Tunic from the Vestments of the Order of St. George, 1896

Klemens Wenzeslaus Franz Blasius Freiherr von Thünefeld - a tunic from the vestments of the Order of St. George, 1896. White silk with floral silver and sequin embroidery on the button placket, hem and cuffs, the silk buttons embellished with silver bullion, lined in white silk. Included a coloured photograph of the baron wearing the vestments. Good condition with a few stains. Very rare.

The Order of the House Knights of St. George (short: Order of St. George) was probably the best known of all 13 knightly orders named after St. George. It still exists today as the House Order of the House of Wittelsbach. The order was founded during the Crusades in the 12th century. In 1494, it was renewed by the Roman-German King Maximilian I, after it had fallen again, restored by Elector Karl Albrecht, later Emperor Karl VII, on April 24, 1729 and confirmed by Pope Benedict XIII. The Pope granted it all the privileges of the Teutonic Order, and the knights had to pledge themselves in their vow to defend the Immaculate Conception of Mary. After the extinction of the Bavarian electoral line in 1778, the Order was recognized by Elector Karl Theodor as the Palatinate-Bavarian Order. Maximilian I Joseph elevated the Order of St. George to Bavaria's second order and King Ludwig I provided it with comprehensive statutes on February 25, 1827. Finally, on 17 April 1871, under King Ludwig II, the Order was reorganized in the spirit of its time by replacing the “defence of the Christian Catholic faith” with the practice of works of mercy as the purpose of the Order (source: Wikipedia).