Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire. Benedict Cumberbatch awarded the Order of the British Empire

At the end of March, Joan Collins celebrated in a big way an important event: Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II dedicated the actress to... knighthood. Of course, Joan won't be wearing armor or a sword, but the actress now has the title "Dame of the Cavalry" - the female equivalent of a knighthood. My agent called and said that they had sent me a letter from Buckingham Palace with an offer to accept the title of lady,” Collins told HELLO!. - But the envelope was lost among letters from fans; it was discovered only a week after receiving it. I was worried that I wouldn’t have time to agree. Fortunately, it was not too late.

Joan Collins

For many centuries, English monarchs have knighted their subjects in recognition of military merit. Most knights belong to orders: the Order of the Garter, the Order of the Bath, the Order of the Thistle... However, there is a class of knights who do not belong to any order: they are called bachelors, and they appeared in the 13th century during the time of King Henry III. Then, although these warriors were called sirs, they did not have the right to their own banner and their own detachment of knights.

Times are changing, and now any man can become a knight bachelor thanks to his achievements, which have nothing to do with war and palace coups. Moreover, in modern Britain women are also encouraged (they are ordained ladies). Thus, Paul McCartney, Sean Connery, Patrick Stewart, Judi Dench and Helen Mirren received royal recognition for their services to art. As a rule, along with the title, the queen presents the lucky recipient with an order British Empire. Unlike her colleagues in show business, Angelina Jolie received the Order of St. Michael and St. George not for her acting successes, but for her humanitarian work. The actress was also awarded the title of lady, but she cannot use it because she is not a British citizen.

Elizabeth II and Angelina Jolie

According to tradition, the ceremony is performed by the queen, but monarchs are busy people, so sometimes Her Majesty is replaced by her heirs. The Queen can also refuse her duties for personal reasons. For example, as in the case of Sir Mick Jagger. The musician was included in the list of candidates for knighthood for five years in a row on the recommendation of Prime Minister Tony Blair, a big fan of the rocker. But each time, Elizabeth II crossed out the name of the leader of The Rolling Stones. It is not known for certain why Her Majesty denied the musician the award, but they say it was because of the “tender friendship” between Jagger and the Queen’s sister Princess Margaret.

Be that as it may, Mr. Jagger still became a sir. True, the words “I knight you!” he heard from Prince Charles, who, according to rumors, persuaded his mother to recognize the merits of Rolling. The queen herself went to the clinic that day for surgery on her kneecap. The public was dissatisfied with this award: no one understood for what services the brawler and rebel Jagger was awarded the title. It seems that only his 6-year-old son Gabriel was sincerely happy about this event: “Now dad will be able to wear armor,” he boasted at school.

Interestingly, not every holder of the Order of the British Empire is a knight. For example, David Beckham has an order, but does not have a title. In 2006, the football player was fully confident that his time had come. “I’ll tell you a secret: I will be knighted, I will become the second Jew with such a title after the Prime Minister of England Disraeli,” he said in an interview. But, alas, neither then, nor seven years later, when the football player’s name was on the list of candidates, Beckham never became a sir. Perhaps Queen Elizabeth II remembered how, at the wedding of Prince William, David pinned his order on right side tuxedo, although according to the rules all awards are worn closer to the heart - on the left.

David and Victoria Beckham

They say that the guests endured it, coughed, but still pointed out to the unlucky order bearer his mistake. At the same time, Beckham is at court so often and has a strong friendship with Prince William that many believe that the athlete has been with the title for a long time. So, in 2012 in Greece at the lighting ceremony Olympic flame the presenter, announcing the guests from Great Britain, called Beckham sir. Representatives of the English delegation laughed in unison, but Beckham, most likely, was not laughing: he still hopes to receive the coveted title.

However, no matter how honorable the title of knight is considered, it gives its owner little: free travel to public transport and the right to request an audience with the monarch at any time. And one more detail: the title of knight bachelor is not inherited, but according to the law, everyone must address the sir’s wife as a lady. But this privilege does not apply to same-sex marriage, so after the wedding, Sir Elton John’s husband remained simply “Mr. David Furnish.”

Other Interesting Facts about the knights of our days, the order of Angelina Jolie and a retro photo of Elton John - in the gallery, click on this photo:

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