Order of Charles III

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Order of Charles III
Star and sash of the Order
Awarded by the King of Spain
Type	Order of merit, Knighthood
Established	1771; 253 years ago (1771)
Royal house	House of Bourbon
Motto	VIRTUTI ET MERITO ("Virtue and Merit")
Awarded for	Actions in benefit to Spain and the Crown
Status	Currently Constituted
Sovereign	King Felipe VI
Grand Chancellor	Pedro Sánchez, Prime Minister
Grades	Knight/Dame of the Collar Knight/Dame Grand Cross Commander by Number Commander Knight's/Dame's Cross
Precedence
Next (higher)	None
Next (lower)	Order of Isabella the Catholic (for diplomatic relations), Order of Civil Merit (for civic virtues).
Sash & ribbon of a Collar grade member of the order Sash & ribbon of an ordinary member of the order

The Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Charles III, originally Royal and Much Distinguished Order of Charles III (Spanish: Real y Distinguida Orden Española de Carlos III, originally Spanish: Real y Muy Distinguida Orden de Carlos III; Abbr.: OC3) is a knighthood and one of the three preeminent orders of merit bestowed by the Kingdom of Spain, alongside the Order of Isabella the Catholic (established in 1815) and the Order of Civil Merit (established in 1926). It was established by the King of Spain Charles III by means of the Royal Decree of 19 September 1771, with the motto Virtuti et mérito. It rewards political appointees, heads of State and high-ranking government officials for their actions in benefit to Spain and the Crown.