Which English king established the Order of the Garter in 1348?

Edward III established the Order of the Garter in 1348. It became England’s, and later Britain’s, highest order of chivalry and remains the oldest surviving British order of chivalry.

The order was founded during the Hundred Years’ War, when Edward sought to celebrate military and aristocratic loyalty. Its membership was deliberately limited, strengthening its prestige. The original company consisted of the sovereign and a small number of knights, known as the Knights Companion.

The order’s famous motto is Honi soit qui mal y pense, usually translated as “Shame on him who thinks evil of it.” A popular story connects the garter to an incident at a royal ball, but historians treat that story cautiously. The order’s real institutional history is much better documented than the anecdote.