The Philippine Legion of Honor (Filipino: Lehiyong Pandangal ng Pilipinas) was established by President Manuel Roxas, through Philippine Army Circular No. 60 dated July 3, 1947. The Philippine Legion of Honor was patterned after the Legion of Merit of the United States of America, and was meant to honor both civilians and members of the military, Filipino or foreign. Originally, like the U.S. Legion of Merit, the Philippine Legion of Honor only had four classes, known as Degrees, with Legionnaire being the basic rank, and Chief Commander being the highest. With the reform of the Philippine system of orders and decorations in 2003, the Philippine Legion of Honor's classes were renamed "ranks" instead of "degrees," and the ranks expanded.
Today, the Philippine Legion of Honor is conferred upon a Filipino or foreign citizen in recognition of valuable and meritorious service in relation to the military affairs of the Republic of the Philippines. It is thus the primary order of military merit of the Republic of the Philippines.
To signify the importance of the civil service in military affairs in the preservation of the honor of the Republic of the Philippines and in nation building, the Philippine Legion of Honor is conferred on the anniversary of the declaration of Philippine Independence.
The Philippine Legion of Honor may be awarded by the Secretary of National Defense in the name and by authority of the President of the Philippines.
The civilian division of the Philippine Legion of Honor is composed of the following ranks:
Chief Commander (Punong Komandante) - Conferred upon a civilian for life achievement in public service not otherwise qualifying for the Quezon Service Cross; or upon a former or incumbent Head of State and/or of government Grand Commander (Marangal na Komandante) – Conferred upon a civilian for singular acts of service with a tangible impact on the Philippine military sphere; or upon a Crown Prince, Vice President, Senate President, Speaker of the House, Chief Justice or the equivalent, foreign minister or other official of cabinet rank; or upon an Ambassador, Undersecretary, Assistant Secretary, or other person of a rank similar or equivalent to the foregoing for life achievement in the military fieldGrand Officer (Marangal na Pinuno) – Conferred upon a civilian for acts of exemplary merit benefiting the Republic of the Philippines; or upon a Chargé d'affaires, e.p., Minister, Minister Counselor, Consul General heading a consular post, Executive Director, or other person of a rank similar or equivalent to the foregoingCommander (Komandante) – Conferred upon a civilian for acts of conspicuous merit benefiting the Republic of the Philippines; or upon a Chargé d'affaires, a.i., Counselor, First Secretary, Consul General in the consular section of an Embassy, Consular officer with a personal rank higher than Second Secretary, Director, or other person of a rank similar or equivalent to the foregoingOfficer (Pinuno) – Conferred upon a civilian for acts of commendable merit benefiting the Republic of the Philippines; or upon a Second Secretary, Consul, Assistant Director, or other person of a rank similar or equivalent to the foregoingLegionnaire (Lehiyonaryo) – Conferred upon a civilian for acts of merit benefiting the Republic of the Philippines; or upon a Third Secretary, Vice Consul, Attaché, Principal Assistant, or other person of a rank similar or equivalent to the foregoing.The Armed Forces of the Philippines has its own regulations governing the conferment of the Philippine Legion of Honor.
Emilio Aguinaldo, 1957, former President of the PhilippinesAkihito, Emperor of Japan, 2002Jesus V. Ayala, 2011Gregorio Pio Catapang, 2015, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.Emmanuel T. Bautista, 2014, Chief of Staff of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.Chiang Kai-shek, 1949, President of the Republic of ChinaHillary Clinton, 2013, former United States Secretary of StateDwight D. Eisenhower, 1961, former President of the United StatesFrancisco Franco, 1951, head of the Spanish stateDaniel Inouye, United States SenatorJosé P. Laurel, 1959, former President of the PhilippinesFerdinand Marcos, 1972, former President of the PhilippinesImelda Marcos, First Lady of the PhilippinesDouglas MacArthur, 1961, Philippine field marshalSergio Osmeña, 1994, former President of the PhilippinesFidel V. Ramos, former President of the PhilippinesJesse M. Robredo, Secretary of the Interior and Local Government, given posthumously on August 28, 2012.Chino Roces, 1988, founder and owner of Associated Broadcasting Company and the Manila TimesFranklin D. Roosevelt, 1947, former President of the United States (posthumous)Jaime L. Sin, 1992, Archbishop of ManilaAchmad Sukarno, 1951, President of IndonesiaLorenzo M. Tañada, 1986, Senator of the PhilippinesMaxwell D. Taylor, 1955, U.S. Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of StaffClaudio Teehankee, Sr., 1988, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the PhilippinesGrand Commander
Jaime Augusto Zóbel de Ayala II, 2010Fernando Zóbel de Ayala, 2010Jaime Zóbel de Ayala, 2009 Gilbert C. Teodoro, Jr., 2009, former Secretary of National DefenseEmilio Yap, 2006Napoleon G. Rama, 2011, Constitutional CommissionerGrand Officer
Teodoro Locsin, Jr., 2002Benigno Aquino, Jr., 1954Eulogio BalaoSotero B. Cabahug, 1959Tomas ConfesorCarlos P. RomuloGen. Alfredo M. SantosLt. Gen. Cardozo LunaBernard W. Kearney, 1959Jorge B. Vargas, 1960Juan Ponce Enrile, 1974 and 1986Nicanor BartolomeWashington SyCip, 1991Benigno S. Aquino, Jr., 1950Manny Pacquiao, 2008 (Boxer, Philippine Army reservist)This article incorporates public domain text from the library of the Philippine Congress.
