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Ringo Starr took over The Beatles’ drum seat in 1962, but that wasn’t the only elite group he joined in his career. The English royal family knighted Ringo on March 20, 2018, after he had earned several artistic honors in his career. The drummer who complained about being ignored while making Rubber Soul couldn’t be overlooked when Prince William bestowed the title Sir Richard Starkey on him. Still, the royal family was a little slow to honor Ringo for his life’s work.

Ringo Starr wears a black suit and flashes a peace sign as he hold his medal for being knighted by England's royal family on March 20, 2018.
Ringo Starr moments after becoming a knight | John Stillwell/AFP via Getty Images

Prince William made Ringo Starr a knight on March 20, 2018

The Beatles received MBE honors from Queen Elizabeth II during the height of Beatlemania in 1965. John Lennon later returned his, and George Harrison rejected the royal family’s offer to be knighted.

Paul McCartney was one of few musicians to be knighted by the queen, in 1997. More than 20 years later, Prince William made Ringo a knight in a ceremony at Buckingham Palace on March 20, 2018.

Like his bandmate, the royal family honored Ringo for his contributions to music and the arts. Receiving the honor delighted the drummer. George and John didn’t care about knighthood, but Ringo was ecstatic.

“It means a lot, actually,” the drummer said (per the BBC). “It means recognition for the things we’ve done. I was really pleased to accept this.”

He promised to make his medal a regular part of his wardrobe: “I’ll be wearing it at breakfast,” Ringo said, per the BBC.

England was the second country to honor Ringo’s artistic achievements

Ringo being dubbed a knight by his home country was special. It signaled that his artistic achievements with The Beatles and beyond greatly impacted the public.

And England was a few years behind France in honoring Ringo’s artistic works.

The French government gave Ringo a rare honor when it named him Commander of France’s Order of Arts and Letters in a 2013 ceremony in Monaco. Being named a commander of the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres is France’s highest cultural honor. The drummer joined previous recipients such as David Bowie, Sean Connery, and Bob Dylan. Interestingly, Ringo earned the recognition a year ahead of Quincy Jones, who once called out Ringo’s drumming and replaced him behind the kit while recording one of his solo albums.

So far, he is the only Beatles member to earn France’s highest artistic honor.

The Beatles drummer earned several other accolades for his work

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The line of drummers inspired by Ringo stretches through nearly every genre of music. Though overlooked in The Beatles, his precise playing and understated skill perfectly suited the band. So it shouldn’t be surprising that he entered a musical hall of fame the other Beatles will never join — the Percussive Arts Society Hall of Fame.

Ringo also entered the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame twice, first with the Fab Four in 1988 and then on his own in 2015. The drummer earned another rare honor when the Berklee College of Music gave him an honorary doctorate in 2021.

Ringo Starr earned his knighthood from the English royal family on March 20, 2018. The rare honor meant the world to the drummer, even though he had already been honored several times for his life’s work.

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