Order of the Lion of Finland

The Order of the Lion of Finland (Suomen Leijonan ritarikunta; Finlands Lejons orden) is one of three official orders in Finland, along with the Order of the Cross of Liberty and the Order of the White Rose of Finland. The President of Finland is the Grand Master of all three orders. The orders are administered by boards consisting of a chancellor, a vice-chancellor and at least four members. The orders of the White Rose of Finland and the Lion of Finland have a joint board.

The Order of the Lion of Finland was founded on September 11, 1942. It was introduced in an effort to preserve the prestige of the Order of the White Rose of Finland, which could have been diminished if granted too frequently, and to facilitate the awarding of honours for various types of merit. The Lion of Finland is awarded for civilian and military merit. The ribbon for all classes of insignia is dark red.

The President of Finland wears the Star of the Order of the Lion of Finland.

Classes
The classes of the Order of the Lion of Finland are:


 * FIN Order of the Lion of Finland 1Class BAR.png Commander Grand Cross of the Order of the Lion of Finland
 * FIN Order of the Lion of Finland 2Class BAR.png Commander, First Class, of the Order of the Lion of Finland
 * FIN Order of the Lion of Finland 3Class BAR.png Commander of the Order of the Lion of Finland
 * FIN Order of the Lion of Finland 5Class BAR.png Pro Finlandia Medal of the Order of the Lion of Finland (awarded to artists and writers)
 * FIN Order of the Lion of Finland 4Class BAR.png Knight, First Class, of the Order of the Lion of Finland
 * FIN Order of the Lion of Finland 5Class BAR.png Knight of the Order of the Lion of Finland
 * FIN Order of the Lion of Finland 5Class BAR.png Cross of Merit of the Order of the Lion of Finland