Original Item. One-of-a-Kind. The Order of Merit (Spanish: Orden al Mérito) is a Chilean order of merit and was created in 1929. Succeeding the Medal of the Merit, which was created during the term of the President Germán Riesco through the Minister of War decree No. 1350 on 4 September 1906. This new national distinction was created to recognize the meritorious service provided by foreign military personnel to Chilean officials. The order is only awarded to foreigners.

This is an excellent WWII example of this scarce order, with much of the enamel and gilt retained to the front, though each tip of the star shows some loss of the enamel. The back of the badge is hand-engraved along the bottom:

F.B.Z.        5.11.1941

This would denote award to a man with the initials F.B.Z. on November 5th, 1941. The pin is retained but the loop appears to be dented closed so it will need to be pulled up to open the pin.

A very rare order, ready for further research and display!

In 1817, Bernardo O'Higgins created the Legion of Merit, with the aim of recognizing the ones who have provided help to Chile, specially during its independence. In 1823, when O'Higgins fled the country after his abdication, the Legion was extinct.

Nevertheless, in 1906, Germán Riesco created the Medal of the Merit, with the same aim as the current Order: award those who gave civil services to the Republic. The first 200 military medals were minted in gold and silver, giving them the title of First and Second Class. They were minted at the Casa de la Moneda, having a tricolor ribbon. The order had three classes: First, Second, and Third Class; but later a new class was added (Grand Officer) that would be awarded to heads of state.

In 1929, the Medal was renamed as the Order of Merit, and the current regulations were enacted in 2000,[1] being slightly reformed in 2016.