Eerbetoon en Democratisering. Over de verlening en waardering van lagere Koninklijke onderscheidingen in Nederland

Samenvatting

Honour and democratization. On the conferring and appreciating of lower royal decorations in the Netherlands. By conferring an order of merit, society honours deserving individuals. In the Netherlands since World War II this tradition has become the object of growing discontent. In particular the 'medals of honour', i.e. the lowest grades of the Order of Oranje Nassau, the pre-eminent official decoration, are much criticized. This article shows how both these 'medals of honour' and the criticism they evoke, can be interpreted as products of a long-term process of democratisation. In addition, results of a recent inquiry among decorated Dutchmen are discussed. Their attitude towards this kind of honour exhibits strong egalitarian inclinations and in many cases an aversion against any symbolic accentuation of differences between 'high' and 'low' in society.