Order of Saint Anna

Imperial Order of Saint Anna Орден Святой Анны
Star of the Order
Awarded by Head of the House of Romanov
Type	Dynastic Order
Royal house	House of Romanov
Religious affiliation	Russian Orthodox
Motto	Amantibus Justitiam, Pietatem, Fidem To those who Love Justice, Piety, and Fidelity
Status	Rarely awarded
Grades	1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th Class, with the Anna medal awarded for meritorious service.
Precedence
Next (higher)	Imperial Order of St. Prince Vladimir
Next (lower)	Imperial Order of St. Nicholas the Wonderworker
Ribbon of the order

The Imperial Order of Saint Anna (Russian: Орден Святой Анны; also "Order of Saint Anne" or "Order of Saint Ann") was a Holstein ducal and then Russian imperial order of chivalry. It was established by Karl Friedrich, Duke of Holstein-Gottorp, on 14 February 1735, in honour of his wife Anna Petrovna, daughter of Peter the Great of Russia.

Originally, the Order of Saint Anna was a dynastic order of knighthood; but between 1797 and 1917 it had dual status as a dynastic order and as a state order. The Order of St. Anna continued to be awarded after the revolution by Grand Duke Kirill Vladimirovich, Grand Duke Vladimir Kirillovich, and Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna. Today, the Russian Imperial Order of St. Anna, awarded by Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna is recognized as an order of chivalry by the privately operated ICOC^[1] as a continuation of the pre-Revolutionary order, and has been approved for wear with military uniform by the Russian Federation, but not by some members of the Romanov Family Association.^[2]

Membership of the Order was awarded for a distinguished career in civil service or for valour and distinguished service in the military. The Order of Saint Anna entitled recipients of the first class to hereditary nobility, and recipients of lower classes to personal nobility. For military recipients, it was awarded with swords. It is now usually awarded for meritorious service to the Imperial House of Russia.

Recipients of the Order of St. Andrew (K.A.) (including grand dukes, who received the order at baptism, and princes of the Imperial blood, who received it at their majority) simultaneously received the first class of the Order of Saint Anna. The Emperor himself was the hereditary grand master of the Order.

The motto of the Order is "Amantibus Justitiam, Pietatem, Fidem" ("To those who love justice, piety, and fidelity"). Its festival day is 3 February (New Style, 16 February). The Head of the Imperial House of Russia always is Master of the imperial Order of Saint Anna.^[3]