Order of Merit Order of Merit The Order of Merit () is an order of merit recognising distinguished service in the armed forces, science, art, literature, or for the promotion of culture. Established in 1902 by King Edward VII, admission into the order remains the personal gift of its Sovereign—currently Edward VII's great-granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II—and is restricted to a maximum of 24 living recipients from the Commonwealth realms, plus a limited number of honorary members. While all members are awarded the right to use the post-nominal letters "OM" and wear the badge of the order, the Order of Merit's precedence among other
Indian Order of Merit 1911 when Indian servicemen became eligible for the Victoria Cross. A civilian division of the IOM also existed between 1902 and 1939, however, it was only conferred very rarely. The medal was first introduced by the East India Company in 1837, under the name "Order of Merit" and was taken over by the Crown in 1858, following the Indian Mutiny of 1857. The name of the medal was changed in 1902 to avoid confusion with a British Order of the same name. The Indian Order of Merit was the only gallantry medal available to Native soldiers between 1837 and 1907