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Auction: 19002 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 889

(x) The honours and awards bestowed upon His Excellency F. A. F. Jansen, a distinguished Belgian diplomat who served as Consul-General at Pretoria, Nairobi and Canberra - a long-served and popular individual who spent many happy years in Australia

Belgium, Kingdom, Order of the Crown, Officer's breast Badge, 72mm including crown suspension x 55mm, silver-gilt and enamel, with rosette upon riband; Commemorative Medal for Aid and Food Supplies, 1st Class, gilt, with rosette upon riband; United Kingdom, 1953 Coronation; Cuba, Republic, Order of Honour and Merit, Officer's breast Badge, 67mm, silver-gilt and enamel, with rosette upon riband, the fourth with chip to white enamel at 10 o'clock, overall very fine, mounted as worn, with the recipient's Knight's breast Badge of the Order of the Crown, 60mm including crown suspension x 45mm, silver-gilt and enamel, severe enamel loss, fine, and his Grand Officer's Star of the Order of Christ, by Kretly, Paris, 85mm, silver, gold and enamel, with maker's cartouche to reverse, extremely fine, in original velvet-lined case of issue (6)

Félix Arthur Francis Jansen was born in Antwerp on 5 September 1889. He studied at the Anvers Institute of Commerce from 12 July 1909, receiving his Diploma (with Distinction) on 1 August 1911. Emigrating to New York, he resided at 239 West 122nd Street, gaining employment as a clerk. He married Carla Meyerhof at City Hall, Manhattan on 8 February 1915, fathering one daughter, Lucile. In early 1921, he became Belgian Consul-General at Havana, Cuba. A few months later, King Albert I of Belgium appointed him diplomatic envoy to the Rhineland districts of Germany. He was responsible for upholding Belgian interests during the Allied occupation of that region following the Great War, while also supervising aid and food distribution (Medal).

On 15 November 1931, Jansen became the Belgian Consul-General at Nairobi, with jurisdiction over Kenya, Uganda, Tanganika and Zanzibar. During the summer of 1933 he attended key diplomatic banquets at Government House, Entebbe, Uganda, and in the Governor's Residence at Nairobi. On 17 April 1938, King Leopold III of Belgium appointed him Consul-General at Sydney, Australia, which entailed diplomatic representation of all Belgian citizens west of the 180th meridian. He lived with his wife at 'Winston', 29a Nelson Street, Woollahra, New South Wales.

In 1945 he began suffering from arrhythmia of the heart, which plagued him for the rest of his life. He continued to perform his diplomatic duties. On 15 April 1947 he was appointed Consul-General at Pretoria, with jurisdiction over Rhodesia and Nyasaland. In 1951 he resumed his Australian posting, receiving an engraved silver Medal commemorating the Jubilee of the Commonwealth of Australia. On 3 June 1953 he attended a Garden Party at Government House, Sydney in honour of Queen Elizabeth II's Coronation. For his services he was made a Commander of Belgium's Order of the Crown and an Officer of the Order of Leopold. Finland bestowed upon him the Order of the White Rose (Commander); Portugal made him a Grand Officer of the Order of Christ in recognition of his Ugandan service. All of these decorations are visible in his photograph. He died in Sydney on 16 March 1957.

Sold with a fascinating archive, including:

The recipient's Commonwealth of Australia Federation Jubilee Medallion 1901-1951, the obverse depicting an Australian settler sowing seeds, between the dates '1901' and '1951'; the reverse bearing the Arms of Australia above the embossed inscription 'PRESENTED BT THE COMMONWEALTH GOVERNMENT TO HIS EXCELLENCY M. FELIX F. A. JANSEN. TO COMMEMORATE THE JUBILEE OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA 1951', the recipient's name engraved, the maker's mark 'AMOR' below, 58mm, silver, 90.23 grams, extremely fine, in original fitted leather box of issue

(ii)
Official Belgian and British parchment certificates, confirming Jansen's appointment to various diplomatic postings; original menus from his diplomatic banquets and his invitation to the 1953 Garden Party at Canberra.

(iii)
Jansen's marriage certificate, school reports and family letters & ephemera, along with several photographs of his career; in one image, he is shown shaking hands with Field Marshal Sir William Slim during a visit to the Provisional Parliament House, Canberra.

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Sold for
£400