South Vietnamese National Order of Vietnam, Fifth Class (Knight)

National Order of Vietnam, Fifth Class (Knight of the Order). The National Order was intended as a combination of the French Legion d'Honneur and the Order of the Dragon of Annam, a French colonial award. The medal has a central circle in which the words 'TO-QUOC-TRI-AN' '(The Gratitude of the Fatherland') appear in gold on a red enamelled background, surrounded by a Greek key pattern in gold on a blue enamelled band. From this central disc five golden rays issue, the gaps between them being filled by green enamel in the form of a dragon's tail. The medal is suspended from two rings at the bottom of a rectangle in the shape of a dragon's head, a single ring at the top taking the ribbon. The ribbon is red with a 5 mm yellow band at each edge.

The National Order of Vietnam (Vietnamese: B¿o qu¿c Huân chuong) was a combined military-civilian decoration of South Vietnam and was considered the highest honor that could be bestowed upon an individual by the Republic of Vietnam government.

The decoration was created in 1950 and was awarded to any person who performed "grandiose works, remarkable deeds, exhibited bravery, or for those who have honored and served the country by lofty virtues and outstanding knowledge."

The National Order was modelled after the French Légion d'honneur, and as such it was issued in five degrees:
Grand Cross - wore the badge of the Order on a sash on the right shoulder, plus the star of the Order on the left chest;
Grand Officer - wore the badge on a ribbon with rosette on the left chest, plus the star on the right chest;
Commander - wore the badge on a necklet;
Officer - wore the badge on a ribbon with rosette on the left chest;
Knight - wore the badge on a ribbon on the left chest.

Both the badge and the star had the same design, as shown on the top right of this page. The ribbon was red with yellow borders.

During the Vietnam War, the National Order of Vietnam was bestowed on several members of the United States military, most of whom were senior military and political advisors to the South Vietnamese government. The decoration could also be awarded posthumously.

Since the National Order of Vietnam was both a civil and a military decoration, it was displayed above all other awards when worn on a military uniform. A purely military equivalent of the decoration was the Vietnam Military Merit Medal, awarded only to members of the military.

Only the Fourth (Officer) and Fifth (Knight) Classes were awarded to Australians. 11 Knights of the National Order were awarded to Australian servicemen of all ranks, but permission for them to be worn was not granted by the Australian Government until the late 1990s. The awards were made to: Air Commodore C H Spurgeon, Brigadiers S C Graham, W G Henderson, R L Hughes, B A McDonald, C M I Pearson and S P Weir, Lieutenant Colonel J J Shelton, Major P Badcoe, Warrant Officer K Wheatley and Private D J Pattison. Seven Fourth Class awards were also made to Australians.