The Most Excellent Order of the Star of Sarawak (Malay: Darjah Yang Amat Gemilang Bintang Sarawak) was established by Charles Vyner Brooke, The Rajah of Sarawak, on 26 September 1928 as the highest order of chivalry within the Raj of Sarawak.Sarawak Government Almanac, Percetakan Nasional Malaysia Berhad (Cawangan Sarawak) The motto of the Order was "Haraplah Sa-lagi Bernafas", the Sarawak state motto, a translation of the Latin phrase Dum Spiro Spero, which literally means "As long as I breathe, I hope".
When instituted, the Order held dual status as a dynastic order of knighthood as well as a state order, with the Rajah as its Sovereign. It had a bright yellow ribbon with a black line down the centre. When Sarawak became a British colony in 1946, the Rajah stopped making appointments, and in 2006 the Order became dormant upon the death of the last-known recipient, Elizabeth Choy.
In 1964, the post-independence government of Sarawak constituted The Most Illustrious Order of the Star of Sarawak (Darjah Yang Amat Mulia Bintang Sarawak), and in 1988, renamed it The Most Exalted Order of the Star of Sarawak (Darjah Utama Yang Amat Mulia Bintang Sarawak). This current Order has no connection whatsoever with the previous one except in name.
Composition The Order consisted of:
Sovereign Grand Master
The three ordinary ranks of members are:
Master (MSS)-consists of breast star, sash, and sash badge. Companion (CSS)-a badge worn from a necklet.http://www.rarusnet.com/popup_image.php?pID=13900 Photo of the Companion medal, rarusnet.com Officer (OSS)-a badge worn from a medal ribbon on the left breast.
RankAppointedRecipients NameNotes Sovereign 26-Jun-1929 Charles Vyner Brooke Grand Master 21-Sep-1941 Sylvia Brooke Master 31-Mar-1941 Datu Patinggi Abang Haji Abdillah (1862–1946) A Malay leader in Kuching, and also in Sarawak, renowned for his non-violent struggle against the cession of Sarawak to Britain. John Beville Archer, CMG 21-Sep-1941 Cyril Drummond Le Gros Clark Chief Secretary of Sarawak Companions 26-Sep-1928Ong Tiang Swee, OBE (1864–1950)A renowned Chinese leader in Kuching. His grandson, Late Tan Sri Datuk Amar Ong Kee Hui is a renowned politician. 31-Mar-1941 Abang Suleiman Inche Haji Mohamed Zin John Gordon Anderson Thomas Corson Cecil Pitt-Hardacre, OBE Kenelm Hubert Digby 21-Sep-1941 Leonora Margaret Brooke Daughter of Rajah Charles Vyner Brooke 20-Jun-1946 Thomas Edward Eastick, DSO, ED Military Governor of Sarawak from 10 September 1945 to December 1945 Tan Bak Lim Aloysius Hopfgartner Former Principal of St. Joseph School Kuching (August 1931 – 1934) 27-Jun-1946 John Alfred Smith, OBE Wee Kheng Chiang Founder of United Overseas Bank (UOB)22-Jul-1941Gerald Trueman MacGill MacBryanPrivate Secretary to Rajah Charles Vyner Brooke Officers 31-Mar-1941 Barbara Pitt-Hardacre 20-Jun-1946 Khan Ah Chong, MBE Lau Chai Lim Mangu Ah Kui Charles Stephen Were Thomas Crocker Thomas Attenborough William Geikie Ethel Annie Henderson, MBE Nursing Sister, Kuching General Hospital 1935–1942; interned by Japanese Murugasu Sockalingham Dennis Charles White John Coleraine Hanbury Barcroft Kho Soon Ewe Chin Shin Sen George Edward Bacon 27-Jun-1946 Helen Chan Elizabeth Choy (1910–2006) North Borneo-born Singaporean war heroine. Rajah Charles Vyner Brooke presented her with the Order in recognition of her work of assisting the British POWs during the Japanese occupation. Lim Song Kee Edwin William Howell
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