[4][5] The name derives from an elaborate medieval ceremony for preparing a candidate to receive his knighthood, of which ritual bathing (as a symbol of purification) was an element.

[7] He did not revive the order,[8] which did not previously exist, in the sense of a body of knights governed by a set of statutes and whose numbers were replenished when vacancies occurred.

These usually involved the knight-to-be taking a bath (possibly symbolic of spiritual purification),[16] during which he was instructed in the duties of knighthood by more senior knights.

[17] It was this accolade which was the essential act in creating a knight, and a simpler ceremony developed, conferring knighthood merely by striking or touching the knight-to-be on the shoulder with a sword,[18] or 'dubbing' him, as is still done today.

[20] From at least 1625,[21] and possibly from the reign of James I, Knights of the Bath were using the motto Tria juncta in uno (Latin for 'Three joined in one'), and wearing as a badge three crowns within a plain gold oval.

[24] The prime mover in the establishment of the Order of the Bath was John Anstis, Garter King of Arms, England's highest heraldic officer.

It was Martin Leake's[25] opinion that the trouble and opposition Anstis met with in establishing himself as Garter so embittered him against the heralds that when at last in 1718 he succeeded, he made it his prime object to aggrandise himself and his office at their expense.

It is clear at least that he set out to make himself indispensable to the Earl Marshal, which was not hard, their political principles being congruous and their friendship already established, but also to Sir Robert Walpole and the Whig ministry, which can by no means have been easy, considering his known attachment to the Pretender and the circumstances under which he came into office.

The main object of Anstis's next move, the revival or institution of the Order of the Bath was probably that which it in fact secured, of ingratiating him with the all-powerful Prime Minister Sir Robert Walpole.

Each knight was required, under certain circumstances, to supply and support four men-at-arms for a period not exceeding 42 days in any year, to serve in any part of Great Britain.

Prior to this date, it had been the policy that the insignia (which were provided by the Crown) were to be returned on the death of the holder; the exception had been foreigners who had been awarded honorary membership.

[55] In 1975, Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester, an aunt of Elizabeth II, became the first woman to reach the highest rank, Dame Grand Cross.

[20] Princess Alice (née Douglas-Montagu-Scott) was a direct descendant of the Order's first Great Master,[56] and her husband, who had died the previous year, had also held that office.

The next-most senior member of the Order is the Great Master, of which there have been ten: Originally a Prince of the Blood Royal, as the Principal Knight Companion, ranked next after the sovereign.

[73] The Great Master and Principal Knight is now either a descendant of George I or 'some other exalted personage'; the holder of the office has custody of the seal of the order and is responsible for enforcing the statutes.

[12] The statutes also provide for the following:[20] Regular membership is limited to citizens of the United Kingdom and of other Commonwealth countries of which the British monarch is Sovereign.

[4] Members appointed to the Civil Division must "by their personal services to [the] crown or by the performance of public duties have merited ... royal favour.

[97] Members of the Order wear elaborate uniforms on important occasions (such as its quadrennial installation ceremonies and coronations), which vary by rank: The mantle, worn only by Knights and Dames Grand Cross, is made of crimson satin lined with white taffeta.

It consists of depictions of nine imperial crowns and eight sets of flowers (roses for England, thistles for Scotland, and shamrocks for Ireland), connected by seventeen silver knots.

The circle is flanked by two laurel branches, and is above a scroll bearing the words Ich dien (older German for 'I serve') in gold letters.

[98] The collars and badges of Knights and Dames Grand Cross are returned to the Central Chancery of the Orders of Knighthood upon the decease of their owners.

[101] The Sovereign, Great Master, and the Knights and Dames Grand Cross are allotted stalls in the choir of the chapel, above which their heraldic devices are displayed.

Under English heraldic law, women other than monarchs do not bear helms or crests; instead, the coronet appropriate to the dame's rank (if she is a peer or member of the Royal family) is used.

At a considerably smaller scale, to the back of the stall is affixed a piece of brass (a 'stall plate') displaying its occupant's name, arms, and date of admission into the Order.

[110] Furthermore, they may encircle their arms with a depiction of the circlet (a red circle bearing the motto) with the badge pendant thereto and the collar; the former is shown either outside or on top of the latter.

Members of the Military division may encompass the circlet with 'two laurel branches issuant from an escrol azure inscribed Ich dien', as appears on the badge.

[113] Under Queen Victoria's 1847 statutes, a member 'convicted of treason, cowardice, felony, or any infamous crime derogatory to his honour as a knight or gentleman, or accused and does not submit to trial in a reasonable time, shall be degraded from the Order by a special ordinance signed by the sovereign.'

[116] George Pottinger, a senior civil servant, lost both his status of CB and Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (CVO) in 1975 when he was jailed for corruptly receiving gifts from the architect John Poulson.

[117] Romanian president Nicolae Ceauşescu was stripped of his honorary GCB status by Queen Elizabeth II on 24 December 1989, the day before his execution.

'[118] Vicky Pryce, former wife of Chris Huhne, was stripped of her CB by Queen Elizabeth II on 30 July 2013, following her conviction for perverting the course of justice.