Some researchers doubt the authenticity of the story with the Countess of Salisbury, but there is no other explanation for the seemingly strange motto and form of the order's signs in modern science. Although there were other assumptions: as if this ribbon belonged to the king himself, and he signaled with it to the beginning of the battle, tying the pendant to the end of the spear. But then who and why could think badly about it?
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Soon after the ball, in the Cathedral of St. George - the patron saint of warriors, King Edward III gathered the most famous warriors of the English kingdom - 24 loyal knights who distinguished themselves at the Battle of Crécy. Some of them belonged to the highest English nobility, others, although they did not have high-profile titles, were brave and courageous. So in the middle of the XIV century, the secular Order of the Garter was created in England. Subsequently, he was considered almost a "direct descendant" of the King Arthur Round Table. The Order of the Garter became the highest English award, which all the courtiers had already begun to achieve, but it was given only for very great merits.
In the Order of the Garter, those features appeared that would later become mandatory for such unions: a limited number of members, a knight belonging to only one order, joining another order was simply unthinkable. Only sometimes exceptions were made for friendly rulers of other powers or their entourage, but this was not always welcomed. For example, the French king Louis XI accused the Burgundian duke Charles the Bold of treason when he agreed to become an honorary member of the Order of the Garter.
The English Order of the Garter became an intermediate step between the order as a sign of belonging to a certain circle of persons and the order-award. The signs of the secular orders that arose later were of various forms: emphasizing their difference from the spiritual orders, they were rarely cruciform. The Charter of the Order of the Garter listed vestments and insignia, determined the color of suits and their linings, as well as the inscription on the garter; the events for which a full dress uniform was required were stipulated. The Order's sign was a garter embroidered with gold, but then other signs appeared - “everyday”: a figurine of St. George on a horse, a braid of hair, an image of a deer, a swan, a hunting horn, etc.
The silver star of the Order of the Garter, brilliant cut, has an eight-pointed elongated shape. In its center there is an equilateral four-pointed cross covered with red enamel, and around the cross there is an order ribbon with the order's motto. On the reverse side of the star, there are 8 gold strips that provide mobility of its ends, and 8 loops to sew the star to the suit.
The Russian Tsar Peter I, during his visit, rejected the honor of becoming a Knight of the English Order, as already then he was thinking about establishing a national Russian order. In Russia, Emperors Alexander I, Nicholas I and Alexander II were holders of the Order of the Garter.
The Order of the Garter exists in England to this day: all the nobles of England consider it an honor to become knights of this order, but the number of its members never exceeds 24 people. On the day of the holiday, the Knights of the Order wear a medieval costume, which includes white tight leotards, and a blue silk ribbon with a gold buckle is tied under the knee of the left leg (ladies - above the elbow), on which the Order's motto is embroidered: "HONI SOIT QUI MAL Y PENSE" …