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Rhodesia: Grand Master of the Legion of Merit Breast Badge
Rhodesia: Grand Master of the Legion of Merit Breast BadgeRhodesia: Grand Master of the Legion of Merit Breast Badge
Rhodesia: Grand Master of the Legion of Merit Breast BadgeRhodesia: Grand Master of the Legion of Merit Breast Badge
Form: Star shaped with double pin attachments at back
By: Matthews Manufacturing
Date: 1970-1980
Ref:  Laidlaw: 1371;
Variations:
SizeMetalMassValue
93.4 mm (tip to tip) 33.3 mm (inner medal)Gold (18ct)117 gmUnique Museum Piece
Edge: Plain. Thickness at middle 17.4 mm

Obverse: The outside base is an eight-pointed striated star supporting a circular medallion. In the middle of the medallion, a silver Zimbabwe Bird on a green convex background surrounded by a rim of eight rectangular-cut emeralds separated between by two gold diamond-shaped ornaments.

Reverse: Plain. The central medallion backed by a dome-shape plate.

Two attachment for horizontal pins.

Hallmarks at the foot of the dome-shaped plate: "18CT mm (Matthews Manufacturing makers mark) RHODESIAN GOLD"

Notes: The emeralds on the badge are real and came from the Sandawana mine (now dormant) in Belingwe region, 150 kilometres east of Bulawayo.

This is the ceremonial breast badge worn by the Grand Master of the Legion of Merit (GMLM). The Legion of Merit was a Rhodesian order of merit awarded to both civilian and military recipients for service to Rhodesia. It was establish in 1970 when Rhodesia became a parliamentary republic and Queen Elizabeth II ceased to be Head of State. There were five classes of the order:

Grand Commander (GCLM)
Grand Officer (GLM)
Commander (CLM)
Officer (OLM)
Member (MLM)

The incumbent President of Rhodesia served as Grand Master of the Legion of Merit and wore this breast badge on ceremonial occasions. On retirement from office he was automatically awarded the GCLM. The first president of Rhodesia and GMLM was Clifford Dupont.

The order continued to exist when Rhodesia transitioned into Zimbabwe-Rhodesia. The president during that brief period (1 June 1979 to 11 December 1979) was Josiah Zion Gumede (1919-1989).

The Lancaster House agreement brought an end to The Republic of Zimbabwe-Rhodesia and the Legion of Merit became defunct. This breast badge had belonged to the office of the president but there is documentation to show that, in the last days, ownership had been transferred to Gumede in person. Further documentation shows that Gumede sold it for Z$8,000 on 10th December 1980 (a year after he ceased to be president) to an eminent ex-members of the Smith government and collector of Rhodesian medals. He regarded it as the prize piece of his collection.

In April 1981 Zimbabwe introduced the Order of Merit organised along similar lines and with appropriately modified regalia with President Robert Mugabe serving as its grand master.