A
dynastic order of knighthood,
monarchical order,
house order or
family order, is an
order under
royal patronage, distributed by the head of a current or former
royal family as
sovereign fons honorum. These orders are frequently seen as part of the
patrimony of the royal family involved. Unlike
military orders,
religious orders, and
order of merit distributed by
sovereign states, dynastic orders were often created to reward service to a monarch or their family. An example of this difference is seen between the
Royal Victorian Order, which is a personal gift of the sovereign, thus is a
dynastic order, and the
Order of the British Empire, which is bestowed by the sovereign on the basis of recommendations by the
Prime Minister, and thus a
national order).