Orders of Knighthood

The Orders of Knighthood in the Kingdom of Talossa are non-hereditary honorific orders of chivalry to which citizens of Talossa may be admitted by action of the King in recognition of extraordinary service to the Talossan nation or culture. Knighthood carries the title Sir (for males) and Dame (for females).

Four orders of knighthood have been created in Talossa, although only one is currently in use:

• Order for the Nation, twelve historical grants, with six knights and two dames currently active.
• Order of the Purple Tongue, one historical grant, inactive.
• Order of the Flag, two historical grants, all inactive.
• Order of the Cone War Campaigns (defunct), one historical grant, inactive.

Members of the orders of knighthood are entitled to bear achievements of arms augmented by a belt (coloured according to the particular order), a helm, and a motto. In recent years, knighthoods have typically been bestowed by King John only in extraordinary grants of honours, issued during TalossaFest.

Only the Order for the Nation is active, and the other orders of knighthood have been permitted to lapse in perpetuity.

Knights Bachelor

Knighthood may also be granted without affiliating the recipient with any of the orders of chivalry. Recipients of such grants are known as Knights Bachelor. Knights Bachelor are entitled to bear achievements of arms augmented by a helm and motto. One Talossan has received such a grant:

• Sir Sean Hert, now inactive. Sir Sean was one of the original ("Mercury 7") cybercits. His service as Secretary of State beginning in 1996 enabled Talossa to successfully make the transition from a predominantly snail-mail to a predominantly online administration of government, a service for which he was created Knight Bachelor by King Robert I.