The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is an elite order of chivalry, historically ranking fourth in seniority among the British honors. Its origins lie in the medieval ritual of 'knights of the bath,' a creation ceremony involving symbolic ablution to denote spiritual purification before the conferment of knighthood. Unlike most orders, it was not initially a formal collegiate body with a fixed membership but rather a specific class of knights created during major dynastic events, such as coronations or royal weddings.
In 1725, George I formally instituted the Order as a regular military order to provide the Crown with a reliable source of patronage. This was further reformed in 1815 after the Napoleonic Wars, expanding into three distinct classes: Knight Grand Cross (GCB), Knight Commander (KCB), and Companion (CB). The order is presided over by the Sovereign and a Great Master, with the Henry VII Chapel in Westminster Abbey serving as the spiritual home, where the banners of the senior-most knights are displayed above their stalls in the manner of high medieval heraldry.