Chelengk of the Ottoman Empire | |
---|---|
![]() Replica of Lord Nelson's diamond chelengk | |
Type | Jewellery |
Awarded for | Outstanding services to the state |
Country | Ottoman Empire |
Presented by | ![]() Ottoman Sultan |
Eligibility | Civilians and military |
Status | No longer awarded |
Established | 1798 |
Precedence | |
Next (higher) | Order of Osmanieh |
Next (lower) | Gallipoli Star |
A chelengk (Ottoman Turkish: چـلنك;[1] Turkish: çelenk; Turkish pronunciation: [t͡ʃɛlɛŋk]) was a military decoration of the Ottoman Empire.
Originally a çelenk was "a bird's feather which one attaches to the turban as a sign of bravery"[2] but by the end of the 18th century, the çelenk had become institutionalized in Ottoman military practice and continued to be awarded for military merit up to the 1820s.[3] It was a jewelled aigrette consisting of a central flower with leaves and buds, and upward-facing rays.
In modern Turkish, a çelenk is a wreath or garland, a circular decoration made from flowers and leaves, usually arranged as an ornament.
In Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series of novels, Captain Jack Aubrey is awarded a chelengk by the Sultan after capturing two rebel ships in The Ionian Mission. His chelengk was worn, like Nelson's, on his dress uniform hat and contained hidden clockwork, so that the diamond strands shimmered in the sun.[7]
In season four, episode 4 of Miss Scarlet and The Duke, "The Diamond Feather," Admiral Nelson's chelengk is the subject of a fictional theft.