The Temple at London--The vast possessions of the Templars in
England--The territorial divisions of the order--The different
preceptories in this country--The privileges conferred on the
Templars by the kings of England--The Masters of the Temple at
London--Their power and importance.
Li fiere, li Mestre du Temple
Qu’estoient rempli et ample
D’Or et d’argent et de richesse,
Et qui menoient tel noblesse,
Ou sont-il? que sont devenu?
Que tant ont de plait maintenu,
Que nul a elz ne s’ozoit prendre
Tozjors achetoient sans vendre
Nul riche a elz n’estoit de prise;
Tant va pot a eue qu’il brise.
_Chron._ à la suite du Roman de Favel.
The Knights Templars first established the chief house of their order
in England, without Holborn Bars, on the south side of the street,
where Southampton House formerly stood, adjoining to which Southampton
Buildings were afterwards erected: and it is stated, that about a
century and a half ago, part of the ancient chapel annexed to this
establishment, of a circular form, and built of Caen stone, was
discovered on pulling down some old houses near Southampton Buildings
in Chancery Lane.[28] This first house of the Temple, established by
Hugh de Payens himself, before his departure from England, on his
return to Palestine, was adapted to the wants and necessities of the
order in its infant state, when the knights, instead of lingering in
the preceptories of Europe, proceeded at once to Palestine, and when
all the resources of the society were strictly and faithfully forwarded
to Jerusalem, to be expended in defence of the faith; but when the
order had greatly increased in numbers, power, and wealth, and had
somewhat departed from its original purity and simplicity, we find that
the superior and the knights resident in London began to look abroad
for a more extensive and commodious place of habitation. They purchased
a large space of ground, extending from the White Friars westward to
Essex House without Temple Bar, and commenced the erection of a convent
on a scale of grandeur commensurate with the dignity and importance of
the chief house of the great religio-military society of the Temple in
Britain. It was called the _New_ Temple, to distinguish it from the
original establishment at Holborn, which came thenceforth to be known
by the name of the _Old_ Temple. This New Temple was adapted for the
residence of numerous military monks and novices, serving brothers,
retainers, and domestics. It contained the residence of the superior
and of the knights, the cells and apartments of the chaplains and
serving brethren, the council chamber where the chapters were held,
and the refectory or dining-hall, which was connected, by a range of
handsome cloisters, with the magnificent church, consecrated by the
patriarch. Alongside the river extended a spacious pleasure ground for
the recreation of the brethren, who were not permitted to go into the
town without the leave of the Master. It was used also for military
exercises and the training of horses.
The year of the consecration of the Temple Church, Geoffrey, the
superior of the order in England, caused an inquisition to be made
of the lands of the Templars in this country, and the names of the
donors thereof,[29] from which it appears, that the larger territorial
divisions of the order were then called bailiwicks, the principal
of which were London, Warwic, Couele, Meritune, Gutinge, Westune,
Lincolnscire, Lindeseie, Widine, and Eboracisire (Yorkshire).
The number of manors, farms, churches, advowsons, demesne lands,
villages, hamlets, windmills, and watermills, rents of assize, rights
of common and free warren, and the amount of all kinds of property
possessed by the Templars in England at the period of the taking of
this inquisition, are astonishing. Upon the great estates belonging
to the order, prioral houses had been erected, wherein dwelt the
procurators or stewards charged with the management of the manors
and farms in their neighbourhood, and with the collection of the
rents. These prioral houses became regular monastic establishments,
inhabited chiefly by sick and aged Templars, who retired to them to
spend the remainder of their days, after a long period of honourable
service against the infidels in Palestine. They were cells to the
principal house at London. There were also under them certain smaller
administrations established for the management of the farms, consisting
of a Knight Templar, to whom were associated some serving brothers
of the order, and a priest who acted as almoner. The commissions
or mandates directed by the Master of the Temple to the officers
at the head of these establishments were called precepts, from the
commencement of them, “_Præcipimus tibi_,” we enjoin or direct you, &c.
&c. The knights to whom they were addressed were styled _Præceptores
Templi_, or Preceptors of the Temple, and the districts administered by
them _Præceptoria_, or preceptories.
[Illustration: The ancient inscription on the Temple Church as it stood
over the door leading into the cloister.
ON THE 10th OF FEBRUARY,
IN
THE YEAR FROM THE INCARNATION OF OUR LORD, 1185,
THIS CHURCH WAS CONSECRATED IN HONOUR OF THE BLESSED MARY
BY THE LORD HERACLIUS,
BY
THE GRACE OF GOD PATRIARCH OF THE CHURCH OF THE RESURRECTION,
WHO
HATH GRANTED AN INDULGENCE OF SIXTY DAYS
TO THOSE YEARLY VISITING IT.
Translation of the inscription on the Temple Church, as it stood over
the doorway leading into the cloister.]
It will now be as well to take a general survey of the possessions
and organization of the order both in Europe and Asia, “whose
circumstances,” saith William, archbishop of Tyre, writing from
Jerusalem about the period of the consecration at London of the Temple
Church, “are in so flourishing a state, that at this day they have in
their convent (the Temple on Mount Moriah) more than three hundred
knights robed in the white habit, besides serving brothers innumerable.
Their possessions indeed beyond the sea, as well as in these parts, are
said to be so vast, that there cannot now be a province in Christendom
which does not contribute to the support of the aforesaid brethren,
whose wealth is said to equal that of sovereign princes.”[30]
The eastern provinces of the order were, 1. Palestine, the ruling
province. 2. The principality of Antioch. 3. The principality of
Tripoli. In Palestine the Templars possessed, in addition to the
Temple at Jerusalem, the chief house of the order, and the residence
of the Master, the fortified city of Gaza, the key of the kingdom
of Jerusalem on the side next Egypt, which was granted to them in
perpetual sovereignty, by Baldwin king of Jerusalem; also the Castle of
Saphet, in the territory of the ancient tribe of Naphtali; the Castle
of the Pilgrims, in the neighbourhood of Mount Carmel; the Castle of
Assur near Jaffa, and the house of the Temple at Jaffa; the fortress
of Faba, or La Feue, the ancient Aphek, not far from Tyre, in the
territory of the ancient tribe of Asher; the hill-fort Dok between
Bethel and Jericho; the castles of La Cave, Marle, Citern Rouge, Castel
Blanc, Trapesach, Sommelleria of the Temple, in the neighbourhood of
Acca, now St. John d’Acre; Castrum Planorum, and a place called Gerinum
Parvum.[31] The Templars, moreover, purchased the castle of Beaufort
and the city of Sidon; they also got into their hands a great part of
the town of St. Jean d’Acre, where they erected a famous TEMPLE, and
almost all the sea coast of Palestine was in the end divided between
them and the Hospitallers of St. John. The principal houses of the
Temple in the PROVINCE OF ANTIOCH were at Antioch itself, at Aleppo,
and Haram; and in the PRINCIPALITY OF TRIPOLI, at Tripoli, Tortosa, the
ancient Antaradus; Castel Blanc in the same neighbourhood; Laodicea and
Beyrout.
In the western province of APULIA AND SICILY, the Templars possessed
numerous houses, viz., at Palermo, Syracuse, Lentini, Butera,
and Trapani. The house of the Temple at this last place has been
appropriated to the use of some monks of the order of St. Augustin. In
a church of the city is still to be seen the celebrated statue of the
Virgin, which Brother Guerrege and three other Knights Templars brought
from the East, with a view of placing it in the Temple Church on the
Aventine hill in Rome, but which they were obliged to deposit in the
island of Sicily. This statue is of the most beautiful white marble,
and represents the Virgin with the infant Jesus reclining on her left
arm; it is of about the natural height, and, from an inscription on the
foot of the figure, it appears to have been executed by a native of the
island of Cyprus, A. D. 733. The Templars possessed valuable estates in
Sicily, around the base of Mount Etna, and large tracts of land between
Piazza and Calatagirone, in the suburbs of which last place there was a
Temple house, the church whereof, dedicated to the Virgin Mary, still
remains. They possessed also many churches in the island, windmills,
rights of fishery, of pasturage, of cutting wood in the forests, and
many important privileges and immunities. The chief house was at
Messina, where the Grand Prior resided.[32]
UPPER AND CENTRAL ITALY also contained numerous preceptories of the
order of the Temple, all under the immediate superintendence of the
grand Prior or Preceptor of Rome. There were large establishments at
Lucca, Milan, and Perugia, at which last place the arms of the Temple
are still to be seen on the tower of the holy cross. At Placentia
there was a magnificent and extensive convent, called Santa Maria del
Tempio, ornamented with a very lofty tower. At Bologna there was also
a large Temple house, and on a clock in the city is the following
inscription, “_Magister Tosseolus de Miolâ me fecit ... Fr. Petrus de
Bon, Procur. Militiæ Templi in curiâ Romanâ_, MCCCIII.” In the church
of St. Mary in the same place, which formerly belonged to the Knights
Templars, is the interesting marble monument of Peter de Rotis, a
priest of the order.
In the PROVINCE OF PORTUGAL, the military power and resources of the
order were exercised in almost constant warfare against the Moors, and
Europe derived essential advantage from the enthusiastic exertions
of the warlike monks in that quarter against the infidels. In every
battle, indeed, fought in the south of Europe, after the year 1130,
against the enemies of the cross, the Knights Templars are to be found
taking an active and distinguished part. They were extremely popular
with all the princes and sovereigns of the great Spanish peninsula, and
were endowed with cities, villages, lordships, and splendid domains.
The Grand Prior or Preceptor of Portugal resided at the castle of
Tomar. It is seated on the river Narboan, in Estremadura, and is still
to be seen towering in gloomy magnificence on the hill above the
town. The castle at present belongs to the order of Christ, and was
lately one of the grandest and richest establishments in Portugal. It
possessed a splendid library, and a handsome cloister, the architecture
of which was much admired. The houses or preceptories of the Temple
in the province of Castile and Leon were those of Cuenca, and
Guadalfagiara; Tine and Aviles in the diocese of Oviedo, and Pontevreda
in Galicia. In Castile alone the order is said to have possessed
twenty-four bailiwicks.
In ARAGON the Templars possessed the castles of Dumbel, Cabanos, Azuda,
Granena, Chalonere, Remolins, Corbins, Lo Mas de Barbaran, Moncon, and
Montgausi, with their territories and dependencies. They were lords of
the cities of Borgia and Tortosa; they had a tenth part of the revenues
of the kingdom, the taxes of the towns of Huesca and Saragossa, and
houses, possessions, privileges, and immunities in all parts.[33] They
possessed likewise lands and estates in the Balearic Isles, which
were under the management of the Prior or Preceptor of the island of
Majorca, who was subject to the Grand Preceptor of Aragon.
In GERMANY AND HUNGARY the houses and preceptories most known were at
Homburg, Assenheim, Rotgen in the Rhingau, Mongberg in the Marché of
Brandenbourg, Nuitz on the Rhine, Tissia Altmunmunster near Ratisbon
in Bavaria, Bamberg, Middleburgh, Hall, and Brunswick. The Templars
possessed the fiefs of Rorich, Pausin and Wildenheuh in _Pomerania_,
an establishment at Bach in _Hungary_, several lordships in _Bohemia_
and _Moravia_, and lands, tithes, and large revenues, the gifts of
pious German crusaders.[34] In GREECE the Templars also possessed lands
and establishments. Their chief house was at Constantinople, in the
quarter called Ὁμόνοια, where they had an oratory dedicated to the holy
martyrs Marin and Pentaleon.[35] In FRANCE the principal preceptories
were at Besançon, Dole, Salins, à la Romagne, à la ville Dieu, Arbois
in _Franche Comté_. Dorlesheim near Molsheim, where their still remains
a chapel called Templehoff, Fauverney, where a chapel dedicated to the
Virgin still preserves the name of the Temple, Des Feuilles, situate
in the parish of Villett, near the chateau de Vernay, and Rouen, where
there were two houses of the Temple; one of them occupied the site of
the present _maison consulaire_, and the other stood in the street now
called _La Rue des Hermites_. The preceptories and houses of the Temple
in France, indeed, were so numerous, that it would be a wearisome and
endless task to repeat the names of them. Between Joinville and St.
Dizier may still be seen the remains of Temple Ruet, an old chateau
surrounded by a moat; and in the diocese of Meaux are the ruins of
the great manorial house of Choisy le Temple. Many interesting tombs
are there visible, together with the refectory of the knights, which
has been converted into a sheepfold. The chief house of the order for
France, and also for Holland and the Netherlands, was the Temple at
Paris, an extensive and magnificent structure, surrounded by a wall and
a ditch. It extended over all that large space of ground, now covered
with streets and buildings, which lies between the Rue du Temple, the
Rue St. Croix, and the environs de la Verrerie, as far as the walls and
the fossés of the port du Temple. It was ornamented with a great tower,
flanked by four smaller towers, erected by the Knight Templar Brother
Herbert, almoner to the king of France, and was one of the strongest
edifices in the kingdom.[36] Many of the modern streets of Paris which
now traverse the site of this interesting structure, preserve in the
names given to them some memorial of the ancient Temple. For instance,
_La rue du Temple_, _La rue des fossés du Temple_, _Boulevard du
Temple_, _Faubourg du Temple_, _rue de Faubourg du Temple_, _Vieille
rue du Temple_, _&c._, _&c._
[Illustration: TOWER OF THE PRECEPTORY OF TEMPLE BRUERE, LINCOLNSHIRE.]
All the houses of the Temple in Holland and the Netherlands were under
the immediate jurisdiction of the Master of the Temple at Paris. The
preceptories in these kingdoms were very numerous, and the property
dependent upon them was of great value.
In ENGLAND there were in bygone times the preceptories of Aslakeby,
Temple Bruere, Egle, Malteby, Mere, Wilketon, and Witham, in
_Lincolnshire_. North Feriby, Temple Hurst, Temple Newsom,
Pafflete, Flaxflete, and Ribstane, in _Yorkshire_. Temple Cumbe, in
_Somersetshire_. Ewell, Strode and Swingfield, near Dover, in _Kent_.
Hadescoe, in _Norfolk_. Balsall and Warwick, in _Warwickshire_. Temple
Rothley, in _Leicestershire_. Wilburgham Magna, Daney, and Dokesworth,
in _Cambridgeshire_. Halston, in _Shropshire_. Temple Dynnesley, in
_Hertfordshire_. Temple Cressing and Sutton, in _Essex_. Saddlescomb
and Chapelay, in _Sussex_. Schepeley, in _Surrey_. Temple Cowley,
Sandford, Bistelesham, and Chalesey, in _Oxfordshire_. Temple Rockley,
in _Wiltshire_. Upleden and Garwy, in _Herefordshire_. South Badeisley,
in _Hampshire_. Getinges, in _Worcestershire_. Giselingham and Dunwich,
in _Suffolk_.
There were also several smaller administrations established, as
before mentioned, for the management of the farms and lands, and the
collection of rent and tithes. Among these were Liddele and Quiely in
the diocese of Chichester; Eken in the diocese of Lincoln; Adingdon,
Wesdall, Aupledina, Cotona, &c. The different preceptors of the Temple
in England had under their management lands and property in every
county of the realm.[37]
In _Leicestershire_ the Templars possessed the town and the soke
of Rotheley; the manors of Rolle, Babbegrave, Gaddesby, Stonesby,
and Melton; Rothely wood, near Leicester; the villages of Beaumont,
Baresby, Dalby, North and South Mardefeld, Saxby, Stonesby, and Waldon,
with land in above _eighty_ others! They had also the churches of
Rotheley, Babbegrave, and Rolle; and the chapels of Gaddesby, Grimston,
Wartnaby, Cawdwell, and Wykeham.[38]
In _Hertfordshire_ they possessed the town and forest of Broxbourne,
the manor of Chelsin Templars, (_Chelsin Templariorum_,) and the manors
of Laugenok, Broxbourne, Letchworth, and Temple Dynnesley; demesne
lands at Stanho, Preston, Charlton, Walden, Hiche, Chelles, Levecamp,
and Benigho; the church of Broxbourne, two watermills, and a lock on
the river Lea; also property at Hichen, Pyrton, Ickilford, Offeley
Magna, Offeley Parva, Walden Regis, Furnivale, Ipolitz, Wandsmyll,
Watton, Therleton, Weston, Gravele, Wilien, Leccheworth, Baldock,
Datheworth, Russenden, Codpeth, Sumershale, Buntynford, &c., &c.,
and the Church of Weston.[39] In the county of _Essex_ they had the
manors of Temple Cressynge, Temple Roydon, Temple Sutton, Odewell,
Chingelford, Lideleye, Quarsing, Berwick, and Witham; the church of
Roydon, and houses, lands, and farms, both at Roydon, at Rivenhall,
and in the parishes of Prittlewall and Great and Little Sutton; an old
mansion-house and chapel at Sutton, and an estate called Finchinfelde
in the hundred of Hinckford.[40] In _Lincolnshire_ the Templars
possessed the manors of La Bruere, Roston, Kirkeby, Brauncewell,
Carleton, Akele, with the soke of Lynderby, Aslakeby, and the churches
of Bruere, Asheby, Akele, Aslakeby, Donington, Ele, Swinderby, Skarle,
&c. There were upwards of thirty churches in the county which made
annual payments, to the order of the Temple, and about forty windmills.
The order likewise received rents in respect of lands at Bracebrig,
Brancestone, Scapwic, Timberland, Weleburne, Diringhton, and a hundred
other places; and some of the land in the county was charged with the
annual payment of sums of money towards the keeping of lights eternally
burning on the altars of the Temple church. William Lord of Asheby
gave to the Templars the perpetual advowson of the church of Asheby in
Lincolnshire, and they in return agreed to find him a priest to sing
for ever twice a week in his chapel of St. Margaret.
In _Yorkshire_ the Templars possessed the manors of Temple Werreby,
Flaxflete, Etton, South Cave, &c.; the churches of Whitcherche
Keluntune, &c.; numerous windmills and lands and rents at Nehus,
Skelture, Pennel, and more than sixty other places besides. In
_Warwickshire_ they possessed the manors of Barston, Shirburne,
Balshale, Wolfhey, Cherlecote, Herbebure, Stodleye, Fechehampstead,
Cobington, Tysho and Warwick; lands at Chelverscoton, Herdwicke,
Morton, Warwick, Hetherburn, Chesterton, Aven, Derset, Stodley,
Napton, and more than thirty other places, the several donors whereof
are specified in Dugdale’s history of Warwickshire (p. 694) also
the churches of Sireburne, Cardington, &c., and more than thirteen
windmills. In 12 Hen. II., William Earle of Warwick built a new church
for them at Warwick.[41] In _Kent_ they had the manors of Lilleston,
Hechewayton, Saunford, Sutton, Dartford, Halgel, Ewell, Cocklescomb,
Strode, Swinkfield Mennes, West Greenwich, and the manor of Lydden,
which now belongs to the archbishop of Canterbury; the advowsons of
the churches of West Greenwich and Kingeswode juxta Waltham; extensive
tracts of land in Romney marsh, and farms and assize rents in all
parts of the county. In _Sussex_ they had the manors of Saddlecomb
and Shipley; lands and tenements at Compton and other places; and the
advowsons of the churches of Shipley, Wodmancote, and Luschwyke.
In _Surrey_ they had the manor farm of Temple Elfand or Elfant, and
an estate at Merrow in the hundred of Woking. In _Gloucestershire_,
the manors of Lower Dowdeswell, Pegsworth, Amford, Nishange, and five
others which belonged to them wholly or in part, the church of Down
Ammey, and lands in Frampton, Temple Guting, and Little Rissington.
In _Worcestershire_, the manor of Templars Lawern, and lands in
Flavel, Temple Broughton, and Hanbury. In _Northamptonshire_, the
manors of Asheby, Thorp, Watervill, &c., &c.; they had the advowson
of the church of the manor of Hardwicke in Orlington hundred, and we
find that “Robert Saunford, Master of the soldiery of the Temple in
England,” presented to it in the year 1238.[42] In _Nottinghamshire_,
the Templars possessed the church of Marnham, lands and rents at
Gretton and North Carleton; in _Westmoreland_, the manor of Temple
Sowerby; in the Isle of Wight, the manor of Uggeton, and lands in
Kerne. But it would be tedious further to continue with a dry detail
of ancient names and places; sufficient has been said to give an idea
of the enormous wealth of the order in this country, where it is known
to have possessed some hundreds of manors, the advowson or right of
presentation to churches innumerable, and thousands of acres of arable
land, pasture, and woodland, besides villages, farm-houses, mills, and
tithes, rights of common, of fishing, of cutting wood in forests, &c.,
&c. There were also several preceptories in Scotland and Ireland, which
were dependent on the Temple at London.
The annual income of the order in Europe has been roughly estimated
at six millions sterling! According to Matthew Paris, the Templars
possessed _nine thousand_ manors or lordships in Christendom, besides a
large revenue and immense riches arising from the constant charitable
bequests and donations of sums of money from pious persons.[43] The
Templars, in imitation of the other monastic establishments, obtained
from pious and charitable people all the advowsons within their reach,
and frequently retained the tithe and the glebe in their own hands,
deputing a priest of the order to perform divine service and administer
the sacraments. The manors of the Templars produced them rent either
in money, corn, or cattle, and the usual produce of the soil. By the
custom in some of these manors, the tenants were annually to mow
three days in harvest, one at the charge of the house, and to plough
three days, whereof one at the like charge; to reap one day, at which
time they should have a ram from the house, eight pence, twenty-four
loaves, and a cheese of the best in the house, together with a pailful
of drink. The tenants were not to sell their horse-colts if they were
foaled upon the land belonging to the Templars, without the consent of
the fraternity, nor marry their daughters without their licence. There
were also various regulations concerning the cocks and hens and young
chickens.
King Henry the Second, for the good of his soul and the welfare of
his kingdom, granted the Templars a place situate on the river Fleet,
near Bainard’s Castle, with the whole current of that river at London,
for erecting a mill; also a messuage near Fleet-street; the church of
St. Clement, “quæ dicitur Dacorum extra civitatem Londoniæ;” and the
churches of Elle, Swinderby and Skarle in Lincolnshire, Kingeswode
juxta Waltham in Kent, the manor of Stroder in the hundred of Skamele,
the vill of Kele in Staffordshire, the hermitage of Flikeamstede, and
all his lands at Lange Cureway, a house in Brosal, and the market
at Witham; lands at Berghotte, a mill at the bridge of Pembroke
Castle, the vill of Finchinfelde, the manor of Rotheley, with its
appurtenances, and the advowson of the church and its several chapels,
the manor of Blalcolvesley, the park of Halshall, and three _fat bucks_
annually, either from Essex or Windsor Forest. He likewise granted them
an annual fair at Temple Bruere, and superadded many rich benefactions
in Ireland.[44]
The Templars, in addition to their amazing wealth, enjoyed vast
privileges and immunities within this realm. They were freed from
all amerciaments in the Exchequer, and obtained the privilege of not
being compelled to plead except before the king or his chief justice.
By special grant from the kings of England, they enjoyed free warren
in all their demesne lands, also the power of holding courts to judge
their villains and vassals, and to try thieves and malefactors; they
were relieved from all the customary feudal suits and services, from
the works of parks, castles, bridges, the building of royal houses, and
all other works; and also from waste regard and view of foresters, and
from toll in all markets and fairs, and at all bridges, and upon all
highways throughout the kingdom. They had also the chattels of felons
and fugitives, and all waifs within their fee.[45] In addition to the
particular privileges conceded to them by the kings of England, the
Templars enjoyed, under the authority of divers Papal bulls, various
immunities and advantages, which gave great umbrage to the clergy. They
were freed, as before mentioned, from the obligation of paying tithes,
and might, with the consent of the bishop, receive them. No brother
of the Temple could be excommunicated by any bishop or priest, nor
could any of the churches of the order be laid under interdict except
by virtue of a special mandate from the holy see. When any brother of
the Temple, appointed to make charitable collections for the succour
of the Holy Land, should arrive at a city, castle, or village, which
had been laid under interdict, the churches, on their welcome coming,
were to be thrown open, (once within the year,) and divine service was
to be performed in honour of the Temple, and in reverence for the holy
soldiers thereof. The privilege of sanctuary was thrown around their
dwellings; and by various papal bulls it is solemnly enjoined that no
person shall lay violent hands either upon the persons or the property
of those flying for refuge to the Temple houses.[46]
Sir Edward Coke, in the second part of the Institute of the Laws of
England, observes, that “the Templars did so overspread throughout
Christendome, and so exceedingly increased in possessions, revenues,
and wealth, and specially in England, as you will wonder to reade in
approved histories, and withall obtained so great and large privileges,
liberties, and immunities for themselves, their tenants, and farmers,
&c., as no other order had the like.” He further observes, that the
Knights Templars were _cruce signati_, and as the cross was the ensign
of their profession, and their tenants enjoyed great privileges, they
did erect crosses upon their houses, to the end that those inhabiting
them might be known to be the tenants of the order, and thereby be
freed from many duties and services which other tenants were subject
unto; “and many tenants of other lords, perceiving the state and
greatnesse of the knights of the said order, and withall seeing the
great privileges their tenants enjoyed, did set up crosses upon their
houses, as their very tenants used to doe, to the prejudice of their
lords.”
This abuse led to the passing of the statute of Westminster, the
second, _chap. 33_, which recites, that many tenants did set up crosses
or cause them to be set up on their lands in prejudice of their lords,
that the tenants might defend themselves against the chief lord of
the fee by the privileges of TEMPLARS, and enacts that such lands
shall be forfeited to the chief lords or to the king. Sir Edward Coke
observes, that the Templars were freed from tenths and fifteenths to be
paid to the king; that they were discharged of purveyance; that they
could not be sued for any ecclesiastical cause before the ordinary,
_sed coram conservatoribus suorum privilegiorum_; and that of ancient
time they claimed that a felon might take to their houses, having
their crosses for his safety, as well as to any church. And concerning
these conservers or keepers of their privileges, he remarks, that the
Templars and Hospitallers “held an ecclesiasticall court before a
canonist, whom they termed _conservator privilegiorum suorum_, which
judge had indeed more authority than was convenient, and did dayly,
in respect to the height of these two orders, and at their instance
and direction, incroach upon and hold plea of matters determinable
by the common law, for _cui plus licet quam par est, plus vult quam
licet_; and this was one great mischiefe. Another mischiefe was,
that this judge likewise at their instance, in cases wherein he had
jurisdiction, would make general citations as _pro salute animæ_, and
the like, without expressing the matter whereupon the citation was
made, which also was against law, and tended to the grievous vexation
of the subject.”[47] To remedy these evils, another act of parliament
was passed, prohibiting the Templars from bringing any man in plea
before the keepers of their privileges, for any matter the knowledge
whereof belonged to the king’s court, and commanding such keepers of
their privileges thenceforth to grant no citation at the instance of
the Templars, before it be expressed upon what matter the citation
ought to be made.[48]
[Illustration: CHAPEL OF THE PRECEPTORY OF TEMPLE SWINGFIELD, DOVER.]
The Grand Master of the Temple ranked in Europe as a sovereign prince,
and had precedence of all ambassadors and peers in the general councils
of the church. He was elected to his high office by the chapter of the
kingdom of Jerusalem, which was composed of all the knights of the East
and of the West who could manage to attend. The western nations or
provinces of the order were presided over by the provincial Masters,
otherwise Grand Priors or Grand Preceptors, who were originally
appointed by the Chief Master at Jerusalem, and were in theory mere
trustees or bare administrators of the revenues of the fraternity,
accountable to the treasurer-general at Jerusalem, and removeable at
the pleasure of the Chief Master. The superior of the Temple at London
is always styled “Master of the Temple,” and holds his chapters and has
his officers corresponding to those of the Chief Master in Palestine.
The latter, consequently, came to be denominated _Magnus Magister_, or
Grand Master. The titles given indeed to the superiors of the different
nations or provinces into which the order of the Temple was divided,
are numerous and somewhat perplexing. In the East, these officers were
known only, in the first instance, by the title of Prior, as Prior
of England, Prior of France, Prior of Portugal, &c., and afterwards
Preceptor of England, Preceptor of France, &c.; but in Europe they were
called Grand Priors, and Grand Preceptors, to distinguish them from
the Sub-priors and Sub-preceptors, and also Masters of the Temple. The
Prior and Preceptor _of_ England, therefore, and the Grand Prior, Grand
Preceptor, and Master of the Temple _in_ England, were one and the same
person. There were also at the New Temple at London, in imitation
of the establishment at the chief house in Palestine, in addition to
the Master, the Preceptor of the Temple, the Prior of London, the
Treasurer, and the Guardian of the church, who had three chaplains
under him called readers.
The Master at London had his general and particular, or his ordinary
and extraordinary chapters. The first were composed of the grand
preceptors of Scotland and Ireland, and all the provincial priors
and preceptors of the three kingdoms, who were summoned once a year
to deliberate on the state of the Holy Land, to forward succour, to
give an account of their stewardship, and to frame new rules and
regulations for the management of the temporalities.[49] The ordinary
chapters were held at the different preceptories, which the Master
of the Temple visited in succession. In these chapters new members
were admitted into the order; lands were bought, sold, and exchanged;
and presentations were made by the Master to vacant benefices. Many
of the grants and other deeds of these chapters, with the seal of
the order of the Temple annexed to them, are to be met with in the
public and private collections of manuscripts in this country. One
of the most interesting and best preserved, is the Harleian charter,
(83, c. 39,) in the British Museum, which is a grant of land made by
Brother William de la More THE MARTYR, the last Master of the Temple
in England, to the Lord Milo de Stapleton. It is expressed to be made
by him, with the common consent and advice of his chapter, held at the
Preceptory of Dynneslee, on the feast of Saint Barnabas the Apostle,
and concludes, “In witness whereof, we have to this present indenture
placed the seal of our chapter.” A facsimile of this seal is given
at the head of the present chapter. On the reverse of it is a man’s
head, decorated with a long beard, and surmounted by a small cap, and
around it are the letters TESTIS SVM AGNI. The same seal is to be met
with on various other indentures made by the Master and Chapter of
the Temple.[50] The more early seals are surrounded with the words,
Sigillum _Militis_ Templi, “Seal of the _Knight_ of the Temple;” as in
the case of the deed of exchange of lands at Normanton in the parish of
Botisford, in Leicestershire, entered into between Brother Amadeus de
Morestello, Master of the chivalry of the Temple in England, and his
chapter, of the one part, and the Lord Henry de Coleville Knight, of
the other part. The seal annexed to this deed has the addition of the
word _Militis_, but in other respects it is similar to the one above
delineated.[51]
The Master of the Temple in England sat in parliament as first baron
of the realm, but that is to be understood among priors only. To the
parliament holden in the twenty-ninth year of King Henry the Third,
there was summoned sixty-five abbots, thirty-five priors, and the
Master of the Temple.[52] The oath taken by the grand priors, grand
preceptors, or provincial Masters in Europe, on their assumption of
the duties of their high administrative office, was drawn up in the
following terms:--“I _A. B._, Knight of the Order of the Temple,
just now appointed Master of the knights who are in ----, promise
to Jesus Christ my Saviour, and to his vicar the sovereign pontiff
and his successors, perpetual obedience and fidelity. I swear that I
will defend, not only with my lips, but by force of arms and with all
my strength, the mysteries of the faith; the seven sacraments, the
fourteen articles of the faith, the creed of the Apostles, and that
of Saint Athanasius; the books of the Old and the New Testament, with
the commentaries of the holy fathers, as received by the church; the
unity of God, the plurality of the persons of the holy Trinity; and
the doctrine that Mary, the daughter of Joachim and Anna, of the tribe
of Judah, and of the race of David, remained always a virgin before
her delivery, during and after her delivery. I promise likewise to
be submissive and obedient to the Master-general of the order, in
conformity with the statutes prescribed by our father Saint Bernard;
that I will at all times in case of need pass the seas to go and
fight; that I will always afford succour against the infidel kings and
princes; that in the presence of three enemies I will fly not, but cope
with them, if they are infidels; that I will not sell the property of
the order, nor consent that it be sold or alienated; that I will always
preserve chastity; that I will be faithful to the king of ----; that I
will never surrender to the enemy the towns and places belonging to the
order; and that I will never refuse to the religious any succour that
I am able to afford them; that I will aid and defend them by words, by
arms, and by all sorts of good offices; and in sincerity and of my own
free will I swear that I will observe all these things.”[53]
Among the earliest of the Masters, or Grand Priors, or Grand Preceptors
of England, whose names figure in history, is Richard de Hastings,
who was at the head of the order in this country on the accession of
King Henry the Second to the throne, (A. D. 1154,) and was employed
by that monarch in various important negotiations. He was the friend
and confidant of Thomas à Becket, and vainly endeavoured to terminate
the disputes between that haughty prelate and the king.[54] Richard
de Hastings was succeeded by Richard Mallebeench, who confirmed a
treaty of peace and concord which had been entered into between his
predecessor and the abbot of Kirkested; and the next Master of the
Temple appears to have been Geoffrey son of Stephen, who received the
patriarch Heraclius as his guest at the new Temple on the occasion of
the consecration of the Temple church. He styles himself “_Minister_ of
the soldiery of the Temple in England.”[55]
In consequence of the high estimation in which the Templars were held,
and the privilege of sanctuary enjoyed by them, the Temple at London
came to be made “a storehouse of treasure.” The wealth of the king,
the nobles, the bishops, and of the rich burghers of London, was
generally deposited therein, under the safeguard and protection of
the military friars. The money collected in the churches and chapels
for the succour of the Holy Land was also paid to the treasurer of
the Temple, to be forwarded to its destination: and the treasurer was
at different times authorised to receive the taxes imposed upon the
moveables of the ecclesiastics, also the large sums of money extorted
by the rapacious popes from the English clergy, and the annuities
granted by the king to the nobles of the kingdom.[56] The money and
jewels of Hubert de Burgh, earl of Kent, the chief justiciary, and at
one time governor of the king and kingdom of England, were deposited in
the Temple, and when that nobleman was disgraced and committed to the
Tower, the king attempted to lay hold of the treasure. Matthew Paris
gives the following curious account of the affair:--“It was suggested,”
says he, “to the king, that Hubert had no small amount of treasure
deposited in the New Temple, under the custody of the Templars. The
king accordingly, summoning to his presence the Master of the Temple,
briefly demanded of him if it was so. He indeed, not daring to deny
the truth to the king, confessed that he had money of the said Hubert,
which had been confidentially committed to the keeping of himself and
his brethren, but of the quantity and amount thereof he was altogether
ignorant. Then the king endeavoured with threats to obtain from the
brethren the surrender to him of the aforesaid money, asserting that it
had been fraudulently subtracted from his treasury. But they answered
to the king, that money confided to them in trust they would deliver
to no man without the permission of him who had intrusted it to be
kept in the Temple. And the king, since the above-mentioned money had
been placed under their protection, ventured not to take it by force.
He sent, therefore, the treasurer of his court, with his justices of
the Exchequer, to Hubert, who had already been placed in fetters in
the Tower of London, that they might exact from him an assignment of
the entire sum to the king. But when these messengers had explained
to Hubert the object of their coming, he immediately answered that he
would submit himself and all belonging to him to the good pleasure of
his sovereign. He therefore petitioned the brethren of the chivalry
of the Temple that they would, in his behalf, present all his keys to
his lord the king, that he might do what he pleased with the things
deposited in the Temple. This being done, the king ordered all that
money, faithfully counted, to be placed in his treasury, and the amount
of all the things found to be reduced into writing and exhibited before
him. The king’s clerks, indeed, and the treasurer acting with them,
found deposited in the Temple gold and silver vases of inestimable
price, and money and many precious gems, an enumeration whereof would
in truth astonish the hearers.”[57]
The kings of England frequently resided in the Temple, and so also did
the haughty legates of the Roman pontiffs, who there made contributions
in the name of the pope upon the English bishoprics. Matthew Paris
gives a lively account of the exactions of the nuncio Martin, who
resided for many years at the Temple, and came there armed by the pope
with powers such as no legate had ever before possessed. “He made,”
says he, “whilst residing at London in the New Temple, unheard of
extortions of money and valuables. He imperiously intimated to the
abbots and priors that they must send him rich presents, desirable
palfreys, sumptuous services for the table, and rich clothing; which
being done, that same Martin sent back word that the things sent were
insufficient, and he commanded the givers thereof to forward him
better things, on pain of suspension and excommunication.”[58]
The convocations of the clergy and the great ecclesiastical councils
were frequently held at the Temple, and laws were there made by the
bishops and abbots for the government of the church and monasteries in
England.[59]