have served for at least sixteen years to qualify for the Badge and Medal respectively. In 1952 a special medal of distinction was added to the order. These could only be bestowed in wartime. They are the War Cross of the Order of the Sword in Gold, in Silver and in Bronze. They are worn on the same ribbon as the order and the medal consist of the cross saltire of the Order struck in gold, silver or bronze, with an upraised sword behind central medallion bearing the Swedish three crowns and in the spaces between the upper and lower arms of the cross. At the top of the points of the upper arms of the cross and of the sword is a small royal crown. Membership of the order has not been awarded since 1975, but technically it still exists. King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden frequently wears his Commander Grand Cross necklet and badge. In 2019, a parliamentary committee was instructed to establish guidelines on how to re-introduce the Swedish orders, including the Order of the Sword, into the Swedish honours system and how Swedish citizens again can be appointed to Swedish orders. The committee presented its findings in September 2021 and the Government has declared that a bill on the subject will be presented to the Riksdag on 19 April 2022. The Bill was passed on 15 June 2022, and the Order of the Sword was re-introduced into the Swedish honours system on 1 February 2023. Formerly the reception of new Commanders Grand Cross took place without religious ceremonies in the royal apartments, but in the presence of the other Commanders Grand Cross of the Order, of the Knights of the Seraphim, and the Commanders Grand Cross of all the other orders. By the oath the Commander elect bound himself “to defend with life and property the Evangelical-Lutheran religion, to serve faithfully the King and the country, and to combat courageously against the foes of the country.” When a foreigner was elected a Commander of the Grand Cross, the insignia were sent to him abroad, while he, in his turn, transmitted to the archives of the Order a statement of the services rendered by him. Grades The Order of the Sword in peacetime had five classes: Commander Grand Cross – wears the badge on a collar (chain) or on a sash on the right shoulder, plus the