Thistle, Order of the, an order of Scottish knighthood, sometimes called the Order of St. Andrew, instituted in 1687 by James VII. of Scotland (James II. of England); fell into abeyance during the reign of William and Mary, but was revived by Queen Anne in 1703; includes the sovereign, 16 knights, and various officials. The principal article in the insignia is a gold collar composed of thistles intertwined with sprigs of rue.
Definition taken from The Nuttall Encyclopædia, edited by the Reverend James Wood (1907)
Thisbe * Tholuck, Friedrich August