Order of Prince Danilo I

Order of Prince Danilo I Орден Књаза Данила I
Badge of the order
Awarded by the Head of the House of Petrović-Njegoš
Type	State order (formerly) House order (currently)
Country	Montenegro
Royal house	Petrović-Njegoš
Motto	To the Montenegrin independence
Awarded for	Championing and preserving Montenegrin independence and social and scientific merit
Grand Master	Prince Nicholas
Vice-Grand Master	Prince Boris
Grades	Knight Grand Cross Knight Grand Officer Knight Commander Knight Cross of Merit
Precedence
Next (higher)	Order of Petrović Njegoš
Next (lower)	Order of Saint Peter of Cetinje
Ribbon of the order

The Order of Prince Danilo I (Montenegrin: Орден Књаза Данила I, romanized: Orden Knjaza Danila I) is an order, formerly of the Principality and later Kingdom, of Montenegro; it is currently a dynastic order granted by the head of the House of Petrović-Njegoš, Crown Prince Nicholas. It is awarded to prominent champions of the preservation of Montenegrin independence and for other humanitarian, scientific, artistic and pro-social achievements as defined by statute.

Alterations were made to the appearance of the original decoration created by Prince Danilo, and during the rule of King Nikola I Petrović Njegoš the order underwent two restructurings. During the first restructuring in 1861, three classes were introduced, while in the second restructuring, in 1873, an additional fourth class was added, so that not only is there a star in the 1st class but also a 2nd class with star was introduced. By 1922, the order consisted of five classes: Knight Grand Cross, Knight Grand Officer, Knight Commander, Knight, and Cross of Merit.^[1]

Although no longer a state order, prominent Montenegrin officials—including President Filip Vujanović—have been appointed to the order.^[2]