 The Most Illustrious Order of Saint Patrick is a dormant British order of chivalry associated with Ireland . The Order was created in 1783 by George III at the request of the then Lord @-@ Lieutenant , Lord Buckingham . The regular creation of knights of Saint Patrick lasted until 1922 , when most of Ireland became independent as the Irish Free State . While the Order technically still exists , no knight of St Patrick has been created since 1936 , and the last surviving knight , Prince Henry , Duke of Gloucester , died in 1974 . The Queen , however , remains the Sovereign of the Order , and one officer , the Ulster King of Arms ( now combined with Norroy King of Arms ) , also survives . St Patrick is patron of the order ; its motto is Quis separabit ? , Latin for " Who will separate [ us ] ? " : an allusion to the Vulgate translation of Romans 8 : 35 , " Who shall separate us from the love of Christ ? " 
