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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..5380a5b --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #61799 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/61799) diff --git a/old/61799-0.txt b/old/61799-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 5bff829..0000000 --- a/old/61799-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2744 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Ecclesiastical Orders of Knighthood, by -James Van der Veldt - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll -have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using -this ebook. - - - -Title: The Ecclesiastical Orders of Knighthood - -Author: James Van der Veldt - -Release Date: April 10, 2020 [EBook #61799] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - - - - - _The Ecclesiastical Orders - of - Knighthood_ - - - _by_ - James van Der Veldt, O.F.M. - _of_ - The Catholic University of America - - - The Catholic University of America Press - 620 Michigan Avenue, N.E. - Washington 17, D. C. - 1956 - - - Reprinted from - _The American Ecclesiastical Review_ - - October, November, December, 1955 - and January, 1956 - - - First printing—April, 1956 - Second printing—July, 1956 - Third printing—November, 1957 - - - - - FOREWORD - - -Widespread interest in the Ecclesiastical Orders of Knighthood has been -demonstrated by continual requests for information pertaining to them on -the part of libraries and individual persons, particularly those who -have been knighted. In the United States this interest lies chiefly in -those Orders most familiar to Americans, such as the Order of Malta, the -Order of the Holy Sepulchre, the Order of St. Gregory, and in the medals -Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice and Benemerenti. Such interest prompted the -publication of this booklet which contains reprints of four articles -originally published in the “American Ecclesiastical Review.” - -The booklet gives a description of the history, organization, emblems -and membership requirements of the various Orders connected with the -Catholic Church and which are still in existence. - -By way of introduction, Part One deals with the historical -background—the origin and development of Knighthood in general. Parts -Two and Three treat the Religious Military Orders which originated in -the Holy Land—The Order of Malta, the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, the -Teutonic Order—and the Military Orders of Spain and Portugal. Finally, -Part Four treats of those Orders which are directly bestowed by the Holy -See—the Order of Christ, the Order of the Golden Spur, the Order of -Pius, the Order of St. Gregory, and of St. Sylvester. In addition the -papal decorations are described. - -The final pages of the booklet display the insignia of the three -ecclesiastical groups: Military Orders of Knighthood, Pontifical Orders -of Knighthood and Papal Decorations, with a brief description of shape -and color. The pictures present the Knight’s cross, unless otherwise -designated. Since the emblems of the Orders of Calatrava, Alcantara and -Montesa are identical in form, only one picture is used for all three -with a specification of the respective colors. Under the heading of -Pontifical Decorations a picture is given of the Lateran Cross which is -recognized, although not directly bestowed, by the Holy See. - - - - - TABLE OF CONTENTS - - - _Page_ - Part I - Historical Background 1 - Development of the Orders of Knighthood 7 - Part II - The Sovereign Military Order of St. John of Jerusalem 14 - The Order of the Teutonic Knights 23 - Part III - The Iberian Military Orders 28 - The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem 33 - Part IV - Pontifical Orders of Knighthood 41 - The Supreme Order of Christ 42 - Order of the Golden Spur 47 - The Order of Pius 49 - Order of St. Gregory the Great 50 - The Order of Saint Sylvester, Pope 51 - The Papal Decorations 52 - Illustrations 55 - - - - - THE ECCLESIASTICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD - Part I - - - HISTORICAL BACKGROUND - -The term ecclesiastical orders of knighthood embraces those knightly -orders which, in one way or another, are connected with the Catholic -Church. At the present time they are in two different groups: the -pontifical orders of knighthood in the strict sense and a group of -chivalric orders which derive from medieval military orders and continue -to come under ecclesiastical jurisdiction. - -The Pontifical or Papal Orders of Knighthood are conferred directly by -His Holiness the Pope (_Ordini Equestri Pontifici, conferiti -direttamente dal Sommo Pontefice con lettere apostoliche_). They -include: the Supreme Order of Christ, the Order of the Golden Spur, the -Order of Pius, the Order of Saint Gregory the Great, and the Order of -Saint Sylvester, Pope.[1] - -The remaining group identified with ecclesiastical orders of knighthood -is that of religious military orders. Originally they were religious -orders of lay brothers and as such came under the jurisdiction of the -Holy See. They enjoyed the approbation and protection of the Holy -Father, and it is in that sense they partake of the name, pontifical. -Yet they always had a certain autonomy, in that they had their own -government, with a grand master at the head, whose office was similar to -that of a Superior General of a religious order. Most of these ancient -military orders are now extinct or have become purely secular orders of -knighthood. A few have retained some features of their ecclesiastical -character. They are the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, known also as -the Order of Malta, the Teutonic Order, and the Order of the Holy -Sepulchre, as well as the extant Spanish Military Orders. - -Difference in objective is another important feature between the two -groups. The military orders, from the outset, pursued a specific -purpose, as the care of the sick and the poor, the protection of the -faith, crusading against infidels. This survives today in the existing -military orders though in a much modified form. - -All other existing orders of knighthood, be they ancient or more recent -in origin, are honorary and mere orders of merit. Their only purpose is -that of bestowing tokens of respect for well-deserving citizens, to -reward military or civil services to the country or the crown, to -recognize merit in the field of art, science, charity, or business. -Orders of merit are “orders” only in the broad sense of the term; they -have a constitution or statutes, but such documents usually contain -little more than a description of the origin of the order, its -privileges and the degrees of its members as well as the reason for -conferring the order and its form of the decorations. In fact, the term -“order” has come to be limited to the insignia which the members are -entitled to wear. - -Within the framework of the above twofold classification of pontifical -and military orders, another dual grouping exists which is based on -historical criteria. Some of the ecclesiastical orders of knighthood go -back to the age of chivalry; this is certainly the case with the -military orders, the Order of Christ, and probably the Order of the -Golden Spur. The origin of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre is still -historically debatable. The remaining pontifical orders of knighthood -were established long after the age of chivalry came to a close. - -Distinct from the orders of knighthood are a certain number of -ecclesiastical decorations. These are marks of honor (_distintivi de -onore_), without, however, extending the title of Knight to the -recipient. It is, therefore, incorrect to designate a person receiving -such an honor as knighted by the Pope, as it is equally incorrect to put -all the ecclesiastical orders of knighthood under the heading of papal -decorations. - -Ecclesiastical decorations, like the ecclesiastical orders of -knighthood, are of two kinds. Those bestowed directly by the Holy See -and consequently strictly pontifical are the Cross “Pro Ecclesia et -Pontifice” and the Medal “Benemerenti.” The second category are those -approved by the Holy See and their recipients may wear the decoration at -the papal court and at ecclesiastical ceremonies. The honor, however, is -not granted directly by the Pope. An example thereof is the Lateran -Cross, which is conferred by the Chapter of the Basilica of Saint John -Lateran. - -This brief outline will be clarified as the various orders are treated -in subsequent articles. It is our intention in the present article to -confine ourselves to a survey of the historical background of the orders -of knighthood. - -Although much of the information about the early beginnings of -knighthood is rooted in conjecture, a plausible thesis would make -knighthood coincide with the rise of the cavalry in Europe, during the -first half of the eighth century. It coincides with the times when the -Christians in the encounters with the Saracens soon discovered that -their infantry were no match for those who fought on horseback. Such -armies had much greater mobility, and the center of gravity in the -Christian military strategy shifted accordingly. - -Throughout the first hundred years after this new horseback “militia” -had been introduced, all free men could join it, on condition that they -were able to provide a horse and equip it at their own expense. Only -people of some means could afford this luxury, and the wealthier class -was that of the landowners. Service in the cavalry, therefore, implied -the possessing of some property, preferably in the form of land. - -A revolutionary innovation took place simultaneously in the system of -land ownership, changing from an allodial, i.e., absolute ownership, to -a feudal system. That is why the horseback military service came to be -linked with the feudal method of land tenure. It accounts for the -historical development of knighthood being so closely related to the -history of the feudal system. The history of feudal land ownership is -hardly pertinent here, and it will suffice here to state that the -tenants-in-chief and their subalterns in the feudal system formed the -cavalry of the army; they were the horsemen, chevaliers, or knights. -That is how the original form of knighthood became so intimately -associated with the tenure of land, and how the knights were known as -feudal knights. - -While the knights were initially landed gentry, gradually—and already a -considerable time before the Crusades—a different type of knight -appeared, namely, that of the horseman without land. Equally so, -knighthood began to constitute a distinct social class. No longer was -feudal tenure the background of knighthood but rather personal valor. -The development was the consequence of the custom of primogeniture as it -existed in the Frankish form of the feudal system. - -Two types of feudal succession were known on the European continent. -Where the Longobard feudal law held sway, as was the case in Italy, at -the death of the feudatory incumbent, the land was divided among his -male heirs. In many cases the original fief was cut into ever smaller -portions during successive generations. This gentry were still -landholders, even though their financial position, due to the divisions -and subdivisions of the ancestral property, might not be much better -economically than that of the peasants who actually worked the land. - -In France and other countries where the Frankish feudal system -prevailed, conditions were altogether different. Here, according to the -law of primogeniture, the entire feud passed to the eldest son, who was -then bound by an oath of fealty to his overlord. The younger sons had to -be satisfied with precious little; they might make a livelihood by -offering their service to their eldest brother, in which case they were -obliged to do the menial work of the estate very much the same as that -of domestics and peasants. It is quite understandable that many of these -younger sons, particularly the less amenable and the more venturesome, -could be expected to scorn such an inferior station in life. Being of -noble birth, this dispossessed youth might say with the steward of the -gospel: “What shall I do?... To dig I am not able; to beg I am ashamed.” -Only two callings were open to them, the priestly or the military -vocation, and of the two the calling of soldier was far more attractive. -Upon leaving the paternal domain, they usually were given a horse and -armor to aid in their search for economic independence. For the most -part, they did not have to look long, because war was in progress all -over Europe among the many and small feudal states. Yet, because they -were no longer aligned with the feudal hierarchy, they had no obligation -to render military service to any specific lord and could approach the -highest bidder. This meant that a new and ever increasing group of -independent, non-feudal horsemen came into existence who sought to win -their spurs on their own merit. They became knights, not because they -happened to have a feudal estate, but because of personal exploits on -the battlefield. These soldiers frequently gained more than glory and -honor inasmuch as a grateful employer who had taken them into his pay -would extend his bounty to presenting them with a castle and some land, -upon success in a military expedition. The medieval right of plunder -could provide the victorious knight with the necessary accoutrement to -furnish his newly-won castle. One readily appreciates the consolidation -of the economic position for those concerned. There was this difference, -however, that their possessions came to them not by right of birth but -by personal valor. - -The same kind of knight appeared also in the lands of the Longobard -feudal system. The small gentry in Italy, unsatisfied with what little -they possessed, often offered their military services to the rapidly -growing townships. This eventually bettered their economic as well as -their political status. - -Two types of knighthood were then in existence, the older form of -territorial knighthood concentrated in ruling fief-holders, and the -newer form, that of chivalry founded on individual military service. -Since the latter was bestowed upon a soldier independently of a fief, it -might be called non-feudatory knighthood. - -As the non-feudal knights grew to be the more numerous, knighthood -became a separate class of society. Like any other social institution, -knighthood passed through the storm-and-stress period of adolescence. -Knights in the tenth and part of the eleventh centuries were often -enough no more than bands of lawless brigands. Living as they did -outside the ranks of the feudal hierarchy, these “gentlemen” interpreted -the fact of not being bound by fealty to any particular master as a kind -of charter of freedom from all laws and prohibitions. As narrated in the -medieval lays or ballads, the examples of lawlessness and cruelty among -some knights are, of course, outstanding. Yet, this new social class was -indeed a menace to society. It was understandable, in the long run, that -the authorities should look for means to call a halt to the excesses. In -this effort the civil authorities were strongly supported by the Church, -which launched a kind of peace offensive, endeavoring to direct the -crude energies of knighthood into right channels and make of the new -class an instrument of good in the social structure. There was success -so that little by little knighthood became respectable to a remarkable -degree. The reaction described had set in at the end of the tenth -century, and a century later a change for the better in the moral life -of the knights was everywhere in evidence. The reform was, however, not -due exclusively to outside forces. As a class, the knights had the same -needs and the same aspirations; and the better elements among them would -try to enter into some sort of common tie. That common bond was a code -of honor for knighthood and came to be generally accepted by the end of -the eleventh century, namely around the time of the first Crusade. The -motto of a good knight was succinctly expressed in the following Italian -rhyme: “_La mia anima a Dio, la mia vita al Re, il mio cuore alla Dama, -l’onore per me_ (My soul to God, my life to the Crown, my heart to the -Lady, my own the renown).” The duties of a knight broadened into that of -protecting and defending the Church, the widows, the orphans and the -oppressed, of vindicating justice, and of avenging evil. The catalogue -of the cardinal virtues for chivalry included courtesy, valor, class -loyalty, self-denial, munificence, and hospitality. The code was -well-nigh theoretically perfect, even if all knights did not observe it -in practice. As a matter of fact, the virtues to which the knight was -dedicated sometimes led to exaggerations, distortions, and their very -opposite. - -The high point in the age of chivalry came during the Crusades, those -religious wars waged in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries by the -Christians of Western Europe against the Mohammedans for the recovery of -the Holy Land. An interaction came about between the Crusades and -chivalry. The spirit of chivalry was largely responsible for making -possible these campaigns for a religious ideal. Thereby, the Crusades -provided a powerful impetus in the development of knighthood, for it was -during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries that chivalry attained its -highest peak both in quality and quantity. The Crusades did not create a -new type of knighthood, but they gave the knights a chance to show their -mettle. - -When the landless soldiers of the Cross distinguished themselves in -battle just as well or perhaps even better than the feudal knights, it -was reasonable that they should claim their reward. If they fought as -well as those who owed knighthood to their feudal status, why should -they not claim the honors and benefits of knighthood? In that way the -Crusades gave the horsemen large scale opportunity to become knights -through personal valor. However, the _conditio sine qua non_ for -becoming a knight at this time was still the old law that the candidates -should be of noble birth, that is to say, that they could trace their -descent from the ancient feudal families. In the century following the -Crusades the decline of knighthood set in, and it is generally admitted -that by 1500 the age of chivalry had passed. Then it was that its -tradition and spirit were kept alive in the orders of knighthood. - - - DEVELOPMENT OF THE ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD - -The first orders of knighthood were radically of a religious nature -inasmuch as they pursued a religious purpose and were organized like -other religious communities. The order of knighthood was composed of a -body of knights, united by some common objective as the care of the sick -or the defense of the Catholic faith, and who were pledged with the vows -of obedience, poverty and chastity, led a community life under a chosen -head and professed a common rule approved by the ecclesiastical -authorities. - -The birthplace of all orders of knighthood was the Holy Land and they -appeared during the period of the Crusades. True, some historians -attempt to date the origin of the military orders as far back in -antiquity as possible, for instance, to Charlemagne and his paladins or -to Constantine the Great and his mother, Saint Helena. The claims of -such ancestry fanatics to the contrary notwithstanding, it can safely be -said that no military order of knighthood, either regular or secular, -came into existence before the first Crusade, as the Bollandist -Papebrock said in 1738: “Fallunt aut volentes falluntur adulatores -studio placendi abrepti, quicumque militarium religionum principia ante -XII saeculum requirunt” (_AA. SS. Boll._, Apr., III, 155). - -The Holy Land was the scene of the rise of three types of religious -orders. Some were orders of charity, or hospital orders, dedicating -themselves to the care of the poor and sick pilgrims who came to visit -the holy places. The oldest and most famous was the Order of Saint -Lazarus which was functioning even before the Crusades began. Its scope -was the care of lepers; moreover, lepers could become members of the -congregation, and it has been alleged that during a period of its -existence the grand master was chosen from among these sorely afflicted -members. The confraternity always remained primarily an order of -charity. The fact that the brothers admitted some knights stricken with -leprosy who gave aid to the crusaders, particularly during the siege of -Acre, when the common cause demanded everybody’s efforts, is certainly -not sufficient reason to call the congregation of Saint Lazarus a -military order of knighthood. Nonetheless, many centuries after their -expulsion from the Holy Land, the remnants of this congregation were -absorbed into a military order, as we shall see hereafter. - -A second group of religious orders founded in the Holy Land had an -exclusively military objective, inasmuch as their purpose was to protect -the pilgrims against the attacks of the Moslems and to defend the cause -of the Cross. The prototype of such knightly societies was the Order of -the Temple. - -The third type of religious order in Palestine was of a mixed character, -combining works of charity with military service. The most illustrious -examples of this group were the Order of Saint John in Jerusalem and the -Teutonic Order. - -Due to their predominant military character, only the last two groups -are orders of knighthood in the strict sense of the word. Their members -combined the seemingly contrasting qualities of soldiers and monks, of -“militia” and “religio.” Being a “religio” such orders needed -ecclesiastical approbation, but as a “religio militaris” they needed -special authorization from the Holy See which alone could give religious -persons permission “hostem ferire sine culpa,” “blamelessly to strike -the enemy.”[2] - -The orders founded in the Holy Land during the Crusades were the -original military orders. The pattern of the military orders founded in -the Holy Land during the Crusades was subsequently copied in various -countries of Europe. We may distinguish several groups which show an -ever increasing secular element and a decrease of ecclesiastical ties. -Of each group only a few examples can be cited, omitting those of lesser -significance. - -The most faithful imitators of the original orders are the military -orders set up in the Iberian Peninsula. Although founded by the kings of -Spain and Portugal and used by them for their own purposes, these orders -were directly dependent on the Holy See at first. Only later, when the -sovereigns took over the grandmastership and made it hereditary in their -family, did they lose their independence, without, however, abandoning -their religious character. - -The principal military orders in Italy came into existence at a rather -late date in history, on or after 1500, a date traditionally accepted as -marking the end of the age of chivalry. With the grand mastership vested -in the crown, these Italian orders harbored the same cause for -deterioration as eventually appeared in the Spanish orders, because they -were dynastic orders from the start. Nonetheless, the Italian military -orders greatly resembled the original ones, both in objective and -organization. They aspired to the protection of the Italian coastline -against the Moslem pirates from the Barbary States in North Africa who -at the time were infesting the Mediterranean; they harassed the merchant -marine and sporadically attacked harbors and towns along the coast. The -objective of these orders, then, was much the same as that of the Order -of Malta at that time, namely sea-warfare against Islam. Such an -organization was the Order of Saint Stephen, established in 1562 by -Cosimo I, Grand Duke of Tuscany, with the approval of the Holy Father. -The knights of this order which had headquarters at Pisa cleared the -Mediterranean of corsairs and took an active part in the battle of -Lepanto. Eventually, however, it disintegrated, became completely -secularized and survived as an order of merit. - -The Order of Saint Maurice and Lazarus, founded in 1572 by Emmanuel -Philibert, Duke of Savoia, has an intriguing history. Comparatively late -in origin, it was a merger of two pre-existing institutions which date -back to much earlier times. - -One was the hospital congregation of Saint Lazarus, previously -mentioned. After the fall of Acre the fraternity was transferred to -Europe and for some time flourished in France. The Italian branch soon -declined and was finally suppressed by Pope Innocent VIII in 1490. There -remained, however, the possessions of the order and these were handed -over to certain gentlemen who, far from having an interest in lepers, -did little else but appropriate the revenues for their own use. - -The second institution was the so-called Order of Saint Maurice which, -if it was an order at all, hardly merited the name of a military order -by any stretch of the imagination. Yet whatever it lacked of the -military spirit has since been largely supplied by romance, insofar as -it was involved in the story of a layman who became antipope. When -Amadeus VIII, Duke of Savoia, renounced the throne, he retired to -Ripaglia where he had built a church in honor of the holy martyr Maurice -to whom the house of Savoia had a special devotion. There, in 1434, the -duke with five other knights established the Sacred Militia of Saint -Maurice—a rather pompous title for a group of elderly widowers who had -retired into a hermitage. - -Four years later, the remnants of the Council of Basle revolted against -the legitimate Pope Eugene IV and elected the above-mentioned Amadeus. -He accepted under the title of Felix V and abandoned his solitude in -Ripaglia in the company of the other knightly widowers. Thenceforth -history has little to tell about the Sacred Militia of Saint Maurice. In -1572, Emmanuel Philibert, after lengthy negotiations, obtained from Pope -Gregory XIII permission to allot the possessions of the Order of Saint -Lazarus in his territory to the languishing Order of Saint Maurice. Out -of this merger developed the military religious Order of Saint Maurice -and Lazarus—the last of the military orders to come into existence. Its -objective was to curtail piracy on the high seas and combat the enemies -of the faith. However, the institution from its very inception was an -affair of the Savoian dynasty, the duke and his successors assuming the -office of grand master. The knights vowed obedience to the duke and were -subject to him not only as vassals but also by virtue of a religious -vow. They pledged themselves to serve in the convents of the order for -five years; one of these convents was in Turin for the ground forces and -the other in Nice for the naval forces. The character of the Order of -St. Maurice and Lazarus was completely changed when Victor Emmanuel II, -in 1860, made it a simple order of merit. - -Other dynastic orders of knighthood having some ties with the Church -were quite different. The motives for establishing them were various. -Some owed their origin simply to a chance occasion or a romantic event -not infrequently of a frivolous nature; some were commemorative of a -signal victory in battle or the accession of a prince to the throne. -Often enough, politics played a role, when a sovereign would wish to -bind his nobles closer to the crown. - -By way of example, we shall mention here some of the more illustrious -dynastic orders of knighthood. - -The Supreme Order of the Annunciation was set up in 1364 by Amadeus VI, -Count of Savoia, during a tournament which was held to celebrate the -victory of Savoia over a rival, the Marquis of Salusso. It would seem -that similar brotherhoods in arms had existed at the Savoyard court -under such romantic titles as the Round Table of the Black Swan, of the -Green Knights, and the like, but the new order was to achieve a -permanent character. At first, the objective of the newly organized -group was only fun and love, as evidenced by the love symbols that -decorated the collar of the knights. For that reason the brotherhood was -dubbed the Order of the Collar. A year later when Count Amadeus made a -trip to Constantinople and came in touch with the then extant religious -military orders, he dedicated the fraternity to the Blessed Virgin. The -religious element was heightened in the symbolic figure of fifteen -knights, representing the fifteen mysteries of Our Lady. When the -knights themselves had no time to say many prayers, they were quite -satisfied to find a convenient substitute for their religious -obligations in the persons of fifteen Carthusian monks at the Chapter -House of Pierre Chatal. The latter became the seat of the order. Their -first and last duty was to honor and serve faithfully their sovereign, -the count, and provide him with material benefits. Such privileges as -exemptions from taxes, a seat in the senate, and financial support from -the crown in case of necessity were given in return to the knights. In -1518 Duke Charles III attached to the knight’s collar a medal -representing the Annunciation of Our Lady, and from that time the -fraternity became known as the Order of the Collar and the Annunciation. -Moreover, the duke augmented the enrollment with five more knights, in -honor of the five wounds of Christ. - -In 1869, Victor Emmanuel II, who was soon to become King of a united -Italy, changed the character of the order; it was to be simply a means -of rewarding a restricted number of persons for outstanding services to -the dynasty or the state. - -The Order of the Golden Fleece was founded by Philip the Good, Duke of -Burgundy, in 1429, on the occasion of his marriage with the Infanta -Isabella of Portugal at Bruges in the Netherlands. Pope Eugene IV gave -approval in 1433 as did also Leo X in 1516. Of course, the origin and -the name enjoy the aura of the usual legends, one of which is that the -duke wished to commemorate the golden hair of Mary of Rumbrugge with -whom he was supposed to be in love. If such is true, the order was -certainly a peculiar wedding gift for his legitimate wife. The knights, -who numbered thirty-one, were staunchly organized, and the order soon -achieved great fame and was reputed to embody the very spirit of -chivalry. The Dukes of Burgundy and their successors acted as grand -masters. Eventually, it became an order of merit divided into two -branches, one under the jurisdiction of the Austrian Hapsburgs and the -other under the jurisdiction of the Spanish Bourbons. With the overthrow -of both of these houses the order is in abeyance. - -The French King Louis XI founded the Order of Saint Michael in 1469. -After having fallen into disrepute, because it took in all kinds of -members, its decoration was dubbed “_le collier à toutes bêtes_—the -collar to fit every animal.” The Order of the Holy Ghost replaced it in -1573 under King Henry III. The investiture of the knights was ritualized -with pompous religious ceremonies.[3] - -The foregoing examples emphasize the fact that these and similar -knightly fraternities were not without certain religious features. The -brotherhood was placed under the protection of a patron saint; it might -receive papal approbation; the meeting place of the knights included a -chapel; and the gatherings of the knights as well as the initiation of a -new member were graced with religious rites. The rule of these societies -imposed upon their members a virtuous life, as was fitting for a true -knight, such as the devotion to the Holy Spirit or the Blessed Virgin. -Sometimes the statutes exhorted the members to attend daily Mass, and -prescribed the reception of the sacraments twice or three times a year -as well as the daily recitation of a part of the divine office. However, -the dynastic orders of knighthood were different in character from the -original military orders, with little of “religio” and still less of -“militia.” Despite some religious features, the members did not take the -canonical vows, except the oath of fidelity to the crown, neither did -they live in common. Their military exploits, too, were quite -insignificant in comparison with those of the Templars or the -Hospitallers. When these knights fought at all, they did so not in a -body, but rather as individuals. The very exclusiveness of the Golden -Fleece (thirty-one knights) or the Annunziata Order (fifteen and later -twenty knights) excluded all large scale feats. Besides, the objective -of their military activities was not the defense of the faith, but the -conquest of any enemy with whom their sovereign might become embroiled. - -Further development of almost all orders of knighthood is one of -monotonous regularity. Those which did not become extinct were -completely secularized, some during the course of the Reformation and -others during the French Revolution. The latter abolished all orders of -knighthood in France, but in 1802 Napoleon re-established an order of -knighthood—that of the Legion of Honor. It was merely an order of merit, -and served as a model not only for the newer but also reverted upon the -older still existing orders. - -A few orders of knighthood did not become reduced to mere orders of -merit and did retain a link with the Church. These include the Order of -Malta, that of the Teutonic Knights, the Holy Sepulchre, and the Iberian -military orders, which will be the subject of the subsequent articles. - - - - - THE ECCLESIASTICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD - Part II - - - THE SOVEREIGN MILITARY ORDER OF ST. JOHN OF JERUSALEM - -This order, also called the Order of Rhodes and more widely known as the -Order of Malta, from the locations of its headquarters after it was -forced to leave the Holy Land, is the oldest order of knighthood in -existence, antedating even that of the Order of the Garter by more than -two hundred years. It is also the most illustrious and meritorious of -the religious military orders. Its origin goes back to the hospital for -Christian pilgrims in Jerusalem, established in the first half of the -11th century by a group of merchantmen from Amalfi, Italy. When the -crusaders captured Jerusalem in 1099 the hospital was headed by a layman -named Gerard whose birthplace is variously given as Martiques in -Provence, Amalfi in southern Italy and Tonco in Piedmont, all in line -with the respective nationality of the historians who wrote his life.[4] -This saintly man organized the hospital staff into a community of lay -brothers for whom he drew up appropriate constitutions which were -approved in 1113 by Pope Paschal II. The fraternity became known as the -Hospitallers of St. John, after the patron saint of the church which was -attached to the hospital. This patron was St. John the Almoner, -Patriarch of Alexandria, who had provided the means for rebuilding the -churches of the Resurrection and of Calvary in Jerusalem. Later the -Hospitallers adopted the better known St. John the Baptist as their -patron saint. - -Whereas Gerard was the founder of the Order of St. John, his successor -Raymond du Puy, a knight from Provence, became its organizer. While he -was Master of the Hospital (1120-60), the community, although continuing -its hospital work, began also to engage in services of a military -character. The military duties consisted at first in providing armed -protection for the sick and the poor and military escorts for the -pilgrims. Soon the brotherhood took part in the defense of the Latin -Kingdom of Jerusalem and in the battles against the Moslems and thus -became a full-fledged military order. But the order never forsook its -humble beginnings; its militarization only added a new objective to its -activities, as expressed in the age-old motto: _Obsequium pauperum et -tuitio fidei_—service of the poor and protection of the faith. - -During the process of militarization three classes of brothers -developed: the knights who led in the fighting and held most of the -higher administrative functions at headquarters and in the other houses -of the order; the chaplains who took care of the spiritual needs of the -other members of the order and of the patients in the hospitals; the -sergeants-at-arms, who were the serving brothers. In the beginning, -persons not belonging to the military aristocracy or nobility could -enter the class of knights, but as from Master Hugh Revel (1258-77) the -rule was laid down that such as desired to be admitted as knights should -prove nobility on both father’s and mother’s side. When occasionally a -few knights were received into the order who were not fully qualified -with regard to their armorial bearings, they were called -Knights-of-Grace (admitted by favor) in contrast to the duly qualified -members who were called Knights-of-Justice, a distinction which has -prevailed until recently. - -The number of professed knights was always quite limited, scarcely in -excess of 500 or 600 knights. Since the order was essentially a lay -organization, the number of professed priests always remained very -small. The professed chaplains served mainly in the Convent, that is, -the general headquarters of the order, and were therefore called -Conventual Chaplains. The _cura animarum_ in the houses outside the -Convent was for the most part exercised by priests who did not belong to -the order, but were engaged by the order according to its needs; since -they were throughout the time of office under the jurisdiction of the -grand master they were called Chaplains of Magistral Obedience. - -The professed sergeants-at-arms assisted the knights; they were at first -quite important and numerous but eventually almost completely faded out -of the picture, being replaced by hired help. In fact, the knights -employed a considerable number of men for all their enterprises, both -charitable and military: physicians and other personnel in the hospital -were engaged on a paid basis, the soldiers who formed the body of the -order’s army were mercenary troops as were the sailors on their fleet in -the days of Rhodes and Malta. - -At the top of this hierarchical pyramid stood the Master. His official -title, ever since the days of Blessed Gerard, was Master of the -Hospital. Although often referred to, even in earlier days, as the Grand -Master, he did not formally assume the latter title until 1489. After -the order had settled on Malta, the Grand Master Alof de Wignacourt -(1601-1622) was given the title of prince of the Holy Roman Empire by -the Emperor and the Pope bestowed on him and his successors a rank equal -to a Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church with the title of Eminence. -Besides these sonorous titles, the grand master, like all other -professed members of the order, also uses the religious title Frà -(Brother) which is put before his baptismal name. To date there have -been seventy-six grand masters. - -The monastic habit of the order was a wide black cassock with a slit on -each side for the arms. In the days of Blessed Gerard a plain white -cross was sewn on the breast; Master Raymond introduced the -eight-pointed white cross which has become the emblem of the order down -to the present day. Since these bell-like cloaks were rather cumbersome -in battle, Pope Innocent IV in 1248 granted the knights permission to -wear a black surcoat over armour when on active service. Pope Alexander -IV in 1259 changed the color of this tunic to red, with a plain white -cross. The choir dress of the professed knights is even at present a -black mantle with the Maltese cross and a very elaborate maniple. - -The headquarters of the order, wherever they might be, in Jerusalem, -Acre, Rhodes or Malta, were called the Convent. In its developed form -this Convent consisted of the palace of the grand master, the living -quarters of the knights and their assistants, the stables for the -horses, the church and the hospital. - -Even by modern standards the hospital in Jerusalem was quite large; -Master Roger des Moulins in a letter of 1178 puts the number of patients -at 950. According to the statutes of 1182, the medical staff consisted -of four physicians and a number of male nurses. Special regulations were -laid down concerning hygiene. A wise rule was that each patient, after -admittance, should hand over his valuables to the hospital authorities -so as to prevent protests and reclamations in case of loss or theft. A -religious in charge registered all the belongings of a patient and gave -them back after he was dismissed. The statutes of the hospital in -Jerusalem served as a model for, and sometimes were literally copied by, -other hospital organizations in the Middle Ages.[5] - -In view of the fact that before the crusades hospitals in the more -modern sense of the word hardly existed, the charity work of the Knights -of St. John—and to a lesser extent that of the other orders founded in -the Holy Land—has been hailed as a kind of innovation. Historians agree -that the Hospitallers must be credited with having created the hospital -in the organized sense. - -Whenever the knights of St. John had to transfer their Convent, they -considered it one of their first duties to attach to it a well-equipped -hospital for “our lords the sick.” The hospital in Rhodes, restored by -the Italian government under Mussolini to its original condition, was a -large and beautiful building. On Malta the hospital or “Sacra -Infirmeria” developed into a center for medical sciences, particularly -surgery and ophthalmology. - -The militarization of the order had a double effect. Knights from every -country in Europe enrolled under the red banner with the white cross. At -the same time the military reputation of the order greatly increased the -number of donations and legacies which had been given already at the -time the order was devoted to charity work. These possessions scattered -throughout the Near East and Europe called for administration and -management. Although the supervisory system was very complicated and -only gradually developed, it may be said in general that the order was -divided in bailiwicks and priories which were roughly equivalent to -provinces in other orders and each priory comprised a number of -commanderies. The house of a commander might be a manor, a castle, a -walled-in-portion or a fortified church with an annex. Each house -contained, besides the chapel and the living quarters for the household, -a number of rooms, to be used as a ward for travellers and as a hospital -for sick pilgrims.[6] - -The functions of the priors and commanders were manifold: they collected -the revenues of the estates of the order, they gave protection to the -pilgrims, occasionally they built or maintained roads and bridges and -their “mansiones” were recruiting stations for the order. When the days -of the great pilgrimages were over, several hospices of St. John grew -into regular hospitals. - -The territorial organization of the order achieved its final completion, -when it was divided into _langues_ or tongues. When the headquarters of -the order were in Rhodes and Malta, the knights of each _langue_ lived -together in their own residence, called _auberge_ or inn, so that the -Convent consisted of a number of national “monasteries.” - -Although the training of the Knights of St. John was mainly aimed at -making them good fighters—a life not particularly conducive to -sanctity—yet the chronicles of the order boast a number of men and women -noted for their holiness. To mention a few: Gerard, the Founder, and -Raymond du Puy, who have been always revered as Blessed; St. Hugh, -Commander of Geneva; the sergeant-at-arms Blessed Gerard Mercati who, -however, died as a Franciscan; and the most renowned among the women -saints, St. Ubaldescha, St. Toscana and St. Fiora of Beaulieu.[7] - -The military and political history of the Order of St. John is an -eight-hundred-years-long Odyssey which can be best characterized as the -road from Jerusalem to Rome by way of Acre, Rhodes, Malta, and a number -of other places, including a curious detour by Russia. The Hospitallers -stayed in the Holy Land for almost two centuries, until 1291; they then -had their headquarters on the island of Rhodes for another two hundred -years (1309-1522), and afterwards transferred to the island of Malta for -two centuries and a half (1530-1798), finally moving to Rome in 1834.[8] - -In the Palestinian period the Hospitallers fought for the defense of the -Latin kingdom of Jerusalem; together with the Templars they supplied the -best-trained and disciplined troops and, especially in the times of -disaster, their forces were the most stable and reliable. During the -last forty years of the kingdom the defense of the country rested almost -completely upon these two military orders.[9] - -In the armies of the Christians in the Holy Land the knights formed a -sort of division, composed of between 300 and 500 knights and a number -of hired soldiers. This division was sometimes used as a flank, but more -often as a vanguard or rear guard. Besides, the knights built and -garrisoned an impressive number of fortresses of which the most powerful -were Margat and Crac. - -Only seven knights of St. John, including the master, survived the fall -of Acre in 1291. They found asylum on the island of Cyprus. During their -years there, the knights began to build up a naval force. With this they -conquered the island of Rhodes, where they were firmly established in -1308. Thus they became known as Knights of Rhodes.[10] - -At Rhodes the knights reached the peak of power and influence, never -quite attained in the same measure before or after. And this is all the -more remarkable because the number of knights on the island never -exceeded three hundred. By building enormous fortifications they made -the island an almost impregnable bastion against the attacks of the -Mamelukes of Egypt and Syria and the Turks of Constantinople. With their -naval power they started a new type of warfare against the old enemies. -In Rhodes the knights became a sovereign power like the sea republics of -Italy or the Hanseatic cities in Germany.[11] Their navy flew its own -flag, a white cross on a red field, they minted their own money, they -concluded treaties with other sovereign states on the basis of equality -and they had their diplomatic representatives at many courts. After -repulsing numerous attacks, the knights finally were overwhelmed by a -strong expeditionary force under Sultan Soliman I and capitulated Dec. -21, 1522. - -Once again the remaining knights drifted around in search of a dwelling -place; they established their capital successively in Crete, Messina, -Baia, Viterbo, and Nizza. Finally, on March 24, 1530, they obtained from -Emperor Charles V, in his capacity as king of Sicily, the island of -Malta and adjacent islands as a “perpetual and free feud.” The only -obligation attached to this transfer was that the knights should -annually, on the feast of All Saints, offer a falcon or a hawk to the -King of Sicily, whoever he might be. Thus the Order of Saint John became -a feudatory of the kingdom of Sicily territorially, but as a religious -order it continued dependent on the authority of the Holy See. From -their key position in the Mediterranean, the knights watched the -movements of the Turkish fleet and engaged in battle the corsairs from -Tripoli and the other Barbary States. Twice a year the order equipped a -“caravan,” namely a naval expedition, to ferret out pirates along the -coastline of the Mediterranean. As in Rhodes, in Malta the knights -sustained several attacks from the Turks, the most memorable of which -was the “Great Siege” (1565). The knights were victorious on all -occasions. However, in the eighteenth century a decline in spirit and in -discipline set in. What the Turks failed to achieve, Napoleon did; on -his way to Egypt, without striking a blow he captured the fortress of -Malta, believed to be impregnable (June 12, 1798). The weak Grand Master -Ferdinand von Hompesch soon resigned and the order established a -provisional headquarters at Trieste which at the time was under Austria. - -A peculiar situation then arose: an orthodox emperor made himself Grand -Master of this thoroughly Catholic Order of St. John. Paul I of Russia, -who for some time had in mind using the Hospitallers and their island -bastion for political purposes, had managed to establish a grand priory -in Russia. The Russian knights in 1798 elected Paul as Grand Master, but -he died in 1801 without being able to do anything on behalf of the -order. With England taking Malta from the French in 1800, the old -capital was lost for good. - -Upon the loss of Malta the order reached the lowest point in all its -glorious history. The order’s headquarters shifted from Messina to -Catania to Ferrara and finally in 1834 they were established in Rome. -The knights had one more grand master after Paul I, but when he died in -1805, the Pope allowed them only to elect lieutenant grand masters who -were to be ratified by him. This state of affairs continued for -seventy-four years until Leo XIII by a Bull of March 29, 1879, -re-established the office of grand master with headquarters in Rome.[12] - -From then on the order regained part of its old vitality. It had lost -its territorial sovereignty, military activities had ceased, but it now -reverted to its original objective: _obsequium pauperum_. The order -became again a welfare and charity organization. Looking back over its -long history one might say that at first its master was the -superintendent of a hospital, then he became a commanding army general -(to which office he subsequently added that of an admiral), and in this -age the grand master has become the president of an international -Catholic White Cross which at times collaborates with the international -Red Cross. - -The order has built and maintains an impressive number of hospitals—in -Italy alone there are 19 with a total of 5,290 beds; it takes care of a -number of children’s homes, child centers and trade schools for -abandoned children. During the two world wars, the order established -military hospitals and had a number of ambulance trains and airplanes -for the transport of wounded soldiers; in catastrophes such as -earthquakes or other disasters it provides food and medical help. It -also extends financial and medical assistance to the Catholic foreign -missions.[13] - -Expenses involved in these activities are paid out of the revenues from -the remaining properties of the order and the contributions of its -members throughout the world. - -The present organization of the Order of Malta consists of three large -categories, each subdivided into a number of ranks.[14] They are the -Knights of Justice, who take the three monastic vows and form the -strictly religious nucleus of the order; the Knights of Honour and -Devotion who are required to furnish proof of ancient nobility; the -Knights of Magistral Grace who are affiliated to the order and are -somewhat reminiscent of the old class of sergeants-at-arms. Besides, -there are three other groups: the Chaplains, Dames of Honour and -Devotion, and the Donates. The grand master may bestow on persons -outside the order the Cross of Merit of the Order of Malta, an honour -which may be conferred also on non-Catholics and consists of five -classes. - -The Order of Malta is divided into five grand priories and fourteen -national associations, including the “Association of Master Knights of -the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in the United States of America.” -Those knights who do not belong to any of the priories or associations -depend directly on the grand master and are called _Knights in Gremio -Religionis_.[15] - -The Order of St. John, although deprived of its territory, retains its -sovereign character. The palace of the grand master and the other houses -in Rome are extra-territorial, that is to say enjoy the same privilege -as that accorded to the other foreign embassies and legations; the order -issues its own diplomatic passports and entertains diplomatic missions -and legations in several countries.[16] - -Recently the legal status of the Order of Malta in the Church has been -defined with greater precision. Pope Pius XII, on Dec. 10, 1951, -appointed a special tribunal of five cardinals, presided over by the -Dean of the Sacred College, Cardinal Eugene Tisserant, in order to -determine the nature of the order and the extent of its competence both -as a sovereign and as a religious institution, as well as its -relationship to the Holy See. After long discussions the commission of -cardinals on Jan. 24, 1953, gave the following unanimous verdict:[17] - -The Order of Malta is a sovereign order, inasmuch as it enjoys certain -prerogatives which, according to the principles of international law, -are proper to sovereignty. These rights have been recognized by the Holy -See and a number of states. However, these rights do not comprise all -the powers and prerogatives that belong to sovereign states in the full -sense of the word. - -Insofar as the Order of Malta is composed of knights and chaplains, it -is a “religio” and more precisely a religious order, approved by the -Holy See, according to the _Codex juris canonici_, Can. 487 and 488, nn. -1 and 2. The purpose of this order is, besides the sanctification of its -members, also the pursuit of religious objectives, charity, and welfare -work. - -The sovereign and the religious character of the order are intimately -related, inasmuch as the former serves to attain the objectives of the -order as a religious institution and its development in the world. - -The Order of Malta depends on the Holy See and, as a religious order, on -the Sacred Congregation of Religious. - -Those persons who have obtained marks of distinction from the order and -the associations of these persons depend on the order, and, through it, -on the Holy See. - -Questions concerning the institution’s character as a sovereign order -are treated by the Secretariat of State of His Holiness. Those of a -mixed nature are received by the Sacred Congregation of Religious in -accord with the Secretariat of State. - -The present decisions do not interfere with the order’s acquired rights, -customs and privileges which the Popes have granted or recognized, -inasfar as they are still in force according to the norms of canon -law[18] and the order’s own constitutions.[19] - - - THE ORDER OF THE TEUTONIC KNIGHTS - -The origin of the Order of the Teutonic Knights was practically the same -as that of the Order of Saint John: the Teutonic Order sprang from a -fraternity of lay men engaged in charitable work. A number of crusaders -from Bremen and Lübeck in Germany, under the leadership of a certain -Meister Sigebrand, operated a field hospital during the dreadful winter -of the Siege of Acre (1190 A.D.), when the Christian army through famine -and sickness was almost decimated. Pope Clement III, recognizing the -remarkable services of the confraternity, gave it his approbation in -1191; the first Superior of this religious congregation was Conrad, -chaplain of Fredrick of Swabia. During the next eight years a number of -German knights joined, and the community gradually assumed the character -of a military order of knighthood, becoming known as the Teutonic -Knights of the Hospital of Saint Mary of Jerusalem. The Pope approved -the Order in 1199 with Henry Walpott of Bossenheim as first master. The -new order was organized along the same lines as the Hospitallers; it -comprised professed knights, priests and lay brothers and its purpose -was to care for the poor and the sick as well as to wage war against the -foes of Christendom. Like the Hospitallers, the knights followed the -Augustinian rule, but whereas the former wore a black mantle with a -white cross, the Teutonic Knights adopted a white mantle with a black -cross. Only German candidates were eligible for the new order, which -rapidly grew in numbers and influence. This may have been due to the -fact that the German knights, always resentful of the predominantly -Latin influence in the existing military orders, were only too happy to -have an organization of their own and thus gave it strong support. The -fourth Master, Hermann of Salza (1210-1239), shifted the military -activities of his order from Palestine, first to Hungary, and then to -the northeastern frontier of Germany, where the order engaged in -fighting the heathen Prussians. But although the Knights operated mainly -in Prussia, their general headquarters still continued at Acre, until -the latter fell in 1291, after which they transferred to Venice. -Finally, in 1309, the seat of the order was established in the famous -fortress of Marienburg in Prussia.[20] - -In 1236 the Teutonic Order absorbed the remnants of the Brothers of the -Sword, an order of knighthood which had been founded some thirty-four -years earlier for the purpose of subjugating and christianizing the -peoples of the Baltic countries of Livonia, Lettonia and Esthonia (now -known as Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia). - -Thus the Teutonic Knights prevailed in these countries. By donations and -conquest the knights gradually increased their holdings, until they -included large parts of Prussia, Kurland and Lithuania. Although these -followers of Christ used the unorthodox methods of fire and sword for -the propagation of the faith, it cannot be denied that they greatly -contributed to the pacification and civilization of the peoples under -their jurisdiction. They encouraged cultivation of the land and built a -great number of towns and villages, providing each with a church. In -some places they erected schools and, faithful to the original purpose -of their order, they established hundreds of hospitals and hospices. In -this respect it is worthy of note that the Teutonic Knights were the -first to establish a mental hospital (Dollhaus) in Germany, namely at -Elbig in 1316. The knights also proved to be clever businessmen inasmuch -as they sponsored profitable markets in foreign countries for the -produce of their land. - -For more than a century after the final subjugation of the Prussians in -1283, the Teutonic Knights were the undisputed rulers of a vast and -well-organized domain that stretched along the coast of the Baltic Sea, -from the river Oder to Leningrad. The grand master, residing in his -fortified convent of Marienburg and then from 1457 on at Königsburg, was -_de jure et de facto_ a sovereign, equal to the other princes of the -Empire, and only nominally subordinate to the Emperor. But in the -fifteenth century decline set in. The first blow was struck in 1410, -when in the battle of Tannenberg the Knights were overthrown by the -Polish troops. In 1525 the Order received the _coup de grâce_; its grand -master Albrecht of Brandenburg embraced the Protestant religion, -secularized the possessions of the Order in East Prussia which once he -had vowed to protect, and styled himself Duke of Prussia.[21] When later -this duchy was united with Brandenburg, the foundations were laid for -the kingdom of Prussia and eventually for the German Reich of the -Hohenzollerns. In 1561, when Gotthard Kettler, “Landmeister” of Livonia, -followed Albrecht’s apostasy, the Teutonic Order ceased to be a -sovereign power. However, the loss of sovereignty did not mean the end -of the Teutonic Order, for—although a skeleton of its former glory—it -still possessed large estates and strongholds in Western Germany. -(During the Reformation the Teutonic Knights in the Netherlands -separated themselves from their Catholic brethren. This Protestant -branch was suppressed by Napoleon but was re-established at the time of -the Restoration and is known as the bailiwick of Utrecht.) After the -loss of Prussia the general head of the order became known as “Hoch-und -Deutsch Meister” (Grand-and Teutonic Master). From 1590 on, these grand -masters were almost without exception members of the imperial house of -Hapsburg, which meant that the former independent Teutonic Order became -more and more an appendix of the Austrian crown. Nevertheless, the order -was not completely secularized. True, community life soon ceased to -exist, but the knights still took religious vows. The next blow was -dealt by Napoleon, who suppressed the Teutonic Order in Germany and -confiscated its possessions. The order was now restricted to the -confines of the Austrian empire. Around 1839, attempts were made to -revive the languishing order by dedicating its members—priests and -professed knights—to its original objective, namely ambulance service -and works of charity. Besides, the professed knights, instead of -fighting the infidels, took upon themselves the obligation of serving as -officers in the Austrian army. - -The question of profession was settled by a papal indult in 1886 -(_Neminem profecto latet_, March 16, 1886), according to which the -knights of the Teutonic Order were to take simple perpetual vows which, -however, included the same rights and obligations as solemn vows. - -When the Hapsburg dynasty fell after the first World War, only a handful -of knights were left. On April 30, 1923, the grand master Eugene, -Archduke of Hapsburg-Lothringen, commander in chief of the Austrian -forces on the Italian front in World War I, resigned and was succeeded -by Bishop Norbert Klein. - -In 1929 a radical change took place in the entire structure of the -order. The erstwhile military order of the Teutonic Knights was -transformed into a religious community of priests and lay-brothers with -solemn vows similar to any other religious congregation in the Catholic -Church. It assumed the title of _Ordo_ _Teutonicus Sanctae Mariae in -Jerusalem_ (officially designated by the initials O.T.) and is listed in -the _Annuario pontificio_ as a mendicant order. This new community—with -a very old past—devotes itself to parish work and works of charity; it -is divided into five provinces (Austria, Bavaria, Italy, Yugoslavia and -the practically extinct province of Czechoslovakia) with a total -membership of 93, of whom 70 are priests. (See the _Catalogus ordinis -teutonici_, Jan. 1, 1950). A congregation of sisters is affiliated to -the Order, also divided into five provinces with a total membership of -572, mostly dedicated to hospital work. - -The superior general has the old title of Grand Master (Hochmeister, -Supremus Magister); he has abbatial rank and enjoys the privilege of the -_pileolus violaceus_. So far his residence is in Vienna, Austria. The -professed knights of the old guard who were still alive when the -transformation was effected became members of the new outfit with the -title of Ordensritter (Knights of the Order). Since the last grand -master, Eugene of Hapsburg, died in January, 1955, only one of the old -knights is left. It is all that remained of an order which at one time -counted its knights by the hundreds. However, as a remnant of the old -prerogatives, the new Teutonic Order has the right to bestow knighthood -on eminent Catholic men, either lay or clerical, and on great -benefactors of the order. These honorary knights are called -_familiares_. Before 1952 the order had made use of this privilege in -only three cases. - - - - - THE ECCLESIASTICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD - Part III - - - THE IBERIAN MILITARY ORDERS - -In Spain and Portugal the fight against the Moors who since the eighth -century had conquered large sections of the Iberian peninsula prompted -the founding of a considerable number of military religious orders. The -chief ones in Spain were the Order of Calatrava (founded in 1158 and -approved by Pope Alexander III in 1164) which absorbed the smaller -orders of Montjoie (1180) and Montfrac (1198), the Order of Alcantara -(1156), the Order of Santiago (1175) and the Order of Our Lady of -Monteza (1319). Those in Portugal were the Order of Saint Benedict of -Avis, previously known as the Order of the Knights of Evora (1146), the -short-lived Ala Order, so called after the wing of Archangel Michael, -and the Order of Christ (1318).[22] - -They were all founded in the second half of the twelfth century, except -the Order of Christ and that of Monteza which originated more than a -century later. The origin of several of these institutions is identified -with the problem of finding a suitable garrison for frontier fortresses. -When a king had captured a Moorish stronghold, he would evidently look -around for some reliable soldiers to whom he could entrust his conquest. -For instance, after the Castilian kings Alphonso III and Sancho III had -conquered the Moorish fortress Calatrava in the Mancha, they entrusted -the defense of this citadel to the Cistercian Abbot Raymond of Fiteiro, -and soon numerous knights and soldiers rallied around the abbot for the -protection of this bastion against the Moors. Thus the Order of -Calatrava came into existence. The members took the rule and the habit -of Citeaux and elected a grand master in 1164. A few years later the -order severed connections with the Cistercians and was approved by -several Popes as an autonomous regular military order. As the Moors were -gradually forced back toward the south, the order changed headquarters -several times; one of its residences was Montsalvat which acquired some -fame in literature as the locale of many romances of chivalry. The -Orders of Avis and Alcantara were established for the same purpose as -that of Calatrava, namely the defense of the boundaries between Spain -and Moorish territory. - -The origin of the Knights of Santiago or Saint James of Compostella was -slightly different. Compostella prided itself on possessing the body of -Saint James the Apostle, who, according to tradition, stayed for a while -in Spain to preach the gospel and consecrated the first Spanish bishops. -After the Apostle had been martyred in Jerusalem, his body was -transferred to Compostella, which for that reason ranked in the Middle -Ages as one of the most venerable shrines of Christendom, with an -importance surpassed only by Rome and Jerusalem. However, the numerous -pilgrims from all countries in Europe visiting the Apostle’s tomb in -this far corner of Galicia were often waylaid and robbed by brigands and -Moors. For that reason a number of Spanish knights banded together to -protect the pilgrims on the road to Compostella, and in 1175 this group -of pious soldiers was canonically approved as a religious military -order. The Knights of Santiago erected hospices and strongholds on the -Spanish side of the Pyrenees as did the Knights of St. John on the -French side. A fortified church erected by the Hospitallers at this time -and still in a stage of good repair may be seen at Luz-St. Sauveur near -Lourdes. - -The origin of the Order of Christ and that of Monteza were quite -different from that of the other Iberian military orders, as we shall -see when we come to speak of the Pontifical Orders of Knighthood. - -Although each of the Iberian military orders had, of course, its own, -often fascinating, history, the general development of these -institutions followed very much the same pattern. The knights lived in -their convents and castles ruled by their grand masters; they showed -great prowess in the wars against the Moorish invaders, and -simultaneously they rose to power and political influence, accumulating -immense wealth from the bounty of grateful kings and the pious faithful. -Sometimes one order of knighthood confronted another on the field of -battle, as happened when they took opposite sides in civil wars that so -frequently occurred on the peninsula. This continued until most of the -peninsula was under one rule through the marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon -and Isabella of Castile. The reign of these two sovereigns, _los Reyes -Catolicos_, marked the end of the Moorish occupation, but at the same -time accounts for the decline of the religious military orders. After -the surrender of Granada in 1492—the year in which Columbus first sailed -westward from Palos—the Moors were definitely driven off the Iberian -Peninsula, but by the same token the military orders lost their very -_raison d’être_. The fact that the Portuguese Orders of Christ and of -Avis kept the military spirit alive for some time by sending out -expeditions to Africa to fight the Mohammedans in their own stronghold -altered but little the inevitable course of events. The religious -military orders on the Iberian Peninsula were doomed to die a slow -death. - -Ferdinand the Catholic administered the first blow in 1482 by assuming -the grand mastership of all the Spanish military orders, with the -exception of the Order of Monteza. Although this seizure was, -canonically speaking, an infraction of the rights of the Church, the act -was legalized some decades later, when the Pope put the military orders -permanently under the Spanish crown. The Portuguese orders followed suit -in 1551, when the mastership was vested in the Crown of Portugal. The -only remaining independent order was that of Monteza which, however, -shared the same fate in 1587. Thus all the military orders of the -Iberian Peninsula lost their independence in the sixteenth century. - -During the same century the religious nature of the orders greatly -changed. True, the knights still took the monastic vows, but these vows -came to have a rather indulgent interpretation. The vow of obedience -meant, of course, obedience to the Crown. The vow of poverty was in most -instances altered into a vow to lead an upright life (_conversio -morum_). And the vow of chastity was changed into that of matrimonial -chastity (_castitas conjugalis_). The knights were allowed to marry -once, but the vow implied that if they committed a sin of impurity, they -sinned not only against marriage but also against their vow. In the -Order of Alcantara the vow of chastity was replaced by a vow to defend -the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin.[23] - -Although the kings had taken over the title, office and privileges of -grand master, the orders still enjoyed a sort of semi-autonomy, inasmuch -as their possessions still belonged theoretically to the orders as such. -But the ideas of the French Revolution in Portugal and the Napoleonic -occupation of Spain delivered the final blow to the rapidly expiring -military orders. They were completely secularized, and their properties -confiscated. The Restoration almost succeeded in degrading the once -proud knights of Calatrava, Santiago, Alcantara and Monteza to the role -of “carpet knights” and court ornaments. However, not quite. There is -still some difference between the military orders and the mere orders of -merit of the Spanish State as, for instance, that of the Order of Isabel -la Catolica. The organization of the Spanish military orders still -maintains a number of elements that bestow on them a distinctly -ecclesiastical flavor. (While describing the present status of the -Iberian military orders we have limited ourselves to the Spanish; the -Portuguese Order of Avis was suppressed by King Pedro in 1834 and the -present condition of the Order of Christ will be spoken of later). - -In the first place, the candidates eligible to these orders must be -Catholic. An additional prerequisite, reminiscent of the original -objective of the orders, is that candidates must evidence that neither -Moors nor Jews are found among their forebears. The reception of the -“habit” is accompanied by a rather elaborate Church ceremonial according -to the ritual of each particular order. This investiture constitutes the -candidates novices of the order. Most of them remain novices throughout -their life, but a number of them take the religious vows—in the sense -explained above (_votum castitatis conjugalis_). These professed knights -have also the obligation of reciting some prayers daily, originally the -equivalent of the Divine Office. Before the pontificate of Pius XI the -professed knights were bound daily to say one hundred Paters, Aves and -Glorias. Since then, however, this obligation has been reduced to one -Pater, Ave and Gloria. - -Another important link with the Church is the “Priory of the Military -Orders” which actually is a bishopric comprising more than half a -million Catholics. The establishment of the priory was intended to -compensate somewhat for the loss of property which the Military Orders -had suffered in consequence of the so-called _desamortización_ laws of -the prime minister, Juan Alvarez de Mendizabal. By a decree of Oct. 11, -1835, the latter suppressed most religious orders in Spain and -confiscated their properties. These laws also affected the military -orders, which had jurisdiction over a large number of abbeys, parishes, -monasteries and churches throughout Spain and enjoyed the revenues of -these properties. This infringement upon the rights of the Church was -rectified by a substitute compromise in the Concordat of 1851. The -Spanish province of Ciudad Real (19,741 square kilometers) is set apart -as a “coto redondo,” literally a rounded-off territory, known as the -Priory of the Military Orders. This priory is a “prelatura nullius,” -immediately dependent on the Holy See. The prior is titular bishop of -Dora, his official title being “Obispo Prior de los Ordenes Militares.” -This dignitary is appointed prior by the Spanish King in his capacity of -grand master, but the papal authority is required to elevate the -appointee to the episcopal dignity. The former jurisdictional rights of -the military orders are, so to say, grouped together in this diocese and -vested in the prior. The emoluments of the ecclesiastical properties in -the priory go to the diocese and the salaries of the bishop, canons, -pastors and other parish priests are paid by the Spanish government, in -the name of the grand master. The priests of the diocese of Ciudad Real -must belong to one of the four military orders—an arrangement which -reinstates the old division of the members of the orders into the -classes of knights and priests. - -Recently, on Aug. 27, 1953, a new concordat was concluded between the -Holy See and Spain, and thus the status of the Priory of Ciudad Real was -reconfirmed.[24] Article VIII of the concordat reads as follows: -“Continuerà a sussistere a Ciudad Real il Priorato _Nullius_ degli -Ordini Militari.” - -Since the office of Grand Master of the Military Orders, after the -abdication of the king in 1931, is in abeyance, the bishop-prior is the -acting head of the orders, inasmuch as he is the chairman of a -commission whose task it is to prepare a project of law designed to put -the orders on a more solid juridical basis. The military orders were -suppressed by the Red Government of 1931-1936, but were re-established -by the Franco regime. The task of this commission is to define with -greater precision the rights and privileges of the Spanish military -orders. - - - THE EQUESTRIAN ORDER OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE OF JERUSALEM - -The origin of this order of knighthood (_Ordo Equestris Sancti Sepulchri -Hierosolymitani_) is the subject of a great deal of controversy. There -is no doubt that the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre originated in the -Holy Land and existed at the time of the Crusades or possibly even -earlier. There is no doubt either that for many years an order of -knighthood was in existence and called the Order of the Holy Sepulchre. -For some time it was listed as a pontifical order of knighthood, -apparently because, off and on, the popes have been its grand masters, -but the _Annuario pontificio_ has ceased to list it as such since 1931, -when Pope Pius XI transferred the grand mastership to the Patriarch of -Jerusalem. However, the order as it presently exists is an -ecclesiastical order of knighthood; article 44 of its statutes, -published in 1949, clearly states that it “is strictly religious, both -in character and objective.” The problem is not only at what time it -originated as an order, but also what its status was; more particularly -whether it ever achieved the status of a religious military order, as -did the Templars or the Hospitallers. - -Some writers believe that the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre formed an -order which was founded even before the Crusades. In fact, they are of -the opinion that this order was the cradle from which all other -religious military orders in the Holy Land developed. This is the -position found amongst older authors and at present strenuously defended -in the monumental work of Guido A. Quarti.[25] - -According to this author the prototype of the Knights of the Holy -Sepulchre is to be found in the “rabdophoroi,” macebearers, who are said -to have been attached to the church of the Holy Sepulchre from ancient -times to keep order during the ceremonies. These ushers were, according -to Quarti, “i primitivi cavalieri” of the Holy Sepulchre. They are -supposed to have formed a fraternity which was instituted when Saint -Helena, in the beginning of the fourth century, built the basilica of -the Sepulchre. Other authors go even farther back and point out that in -Jerusalem a confraternity of hermits existed to whom Pope Anaclet in 81 -is said to have assigned the custody of Christ’s tomb. Some writers -attribute the foundation of this legendary society to the Apostle St. -James, first bishop of Jerusalem.[26] - -This confraternity, then, is taken to be the forerunner of the Order of -the Holy Sepulchre. When in 451 the bishopric of Jerusalem was made a -patriarchate, the confraternity of custodians is believed to have been -transformed into a chapter of canons. Whatever the vicissitudes of this -chapter may have been throughout the succeeding centuries, we arrive at -some more solid historical data at the time of the first Crusade. After -Godfrey de Bouillon had captured the Holy City in 1099, a chapter of -canons was instituted in the basilica of the Sepulchre of our Redeemer. -Now, according to Quarti, this chapter was a religious military order, -the oldest of all such institutions. - -This opinion is criticized by many authors, even though they admit that -the first knights of the Holy Sepulchre appeared during the reign of -Godfrey. They concede that at the time of the Crusades there was a -chapter of canons attached to the church of the Holy Sepulchre in -Jerusalem. But they find no proof that this chapter formed a religious -order, let alone a military order. The most that can be said is that it -acted in some respects like the orders of St. John or the Temple, -inasmuch as it received ample donations in the form of manors, farms, -fishing rights and the like, not only in Palestine, but also in many -parts of Europe. And like the military orders, the chapter of the Holy -Sepulchre established priories in many lands to administer the estates -it had received. - -The most famous of these donations was the bequest made by King Alfonso -of Aragon, who willed in 1134 that his kingdom be equally divided among -the Templars, the Hospitallers, and the Canons of the Holy Sepulchre. -The three organizations wisely ceded their rights to Ramon Berenguer IV, -Count of Barcelona. But the event had an intriguing juridical angle, -because it made it possible for the “Order” of the Holy Sepulchre to -claim at a later date the title of “sovereign order.” For—so it was -argued—the chapter of the Holy Sepulchre was by right the partial -sovereign of the kingdom of Aragon until the disputes concerning this -legacy were settled; and by ceding its rights to the count, the chapter -had acted as a sovereign power. - -On the other hand it is admitted that the Crusades gave rise to the -existence of knights who, being knighted at the Holy Sepulchre, were -called after it. During the Crusades, before or after battle, hundreds -of soldiers were dubbed knights, and it was only natural that these -soldiers who came to fight in Palestine for Christ’s sake were eager to -receive the knighthood in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, right at the -tomb where the body of Christ rested for three days. This may have been -the case during the first Crusade when Godfrey de Bouillon assumed the -title of Defender of the Holy Sepulchre; in fact, legend has it that -Godfrey created twenty knights of the Holy Sepulchre. It is also -possible that the soldiers knighted at the tomb of the Saviour assumed a -special distinction which at first may have consisted of the -patriarchical cross with double bar and after the fall of Acre in 1291 -assumed the form of the five-fold cross which still is the symbol of the -Knights of the Sepulchre. Wearing the same badge, some knights may have -banded together in groups and fought side by side on the principle of -brotherhood in arms. - -However, it is extremely doubtful that these knights formed an order, -like that of the Order of Saint John, for the records make no mention of -monastic vows, rule, community life, community of goods, or regular -organization. It is equally doubtful that the knights formed a secular -brotherhood in arms, but granted that they did, the fraternity had no -permanent organization. - -Like most other knights, when these knights of the Holy Sepulchre had -completed their service in the Holy Land they went back home to Europe. -And like all other knights—with the exception only of those of Saint -John—after the fall of Acre they left the Orient for good. Back in -Europe some knights of the Holy Sepulchre may have retired into -monasteries, as many a battle-weary knight did, perhaps to fulfill a -vow. Small groups of knights belonging to the same district may have -founded convents. As a matter of fact, mention is made of several -religious communities of the Holy Sepulchre in Spain, Belgium, France, -Germany, Poland and elsewhere. But it is here that the critics insist -that such communities were not formed by knights, like those of the -Templars and the Knights of Saint John, but by canons and even by -canonesses. These communities were probably independent of one another, -like Benedictine abbeys, but it could be expected that they would be -designated as belonging to the Order of the Holy Sepulchre. It would -follow also that, conformable to the customs of the time and under the -influence of the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre who naturally would take -an interest in those convents, the epithet “military” was added to the -term “order.” Such seems precisely to have happened, for one of the -first, or at least one of the most famous of these institutions, -established at Saragosa in 1276 and occupied by women, came to bear the -sonorous title: “Real Monastero de Canonesas Comendadores de la Orden -Militar del Santo Sepulcro”—The Royal Monastery of the -Canonesses-Commanders of the Military Order of the Holy Sepulchre. - -At the end of the fifteenth and the beginning of the sixteenth centuries -the monasteries and convents of the Holy Sepulchre seemed to have passed -through a crisis. Pope Innocent VIII issued the bull _Cum sollerti -meditatione_ on March 28, 1489, whereby all the members of the order and -its possessions were incorporated in the Order of Saint John, and the -latter’s grand master still bears the title of the Master of the Order -of the Holy Sepulchre. But many of those concerned objected; they stayed -the execution of the decree until the pope died, and remonstrated with -his successor, Alexander VI. Alexander, in a bull of Aug. 13, 1496, -declared himself grand master of the order, but by then it was an empty -title, because the order soon dissolved into several groups. Emperor -Maximilian obtained from Alexander in 1497 the independence of the -houses of the Holy Sepulchre and made the prior of Miechow the master -general; the king of Spain was the recipient of the same favor from Leo -X in 1512; and the Duke of Nevers became the head of the French group. -In this way the Order of the Holy Sepulchre came to be divided into -three national branches, each closely connected with the ruling dynasty. - -Besides, there were still the individual knights of the Holy Sepulchre -who did not form a homogeneous group, but who more than anyone else -could lay claim to that title, inasmuch as they had been knighted at the -tomb of Christ in Jerusalem. The old custom may have been interrupted -for some time after the Christians evacuated the Holy Land, but was -restored by the Franciscans to whom was committed the care of the Holy -Land. They had arrived in Palestine around 1230; after the Christian -armies left they managed as best they could despite opposition and -persecution, and Pope Clement VI in 1342 made them the official -custodians of the Holy Land. In that capacity they formed in a certain -way the continuation of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. And like the -kings of Jerusalem, the superior of the Franciscans who bore the title -of “Custos” continued the old tradition of bestowing the knighthood in -the church of the Holy Sepulchre. But this time the people who received -the honor were not soldiers but rather pilgrims of noble birth—and at -times of not so noble birth—who had made substantial donations to the -holy places. Pope Leo X confirmed the right of the superior of the -Franciscans to continue this practice. About the same time one more -grand master of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre entered upon the stage, -inasmuch as the custos assumed the title, and various popes acknowledged -its use. However, the custos who was to bestow the honor ran into -difficulties, historical as well as canonical. In the first place, there -was the age-old tradition according to which a knight could be created -only by a knight. Besides, the dubbing to knighthood involved the use of -a sword, but the custos being a priest was forbidden by canon law to -carry a sword. The usual procedure, therefore, was that the priest would -give the various blessings, and one or another knight, often enough at -hand among the crowd of pilgrims, would carry out the dubbing with the -sword. Thus history records that a certain German count, who in -Jerusalem joined the Third Order of St. Francis and was hence known as -Brother John of Prussia, conducted the ceremonies of conferring -knighthood from 1478 to 1498. But in case no such knightly assistance -was available there was little else left for the priest to do but carry -out the sword ceremonial himself. And here the office of grand master, -being vested in the custos, provided a convenient excuse to circumvent -the canonical irregularity involved in that act. - -The Knights of the Holy Sepulchre enjoyed many privileges, some of which -were of a rather peculiar character. They had precedence over the -members of all orders of knighthood, except those of the Golden Fleece; -they could create notaries public, legitimize bastards, and change a -name given in baptism; they were empowered to pardon prisoners whom they -happened to meet while the prisoners were on their way to the scaffold; -they were allowed to possess goods belonging to the Church, even though -they were laymen. In view of such privileges it is not surprising that -many aspired to the honor of becoming Knights of the Holy Sepulchre. The -good Franciscan friars in Jerusalem, too, seem to have made a rather -generous use of their power to confer knighthood. - -The history of the order in the last century was not less involved than -in the preceding centuries, especially with regard to the grand -mastership which shifted time and again. When in 1847 Pope Pius IX -re-established the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, he transferred the -office of grand master from the custos of the Franciscans to the -patriarch who from now on possessed the exclusive right of conferring -the knighthood. In 1868 the same pope approved new statutes whereby for -the first time membership was divided into three classes: knights grand -cross, commanders, plain knights, and stipulated the admission fee -according to rank. These contributions were used to defray the expenses -of the seminary and the outlying missions of the patriarchate. Because -this arrangement involved a financial loss for the basilica of the Holy -Sepulchre which up to this time had received the stipends connected with -the enrollment of the knights, Pope Leo XIII founded a cross of honor -which was not intended to confer knighthood but was rather a mark of -distinction bestowed on the pilgrim who visited Jerusalem. This cross -extended to three classes: gold, silver and bronze, and the revenues -derived from it went to the treasury of the basilica. In 1888, the same -pope also approved the establishment of a female branch of the order, -known as the “Dames of the Holy Sepulchre.” - -Pope St. Pius X in a letter of May 3, 1907[27] took upon himself the -grand mastership, but delegated the patriarch as his lieutenant who, in -the name of the Holy Father, could appoint the knights. He was also -given the right to erect chapters in various countries. St. Pius X also -unified the use of uniforms and decorations. He gave the knights the -right to wear a mantle of white wool with the red five-fold cross -attached on the left-hand side. In view of the old claim that the order -was a military institution, the pope gave the knights permission to wear -the cross of the order suspended from a military trophy. In the case of -the ladies, the emblem was to be worn hanging from a golden loop. - -The office of grand master continued to be vested in the Holy See until -1928, when Pius XI again appointed the patriarch of Jerusalem as “rector -et administrator.” - -A complete reorganization of the order was made by Pope Pius XII. By -apostolic letter of July 16, 1940, he appointed a cardinal as the -“Patronus seu Protector” of the order. In a _Motu proprio_ of Aug. 15, -1945, he assigned the Church and the monastery of St. Onophrius in Rome -as the Order’s official center. Finally, by Apostolic Letter _Quam -Romani Pontifices_ of Sept. 14, 1949, the pope promulgated complete new -statutes for the Order.[28] If, up to that date, more and more the order -had assumed the character of an order of merit, this new constitution -gives it explicitly a definite purpose. The objective is “to revive in -modern form the spirit and ideal of the Crusades, with the weapons of -the faith, the apostolate, and christian charity.” More specifically the -purpose consists in “the preservation and the propagation of the faith -in Palestine, assistance to and development of the missions of the Latin -patriarchate of Jerusalem, providing for its charitable, cultural and -social undertakings and the defense of the rights of the Catholic church -in the Holy Land, the cradle of the order.” - -The order, as a “juridical person,” is placed under the protection of -the Supreme Pontiff who appoints a cardinal as the grand master. The -order consists of five classes. The first—and very exclusive—class -consists of the “Knights of the Collar,” numbering no more than twelve -persons. In addition this same degree belongs by right to the grand -master, the cardinal secretary of his Holiness, the cardinal secretary -of the Sacred Congregation of the Oriental church and the Latin -patriarch of Jerusalem. Besides this special class there are four -degrees, both for knights and ladies: grand cross, commanders with -plaque (grand officers), commanders and knights. - -The distinctive emblem, in its more or less elaborate forms according to -the various ranks, is the five-double cross which in the present -document is constantly designated as the cross of Godfrey of -Bouillon.[29] - -Besides conferring knighthood, the Order of the Holy Sepulchre grants -three honorary decorations as marks of distinction: the “Palm of the -order,” “the Cross of Merit” which can also be bestowed on -non-Catholics, and the “Pilgrim’s Shell” which is given to those knights -and dames of the order who visit the Holy Land. - -The creation of knights and dames of the order is reserved to the -cardinal grand master who transmits the diploma to the secretariate of -state of His Holiness for the visa and the seal. The patriarch of -Jerusalem, who is the grand prior of the order, has also the right of -nomination, but this right is limited to the canons of the basilica of -the Holy Sepulchre and persons residing in the territory of the -patriarchate. Moreover, the patriarch must notify the grand master of -these nominations and the latter then grants the diploma. - -The order is divided into several chapters; in the United States there -are two lieutenancies. - -The religious character of the knightly order of the Holy Sepulchre -comes to the fore not only in the description of its objective and the -required qualifications of its members, but also in the ceremonial -investiture of the newly elected knights which was approved by the -Congregation of Sacred Rites, Aug. 24, 1945. This ceremony combines a -profession of faith with the ancient ritual used for the dubbing of -knighthood. The candidates do not take monastic vows but promise to live -an upright Christian life in accordance with the commandments of God and -the precepts of the Church, in absolute fealty to the Supreme Pontiff, -as true soldiers of Christ. - - - - - THE ECCLESIASTICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD - Part IV - - - PONTIFICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD - -The Pontifical Orders of Knighthood, in contrast with the other -ecclesiastical orders heretofore mentioned, are directly dependent on -the Pope and membership in them is bestowed by the Holy See. They are, -in decreasing order of rank, the Order of Christ, the Order of the -Golden Spur, the Order of Pius, the Order of Saint Gregory the Great, -and the Order of Saint Sylvester, Pope. - -That of the Order of Christ can with certainty trace its origin back to -the age of chivalry; and in all probability that of the Golden Spur. The -last three, in their present status, are of more recent date, the Order -of Pius and of St. Gregory being founded in the last century, whereas -the present order of St. Sylvester was established in the beginning of -this century. - -All of them are secular orders of merit, even though the ritual of -investiture followed by the Order of Christ contains some elements that -are reminiscent of the ancient religious order from which it descends. - -All matters concerning the bestowal, registration, legislation and -description of emblems, badges and uniforms of the pontifical orders are -handled by the chancery of the orders of knighthood which functions -under the “Secretaria a Brevibus Apostolicis Literis,” a section of the -Papal Secretariate of State. - -The very exclusive Orders of Christ and of the Golden Spur have only one -degree, that of knights. The other three, at present, consist of three -degrees or classes of which the second class is subdivided: (1) Grand -Cross Knights; (2) Commanders with plaque and Commanders; (3) Knights. -The first wear the cross of the respective order hanging from the grand -cordon, that is to say a large ribbon in the colors of the respective -orders passing from the right shoulder over the breast to the left side -of the body. Besides, the members of this class are entitled to the -_plaque_, an ornamental brooch in the form of a radiating star -surrounding the emblem of the order to be worn on the chest. The knights -commanders wear the cross of the order on a ribbon around the neck; the -first degree commanders are entitled to a _plaque_ of minor dimensions; -those of the second degree do not enjoy this privilege. The class of the -knights wear the cross on a small ribbon pinned on the left chest of the -uniform or suit. - -To the question why the Papacy bestows these decorations, the answer is -given by a Pope who certainly disapproved of any vanity or show but who -nevertheless recognized the value of such decorations, namely St. Pius -X. In the preamble to the Brief _Multum ad excitandos_ (Feb. 7, -1905)[30] in which he reorganized the Orders of Christ, of the Golden -Spur and of St. Sylvester, the holy pontiff makes this statement: -“Multum ad excitandos ad egregia facinora hominum animos, praemia -virtuti reddita valent, quae dum ornant egregios bene de re sacra vel -publica meritos viros, ceteros exemplo rapiunt ad idem laudis honorisque -spatium decurrendum.” And his predecessor, Pius IX, in the Brief -_Romanis Pontificibus_ (June 17, 1847),[31] declared that orders of -knighthood “are not instituted to encourage vanity and ambition, but -solely to reward virtue and outstanding merits.”[32] - - - THE SUPREME ORDER OF CHRIST - MILITIA DOMINI NOSTRI JESU CHRISTI - -Saint Pius X in his Brief _Multum ad excitandos_, mentioned above, -decreed that the Supreme Order of Christ is to be considered the highest -ranking of all Pontifical Orders. It looks almost like an ironical twist -of history when we recall that the highest decoration granted by the -Pope at the present day proves to derive from a religious order which -one of the Pope’s predecessors suppressed in the fourteenth century. - -The Order of Christ was founded in the year 1318, but since it is a -continuation—under a different name—of the Order of the Templars, it -goes as far back as 1119. In all probability this makes the Order of -Christ the oldest order of knighthood in the world. We say, in all -probability, for there is quite a controversy about the prior antiquity -of the Order of the Temple or that of the Hospital. The most likely -answer seems to be that the Order of the Hospital antedates the former -by a few years, inasmuch as the Hospitallers were organized in the year -1112. However, at first they were an order of charity and only gradually -did they develop into a military order during the reign of the second -master, Raymond du Puy (1120-60), whereas the Templars were organized -from the outset as a military order. For that reason the Temple can be -said to be the prototype of all orders of knighthood. - -Although the leaders of the first Crusade had defeated the infidels in -the Holy Land and captured Jerusalem, July 15, 1099, still many bands of -Saracens were left which held several mountain strongholds and were -roving around the countryside, harassing the Christian pilgrims on their -way to the holy places. In view of this state of affairs, Hugh de Payns, -a knight from Champagne, in 1119, twenty years after the capture of -Jerusalem, gathered around him in that city seven companions and formed -with these knights a religious community. In contrast with the ordinary -religious groups, this community had a special character, for the -knights not only took the usual vows of obedience, poverty and chastity, -but they added a fourth vow of a decidedly military nature. In virtue of -this vow the knights became a kind of transport troops, providing the -Christian pilgrims with police escort. Later, the vow assumed a more -general character, namely that of defending the Holy Land. The knights -called themselves _Milites Christi_, soldiers of Christ, but because -their first Convent was a part of the palace of the king of Jerusalem, -which was supposed to have been built close by the place where once -Solomon’s temple stood, they became traditionally known as the Knights -of the Temple, or the Templars. - -In the first few years of their existence, they followed the Augustinian -rule, but later adopted a rule written for them by St. Bernard of -Clairvaux, the great promoter of the second crusade and admirer of the -Templar’s ideal. This rule was based on the rule of the Cistercians but -adapted to the way of life of the knights. Because of this connection -with St. Bernard’s order, the knights wore over their armature a white -mantle to which Pope Eugenius III added a red cross. The members of the -Temple were divided into three classes: the knights, the -sergeants-at-arms and priests who acted as chaplains for the order. - -In the space allotted it is not possible to discuss in detail the -development, the activities and the decline of the Templars. They proved -themselves real heroes in the battles against the enemies of the Cross, -although at times they were imprudent and reckless, and needlessly -sacrificed their men. Occasionally, they were in arms against their -Christian brothers, especially the Hospitallers of St. John. They had -the reputation of being proud, even to the point of arrogance. Great -wealth they accumulated, but—unlike the Hospitallers—they were little -engaged in works of charity and thus left themselves open to charges of -selfishness and greed as launched against them by their enemies. - -After the fall of Acre (1291) the Templars gave up the fight against the -Crescent. The Knights of St. John kept on fighting at sea while the -“Soldiers of Christ” (Knights Templar) retired to Western Europe, and -became bankers as well as financial administrators of kings and -merchants. - -These financial enterprises—so different from the original objectives as -envisaged by St. Bernard—did not last long. Twenty-one years after they -had left the Orient, the Templars were suppressed on April 3, 1312, by -Pope Clement V who acted under pressure from the French king Philip the -Fair. The merits of the trial, in which the charges against the Templars -were weighed is still a matter of debate among historians, the majority -of whom, however, believe that these charges were false in general. -There is the curious note that the Pope in his formula of suppression -stated that the act of extinction was not to be taken as a condemnation -of the Templars; also, that Philip the Fair had the last Grand Master, -Jacques de Molay, burned at the stake (March 18, 1314), before the three -cardinals whom the Pope had ordered to investigate his case had a chance -to bring the trial to an end. It is true, nonetheless, that the Order of -the Templars outlived its usefulness for the Church—except in Portugal -and Spain.[33] - -That exception was to have far-flung consequences. The Templars in -Portugal and Spain had not become mere bankers, but still lived up to -the purpose for which they were founded, namely the fight against the -infidel. Hence, King Denis I of Portugal—husband of St. Elizabeth—and -James II of Aragon were quite satisfied with the services of the -Templars in their countries and refused to believe the charges of -idolatry and heresy brought against them. They therefore failed to obey -the directives of the papal decree of suppression. Of course, they could -not possibly allow the Templars to continue under their old name, for -such a flagrant act of disobedience might well have merited -excommunication. In their countries, they allowed the Templars to -reorganize as a new military order of knighthood. Thus the Order of -Christ came into existence in Portugal (1318) and the Order of Our Lady -of Monteza in Spain; the latter was used for the defense of the coastal -areas against the Saracens.[34] - -One year after King Denis had established the Order of Christ and had -assigned them the defense of Algarvia, a portion of his kingdom then -threatened by the Moors, the Pope gave his blessing to the “new” -institution. John XXII, successor of Clement V, in the Constitution _Ad -ea, e quibus_ of March 14, 1319[35] gave the approbation, stipulating -that the Knights of Christ should assume the rule of the Cistercians—as -the Templars had done—but, in addition, should follow some of the -customs then in vogue in the Order of Calatrava. Besides, the Pope gave -them all the properties of “the erstwhile Order of the Temple” (_Ordo -quondam Templi_). - -The vicissitudes of the Order of Christ in Portugal do not concern us -here. Suffice it to say that they followed the usual pattern. The -knights assisted the kings in their fight against the Moors, had their -inevitable quarrels about jurisdictions and possessions and lost their -religious character before the close of the 15th century. In 1499 -Alexander VI freed them from their solemn vows and allowed them to -marry. Eventually, the Order of Christ, like the other military orders -in Portugal, became an order of merit. When the Republic was proclaimed -in 1910, the order was abolished, but was re-established in 1918, with -the President of the Republic assuming the office of grand master. - -Of more importance is that the Order of Christ entered into an intimate -relationship with the papacy. When John XXII approved the Order of -Christ, he did so with the proviso that the Holy See had the right to -appoint knights of that order. This regulation has been interpreted in a -two-fold way. Some historians hold that there was originally only one -order of which the Pope was the real head and that the kings of Portugal -were his hereditary lieutenants in that kingdom. Others, however, -believe that ever since 1319 there were two distinct Orders of Christ, -one Portuguese and one Pontifical. The fact is that the Popes, since the -time of John XXII, have conferred the knighthood of Christ. Besides, the -Popes introduced a new element in the concept of knighthood. Instead of -creating the knights by the usual ceremony of dubbing, the Pope -appointed them by “letters patent,” that is to say by issuing a decree -whereby he conferred the rights and privileges of the knighthood upon -those he designated. The purpose of the papal Order of Christ was the -defense of the interests of the Holy See. It was throughout most of its -history quite exclusive. - -Pope St. Pius X in the Brief _Multum ad excitandos_ decreed not only -that the Order of Christ is the highest Pontifical order of knighthood -but also specified with greater precision its insignia and the uniform -of the members. The former consists in a red Latin cross surrounding a -white cross and surmounted by a crown, pending from a double golden -chain, an ornamental brooch, called the “plaque” or star and a sword. -The uniform consists of a red tunic, white trousers and a white mantle. - -The Pontifical Order of Christ consists of one class only: membership is -reserved mostly to sovereigns and heads of state. In the year 1954 there -were, according to the _Annuario Pontificio_, only five Knights of the -Order of Christ in the world. - -Although the Pontifical Order of Christ is an order of merit, its -ancient religious origin is reflected in the fact that its members must -be Catholic, and also in its ritual of investiture. After receiving the -apostolic Brief of nomination (letters patent), the new knight presents -himself with two witnesses before a cardinal of his choice or, if that -is not possible, before the bishop of his diocese to whom he shows the -Brief. He promises obedience to His Holiness the Pope and recites the -profession of faith, whereupon the presiding dignitary invests him with -the collar of the order. - - - ORDER OF THE GOLDEN SPUR - MILITIA AURATA - -In the Middle Ages, the spur was the symbol of knighthood, and in that -sense all knights could be said to belong to the “Order of the Spur.” -When the Order of the Golden Spur was established is unknown. Pope St. -Pius X in his Brief _Multum ad excitandos_ maintains that it is among -the oldest orders of knighthood and refers to the tradition which would -have Pope St. Sylvester (314-35) the founder: “Neminem latet Ordinem -Militiae auratae, sive ab aureo calcari, inter vetustissimos jure esse -enumerandum: Constantino enim Magno Imperatore, Silvester PP. I sanctae -memoriae decessor Noster, auctor illius fuisse dicitur.” Be that as it -may, the Pope expresses regret that in the course of time “the order has -lost its ancient splendor and dignity because of human weaknesses and -the vicissitudes of the times.” - -In the 16th century, for one thing, the right to confer this knighthood -was no longer reserved to the Holy See. In 1539 Paul III Farnese -(1534-49) granted high dignitaries of the papal court and the Roman -princely families the privilege of conferring the Golden Spur. From that -time on the order was so freely bestowed that it fell into disrepute. - -To make matters worse, one of the Medici Popes, Pius IV (1559-65), -decreed that membership of the Golden Spur entailed automatically the -personal title of Roman Count for the titulary and hereditary nobility -for his descendents. All this depreciated not only the distinctiveness -of the Order of the Golden Spur but also of the Roman nobility. - -Additional confusion was created when the Knights of the Golden Spur -began to wear the coveted eight-pointed white cross of the Knights of -the Order of Jerusalem. Pope Benedict XIV by a Brief of Sept. 7, 1747, -abolished this abuse and ordered that the badge of the Order of the -Golden Spur be an octagonal gilded cross with a small spur hanging from -it. - -At long last Pope Gregory XVI took the reformation of the Golden Spur in -hand—a reformation which proved to be quite radical. In a Brief _Cum -hominum mentes_ of Oct. 31, 1841,[36] the Pope practically suppressed -the Order of the Golden Spur and established in its place the Order of -St. Sylvester, presumably the founder of the old order. In remembrance -of the latter, the Pope decreed that the accompanying title of the new -order be _Militia Aurata_. The Pope reserved the right of conferring -this new knighthood to the Holy See exclusively, revoking all delegated -rights once given by his predecessors and abolished the privilege of -conferring nobility. The membership of the order was reduced to 150 -commanders and 300 knights and confined within the Papal States. - -In 1905 another radical change occurred in the history of the Golden -Spur. Pope St. Pius X by the Brief _Multum ad excitandos_ separated the -Order of the Golden Spur from that of St. Sylvester, making them two -distinct orders from that time on. - -In recognition of the 50th anniversary of the proclamation of the dogma -of the Immaculate Conception, the restored _Militia Aurata_ was put -under the protection of the Immaculate Mother of Christ. Moreover, Pius -ordered that the gilded cross of the order should in its centre carry a -medal with a crowned monogram of Mary. This cross hangs from a trophy -which in turn is attached to a red ribbon with white edgings to be worn -around the neck. The knights also wear a plaque in the form of a silver -star on which the same cross and medal are superimposed; their uniform -is a red tunic and black trousers. - -Pope Pius emphatically reiterated that membership does not entail -personal nobility and still less hereditary nobility. The order -comprises only one class, namely that of knights. The number of knights -may not exceed 100, “lest the honor be decreased by too large a number,” -as the Brief states. Actually, in 1954, there were only ten Knights of -the Golden Spur in the entire world. This knighthood is conferred upon -men, “qui vel armis, vel scriptis, vel praeclaris operibus rem -catholicam auxerint, et Ecclesiam Dei virtute tutarint, aut doctrina -illustraverint.” Membership is not limited to Catholics; the sentence -just quoted leaves sufficient room for the candidacy of non-Catholics, -inasmuch as they, too, may help the cause of Catholicism, as in signing -a concordat with the Church or by giving freedom to the Catholic -missions. In fact, four out of the ten existing knights are -non-Catholics: one Greek Orthodox and three Mohammedans, among them the -Shah of Iran.[37] - - - THE ORDER OF PIUS - ORDO PIANUS - -The Order of Pius is the third in rank of the Pontifical Orders of -Knighthood. It was erected by Pope Pius IX by the Brief _Romanis -Pontificibus_, and was called after the founder, but also to honor the -memory of Pius IV (1559-65) who in 1559 had instituted an Ordo Pianus. -Since the latter had ceased to exist in the course of time, the order -established by Pius IX could not be considered a continuation of it. -However, the Pope stated specifically that he wished to “revive the -ancient appellation introduced by his predecessor.” - -The order consisted of two degrees: knights of the first and knights of -the second class. At the moment of nomination, they received title to -personal nobility; in the case of the knights of the first class, the -title was transmissible to their sons. The decoration of the order is an -eight-pointed blue star surrounding a medal with the inscription “Pius -IX” and “Virtuti et Merito”; the reverse bears the date of the -foundation of the order, 1847. The decoration hangs from a blue ribbon -with red edgings. The uniform is blue. The knights of the second degree -were to wear the emblem on the left chest, those of the first degree had -the privilege to wear it hanging from a blue ribbon around the neck. The -latter could also wear a silver emblem similar to the badge but of -larger dimensions on the left chest; only, however, after obtaining the -special and expressed authorization of the Holy See. - -Several of the stipulations made by Pius IX were changed within the next -hundred years. One might speak of these changes as the story of the -_minutiae_ of an order of knighthood. In the first place there was the -plaque. Two years after the founding of his order, Pius IX issued at -Gaeta, in exile, the Brief _Cum hominum mentes_ (June 17, 1849), wherein -he ordered that from that date on all knights of the first class enjoyed -the privilege of the emblem, but that a special permission of the Holy -See was needed to wear a jewelled emblem. Moreover, knights of the first -class should no longer wear the star of the order pendent from a collar -around the neck, but from the grand cordon. This rule made them Knights -of the Grand Cross. - -By the Brief _In ipso_ of Nov. 11, 1856, issued from the palace of the -Quirinal, Pope Pius IX extended the number of degrees to three: (1) -Knights of the Grand Cross, wearing the grand cordon emblem; (2) Knights -of the Second Class or Commanders, wearing the collar; (3) Knights of -the Third Class, wearing the emblem on a small ribbon on the chest. - -Pope Pius X in his Brief _Multum ad excitandos_ reintroduced the famous -emblem and instituted an intermediary degree by dividing the commanders -into two classes: those with the emblem and those without. - -Finally, Pope Pius XII in the Brief _Litteris suis_ issued at St. -Peter’s, Nov. 11, 1939,[38] abolished the title to nobility of all -knights to be nominated in the future. In giving the reason for this -rule, the Pope reiterated the words of his predecessor, namely that the -order was not instituted to encourage vanity and ambition, but only to -reward personal merit. - - - ORDER OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT - ORDO GREGORIANUS - -In the United States probably the best known of all the Pontifical -Orders of Knighthood is the Order of St. Gregory, although it was -originally instituted to honor the citizens of the erstwhile Papal -States. When the energetic general of the Camaldulese became Pope under -the name of Gregory XVI (1830-46), the Papal States were frequently -troubled with political uprisings. In suppressing these rebellious -movements, the Pope was aided not only by Austrian troops but also by -many of his own faithful subjects. - -To honor those who had distinguished themselves in the defense of the -temporal power of the Holy See, Gregory erected an order of knighthood -which he named after the first Pope who bore his own name, Saint Gregory -I (590-604), and who is considered by several historians as the real -founder of the temporal power of the Popes. However, the Brief _Quod -summis quibusque_, issued at St. Mary Major (Sept. 1, 1831), whereby -Gregory XVI erected this new pontifical order, does not restrict its -membership explicitly to his own subjects, but extends it to those -persons who have shown “incontrovertible loyalty to the Holy See,” and -to those who have distinguished themselves by their virtue and piety, by -their social position, by the zeal evidenced in fulfilling high office, -or, in general, by the excellent reputation in which they are held. - -The Pope decreed that the emblem of the order should be an eight-pointed -red cross, having a little white medal in the center engraved with a -picture of Saint Gregory the Great, the reverse of the medal carrying -the motto _Pro Deo et Principe_. The cross hangs from a red ribbon with -yellow borders, the colors of the order. - -As originally instituted the order consisted of four degrees: (1) the -Knights Grand Cross of the first class, who wore the cross on the grand -cordon, and who were also entitled to wear a large cross in the form of -a jewelled star on the chest; (2) Knights Grand Cross of the second -class, who wore the same large ribbon but only a small single plaque on -the left chest; (3) Knights Commanders whose cross hung from a ribbon -around the neck; (4) Knights who wore the cross on the left chest. - -In the Brief _Cum amplissimo honorum_, issued at St. Peter’s, May 30, -1834, Pope Gregory reduced the order to three degrees. The two degrees -of Knights Grand Cross were combined and the right to wear a jewelled -emblem required special permission from the Holy See. This decree also -specified the maximum number of Knights of St. Gregory for the residents -of the Papal States. The Knights Grand Cross should be no more than 30, -the Commanders no more than 70, the Knights no more than 300. However, -the Pope reserved the right to nominate also persons residing outside -the Pontifical States; the number of these nominees was unlimited. - -There are two classes of Gregorian Knights, a civilian and military.[39] -The difference is that the former wear the cross hanging from a green -crown of laurel, whereas the latter have the cross hanging from a -trophy. It is interesting to note that neither of the two documents -issued by Gregory XVI says a word about a special uniform for the -Knights of St. Gregory. The green uniform was later prescribed by Pope -Pius IX. - - - THE ORDER OF SAINT SYLVESTER, POPE - -This order—as we saw previously—was instituted by Pope Gregory XVI in -1841 to replace the Order of the Golden Spur, but since the name of -“Militia Aurata” was perpetuated, the order was spoken of as a -combination of the two. In 1905 Pope St. Pius X “separated” the two -orders and made the Order of Saint Sylvester the lowest ranking of the -Pontifical Orders of Knighthood. - -The order has three degrees, the second being subdivided into two -classes: Knights of the Grand Cross; Knight Commanders with and without -emblem; simple Knights. The emblem is an eight-pointed white cross with -a medal of St. Sylvester in the center, the reverse side of the medal -bearing the dates 1841-1905 in Roman figures to commemorate the order’s -founding by Gregory XVI and its renovation by St. Pius X. The emblem is -a silver star with the cross of the order superimposed. The colors of -the grand cordon, collar and ribbon on which the cross hangs, according -to the different degrees, are three bands of red and two of black. The -uniform of the order is black. - - - THE PAPAL DECORATIONS - -The decorations bestowed by the Holy See at the present time are the -Cross “Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice” and the medal “Benemerenti.” These -decorations do not confer knighthood upon the recipient, but are medals -of honor (_distintivi di onore_) given to both men and women who merit -public token of gratitude from the Pope for their services. The -conferring takes place by means of a diploma issued from the -Secretariate of State. - - - _Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice_ - -Pope Leo XIII instituted this cross by the Apostolic Letter _Quod -singulari Dei concessu_ of July 17, 1888,[40] to commemorate the -fiftieth anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood. Originally it -was intended to reward those persons who had distinguished themselves in -organizing the Vatican exposition in which were exhibited the gifts -which Leo had received from every part of the world on the occasion of -his golden jubilee. Later, the bestowal was extended to those who were -eminent in their devotion toward the Church and the Papacy. The cross -was initially issued in three degrees, gold, silver and bronze; Pope St. -Pius X in 1908 decreed that the cross should come only in gold. The four -arms of the cross are decorated with a comet and in between the arms are -found four lilies: these embellishments are meant to recall the coat of -arms of the Pecci family from which Leo derived. In the center of the -cross is placed a medal bearing the bust of the founding Pope with the -inscription “Leo XIII, P.M. Ann. X” (the tenth year of Leo’s -pontificate). The medal bears on the reverse side the tiara and the -papal keys with the inscription “Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice.” On the -reverse side of the arms of the cross are found these words “Prid. Cal. -Ian. 1888.” The cross hangs from a red, white, and yellow ribbon, to be -worn on the left chest. - - - _Benemerenti_ - -This is the name of a series of medals issued by several Popes in order -to reward distinguished services at special occasions. Pius VIII was the -first to grant such a Benemerenti medal. The practice was continued by -Gregory XVI in 1831 when he had a medal coined to reward those of his -subjects who had shown themselves particularly faithful to the Pope -during that troublesome year. Pope Pius IX did the same in gratitude to -the soldiers who fought for him during the revolution of 1848 and 1849. -St. Pius X, too, issued in 1910 a Benemerenti medal which was preferably -granted for military services. A special medal is given to the Palatine -guards after some years of faithful service. Pius XI created a -Benemerenti medal to remunerate persons as well as groups who -distinguished themselves in the organization of the Holy Year 1925 and -of the missionary exhibition which was held in the Vatican in the same -year. - -Besides these special medals there is a Benemerenti medal of a more -general character. It comes in gold, silver and bronze and it bears the -effigy and the name of the reigning Pope, and on the reverse side a -crown of laurel and the letter “B” (“Benemerenti”). The medal hangs from -a yellow ribbon edged with white, to be worn on the left chest. - -Hardly an institution in the world today has the equivalent of honors -parallel to that of the Roman Catholic Church. In an age when initiative -and ability tend to become lost in the overwhelming social changes that -are so universal, these honors stand out as another instance of the -timelessness of that Church. They salvage values and ideals from the -past. Chivalry is more than romance; it is one of the graces of human -dignity. Those who would spurn the past cannot build the future. These -honors are enshrined in a morality and code that is rooted in the love -and charity of Christ made visible through human compassion and effort. -They envision the kingdom of heaven as their perspective quite in the -way of the parable Our Lord so earnestly preached when He tenderly -uttered the words: “Well done, good and faithful servant.” - - - - - ILLUSTRATIONS - - - MILITARY ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD - - [Illustration: Teutonic Order - Black cross with white borders, black ribbon.] - - [Illustration: Order of the Holy Sepulchre - Red cross of Godfrey de Bouillon, military trophy, black ribbon.] - - [Illustration: Order of Malta - Grand Cross of Professed Bailiff: White cross, crown, military - trophy and black ribbon with two gold designs, representing crown of - thorns.] - - [Illustration: Order of Calatrava - Red Cross fleury. - Order of Alcantara - Green cross fleury. - Order of Monteza - Red Cross and black fleur-de-lis.] - - [Illustration: Order of Santiago - Lily-hilted sword in red.] - - - PONTIFICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD - - [Illustration: Order of the Golden Spur - Gold cross with golden spur pendent from it, white medal, military - trophy, red ribbon bordered with white.] - - [Illustration: Order of St. Gregory - Civil division: red cross, blue medallion, golden crown, oak leaves, - red ribbon with orange borders.] - - [Illustration: Order of St. Sylvester - White cross on gold rays, medal of St. Sylvester, ribbon with five - strands, three red, two black.] - - [Illustration: Order of Christ - White Latin cross, imposed on red cross, crown, military trophy and - golden chain.] - - [Illustration: Order of Pius - Eight-pointed blue star, white medallion, rays of golden flames, - blue ribbon bordered with red.] - - - PONTIFICAL DECORATIONS - - [Illustration: Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice - Gold cross, fleur-de-lis, medal with image of Leo XIII, purple - ribbon with white and yellow line on each border.] - - [Illustration: Benemerenti Medal - Gold, silver or bronze medal with image of reigning Pontiff, yellow - ribbon edged with white.] - - [Illustration: Lateran Cross - Gold or silver cross, medallions of the Saviour, St. Peter, St. - Paul, St. John the Baptist and St. John the Apostle, red ribbon with - two blue stripes.] - - - - - FOOTNOTES - - -[1]_The American Ecclesiastical Review_, XXXVII (1907), 497-503, carried - an article by Joseph J. Murphy under the title, “Pontifical - Decorations,” as they were reorganized by Pope Pius X. In the same - volume (pp. 324-26) a correspondent criticized the Pope for being - “exceedingly lavish in his bestowal” of knighthood and other such - honors and he felt that the spirit of a republican community “is - entirely against their bestowal.” Three years later (“Roman Curial - Honors and American Republican Sentiment,” _AER_, XLII [1910], - 341-44), another (or the same?) correspondent expressed the - conviction that the Papal appointments to “knights, marquises, - monsignori and the like ... are entirely out of place in America and - even contrary to the spirit of our people, if not also to the letter - of the Constitution.” In both cases the editor’s equivocal comment - left no doubt that he wished to run with the hares and hold with the - hounds, and his statement that “such decorations as go with these - titles are of much the same character as the secret society emblems - and titles used in our numerous American fraternities” was, if not - startling, at least amusing. - -[2]Pio Paschini, “Ordini Equestri,” _Enciclopedia Cattolica_, IX, col. - 252. - -[3]Cf. Wm. F. Stadelman, “The Royal Order of the Saint Esprit” (_AER_, - LIV [1916], 641-61). There was an older Order of the Holy Ghost, - established in Naples in 1352 by Louis of Taranto, but it hardly - survived the death of its founder. Cf. Stadelman, “The Knights of - the Holy Ghost of the Good Intention” (_AER_, LIV [1914], 652-69). - -[4]F. Giraud, _Le Bienheureux Gérard_ (Aix, 1919); Carlo Guarmani, _Gli - Italiani in Terra Santa, reminiscenze e ricerche storiche_ (Bologna, - 1872), pp. 28-29. E. J. King, _The Knights Hospitallers in the Holy - Land_ (London: Methuen, 1939, p. 20), says that the theory that - Gerard’s surname was Tonce or that he hailed from Tonco is based on - “the error of some copyist of a Latin text, who seeing the words - ‘Gerardus tunc’ mistook the adverb for a surname.” - -[5]See C. Fedeli, _L’ordine di Malta e le scienze mediche_ (Pisa, 1913); - Hans Karl von Zwehl, _Ueber die Caritas im Johanniter-Malteser Orden - seit seiner Gründung_ (Essen: Fredebeul und Koenen, 1929); Edgar - Erskine Hume, _Medieval Work of the Knights Hospitallers of St. John - of Jerusalem_ (Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins Press, 1940). - -[6]For a description of the provincial organization of the Hospitallers - see Elizabeth Wheeler Schermerhorn, _On the Trail of the - Eight-pointed Cross_ (New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1940). - -[7]A. Bosio, _Les vies des Saints de l’Ordre de St. Jean de Jéruzalem_ - (Paris: Baudoin, 1631); Mathieu de Goussancourt, _Martyrologe des - Chevaliers de St. Jean, dits de Malte_, 2 vols. (Paris: F. Noel, - 1643). - -[8]E. Rossi, _Riassunto storico del S. M. Ordine San Giovanni in - Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta_ (Rome, 1926); C. Bottarelli-M. - Monterisi, _Storia politica e militare del Sovrano Ordine di S. - Giovanni di Gerusalemme_, 2 Vols. (Milan, 1940); Giacomo C. Bascapé, - “Historic Summary of the Sovereign Military Order of St. John of - Jerusalem and Malta,” in: _The Official General Roll of the Grand - Magistery_ (Milan: Ciarrocca, 1949), pp. 17-61. - -[9]For this period see Edwin J. King, _The Knights Hospitallers in the - Holy Land_ (London: Methuen, 1930). - -[10]Hans Prutz, “Die Anfänge der Hospitaler auf Rhodes,” - _Sitzungsbericht der Königlichen Bayerischen Akademie der - Wissenschaften_, Jg. 1908, Abh. 1. - -[11]Giacomo C. Bascapé, _L’ordine Sovrano di Malta e gli Ordini Equestri - della Chiesa nella storia e nel diritto_ (Milan, 1941). - -[12]Michel de Pierredon, _Histoire politique de l’Ordre Souverain des - Hospitaliers de Saint-Jean de Jéruzalem, dit de Malta, depuis la - chute de Malte jusqu’à nos jours_ (Poitiers: Imprimérie du Poiton, - 1926). - -[13]E. Nasalli Rocca di Corneliano, “Lineamenti dell’organizzazione - regionale e della funzione assistenziale dell’Ordine,” in: _Studi in - onore di C. Calisse_ (Milan, 1939). - -[14]For an excellent survey in five languages of the division, degrees, - emblems and uniforms of the order see Rudolf Prokopowski, _Ordre - Souverain et Militaire Jéroselymitain de Malte_ (Vatican City: - Éditions “Ecclesia,” 1950). - -[15]See for membership of the order: _The Official General Roll of the - Grand Magistery_ (Milan: Ciarrocca, 1949). - -[16]A. Visconti, “La sovranità dell’Ordine di Malta nel diritto - italiano,” _Rivista di diritto privato_, VI (1936), 195-205. - -[17]_AAS_, XXXV (1953), 765-67. - -[18]_Codex juris canonici_, can. 4 and 5; can. 25-30; can. 63-79. - -[19]One of the most extensive collections in the United States dealing - with the Knights of Malta is to be found in the Library of The - Catholic University of America. The collection was assembled by Mr. - Foster Stearns who in 1955 entrusted it to The Catholic University. - The Library has prepared a catalog classifying the 281 titles which - include imprints from 1480 to the present day. - -[20]For the history of the Teutonic Order, see Arbogast Reiterer, O.T., - _Das Deutsche Kreuz, Geschichte des Deutschen Ritterorders_ (Graz, - 1922). - -[21]E. Joachim, _Die Politik des letzten Hochmeisters in Preuszen, - Albrecht van Brandenburg_, 3 Vols. (Publikationen aus dem K. - Preuszichen Staatsarchive, 1892-1895). - -[22]M. Guillamas, _De los Ordenes militares de Calatrava, Santiago, - Alcantara y Montesa_ (Madrid, 1852). - -[23]An interesting account on the vows and obligations of the Spanish - Military Orders can be found in: Alonso Peñafiel y Araugo, - _Obligaciones y excellentias de los tres ordenes militares Santiago, - Calatrava y Alcantara_ (Madrid: Diego Dias de la Carrera, - 1643)—Microfilm in the Library of Congress. - -[24]_AAS_, XXXV (1953), 625-56. - -[25]Guido A. Quarti, _I Cavalieri del Santo Sepulcro di Gerusalemme_ - (Milano: Enrico Gualdoni, s.d.). - -[26]Pierre Verduc, _La vie du bienheureux Théodore de Celles, - restaurateur du très-ancien ordre canonial militaire et hospitalier - de Ste-Croix_ (Périgneux, 1681), pp. 40-42; 79-101; Odoardo - Fialetti, _Degli habiti delle religioni con le armi e breve - descrizione loro_ (Venezia, 1626). - -[27]_ASS_, XL (1907), 324-25. - -[28]_Statuto dell Ordine Equestre del Santo Sepolcro de Gerusalemme_ - (Rome: Tipografia Poliglotta Vaticana, 1950). - -[29]Albert de Mauroy, _La croix de Jérusalem et son origine_ (Rome, - 1914). - -[30]_A.S.S._, XXXVII (1904-1905), 565-71. - -[31]_Pii P.M. IX Acta_, I, 1, (Rome, 1854), 43-45. - -[32]F. Guigue de Champvans de Farémont, _Histoire et législation des - ordres de chevalerie, marques d’honneur et médailles du Saint-Siège_ - (Paris, 1932); M. Gorino, _Causa, titoli nobiliari e Ordini equestri - pontifici_ (Turin, 1933); S. Felice y Quadremy, _Ordenes de - Caballeria Pontificias_ (Mallorca, 1950). - -[33]Cf. G. Mollat, _Les Papes d’Avignon_, 9th ed. (Paris, 1950), pp. - 562-65. - -[34]According to a tradition among Free Masons, a number of French - Templars went into hiding and formed a lodge of masonry. - -[35]_Bullarium Romanum_, IV (Rome, 1644), 277-84. - -[36]_Acta Gregorii PP., XVI_, III (Rome, 1903), 178-80. - -[37]_Annuario Pontificio_ (1954), p. 998. - -[38]_A.A.S._, XXXII (1940), 41. - -[39]_Notificatio Cancellariae Ordinum Equestrium_ (_A.S.S._, XXXVII - [1905]), 565. - -[40]_Acta Leonis XIII_, VIII (1889), 259. - - - - - Transcriber’s Notes - - -—Silently corrected a few typos. - -—Retained publication information from the printed edition: this eBook - is public-domain in the country of publication. - -—In the text versions only, text in italics is delimited by - _underscores_. - - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Ecclesiastical Orders of Knighthood, by -James Van der Veldt - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD *** - -***** This file should be named 61799-0.txt or 61799-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/1/7/9/61799/ - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you'll -have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using -this ebook. - - - -Title: The Ecclesiastical Orders of Knighthood - -Author: James Van der Veldt - -Release Date: April 10, 2020 [EBook #61799] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD *** - - - - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net - - - - - - -</pre> - -<div id="cover" class="img"> -<img id="coverpage" src="images/cover.jpg" alt="The Ecclesiastical Orders of Knighthood" width="500" height="759" /> -</div> -<div class="box"> -<h1><i>The Ecclesiastical Orders -<br />of -<br />Knighthood</i></h1> -<p class="tbcenter"><i>by</i> -<br /><b><span class="sc">James van Der Veldt, O.F.M.</span></b> -<br /><i>of</i> -<br /><span class="sc">The Catholic University of America</span></p> -<p class="tbcenter"><b><span class="sc">The Catholic University of America Press</span></b> -<br />620 Michigan Avenue, N.E. -<br />Washington 17, D. C. -<br />1956</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_ii">ii</div> -<p class="tbcenter">Reprinted from -<br /><i>The American Ecclesiastical Review</i></p> -<p class="center">October, November, December, 1955 -<br />and January, 1956</p> -<p class="tbcenter">First printing—April, 1956 -<br />Second printing—July, 1956 -<br />Third printing—November, 1957</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_iii">iii</div> -<h2><span class="small">FOREWORD</span></h2> -<p>Widespread interest in the Ecclesiastical Orders of Knighthood -has been demonstrated by continual requests for information pertaining -to them on the part of libraries and individual persons, particularly -those who have been knighted. In the United States this interest lies -chiefly in those Orders most familiar to Americans, such as the Order -of Malta, the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, the Order of St. Gregory, -and in the medals Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice and Benemerenti. Such -interest prompted the publication of this booklet which contains reprints -of four articles originally published in the “American Ecclesiastical -Review.”</p> -<p>The booklet gives a description of the history, organization, emblems -and membership requirements of the various Orders connected with -the Catholic Church and which are still in existence.</p> -<p>By way of introduction, Part One deals with the historical background—the -origin and development of Knighthood in general. Parts -Two and Three treat the Religious Military Orders which originated -in the Holy Land—The Order of Malta, the Order of the Holy -Sepulchre, the Teutonic Order—and the Military Orders of Spain and -Portugal. Finally, Part Four treats of those Orders which are directly -bestowed by the Holy See—the Order of Christ, the Order of the -Golden Spur, the Order of Pius, the Order of St. Gregory, and of St. -Sylvester. In addition the papal decorations are described.</p> -<p>The final pages of the booklet display the insignia of the three -ecclesiastical groups: Military Orders of Knighthood, Pontifical Orders -of Knighthood and Papal Decorations, with a brief description of -shape and color. The pictures present the Knight’s cross, unless otherwise -designated. Since the emblems of the Orders of Calatrava, -Alcantara and Montesa are identical in form, only one picture is used -for all three with a specification of the respective colors. Under the -heading of Pontifical Decorations a picture is given of the Lateran -Cross which is recognized, although not directly bestowed, by the -Holy See.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_v">v</div> -<h2 id="toc" class="center">TABLE OF CONTENTS</h2> -<dl class="toc"> -<dt class="small"><i>Page</i></dt> -<dt class="jl"><span class="sc">Part I</span></dt> -<dd><a href="#c1">Historical Background</a> 1</dd> -<dd><a href="#c2">Development of the Orders of Knighthood</a> 7</dd> -<dt class="jl"><span class="sc">Part II</span></dt> -<dd><a href="#c3">The Sovereign Military Order of St. John of Jerusalem</a> 14</dd> -<dd><a href="#c4">The Order of the Teutonic Knights</a> 23</dd> -<dt class="jl"><span class="sc">Part III</span></dt> -<dd><a href="#c5">The Iberian Military Orders</a> 28</dd> -<dd><a href="#c6">The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem</a> 33</dd> -<dt class="jl"><span class="sc">Part IV</span></dt> -<dd><a href="#c7">Pontifical Orders of Knighthood</a> 41</dd> -<dd class="ddt"><a href="#c8">The Supreme Order of Christ</a> 42</dd> -<dd class="ddt"><a href="#c9">Order of the Golden Spur</a> 47</dd> -<dd class="ddt"><a href="#c10">The Order of Pius</a> 49</dd> -<dd class="ddt"><a href="#c11">Order of St. Gregory the Great</a> 50</dd> -<dd class="ddt"><a href="#c12">The Order of Saint Sylvester, Pope</a> 51</dd> -<dd class="ddt"><a href="#c13">The Papal Decorations</a> 52</dd> -<dt><a href="#c14">Illustrations</a> 55</dt> -</dl> -<div class="pb" id="Page_1">1</div> -<h2><span class="small">THE ECCLESIASTICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD</span> -<br /><span class="sc">Part I</span></h2> -<h3 id="c1">HISTORICAL BACKGROUND</h3> -<p>The term ecclesiastical orders of knighthood embraces those -knightly orders which, in one way or another, are connected with -the Catholic Church. At the present time they are in two different -groups: the pontifical orders of knighthood in the strict sense and -a group of chivalric orders which derive from medieval military -orders and continue to come under ecclesiastical jurisdiction.</p> -<p>The Pontifical or Papal Orders of Knighthood are conferred -directly by His Holiness the Pope (<i>Ordini Equestri Pontifici, conferiti -direttamente dal Sommo Pontefice con lettere apostoliche</i>). -They include: the Supreme Order of Christ, the Order of the -Golden Spur, the Order of Pius, the Order of Saint Gregory the -Great, and the Order of Saint Sylvester, Pope.<a class="fn" id="fr_1" href="#fn_1">[1]</a></p> -<p>The remaining group identified with ecclesiastical orders of -knighthood is that of religious military orders. Originally they -were religious orders of lay brothers and as such came under the -jurisdiction of the Holy See. They enjoyed the approbation and -protection of the Holy Father, and it is in that sense they partake -of the name, pontifical. Yet they always had a certain autonomy, -in that they had their own government, with a grand master at -<span class="pb" id="Page_2">2</span> -the head, whose office was similar to that of a Superior General -of a religious order. Most of these ancient military orders are -now extinct or have become purely secular orders of knighthood. -A few have retained some features of their ecclesiastical character. -They are the Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, known also -as the Order of Malta, the Teutonic Order, and the Order of the -Holy Sepulchre, as well as the extant Spanish Military Orders.</p> -<p>Difference in objective is another important feature between the -two groups. The military orders, from the outset, pursued a specific -purpose, as the care of the sick and the poor, the protection -of the faith, crusading against infidels. This survives today in the -existing military orders though in a much modified form.</p> -<p>All other existing orders of knighthood, be they ancient or -more recent in origin, are honorary and mere orders of merit. -Their only purpose is that of bestowing tokens of respect for well-deserving -citizens, to reward military or civil services to the country -or the crown, to recognize merit in the field of art, science, -charity, or business. Orders of merit are “orders” only in the -broad sense of the term; they have a constitution or statutes, but -such documents usually contain little more than a description of -the origin of the order, its privileges and the degrees of its members -as well as the reason for conferring the order and its form -of the decorations. In fact, the term “order” has come to be limited -to the insignia which the members are entitled to wear.</p> -<p>Within the framework of the above twofold classification of -pontifical and military orders, another dual grouping exists which -is based on historical criteria. Some of the ecclesiastical orders of -knighthood go back to the age of chivalry; this is certainly the -case with the military orders, the Order of Christ, and probably -the Order of the Golden Spur. The origin of the Knights of the -Holy Sepulchre is still historically debatable. The remaining pontifical -orders of knighthood were established long after the age of -chivalry came to a close.</p> -<p>Distinct from the orders of knighthood are a certain number -of ecclesiastical decorations. These are marks of honor (<i>distintivi -de onore</i>), without, however, extending the title of Knight to the -recipient. It is, therefore, incorrect to designate a person receiving -such an honor as knighted by the Pope, as it is equally incorrect -<span class="pb" id="Page_3">3</span> -to put all the ecclesiastical orders of knighthood under the heading -of papal decorations.</p> -<p>Ecclesiastical decorations, like the ecclesiastical orders of knighthood, -are of two kinds. Those bestowed directly by the Holy See -and consequently strictly pontifical are the Cross “Pro Ecclesia et -Pontifice” and the Medal “Benemerenti.” The second category are -those approved by the Holy See and their recipients may wear the -decoration at the papal court and at ecclesiastical ceremonies. The -honor, however, is not granted directly by the Pope. An example -thereof is the Lateran Cross, which is conferred by the Chapter -of the Basilica of Saint John Lateran.</p> -<p>This brief outline will be clarified as the various orders are -treated in subsequent articles. It is our intention in the present -article to confine ourselves to a survey of the historical background -of the orders of knighthood.</p> -<p>Although much of the information about the early beginnings -of knighthood is rooted in conjecture, a plausible thesis would -make knighthood coincide with the rise of the cavalry in Europe, -during the first half of the eighth century. It coincides with the -times when the Christians in the encounters with the Saracens -soon discovered that their infantry were no match for those who -fought on horseback. Such armies had much greater mobility, and -the center of gravity in the Christian military strategy shifted -accordingly.</p> -<p>Throughout the first hundred years after this new horseback -“militia” had been introduced, all free men could join it, on condition -that they were able to provide a horse and equip it at their -own expense. Only people of some means could afford this luxury, -and the wealthier class was that of the landowners. Service in the -cavalry, therefore, implied the possessing of some property, preferably -in the form of land.</p> -<p>A revolutionary innovation took place simultaneously in the -system of land ownership, changing from an allodial, i.e., absolute -ownership, to a feudal system. That is why the horseback military -service came to be linked with the feudal method of land tenure. -It accounts for the historical development of knighthood being so -closely related to the history of the feudal system. The history of -feudal land ownership is hardly pertinent here, and it will suffice -here to state that the tenants-in-chief and their subalterns in the -<span class="pb" id="Page_4">4</span> -feudal system formed the cavalry of the army; they were the -horsemen, chevaliers, or knights. That is how the original form -of knighthood became so intimately associated with the tenure of -land, and how the knights were known as feudal knights.</p> -<p>While the knights were initially landed gentry, gradually—and -already a considerable time before the Crusades—a different type -of knight appeared, namely, that of the horseman without land. -Equally so, knighthood began to constitute a distinct social class. -No longer was feudal tenure the background of knighthood but -rather personal valor. The development was the consequence of -the custom of primogeniture as it existed in the Frankish form -of the feudal system.</p> -<p>Two types of feudal succession were known on the European -continent. Where the Longobard feudal law held sway, as was -the case in Italy, at the death of the feudatory incumbent, the -land was divided among his male heirs. In many cases the original -fief was cut into ever smaller portions during successive generations. -This gentry were still landholders, even though their financial -position, due to the divisions and subdivisions of the ancestral -property, might not be much better economically than that of the -peasants who actually worked the land.</p> -<p>In France and other countries where the Frankish feudal system -prevailed, conditions were altogether different. Here, according -to the law of primogeniture, the entire feud passed to the -eldest son, who was then bound by an oath of fealty to his overlord. -The younger sons had to be satisfied with precious little; -they might make a livelihood by offering their service to their -eldest brother, in which case they were obliged to do the menial -work of the estate very much the same as that of domestics and -peasants. It is quite understandable that many of these younger -sons, particularly the less amenable and the more venturesome, -could be expected to scorn such an inferior station in life. Being -of noble birth, this dispossessed youth might say with the steward -of the gospel: “What shall I do?... To dig I am not able; to beg -I am ashamed.” Only two callings were open to them, the priestly -or the military vocation, and of the two the calling of soldier was -far more attractive. Upon leaving the paternal domain, they usually -were given a horse and armor to aid in their search for economic -independence. For the most part, they did not have to look long, -<span class="pb" id="Page_5">5</span> -because war was in progress all over Europe among the many -and small feudal states. Yet, because they were no longer aligned -with the feudal hierarchy, they had no obligation to render military -service to any specific lord and could approach the highest -bidder. This meant that a new and ever increasing group of independent, -non-feudal horsemen came into existence who sought -to win their spurs on their own merit. They became knights, not -because they happened to have a feudal estate, but because of personal -exploits on the battlefield. These soldiers frequently gained -more than glory and honor inasmuch as a grateful employer who -had taken them into his pay would extend his bounty to presenting -them with a castle and some land, upon success in a military -expedition. The medieval right of plunder could provide the victorious -knight with the necessary accoutrement to furnish his -newly-won castle. One readily appreciates the consolidation of -the economic position for those concerned. There was this difference, -however, that their possessions came to them not by right -of birth but by personal valor.</p> -<p>The same kind of knight appeared also in the lands of the -Longobard feudal system. The small gentry in Italy, unsatisfied -with what little they possessed, often offered their military services -to the rapidly growing townships. This eventually bettered their -economic as well as their political status.</p> -<p>Two types of knighthood were then in existence, the older form -of territorial knighthood concentrated in ruling fief-holders, and -the newer form, that of chivalry founded on individual military -service. Since the latter was bestowed upon a soldier independently -of a fief, it might be called non-feudatory knighthood.</p> -<p>As the non-feudal knights grew to be the more numerous, -knighthood became a separate class of society. Like any other social -institution, knighthood passed through the storm-and-stress -period of adolescence. Knights in the tenth and part of the eleventh -centuries were often enough no more than bands of lawless brigands. -Living as they did outside the ranks of the feudal hierarchy, -these “gentlemen” interpreted the fact of not being bound by -fealty to any particular master as a kind of charter of freedom -from all laws and prohibitions. As narrated in the medieval lays or -ballads, the examples of lawlessness and cruelty among some -knights are, of course, outstanding. Yet, this new social class was -<span class="pb" id="Page_6">6</span> -indeed a menace to society. It was understandable, in the long -run, that the authorities should look for means to call a halt to -the excesses. In this effort the civil authorities were strongly supported -by the Church, which launched a kind of peace offensive, -endeavoring to direct the crude energies of knighthood into right -channels and make of the new class an instrument of good in the -social structure. There was success so that little by little knighthood -became respectable to a remarkable degree. The reaction -described had set in at the end of the tenth century, and a century -later a change for the better in the moral life of the knights -was everywhere in evidence. The reform was, however, not due -exclusively to outside forces. As a class, the knights had the same -needs and the same aspirations; and the better elements among -them would try to enter into some sort of common tie. That common -bond was a code of honor for knighthood and came to be -generally accepted by the end of the eleventh century, namely -around the time of the first Crusade. The motto of a good knight -was succinctly expressed in the following Italian rhyme: “<i>La mia -anima a Dio, la mia vita al Re, il mio cuore alla Dama, l’onore per -me</i> (My soul to God, my life to the Crown, my heart to the Lady, -my own the renown).” The duties of a knight broadened into that -of protecting and defending the Church, the widows, the orphans -and the oppressed, of vindicating justice, and of avenging evil. -The catalogue of the cardinal virtues for chivalry included courtesy, -valor, class loyalty, self-denial, munificence, and hospitality. -The code was well-nigh theoretically perfect, even if all knights -did not observe it in practice. As a matter of fact, the virtues to -which the knight was dedicated sometimes led to exaggerations, -distortions, and their very opposite.</p> -<p>The high point in the age of chivalry came during the Crusades, -those religious wars waged in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries -by the Christians of Western Europe against the Mohammedans -for the recovery of the Holy Land. An interaction came about -between the Crusades and chivalry. The spirit of chivalry was -largely responsible for making possible these campaigns for a religious -ideal. Thereby, the Crusades provided a powerful impetus -in the development of knighthood, for it was during the twelfth -and thirteenth centuries that chivalry attained its highest peak -both in quality and quantity. The Crusades did not create a new -<span class="pb" id="Page_7">7</span> -type of knighthood, but they gave the knights a chance to show -their mettle.</p> -<p>When the landless soldiers of the Cross distinguished themselves -in battle just as well or perhaps even better than the feudal -knights, it was reasonable that they should claim their reward. If -they fought as well as those who owed knighthood to their feudal -status, why should they not claim the honors and benefits of -knighthood? In that way the Crusades gave the horsemen large -scale opportunity to become knights through personal valor. However, -the <i>conditio sine qua non</i> for becoming a knight at this time -was still the old law that the candidates should be of noble birth, -that is to say, that they could trace their descent from the ancient -feudal families. In the century following the Crusades the decline -of knighthood set in, and it is generally admitted that by 1500 the -age of chivalry had passed. Then it was that its tradition and spirit -were kept alive in the orders of knighthood.</p> -<h3 id="c2">DEVELOPMENT OF THE ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD</h3> -<p>The first orders of knighthood were radically of a religious -nature inasmuch as they pursued a religious purpose and were -organized like other religious communities. The order of knighthood -was composed of a body of knights, united by some common -objective as the care of the sick or the defense of the Catholic -faith, and who were pledged with the vows of obedience, poverty -and chastity, led a community life under a chosen head and professed -a common rule approved by the ecclesiastical authorities.</p> -<p>The birthplace of all orders of knighthood was the Holy Land -and they appeared during the period of the Crusades. True, some -historians attempt to date the origin of the military orders as far -back in antiquity as possible, for instance, to Charlemagne and his -paladins or to Constantine the Great and his mother, Saint Helena. -The claims of such ancestry fanatics to the contrary notwithstanding, -it can safely be said that no military order of knighthood, -either regular or secular, came into existence before the first Crusade, -as the Bollandist Papebrock said in 1738: “Fallunt aut volentes -falluntur adulatores studio placendi abrepti, quicumque militarium -religionum principia ante XII saeculum requirunt” (<i>AA. -SS. Boll.</i>, Apr., III, 155).</p> -<p>The Holy Land was the scene of the rise of three types of religious -orders. Some were orders of charity, or hospital orders, dedicating -<span class="pb" id="Page_8">8</span> -themselves to the care of the poor and sick pilgrims who -came to visit the holy places. The oldest and most famous was -the Order of Saint Lazarus which was functioning even before -the Crusades began. Its scope was the care of lepers; moreover, -lepers could become members of the congregation, and it has been -alleged that during a period of its existence the grand master was -chosen from among these sorely afflicted members. The confraternity -always remained primarily an order of charity. The fact -that the brothers admitted some knights stricken with leprosy who -gave aid to the crusaders, particularly during the siege of Acre, -when the common cause demanded everybody’s efforts, is certainly -not sufficient reason to call the congregation of Saint Lazarus a -military order of knighthood. Nonetheless, many centuries after -their expulsion from the Holy Land, the remnants of this congregation -were absorbed into a military order, as we shall see hereafter.</p> -<p>A second group of religious orders founded in the Holy Land -had an exclusively military objective, inasmuch as their purpose -was to protect the pilgrims against the attacks of the Moslems and -to defend the cause of the Cross. The prototype of such knightly -societies was the Order of the Temple.</p> -<p>The third type of religious order in Palestine was of a mixed -character, combining works of charity with military service. The -most illustrious examples of this group were the Order of Saint -John in Jerusalem and the Teutonic Order.</p> -<p>Due to their predominant military character, only the last two -groups are orders of knighthood in the strict sense of the word. -Their members combined the seemingly contrasting qualities of -soldiers and monks, of “militia” and “religio.” Being a “religio” -such orders needed ecclesiastical approbation, but as a “religio -militaris” they needed special authorization from the Holy See -which alone could give religious persons permission “hostem ferire -sine culpa,” “blamelessly to strike the enemy.”<a class="fn" id="fr_2" href="#fn_2">[2]</a></p> -<p>The orders founded in the Holy Land during the Crusades were -the original military orders. The pattern of the military orders -founded in the Holy Land during the Crusades was subsequently -copied in various countries of Europe. We may distinguish several -<span class="pb" id="Page_9">9</span> -groups which show an ever increasing secular element and a decrease -of ecclesiastical ties. Of each group only a few examples -can be cited, omitting those of lesser significance.</p> -<p>The most faithful imitators of the original orders are the military -orders set up in the Iberian Peninsula. Although founded by -the kings of Spain and Portugal and used by them for their own -purposes, these orders were directly dependent on the Holy See -at first. Only later, when the sovereigns took over the grandmastership -and made it hereditary in their family, did they lose -their independence, without, however, abandoning their religious -character.</p> -<p>The principal military orders in Italy came into existence at a -rather late date in history, on or after 1500, a date traditionally -accepted as marking the end of the age of chivalry. With the grand -mastership vested in the crown, these Italian orders harbored the -same cause for deterioration as eventually appeared in the Spanish -orders, because they were dynastic orders from the start. Nonetheless, -the Italian military orders greatly resembled the original -ones, both in objective and organization. They aspired to the protection -of the Italian coastline against the Moslem pirates from -the Barbary States in North Africa who at the time were infesting -the Mediterranean; they harassed the merchant marine and sporadically -attacked harbors and towns along the coast. The objective -of these orders, then, was much the same as that of the Order -of Malta at that time, namely sea-warfare against Islam. Such an -organization was the Order of Saint Stephen, established in 1562 -by Cosimo I, Grand Duke of Tuscany, with the approval of the -Holy Father. The knights of this order which had headquarters -at Pisa cleared the Mediterranean of corsairs and took an active -part in the battle of Lepanto. Eventually, however, it disintegrated, -became completely secularized and survived as an order -of merit.</p> -<p>The Order of Saint Maurice and Lazarus, founded in 1572 by -Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoia, has an intriguing history. -Comparatively late in origin, it was a merger of two pre-existing -institutions which date back to much earlier times.</p> -<p>One was the hospital congregation of Saint Lazarus, previously -mentioned. After the fall of Acre the fraternity was transferred to -Europe and for some time flourished in France. The Italian branch -<span class="pb" id="Page_10">10</span> -soon declined and was finally suppressed by Pope Innocent VIII -in 1490. There remained, however, the possessions of the order -and these were handed over to certain gentlemen who, far from -having an interest in lepers, did little else but appropriate the -revenues for their own use.</p> -<p>The second institution was the so-called Order of Saint Maurice -which, if it was an order at all, hardly merited the name of a military -order by any stretch of the imagination. Yet whatever it -lacked of the military spirit has since been largely supplied by -romance, insofar as it was involved in the story of a layman who -became antipope. When Amadeus VIII, Duke of Savoia, renounced -the throne, he retired to Ripaglia where he had built a -church in honor of the holy martyr Maurice to whom the house of -Savoia had a special devotion. There, in 1434, the duke with five -other knights established the Sacred Militia of Saint Maurice—a -rather pompous title for a group of elderly widowers who had retired -into a hermitage.</p> -<p>Four years later, the remnants of the Council of Basle revolted -against the legitimate Pope Eugene IV and elected the above-mentioned -Amadeus. He accepted under the title of Felix V and -abandoned his solitude in Ripaglia in the company of the other -knightly widowers. Thenceforth history has little to tell about the -Sacred Militia of Saint Maurice. In 1572, Emmanuel Philibert, -after lengthy negotiations, obtained from Pope Gregory XIII permission -to allot the possessions of the Order of Saint Lazarus in -his territory to the languishing Order of Saint Maurice. Out of -this merger developed the military religious Order of Saint Maurice -and Lazarus—the last of the military orders to come into -existence. Its objective was to curtail piracy on the high seas and -combat the enemies of the faith. However, the institution from its -very inception was an affair of the Savoian dynasty, the duke and -his successors assuming the office of grand master. The knights -vowed obedience to the duke and were subject to him not only -as vassals but also by virtue of a religious vow. They pledged -themselves to serve in the convents of the order for five years; -one of these convents was in Turin for the ground forces and the -other in Nice for the naval forces. The character of the Order of -<span class="pb" id="Page_11">11</span> -St. Maurice and Lazarus was completely changed when Victor -Emmanuel II, in 1860, made it a simple order of merit.</p> -<p>Other dynastic orders of knighthood having some ties with the -Church were quite different. The motives for establishing them -were various. Some owed their origin simply to a chance occasion -or a romantic event not infrequently of a frivolous nature; some -were commemorative of a signal victory in battle or the accession -of a prince to the throne. Often enough, politics played a role, -when a sovereign would wish to bind his nobles closer to the crown.</p> -<p>By way of example, we shall mention here some of the more -illustrious dynastic orders of knighthood.</p> -<p>The Supreme Order of the Annunciation was set up in 1364 -by Amadeus VI, Count of Savoia, during a tournament which -was held to celebrate the victory of Savoia over a rival, the Marquis -of Salusso. It would seem that similar brotherhoods in arms -had existed at the Savoyard court under such romantic titles as -the Round Table of the Black Swan, of the Green Knights, and -the like, but the new order was to achieve a permanent character. -At first, the objective of the newly organized group was only fun -and love, as evidenced by the love symbols that decorated the collar -of the knights. For that reason the brotherhood was dubbed the -Order of the Collar. A year later when Count Amadeus made a -trip to Constantinople and came in touch with the then extant -religious military orders, he dedicated the fraternity to the Blessed -Virgin. The religious element was heightened in the symbolic -figure of fifteen knights, representing the fifteen mysteries of Our -Lady. When the knights themselves had no time to say many -prayers, they were quite satisfied to find a convenient substitute -for their religious obligations in the persons of fifteen Carthusian -monks at the Chapter House of Pierre Chatal. The latter became -the seat of the order. Their first and last duty was to honor and -serve faithfully their sovereign, the count, and provide him with -material benefits. Such privileges as exemptions from taxes, a -seat in the senate, and financial support from the crown in case of -necessity were given in return to the knights. In 1518 Duke -Charles III attached to the knight’s collar a medal representing -the Annunciation of Our Lady, and from that time the fraternity -became known as the Order of the Collar and the Annunciation. -<span class="pb" id="Page_12">12</span> -Moreover, the duke augmented the enrollment with five more -knights, in honor of the five wounds of Christ.</p> -<p>In 1869, Victor Emmanuel II, who was soon to become King -of a united Italy, changed the character of the order; it was to -be simply a means of rewarding a restricted number of persons -for outstanding services to the dynasty or the state.</p> -<p>The Order of the Golden Fleece was founded by Philip the -Good, Duke of Burgundy, in 1429, on the occasion of his marriage -with the Infanta Isabella of Portugal at Bruges in the -Netherlands. Pope Eugene IV gave approval in 1433 as did also -Leo X in 1516. Of course, the origin and the name enjoy the aura -of the usual legends, one of which is that the duke wished to -commemorate the golden hair of Mary of Rumbrugge with whom -he was supposed to be in love. If such is true, the order was certainly -a peculiar wedding gift for his legitimate wife. The knights, -who numbered thirty-one, were staunchly organized, and the order -soon achieved great fame and was reputed to embody the very -spirit of chivalry. The Dukes of Burgundy and their successors -acted as grand masters. Eventually, it became an order of merit -divided into two branches, one under the jurisdiction of the Austrian -Hapsburgs and the other under the jurisdiction of the Spanish -Bourbons. With the overthrow of both of these houses the -order is in abeyance.</p> -<p>The French King Louis XI founded the Order of Saint Michael -in 1469. After having fallen into disrepute, because it took in all -kinds of members, its decoration was dubbed “<i>le collier à toutes -bêtes</i>—the collar to fit every animal.” The Order of the Holy -Ghost replaced it in 1573 under King Henry III. The investiture -of the knights was ritualized with pompous religious ceremonies.<a class="fn" id="fr_3" href="#fn_3">[3]</a></p> -<p>The foregoing examples emphasize the fact that these and similar -knightly fraternities were not without certain religious features. -The brotherhood was placed under the protection of a patron -saint; it might receive papal approbation; the meeting place of the -knights included a chapel; and the gatherings of the knights as -<span class="pb" id="Page_13">13</span> -well as the initiation of a new member were graced with religious -rites. The rule of these societies imposed upon their members a -virtuous life, as was fitting for a true knight, such as the devotion -to the Holy Spirit or the Blessed Virgin. Sometimes the statutes -exhorted the members to attend daily Mass, and prescribed the -reception of the sacraments twice or three times a year as well as -the daily recitation of a part of the divine office. However, the -dynastic orders of knighthood were different in character from -the original military orders, with little of “religio” and still less -of “militia.” Despite some religious features, the members did not -take the canonical vows, except the oath of fidelity to the crown, -neither did they live in common. Their military exploits, too, -were quite insignificant in comparison with those of the Templars -or the Hospitallers. When these knights fought at all, they did so -not in a body, but rather as individuals. The very exclusiveness -of the Golden Fleece (thirty-one knights) or the Annunziata Order -(fifteen and later twenty knights) excluded all large scale -feats. Besides, the objective of their military activities was not -the defense of the faith, but the conquest of any enemy with whom -their sovereign might become embroiled.</p> -<p>Further development of almost all orders of knighthood is one -of monotonous regularity. Those which did not become extinct -were completely secularized, some during the course of the Reformation -and others during the French Revolution. The latter abolished -all orders of knighthood in France, but in 1802 Napoleon -re-established an order of knighthood—that of the Legion of -Honor. It was merely an order of merit, and served as a model not -only for the newer but also reverted upon the older still existing -orders.</p> -<p>A few orders of knighthood did not become reduced to mere -orders of merit and did retain a link with the Church. These include -the Order of Malta, that of the Teutonic Knights, the Holy -Sepulchre, and the Iberian military orders, which will be the subject -of the subsequent articles.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_14">14</div> -<h2><span class="small">THE ECCLESIASTICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD</span> -<br /><span class="sc">Part II</span></h2> -<h3 id="c3">THE SOVEREIGN MILITARY ORDER OF ST. JOHN OF JERUSALEM</h3> -<p>This order, also called the Order of Rhodes and more widely -known as the Order of Malta, from the locations of its headquarters -after it was forced to leave the Holy Land, is the oldest -order of knighthood in existence, antedating even that of the -Order of the Garter by more than two hundred years. It is also -the most illustrious and meritorious of the religious military orders. -Its origin goes back to the hospital for Christian pilgrims in Jerusalem, -established in the first half of the 11th century by a group -of merchantmen from Amalfi, Italy. When the crusaders captured -Jerusalem in 1099 the hospital was headed by a layman named -Gerard whose birthplace is variously given as Martiques in -Provence, Amalfi in southern Italy and Tonco in Piedmont, all -in line with the respective nationality of the historians who wrote -his life.<a class="fn" id="fr_4" href="#fn_4">[4]</a> This saintly man organized the hospital staff into a -community of lay brothers for whom he drew up appropriate -constitutions which were approved in 1113 by Pope Paschal II. -The fraternity became known as the Hospitallers of St. John, after -the patron saint of the church which was attached to the hospital. -This patron was St. John the Almoner, Patriarch of Alexandria, -who had provided the means for rebuilding the churches of the -Resurrection and of Calvary in Jerusalem. Later the Hospitallers -adopted the better known St. John the Baptist as their patron saint.</p> -<p>Whereas Gerard was the founder of the Order of St. John, -his successor Raymond du Puy, a knight from Provence, became -its organizer. While he was Master of the Hospital (1120-60), -the community, although continuing its hospital work, began also -to engage in services of a military character. The military duties -<span class="pb" id="Page_15">15</span> -consisted at first in providing armed protection for the sick and -the poor and military escorts for the pilgrims. Soon the brotherhood -took part in the defense of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem -and in the battles against the Moslems and thus became a full-fledged -military order. But the order never forsook its humble -beginnings; its militarization only added a new objective to its -activities, as expressed in the age-old motto: <i>Obsequium pauperum -et tuitio fidei</i>—service of the poor and protection of the faith.</p> -<p>During the process of militarization three classes of brothers -developed: the knights who led in the fighting and held most of -the higher administrative functions at headquarters and in the -other houses of the order; the chaplains who took care of the -spiritual needs of the other members of the order and of the -patients in the hospitals; the sergeants-at-arms, who were the -serving brothers. In the beginning, persons not belonging to the -military aristocracy or nobility could enter the class of knights, but -as from Master Hugh Revel (1258-77) the rule was laid down -that such as desired to be admitted as knights should prove nobility -on both father’s and mother’s side. When occasionally a few -knights were received into the order who were not fully qualified -with regard to their armorial bearings, they were called Knights-of-Grace -(admitted by favor) in contrast to the duly qualified -members who were called Knights-of-Justice, a distinction which -has prevailed until recently.</p> -<p>The number of professed knights was always quite limited, -scarcely in excess of 500 or 600 knights. Since the order was -essentially a lay organization, the number of professed priests -always remained very small. The professed chaplains served mainly -in the Convent, that is, the general headquarters of the order, and -were therefore called Conventual Chaplains. The <i>cura animarum</i> -in the houses outside the Convent was for the most part exercised -by priests who did not belong to the order, but were engaged by -the order according to its needs; since they were throughout the -time of office under the jurisdiction of the grand master they were -called Chaplains of Magistral Obedience.</p> -<p>The professed sergeants-at-arms assisted the knights; they were -at first quite important and numerous but eventually almost completely -faded out of the picture, being replaced by hired help. -In fact, the knights employed a considerable number of men for -<span class="pb" id="Page_16">16</span> -all their enterprises, both charitable and military: physicians and -other personnel in the hospital were engaged on a paid basis, the -soldiers who formed the body of the order’s army were mercenary -troops as were the sailors on their fleet in the days of Rhodes and -Malta.</p> -<p>At the top of this hierarchical pyramid stood the Master. His -official title, ever since the days of Blessed Gerard, was Master -of the Hospital. Although often referred to, even in earlier days, -as the Grand Master, he did not formally assume the latter title -until 1489. After the order had settled on Malta, the Grand Master -Alof de Wignacourt (1601-1622) was given the title of prince of -the Holy Roman Empire by the Emperor and the Pope bestowed -on him and his successors a rank equal to a Cardinal of the Holy -Roman Church with the title of Eminence. Besides these sonorous -titles, the grand master, like all other professed members of the -order, also uses the religious title Frà (Brother) which is put -before his baptismal name. To date there have been seventy-six -grand masters.</p> -<p>The monastic habit of the order was a wide black cassock with -a slit on each side for the arms. In the days of Blessed Gerard -a plain white cross was sewn on the breast; Master Raymond -introduced the eight-pointed white cross which has become the -emblem of the order down to the present day. Since these bell-like -cloaks were rather cumbersome in battle, Pope Innocent IV in -1248 granted the knights permission to wear a black surcoat over -armour when on active service. Pope Alexander IV in 1259 -changed the color of this tunic to red, with a plain white cross. -The choir dress of the professed knights is even at present a black -mantle with the Maltese cross and a very elaborate maniple.</p> -<p>The headquarters of the order, wherever they might be, in -Jerusalem, Acre, Rhodes or Malta, were called the Convent. In -its developed form this Convent consisted of the palace of the -grand master, the living quarters of the knights and their assistants, -the stables for the horses, the church and the hospital.</p> -<p>Even by modern standards the hospital in Jerusalem was quite -large; Master Roger des Moulins in a letter of 1178 puts the -number of patients at 950. According to the statutes of 1182, the -medical staff consisted of four physicians and a number of male -nurses. Special regulations were laid down concerning hygiene. -<span class="pb" id="Page_17">17</span> -A wise rule was that each patient, after admittance, should hand -over his valuables to the hospital authorities so as to prevent -protests and reclamations in case of loss or theft. A religious in -charge registered all the belongings of a patient and gave them -back after he was dismissed. The statutes of the hospital in -Jerusalem served as a model for, and sometimes were literally -copied by, other hospital organizations in the Middle Ages.<a class="fn" id="fr_5" href="#fn_5">[5]</a></p> -<p>In view of the fact that before the crusades hospitals in the -more modern sense of the word hardly existed, the charity work -of the Knights of St. John—and to a lesser extent that of the -other orders founded in the Holy Land—has been hailed as a -kind of innovation. Historians agree that the Hospitallers must be -credited with having created the hospital in the organized sense.</p> -<p>Whenever the knights of St. John had to transfer their Convent, -they considered it one of their first duties to attach to it a well-equipped -hospital for “our lords the sick.” The hospital in Rhodes, -restored by the Italian government under Mussolini to its original -condition, was a large and beautiful building. On Malta the hospital -or “Sacra Infirmeria” developed into a center for medical -sciences, particularly surgery and ophthalmology.</p> -<p>The militarization of the order had a double effect. Knights from -every country in Europe enrolled under the red banner with the -white cross. At the same time the military reputation of the order -greatly increased the number of donations and legacies which had -been given already at the time the order was devoted to charity -work. These possessions scattered throughout the Near East and -Europe called for administration and management. Although the -supervisory system was very complicated and only gradually developed, -it may be said in general that the order was divided in -bailiwicks and priories which were roughly equivalent to provinces -in other orders and each priory comprised a number of commanderies. -The house of a commander might be a manor, a -castle, a walled-in-portion or a fortified church with an annex. -Each house contained, besides the chapel and the living quarters -<span class="pb" id="Page_18">18</span> -for the household, a number of rooms, to be used as a ward for -travellers and as a hospital for sick pilgrims.<a class="fn" id="fr_6" href="#fn_6">[6]</a></p> -<p>The functions of the priors and commanders were manifold: -they collected the revenues of the estates of the order, they gave -protection to the pilgrims, occasionally they built or maintained -roads and bridges and their “mansiones” were recruiting stations -for the order. When the days of the great pilgrimages were over, -several hospices of St. John grew into regular hospitals.</p> -<p>The territorial organization of the order achieved its final -completion, when it was divided into <i>langues</i> or tongues. When the -headquarters of the order were in Rhodes and Malta, the knights -of each <i>langue</i> lived together in their own residence, called <i>auberge</i> -or inn, so that the Convent consisted of a number of national -“monasteries.”</p> -<p>Although the training of the Knights of St. John was mainly -aimed at making them good fighters—a life not particularly conducive -to sanctity—yet the chronicles of the order boast a number -of men and women noted for their holiness. To mention a few: -Gerard, the Founder, and Raymond du Puy, who have been always -revered as Blessed; St. Hugh, Commander of Geneva; the sergeant-at-arms -Blessed Gerard Mercati who, however, died as a Franciscan; -and the most renowned among the women saints, St. -Ubaldescha, St. Toscana and St. Fiora of Beaulieu.<a class="fn" id="fr_7" href="#fn_7">[7]</a></p> -<p>The military and political history of the Order of St. John is an -eight-hundred-years-long Odyssey which can be best characterized -as the road from Jerusalem to Rome by way of Acre, Rhodes, -Malta, and a number of other places, including a curious detour -by Russia. The Hospitallers stayed in the Holy Land for almost -two centuries, until 1291; they then had their headquarters on -the island of Rhodes for another two hundred years (1309-1522), -and afterwards transferred to the island of Malta for two centuries -and a half (1530-1798), finally moving to Rome in 1834.<a class="fn" id="fr_8" href="#fn_8">[8]</a></p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_19">19</div> -<p>In the Palestinian period the Hospitallers fought for the defense -of the Latin kingdom of Jerusalem; together with the Templars -they supplied the best-trained and disciplined troops and, especially -in the times of disaster, their forces were the most stable and -reliable. During the last forty years of the kingdom the defense -of the country rested almost completely upon these two military -orders.<a class="fn" id="fr_9" href="#fn_9">[9]</a></p> -<p>In the armies of the Christians in the Holy Land the knights -formed a sort of division, composed of between 300 and 500 knights -and a number of hired soldiers. This division was sometimes used -as a flank, but more often as a vanguard or rear guard. Besides, -the knights built and garrisoned an impressive number of fortresses -of which the most powerful were Margat and Crac.</p> -<p>Only seven knights of St. John, including the master, survived -the fall of Acre in 1291. They found asylum on the island of -Cyprus. During their years there, the knights began to build up -a naval force. With this they conquered the island of Rhodes, -where they were firmly established in 1308. Thus they became -known as Knights of Rhodes.<a class="fn" id="fr_10" href="#fn_10">[10]</a></p> -<p>At Rhodes the knights reached the peak of power and influence, -never quite attained in the same measure before or after. And -this is all the more remarkable because the number of knights on -the island never exceeded three hundred. By building enormous -fortifications they made the island an almost impregnable bastion -against the attacks of the Mamelukes of Egypt and Syria and the -Turks of Constantinople. With their naval power they started a -new type of warfare against the old enemies. In Rhodes the -knights became a sovereign power like the sea republics of Italy -or the Hanseatic cities in Germany.<a class="fn" id="fr_11" href="#fn_11">[11]</a> Their navy flew its own flag, -<span class="pb" id="Page_20">20</span> -a white cross on a red field, they minted their own money, they -concluded treaties with other sovereign states on the basis of -equality and they had their diplomatic representatives at many -courts. After repulsing numerous attacks, the knights finally were -overwhelmed by a strong expeditionary force under Sultan Soliman -I and capitulated Dec. 21, 1522.</p> -<p>Once again the remaining knights drifted around in search of a -dwelling place; they established their capital successively in Crete, -Messina, Baia, Viterbo, and Nizza. Finally, on March 24, 1530, -they obtained from Emperor Charles V, in his capacity as king -of Sicily, the island of Malta and adjacent islands as a “perpetual -and free feud.” The only obligation attached to this transfer was -that the knights should annually, on the feast of All Saints, offer -a falcon or a hawk to the King of Sicily, whoever he might be. -Thus the Order of Saint John became a feudatory of the kingdom -of Sicily territorially, but as a religious order it continued dependent -on the authority of the Holy See. From their key position in the -Mediterranean, the knights watched the movements of the Turkish -fleet and engaged in battle the corsairs from Tripoli and the other -Barbary States. Twice a year the order equipped a “caravan,” -namely a naval expedition, to ferret out pirates along the coastline -of the Mediterranean. As in Rhodes, in Malta the knights sustained -several attacks from the Turks, the most memorable of which was -the “Great Siege” (1565). The knights were victorious on all -occasions. However, in the eighteenth century a decline in spirit -and in discipline set in. What the Turks failed to achieve, Napoleon -did; on his way to Egypt, without striking a blow he captured the -fortress of Malta, believed to be impregnable (June 12, 1798). -The weak Grand Master Ferdinand von Hompesch soon resigned -and the order established a provisional headquarters at Trieste -which at the time was under Austria.</p> -<p>A peculiar situation then arose: an orthodox emperor made -himself Grand Master of this thoroughly Catholic Order of St. -John. Paul I of Russia, who for some time had in mind using -the Hospitallers and their island bastion for political purposes, -had managed to establish a grand priory in Russia. The Russian -knights in 1798 elected Paul as Grand Master, but he died in 1801 -without being able to do anything on behalf of the order. With -England taking Malta from the French in 1800, the old capital -was lost for good.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_21">21</div> -<p>Upon the loss of Malta the order reached the lowest point in -all its glorious history. The order’s headquarters shifted from -Messina to Catania to Ferrara and finally in 1834 they were -established in Rome. The knights had one more grand master -after Paul I, but when he died in 1805, the Pope allowed them -only to elect lieutenant grand masters who were to be ratified -by him. This state of affairs continued for seventy-four years -until Leo XIII by a Bull of March 29, 1879, re-established the -office of grand master with headquarters in Rome.<a class="fn" id="fr_12" href="#fn_12">[12]</a></p> -<p>From then on the order regained part of its old vitality. It had -lost its territorial sovereignty, military activities had ceased, but -it now reverted to its original objective: <i>obsequium pauperum</i>. -The order became again a welfare and charity organization. Looking -back over its long history one might say that at first its -master was the superintendent of a hospital, then he became a -commanding army general (to which office he subsequently added -that of an admiral), and in this age the grand master has become -the president of an international Catholic White Cross which at -times collaborates with the international Red Cross.</p> -<p>The order has built and maintains an impressive number of -hospitals—in Italy alone there are 19 with a total of 5,290 beds; -it takes care of a number of children’s homes, child centers and -trade schools for abandoned children. During the two world wars, -the order established military hospitals and had a number of -ambulance trains and airplanes for the transport of wounded -soldiers; in catastrophes such as earthquakes or other disasters -it provides food and medical help. It also extends financial and -medical assistance to the Catholic foreign missions.<a class="fn" id="fr_13" href="#fn_13">[13]</a></p> -<p>Expenses involved in these activities are paid out of the revenues -from the remaining properties of the order and the contributions -of its members throughout the world.</p> -<p>The present organization of the Order of Malta consists of three -large categories, each subdivided into a number of ranks.<a class="fn" id="fr_14" href="#fn_14">[14]</a> They -<span class="pb" id="Page_22">22</span> -are the Knights of Justice, who take the three monastic vows and -form the strictly religious nucleus of the order; the Knights of -Honour and Devotion who are required to furnish proof of ancient -nobility; the Knights of Magistral Grace who are affiliated to the -order and are somewhat reminiscent of the old class of sergeants-at-arms. -Besides, there are three other groups: the Chaplains, -Dames of Honour and Devotion, and the Donates. The grand -master may bestow on persons outside the order the Cross of -Merit of the Order of Malta, an honour which may be conferred -also on non-Catholics and consists of five classes.</p> -<p>The Order of Malta is divided into five grand priories and -fourteen national associations, including the “Association of Master -Knights of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in the United -States of America.” Those knights who do not belong to any of -the priories or associations depend directly on the grand master -and are called <i>Knights in Gremio Religionis</i>.<a class="fn" id="fr_15" href="#fn_15">[15]</a></p> -<p>The Order of St. John, although deprived of its territory, retains -its sovereign character. The palace of the grand master and the -other houses in Rome are extra-territorial, that is to say enjoy -the same privilege as that accorded to the other foreign embassies -and legations; the order issues its own diplomatic passports and -entertains diplomatic missions and legations in several countries.<a class="fn" id="fr_16" href="#fn_16">[16]</a></p> -<p>Recently the legal status of the Order of Malta in the Church -has been defined with greater precision. Pope Pius XII, on Dec. -10, 1951, appointed a special tribunal of five cardinals, presided -over by the Dean of the Sacred College, Cardinal Eugene Tisserant, -in order to determine the nature of the order and the extent of -its competence both as a sovereign and as a religious institution, -as well as its relationship to the Holy See. After long discussions -the commission of cardinals on Jan. 24, 1953, gave the following -unanimous verdict:<a class="fn" id="fr_17" href="#fn_17">[17]</a></p> -<p>The Order of Malta is a sovereign order, inasmuch as it enjoys -certain prerogatives which, according to the principles of international -<span class="pb" id="Page_23">23</span> -law, are proper to sovereignty. These rights have been -recognized by the Holy See and a number of states. However, -these rights do not comprise all the powers and prerogatives that -belong to sovereign states in the full sense of the word.</p> -<p>Insofar as the Order of Malta is composed of knights and chaplains, -it is a “religio” and more precisely a religious order, approved -by the Holy See, according to the <i>Codex juris canonici</i>, Can. 487 -and 488, nn. 1 and 2. The purpose of this order is, besides the -sanctification of its members, also the pursuit of religious objectives, -charity, and welfare work.</p> -<p>The sovereign and the religious character of the order are intimately -related, inasmuch as the former serves to attain the objectives -of the order as a religious institution and its development in -the world.</p> -<p>The Order of Malta depends on the Holy See and, as a religious -order, on the Sacred Congregation of Religious.</p> -<p>Those persons who have obtained marks of distinction from -the order and the associations of these persons depend on the -order, and, through it, on the Holy See.</p> -<p>Questions concerning the institution’s character as a sovereign -order are treated by the Secretariat of State of His Holiness. Those -of a mixed nature are received by the Sacred Congregation of -Religious in accord with the Secretariat of State.</p> -<p>The present decisions do not interfere with the order’s acquired -rights, customs and privileges which the Popes have granted or -recognized, inasfar as they are still in force according to the norms -of canon law<a class="fn" id="fr_18" href="#fn_18">[18]</a> and the order’s own constitutions.<a class="fn" id="fr_19" href="#fn_19">[19]</a></p> -<h3 id="c4">THE ORDER OF THE TEUTONIC KNIGHTS</h3> -<p>The origin of the Order of the Teutonic Knights was practically -the same as that of the Order of Saint John: the Teutonic Order -sprang from a fraternity of lay men engaged in charitable work. -A number of crusaders from Bremen and Lübeck in Germany, -<span class="pb" id="Page_24">24</span> -under the leadership of a certain Meister Sigebrand, operated a -field hospital during the dreadful winter of the Siege of Acre (1190 -A.D.), when the Christian army through famine and sickness was -almost decimated. Pope Clement III, recognizing the remarkable -services of the confraternity, gave it his approbation in 1191; the -first Superior of this religious congregation was Conrad, chaplain -of Fredrick of Swabia. During the next eight years a number -of German knights joined, and the community gradually assumed -the character of a military order of knighthood, becoming known -as the Teutonic Knights of the Hospital of Saint Mary of Jerusalem. -The Pope approved the Order in 1199 with Henry Walpott -of Bossenheim as first master. The new order was organized along -the same lines as the Hospitallers; it comprised professed knights, -priests and lay brothers and its purpose was to care for the poor -and the sick as well as to wage war against the foes of Christendom. -Like the Hospitallers, the knights followed the Augustinian rule, -but whereas the former wore a black mantle with a white cross, -the Teutonic Knights adopted a white mantle with a black cross. -Only German candidates were eligible for the new order, which -rapidly grew in numbers and influence. This may have been due -to the fact that the German knights, always resentful of the predominantly -Latin influence in the existing military orders, were -only too happy to have an organization of their own and thus -gave it strong support. The fourth Master, Hermann of Salza -(1210-1239), shifted the military activities of his order from -Palestine, first to Hungary, and then to the northeastern frontier -of Germany, where the order engaged in fighting the heathen -Prussians. But although the Knights operated mainly in Prussia, -their general headquarters still continued at Acre, until the latter -fell in 1291, after which they transferred to Venice. Finally, in -1309, the seat of the order was established in the famous fortress -of Marienburg in Prussia.<a class="fn" id="fr_20" href="#fn_20">[20]</a></p> -<p>In 1236 the Teutonic Order absorbed the remnants of the -Brothers of the Sword, an order of knighthood which had been -founded some thirty-four years earlier for the purpose of subjugating -and christianizing the peoples of the Baltic countries of Livonia, -<span class="pb" id="Page_25">25</span> -Lettonia and Esthonia (now known as Latvia, Lithuania and -Estonia).</p> -<p>Thus the Teutonic Knights prevailed in these countries. By -donations and conquest the knights gradually increased their holdings, -until they included large parts of Prussia, Kurland and -Lithuania. Although these followers of Christ used the unorthodox -methods of fire and sword for the propagation of the faith, it cannot -be denied that they greatly contributed to the pacification and -civilization of the peoples under their jurisdiction. They encouraged -cultivation of the land and built a great number of towns and -villages, providing each with a church. In some places they -erected schools and, faithful to the original purpose of their order, -they established hundreds of hospitals and hospices. In this respect -it is worthy of note that the Teutonic Knights were the first to -establish a mental hospital (Dollhaus) in Germany, namely at -Elbig in 1316. The knights also proved to be clever businessmen -inasmuch as they sponsored profitable markets in foreign countries -for the produce of their land.</p> -<p>For more than a century after the final subjugation of the Prussians -in 1283, the Teutonic Knights were the undisputed rulers of -a vast and well-organized domain that stretched along the coast -of the Baltic Sea, from the river Oder to Leningrad. The grand -master, residing in his fortified convent of Marienburg and then -from 1457 on at Königsburg, was <i>de jure et de facto</i> a sovereign, -equal to the other princes of the Empire, and only nominally -subordinate to the Emperor. But in the fifteenth century decline -set in. The first blow was struck in 1410, when in the battle of -Tannenberg the Knights were overthrown by the Polish troops. -In 1525 the Order received the <i>coup de grâce</i>; its grand master -Albrecht of Brandenburg embraced the Protestant religion, secularized -the possessions of the Order in East Prussia which once -he had vowed to protect, and styled himself Duke of Prussia.<a class="fn" id="fr_21" href="#fn_21">[21]</a> -When later this duchy was united with Brandenburg, the foundations -were laid for the kingdom of Prussia and eventually for -the German Reich of the Hohenzollerns. In 1561, when Gotthard -Kettler, “Landmeister” of Livonia, followed Albrecht’s apostasy, -<span class="pb" id="Page_26">26</span> -the Teutonic Order ceased to be a sovereign power. However, the -loss of sovereignty did not mean the end of the Teutonic Order, -for—although a skeleton of its former glory—it still possessed large -estates and strongholds in Western Germany. (During the Reformation -the Teutonic Knights in the Netherlands separated themselves -from their Catholic brethren. This Protestant branch was -suppressed by Napoleon but was re-established at the time of the -Restoration and is known as the bailiwick of Utrecht.) After the -loss of Prussia the general head of the order became known as -“Hoch-und Deutsch Meister” (Grand-and Teutonic Master). From -1590 on, these grand masters were almost without exception -members of the imperial house of Hapsburg, which meant that -the former independent Teutonic Order became more and more -an appendix of the Austrian crown. Nevertheless, the order was -not completely secularized. True, community life soon ceased to -exist, but the knights still took religious vows. The next blow -was dealt by Napoleon, who suppressed the Teutonic Order in -Germany and confiscated its possessions. The order was now -restricted to the confines of the Austrian empire. Around 1839, -attempts were made to revive the languishing order by dedicating -its members—priests and professed knights—to its original objective, -namely ambulance service and works of charity. Besides, the -professed knights, instead of fighting the infidels, took upon -themselves the obligation of serving as officers in the Austrian army.</p> -<p>The question of profession was settled by a papal indult in -1886 (<i>Neminem profecto latet</i>, March 16, 1886), according to -which the knights of the Teutonic Order were to take simple perpetual -vows which, however, included the same rights and obligations -as solemn vows.</p> -<p>When the Hapsburg dynasty fell after the first World War, only -a handful of knights were left. On April 30, 1923, the grand -master Eugene, Archduke of Hapsburg-Lothringen, commander -in chief of the Austrian forces on the Italian front in World War -I, resigned and was succeeded by Bishop Norbert Klein.</p> -<p>In 1929 a radical change took place in the entire structure of -the order. The erstwhile military order of the Teutonic Knights -was transformed into a religious community of priests and lay-brothers -with solemn vows similar to any other religious congregation -in the Catholic Church. It assumed the title of <i>Ordo</i> -<span class="pb" id="Page_27">27</span> -<i>Teutonicus Sanctae Mariae in Jerusalem</i> (officially designated by -the initials O.T.) and is listed in the <i>Annuario pontificio</i> as a -mendicant order. This new community—with a very old past—devotes -itself to parish work and works of charity; it is divided -into five provinces (Austria, Bavaria, Italy, Yugoslavia and the -practically extinct province of Czechoslovakia) with a total -membership of 93, of whom 70 are priests. (See the <i>Catalogus -ordinis teutonici</i>, Jan. 1, 1950). A congregation of sisters is affiliated -to the Order, also divided into five provinces with a total -membership of 572, mostly dedicated to hospital work.</p> -<p>The superior general has the old title of Grand Master (Hochmeister, -Supremus Magister); he has abbatial rank and enjoys -the privilege of the <i>pileolus violaceus</i>. So far his residence is in -Vienna, Austria. The professed knights of the old guard who -were still alive when the transformation was effected became members -of the new outfit with the title of Ordensritter (Knights of -the Order). Since the last grand master, Eugene of Hapsburg, -died in January, 1955, only one of the old knights is left. It is -all that remained of an order which at one time counted its knights -by the hundreds. However, as a remnant of the old prerogatives, -the new Teutonic Order has the right to bestow knighthood on -eminent Catholic men, either lay or clerical, and on great benefactors -of the order. These honorary knights are called <i>familiares</i>. -Before 1952 the order had made use of this privilege in only three -cases.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_28">28</div> -<h2><span class="small">THE ECCLESIASTICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD</span> -<br /><span class="sc">Part III</span></h2> -<h3 id="c5">THE IBERIAN MILITARY ORDERS</h3> -<p>In Spain and Portugal the fight against the Moors who since -the eighth century had conquered large sections of the Iberian -peninsula prompted the founding of a considerable number of -military religious orders. The chief ones in Spain were the Order -of Calatrava (founded in 1158 and approved by Pope Alexander -III in 1164) which absorbed the smaller orders of Montjoie -(1180) and Montfrac (1198), the Order of Alcantara (1156), -the Order of Santiago (1175) and the Order of Our Lady of -Monteza (1319). Those in Portugal were the Order of Saint -Benedict of Avis, previously known as the Order of the Knights -of Evora (1146), the short-lived Ala Order, so called after the -wing of Archangel Michael, and the Order of Christ (1318).<a class="fn" id="fr_22" href="#fn_22">[22]</a></p> -<p>They were all founded in the second half of the twelfth century, -except the Order of Christ and that of Monteza which originated -more than a century later. The origin of several of these institutions -is identified with the problem of finding a suitable garrison -for frontier fortresses. When a king had captured a Moorish -stronghold, he would evidently look around for some reliable soldiers -to whom he could entrust his conquest. For instance, after -the Castilian kings Alphonso III and Sancho III had conquered -the Moorish fortress Calatrava in the Mancha, they entrusted the -defense of this citadel to the Cistercian Abbot Raymond of Fiteiro, -and soon numerous knights and soldiers rallied around the abbot -for the protection of this bastion against the Moors. Thus the -Order of Calatrava came into existence. The members took the -rule and the habit of Citeaux and elected a grand master in 1164. -A few years later the order severed connections with the Cistercians -and was approved by several Popes as an autonomous regular -military order. As the Moors were gradually forced back toward -the south, the order changed headquarters several times; one -of its residences was Montsalvat which acquired some fame in -<span class="pb" id="Page_29">29</span> -literature as the locale of many romances of chivalry. The Orders -of Avis and Alcantara were established for the same purpose as -that of Calatrava, namely the defense of the boundaries between -Spain and Moorish territory.</p> -<p>The origin of the Knights of Santiago or Saint James of -Compostella was slightly different. Compostella prided itself on -possessing the body of Saint James the Apostle, who, according -to tradition, stayed for a while in Spain to preach the gospel and -consecrated the first Spanish bishops. After the Apostle had been -martyred in Jerusalem, his body was transferred to Compostella, -which for that reason ranked in the Middle Ages as one of the -most venerable shrines of Christendom, with an importance surpassed -only by Rome and Jerusalem. However, the numerous -pilgrims from all countries in Europe visiting the Apostle’s tomb -in this far corner of Galicia were often waylaid and robbed by -brigands and Moors. For that reason a number of Spanish knights -banded together to protect the pilgrims on the road to Compostella, -and in 1175 this group of pious soldiers was canonically approved -as a religious military order. The Knights of Santiago erected -hospices and strongholds on the Spanish side of the Pyrenees as -did the Knights of St. John on the French side. A fortified -church erected by the Hospitallers at this time and still in a stage -of good repair may be seen at Luz-St. Sauveur near Lourdes.</p> -<p>The origin of the Order of Christ and that of Monteza were -quite different from that of the other Iberian military orders, as -we shall see when we come to speak of the Pontifical Orders of -Knighthood.</p> -<p>Although each of the Iberian military orders had, of course, its -own, often fascinating, history, the general development of these -institutions followed very much the same pattern. The knights -lived in their convents and castles ruled by their grand masters; -they showed great prowess in the wars against the Moorish invaders, -and simultaneously they rose to power and political influence, -accumulating immense wealth from the bounty of grateful kings -and the pious faithful. Sometimes one order of knighthood confronted -another on the field of battle, as happened when they -took opposite sides in civil wars that so frequently occurred on -the peninsula. This continued until most of the peninsula was -under one rule through the marriage of Ferdinand of Aragon -<span class="pb" id="Page_30">30</span> -and Isabella of Castile. The reign of these two sovereigns, <i>los -Reyes Catolicos</i>, marked the end of the Moorish occupation, but -at the same time accounts for the decline of the religious military -orders. After the surrender of Granada in 1492—the year in which -Columbus first sailed westward from Palos—the Moors were -definitely driven off the Iberian Peninsula, but by the same token -the military orders lost their very <i>raison d’être</i>. The fact that the -Portuguese Orders of Christ and of Avis kept the military spirit -alive for some time by sending out expeditions to Africa to fight -the Mohammedans in their own stronghold altered but little the -inevitable course of events. The religious military orders on the -Iberian Peninsula were doomed to die a slow death.</p> -<p>Ferdinand the Catholic administered the first blow in 1482 by -assuming the grand mastership of all the Spanish military orders, -with the exception of the Order of Monteza. Although this seizure -was, canonically speaking, an infraction of the rights of the Church, -the act was legalized some decades later, when the Pope put -the military orders permanently under the Spanish crown. The -Portuguese orders followed suit in 1551, when the mastership was -vested in the Crown of Portugal. The only remaining independent -order was that of Monteza which, however, shared the same -fate in 1587. Thus all the military orders of the Iberian Peninsula -lost their independence in the sixteenth century.</p> -<p>During the same century the religious nature of the orders -greatly changed. True, the knights still took the monastic vows, -but these vows came to have a rather indulgent interpretation. -The vow of obedience meant, of course, obedience to the Crown. -The vow of poverty was in most instances altered into a vow to -lead an upright life (<i>conversio morum</i>). And the vow of chastity -was changed into that of matrimonial chastity (<i>castitas -conjugalis</i>). The knights were allowed to marry once, but the -vow implied that if they committed a sin of impurity, they sinned -not only against marriage but also against their vow. In the Order -of Alcantara the vow of chastity was replaced by a vow to defend -the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin.<a class="fn" id="fr_23" href="#fn_23">[23]</a></p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_31">31</div> -<p>Although the kings had taken over the title, office and privileges -of grand master, the orders still enjoyed a sort of semi-autonomy, -inasmuch as their possessions still belonged theoretically to the -orders as such. But the ideas of the French Revolution in Portugal -and the Napoleonic occupation of Spain delivered the final blow -to the rapidly expiring military orders. They were completely -secularized, and their properties confiscated. The Restoration -almost succeeded in degrading the once proud knights of Calatrava, -Santiago, Alcantara and Monteza to the role of “carpet -knights” and court ornaments. However, not quite. There is still -some difference between the military orders and the mere orders -of merit of the Spanish State as, for instance, that of the Order of -Isabel la Catolica. The organization of the Spanish military -orders still maintains a number of elements that bestow on them -a distinctly ecclesiastical flavor. (While describing the present -status of the Iberian military orders we have limited ourselves -to the Spanish; the Portuguese Order of Avis was suppressed -by King Pedro in 1834 and the present condition of the Order -of Christ will be spoken of later).</p> -<p>In the first place, the candidates eligible to these orders must -be Catholic. An additional prerequisite, reminiscent of the original -objective of the orders, is that candidates must evidence that -neither Moors nor Jews are found among their forebears. The -reception of the “habit” is accompanied by a rather elaborate -Church ceremonial according to the ritual of each particular order. -This investiture constitutes the candidates novices of the order. -Most of them remain novices throughout their life, but a number -of them take the religious vows—in the sense explained above -(<i>votum castitatis conjugalis</i>). These professed knights have also -the obligation of reciting some prayers daily, originally the equivalent -of the Divine Office. Before the pontificate of Pius XI the -professed knights were bound daily to say one hundred Paters, -Aves and Glorias. Since then, however, this obligation has been -reduced to one Pater, Ave and Gloria.</p> -<p>Another important link with the Church is the “Priory of the -Military Orders” which actually is a bishopric comprising more -than half a million Catholics. The establishment of the priory was -intended to compensate somewhat for the loss of property which -the Military Orders had suffered in consequence of the so-called -<i>desamortización</i> laws of the prime minister, Juan Alvarez de -<span class="pb" id="Page_32">32</span> -Mendizabal. By a decree of Oct. 11, 1835, the latter suppressed -most religious orders in Spain and confiscated their properties. -These laws also affected the military orders, which had jurisdiction -over a large number of abbeys, parishes, monasteries and -churches throughout Spain and enjoyed the revenues of these -properties. This infringement upon the rights of the Church was -rectified by a substitute compromise in the Concordat of 1851. -The Spanish province of Ciudad Real (19,741 square kilometers) -is set apart as a “coto redondo,” literally a rounded-off territory, -known as the Priory of the Military Orders. This priory is a -“prelatura nullius,” immediately dependent on the Holy See. The -prior is titular bishop of Dora, his official title being “Obispo -Prior de los Ordenes Militares.” This dignitary is appointed -prior by the Spanish King in his capacity of grand master, but -the papal authority is required to elevate the appointee to the -episcopal dignity. The former jurisdictional rights of the military -orders are, so to say, grouped together in this diocese and vested -in the prior. The emoluments of the ecclesiastical properties in the -priory go to the diocese and the salaries of the bishop, canons, -pastors and other parish priests are paid by the Spanish government, -in the name of the grand master. The priests of the -diocese of Ciudad Real must belong to one of the four military -orders—an arrangement which reinstates the old division of the -members of the orders into the classes of knights and priests.</p> -<p>Recently, on Aug. 27, 1953, a new concordat was concluded -between the Holy See and Spain, and thus the status of the Priory -of Ciudad Real was reconfirmed.<a class="fn" id="fr_24" href="#fn_24">[24]</a> Article VIII of the concordat -reads as follows: “Continuerà a sussistere a Ciudad Real il Priorato -<i>Nullius</i> degli Ordini Militari.”</p> -<p>Since the office of Grand Master of the Military Orders, after -the abdication of the king in 1931, is in abeyance, the bishop-prior -is the acting head of the orders, inasmuch as he is the chairman -of a commission whose task it is to prepare a project of law -designed to put the orders on a more solid juridical basis. The -military orders were suppressed by the Red Government of 1931-1936, -but were re-established by the Franco regime. The task of -this commission is to define with greater precision the rights and -privileges of the Spanish military orders.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_33">33</div> -<h3 id="c6">THE EQUESTRIAN ORDER OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE OF JERUSALEM</h3> -<p>The origin of this order of knighthood (<i>Ordo Equestris Sancti -Sepulchri Hierosolymitani</i>) is the subject of a great deal of controversy. -There is no doubt that the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre -originated in the Holy Land and existed at the time of the Crusades -or possibly even earlier. There is no doubt either that for many -years an order of knighthood was in existence and called the -Order of the Holy Sepulchre. For some time it was listed as a -pontifical order of knighthood, apparently because, off and on, -the popes have been its grand masters, but the <i>Annuario pontificio</i> -has ceased to list it as such since 1931, when Pope Pius XI -transferred the grand mastership to the Patriarch of Jerusalem. -However, the order as it presently exists is an ecclesiastical order -of knighthood; article 44 of its statutes, published in 1949, clearly -states that it “is strictly religious, both in character and objective.” -The problem is not only at what time it originated as an order, -but also what its status was; more particularly whether it ever -achieved the status of a religious military order, as did the -Templars or the Hospitallers.</p> -<p>Some writers believe that the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre -formed an order which was founded even before the Crusades. -In fact, they are of the opinion that this order was the cradle from -which all other religious military orders in the Holy Land developed. -This is the position found amongst older authors and at -present strenuously defended in the monumental work of Guido -A. Quarti.<a class="fn" id="fr_25" href="#fn_25">[25]</a></p> -<p>According to this author the prototype of the Knights of the -Holy Sepulchre is to be found in the “rabdophoroi,” macebearers, -who are said to have been attached to the church of the Holy -Sepulchre from ancient times to keep order during the ceremonies. -These ushers were, according to Quarti, “i primitivi cavalieri” -of the Holy Sepulchre. They are supposed to have formed a fraternity -which was instituted when Saint Helena, in the beginning -of the fourth century, built the basilica of the Sepulchre. Other -authors go even farther back and point out that in Jerusalem a -confraternity of hermits existed to whom Pope Anaclet in 81 -is said to have assigned the custody of Christ’s tomb. Some writers -<span class="pb" id="Page_34">34</span> -attribute the foundation of this legendary society to the Apostle -St. James, first bishop of Jerusalem.<a class="fn" id="fr_26" href="#fn_26">[26]</a></p> -<p>This confraternity, then, is taken to be the forerunner of the -Order of the Holy Sepulchre. When in 451 the bishopric of -Jerusalem was made a patriarchate, the confraternity of custodians -is believed to have been transformed into a chapter of canons. -Whatever the vicissitudes of this chapter may have been throughout -the succeeding centuries, we arrive at some more solid historical -data at the time of the first Crusade. After Godfrey de Bouillon -had captured the Holy City in 1099, a chapter of canons was -instituted in the basilica of the Sepulchre of our Redeemer. Now, -according to Quarti, this chapter was a religious military order, -the oldest of all such institutions.</p> -<p>This opinion is criticized by many authors, even though they -admit that the first knights of the Holy Sepulchre appeared during -the reign of Godfrey. They concede that at the time of the Crusades -there was a chapter of canons attached to the church of the Holy -Sepulchre in Jerusalem. But they find no proof that this chapter -formed a religious order, let alone a military order. The most -that can be said is that it acted in some respects like the orders of -St. John or the Temple, inasmuch as it received ample donations -in the form of manors, farms, fishing rights and the like, not only -in Palestine, but also in many parts of Europe. And like the -military orders, the chapter of the Holy Sepulchre established -priories in many lands to administer the estates it had received.</p> -<p>The most famous of these donations was the bequest made by -King Alfonso of Aragon, who willed in 1134 that his kingdom -be equally divided among the Templars, the Hospitallers, and the -Canons of the Holy Sepulchre. The three organizations wisely -ceded their rights to Ramon Berenguer IV, Count of Barcelona. -But the event had an intriguing juridical angle, because it made -it possible for the “Order” of the Holy Sepulchre to claim at a -later date the title of “sovereign order.” For—so it was argued—the -chapter of the Holy Sepulchre was by right the partial sovereign -of the kingdom of Aragon until the disputes concerning -<span class="pb" id="Page_35">35</span> -this legacy were settled; and by ceding its rights to the count, -the chapter had acted as a sovereign power.</p> -<p>On the other hand it is admitted that the Crusades gave rise -to the existence of knights who, being knighted at the Holy -Sepulchre, were called after it. During the Crusades, before or -after battle, hundreds of soldiers were dubbed knights, and it was -only natural that these soldiers who came to fight in Palestine -for Christ’s sake were eager to receive the knighthood in the -Church of the Holy Sepulchre, right at the tomb where the body -of Christ rested for three days. This may have been the case -during the first Crusade when Godfrey de Bouillon assumed the -title of Defender of the Holy Sepulchre; in fact, legend has it -that Godfrey created twenty knights of the Holy Sepulchre. It is -also possible that the soldiers knighted at the tomb of the Saviour -assumed a special distinction which at first may have consisted of -the patriarchical cross with double bar and after the fall of Acre -in 1291 assumed the form of the five-fold cross which still is the -symbol of the Knights of the Sepulchre. Wearing the same badge, -some knights may have banded together in groups and fought -side by side on the principle of brotherhood in arms.</p> -<p>However, it is extremely doubtful that these knights formed -an order, like that of the Order of Saint John, for the records -make no mention of monastic vows, rule, community life, community -of goods, or regular organization. It is equally doubtful -that the knights formed a secular brotherhood in arms, but granted -that they did, the fraternity had no permanent organization.</p> -<p>Like most other knights, when these knights of the Holy -Sepulchre had completed their service in the Holy Land they went -back home to Europe. And like all other knights—with the exception -only of those of Saint John—after the fall of Acre they left -the Orient for good. Back in Europe some knights of the Holy -Sepulchre may have retired into monasteries, as many a battle-weary -knight did, perhaps to fulfill a vow. Small groups of knights -belonging to the same district may have founded convents. As -a matter of fact, mention is made of several religious communities -of the Holy Sepulchre in Spain, Belgium, France, Germany, -Poland and elsewhere. But it is here that the critics insist that -such communities were not formed by knights, like those of the -Templars and the Knights of Saint John, but by canons and even -<span class="pb" id="Page_36">36</span> -by canonesses. These communities were probably independent of -one another, like Benedictine abbeys, but it could be expected -that they would be designated as belonging to the Order of the -Holy Sepulchre. It would follow also that, conformable to the -customs of the time and under the influence of the Knights of the -Holy Sepulchre who naturally would take an interest in those -convents, the epithet “military” was added to the term “order.” -Such seems precisely to have happened, for one of the first, or -at least one of the most famous of these institutions, established -at Saragosa in 1276 and occupied by women, came to bear the -sonorous title: “Real Monastero de Canonesas Comendadores de -la Orden Militar del Santo Sepulcro”—The Royal Monastery of -the Canonesses-Commanders of the Military Order of the Holy -Sepulchre.</p> -<p>At the end of the fifteenth and the beginning of the sixteenth -centuries the monasteries and convents of the Holy Sepulchre -seemed to have passed through a crisis. Pope Innocent VIII issued -the bull <i>Cum sollerti meditatione</i> on March 28, 1489, whereby all -the members of the order and its possessions were incorporated -in the Order of Saint John, and the latter’s grand master still -bears the title of the Master of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre. -But many of those concerned objected; they stayed the execution -of the decree until the pope died, and remonstrated with his -successor, Alexander VI. Alexander, in a bull of Aug. 13, 1496, -declared himself grand master of the order, but by then it was -an empty title, because the order soon dissolved into several groups. -Emperor Maximilian obtained from Alexander in 1497 the independence -of the houses of the Holy Sepulchre and made the prior -of Miechow the master general; the king of Spain was the -recipient of the same favor from Leo X in 1512; and the Duke -of Nevers became the head of the French group. In this way the -Order of the Holy Sepulchre came to be divided into three -national branches, each closely connected with the ruling dynasty.</p> -<p>Besides, there were still the individual knights of the Holy -Sepulchre who did not form a homogeneous group, but who more -than anyone else could lay claim to that title, inasmuch as they -had been knighted at the tomb of Christ in Jerusalem. The old -custom may have been interrupted for some time after the -Christians evacuated the Holy Land, but was restored by the -<span class="pb" id="Page_37">37</span> -Franciscans to whom was committed the care of the Holy Land. -They had arrived in Palestine around 1230; after the Christian -armies left they managed as best they could despite opposition and -persecution, and Pope Clement VI in 1342 made them the official -custodians of the Holy Land. In that capacity they formed in a -certain way the continuation of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. -And like the kings of Jerusalem, the superior of the Franciscans -who bore the title of “Custos” continued the old tradition of -bestowing the knighthood in the church of the Holy Sepulchre. -But this time the people who received the honor were not soldiers -but rather pilgrims of noble birth—and at times of not so noble -birth—who had made substantial donations to the holy places. -Pope Leo X confirmed the right of the superior of the Franciscans -to continue this practice. About the same time one more grand -master of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre entered upon the -stage, inasmuch as the custos assumed the title, and various popes -acknowledged its use. However, the custos who was to bestow -the honor ran into difficulties, historical as well as canonical. In -the first place, there was the age-old tradition according to which -a knight could be created only by a knight. Besides, the dubbing -to knighthood involved the use of a sword, but the custos being -a priest was forbidden by canon law to carry a sword. The usual -procedure, therefore, was that the priest would give the various -blessings, and one or another knight, often enough at hand among -the crowd of pilgrims, would carry out the dubbing with the -sword. Thus history records that a certain German count, who -in Jerusalem joined the Third Order of St. Francis and was -hence known as Brother John of Prussia, conducted the ceremonies -of conferring knighthood from 1478 to 1498. But in case -no such knightly assistance was available there was little else -left for the priest to do but carry out the sword ceremonial -himself. And here the office of grand master, being vested in the -custos, provided a convenient excuse to circumvent the canonical -irregularity involved in that act.</p> -<p>The Knights of the Holy Sepulchre enjoyed many privileges, -some of which were of a rather peculiar character. They had -precedence over the members of all orders of knighthood, except -those of the Golden Fleece; they could create notaries public, -legitimize bastards, and change a name given in baptism; they -were empowered to pardon prisoners whom they happened to -<span class="pb" id="Page_38">38</span> -meet while the prisoners were on their way to the scaffold; they -were allowed to possess goods belonging to the Church, even -though they were laymen. In view of such privileges it is not -surprising that many aspired to the honor of becoming Knights -of the Holy Sepulchre. The good Franciscan friars in Jerusalem, -too, seem to have made a rather generous use of their power -to confer knighthood.</p> -<p>The history of the order in the last century was not less involved -than in the preceding centuries, especially with regard to the -grand mastership which shifted time and again. When in 1847 -Pope Pius IX re-established the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, -he transferred the office of grand master from the custos of the -Franciscans to the patriarch who from now on possessed the -exclusive right of conferring the knighthood. In 1868 the same -pope approved new statutes whereby for the first time membership -was divided into three classes: knights grand cross, commanders, -plain knights, and stipulated the admission fee according to rank. -These contributions were used to defray the expenses of the seminary -and the outlying missions of the patriarchate. Because this -arrangement involved a financial loss for the basilica of the Holy -Sepulchre which up to this time had received the stipends connected -with the enrollment of the knights, Pope Leo XIII founded -a cross of honor which was not intended to confer knighthood -but was rather a mark of distinction bestowed on the pilgrim -who visited Jerusalem. This cross extended to three classes: gold, -silver and bronze, and the revenues derived from it went to the -treasury of the basilica. In 1888, the same pope also approved -the establishment of a female branch of the order, known as the -“Dames of the Holy Sepulchre.”</p> -<p>Pope St. Pius X in a letter of May 3, 1907<a class="fn" id="fr_27" href="#fn_27">[27]</a> took upon himself -the grand mastership, but delegated the patriarch as his lieutenant -who, in the name of the Holy Father, could appoint the knights. -He was also given the right to erect chapters in various countries. -St. Pius X also unified the use of uniforms and decorations. He -gave the knights the right to wear a mantle of white wool with -the red five-fold cross attached on the left-hand side. In view of -the old claim that the order was a military institution, the pope -gave the knights permission to wear the cross of the order -<span class="pb" id="Page_39">39</span> -suspended from a military trophy. In the case of the ladies, the -emblem was to be worn hanging from a golden loop.</p> -<p>The office of grand master continued to be vested in the Holy -See until 1928, when Pius XI again appointed the patriarch of -Jerusalem as “rector et administrator.”</p> -<p>A complete reorganization of the order was made by Pope Pius -XII. By apostolic letter of July 16, 1940, he appointed a cardinal -as the “Patronus seu Protector” of the order. In a <i>Motu proprio</i> -of Aug. 15, 1945, he assigned the Church and the monastery of -St. Onophrius in Rome as the Order’s official center. Finally, by -Apostolic Letter <i>Quam Romani Pontifices</i> of Sept. 14, 1949, the -pope promulgated complete new statutes for the Order.<a class="fn" id="fr_28" href="#fn_28">[28]</a> If, up -to that date, more and more the order had assumed the character -of an order of merit, this new constitution gives it explicitly a -definite purpose. The objective is “to revive in modern form the -spirit and ideal of the Crusades, with the weapons of the faith, -the apostolate, and christian charity.” More specifically the purpose -consists in “the preservation and the propagation of the faith -in Palestine, assistance to and development of the missions of -the Latin patriarchate of Jerusalem, providing for its charitable, -cultural and social undertakings and the defense of the rights of the -Catholic church in the Holy Land, the cradle of the order.”</p> -<p>The order, as a “juridical person,” is placed under the protection -of the Supreme Pontiff who appoints a cardinal as the grand -master. The order consists of five classes. The first—and very -exclusive—class consists of the “Knights of the Collar,” numbering -no more than twelve persons. In addition this same degree -belongs by right to the grand master, the cardinal secretary of -his Holiness, the cardinal secretary of the Sacred Congregation -of the Oriental church and the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem. -Besides this special class there are four degrees, both for knights -and ladies: grand cross, commanders with plaque (grand officers), -commanders and knights.</p> -<p>The distinctive emblem, in its more or less elaborate forms -according to the various ranks, is the five-double cross which in -the present document is constantly designated as the cross of -Godfrey of Bouillon.<a class="fn" id="fr_29" href="#fn_29">[29]</a></p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_40">40</div> -<p>Besides conferring knighthood, the Order of the Holy Sepulchre -grants three honorary decorations as marks of distinction: the -“Palm of the order,” “the Cross of Merit” which can also be -bestowed on non-Catholics, and the “Pilgrim’s Shell” which is -given to those knights and dames of the order who visit the Holy -Land.</p> -<p>The creation of knights and dames of the order is reserved to -the cardinal grand master who transmits the diploma to the -secretariate of state of His Holiness for the visa and the seal. The -patriarch of Jerusalem, who is the grand prior of the order, has -also the right of nomination, but this right is limited to the canons -of the basilica of the Holy Sepulchre and persons residing in the -territory of the patriarchate. Moreover, the patriarch must notify -the grand master of these nominations and the latter then grants -the diploma.</p> -<p>The order is divided into several chapters; in the United States -there are two lieutenancies.</p> -<p>The religious character of the knightly order of the Holy Sepulchre -comes to the fore not only in the description of its objective -and the required qualifications of its members, but also in the -ceremonial investiture of the newly elected knights which was -approved by the Congregation of Sacred Rites, Aug. 24, 1945. -This ceremony combines a profession of faith with the ancient ritual -used for the dubbing of knighthood. The candidates do not take -monastic vows but promise to live an upright Christian life in -accordance with the commandments of God and the precepts of the -Church, in absolute fealty to the Supreme Pontiff, as true soldiers -of Christ.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_41">41</div> -<h2><span class="small">THE ECCLESIASTICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD</span> -<br /><span class="sc">Part IV</span></h2> -<h3 id="c7">PONTIFICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD</h3> -<p>The Pontifical Orders of Knighthood, in contrast with the other -ecclesiastical orders heretofore mentioned, are directly dependent -on the Pope and membership in them is bestowed by the Holy See. -They are, in decreasing order of rank, the Order of Christ, the -Order of the Golden Spur, the Order of Pius, the Order of Saint -Gregory the Great, and the Order of Saint Sylvester, Pope.</p> -<p>That of the Order of Christ can with certainty trace its origin -back to the age of chivalry; and in all probability that of the Golden -Spur. The last three, in their present status, are of more recent -date, the Order of Pius and of St. Gregory being founded in the -last century, whereas the present order of St. Sylvester was established -in the beginning of this century.</p> -<p>All of them are secular orders of merit, even though the ritual -of investiture followed by the Order of Christ contains some elements -that are reminiscent of the ancient religious order from -which it descends.</p> -<p>All matters concerning the bestowal, registration, legislation -and description of emblems, badges and uniforms of the pontifical -orders are handled by the chancery of the orders of knighthood -which functions under the “Secretaria a Brevibus Apostolicis -Literis,” a section of the Papal Secretariate of State.</p> -<p>The very exclusive Orders of Christ and of the Golden Spur -have only one degree, that of knights. The other three, at present, -consist of three degrees or classes of which the second class is -subdivided: (1) Grand Cross Knights; (2) Commanders with -plaque and Commanders; (3) Knights. The first wear the cross -of the respective order hanging from the grand cordon, that is to -say a large ribbon in the colors of the respective orders passing -from the right shoulder over the breast to the left side of -the body. Besides, the members of this class are entitled to -the <i>plaque</i>, an ornamental brooch in the form of a radiating -star surrounding the emblem of the order to be worn on the -<span class="pb" id="Page_42">42</span> -chest. The knights commanders wear the cross of the order on -a ribbon around the neck; the first degree commanders are entitled -to a <i>plaque</i> of minor dimensions; those of the second degree do -not enjoy this privilege. The class of the knights wear the cross -on a small ribbon pinned on the left chest of the uniform or suit.</p> -<p>To the question why the Papacy bestows these decorations, the -answer is given by a Pope who certainly disapproved of any -vanity or show but who nevertheless recognized the value of such -decorations, namely St. Pius X. In the preamble to the Brief -<i>Multum ad excitandos</i> (Feb. 7, 1905)<a class="fn" id="fr_30" href="#fn_30">[30]</a> in which he reorganized the -Orders of Christ, of the Golden Spur and of St. Sylvester, the -holy pontiff makes this statement: “Multum ad excitandos ad -egregia facinora hominum animos, praemia virtuti reddita valent, -quae dum ornant egregios bene de re sacra vel publica meritos -viros, ceteros exemplo rapiunt ad idem laudis honorisque spatium -decurrendum.” And his predecessor, Pius IX, in the Brief <i>Romanis -Pontificibus</i> (June 17, 1847),<a class="fn" id="fr_31" href="#fn_31">[31]</a> declared that orders of knighthood -“are not instituted to encourage vanity and ambition, but -solely to reward virtue and outstanding merits.”<a class="fn" id="fr_32" href="#fn_32">[32]</a></p> -<h3 id="c8">THE SUPREME ORDER OF CHRIST -<br />MILITIA DOMINI NOSTRI JESU CHRISTI</h3> -<p>Saint Pius X in his Brief <i>Multum ad excitandos</i>, mentioned -above, decreed that the Supreme Order of Christ is to be considered -the highest ranking of all Pontifical Orders. It looks almost -like an ironical twist of history when we recall that the highest -decoration granted by the Pope at the present day proves to -derive from a religious order which one of the Pope’s predecessors -suppressed in the fourteenth century.</p> -<p>The Order of Christ was founded in the year 1318, but since -it is a continuation—under a different name—of the Order of -the Templars, it goes as far back as 1119. In all probability this -makes the Order of Christ the oldest order of knighthood in the -<span class="pb" id="Page_43">43</span> -world. We say, in all probability, for there is quite a controversy -about the prior antiquity of the Order of the Temple or that of the -Hospital. The most likely answer seems to be that the Order of -the Hospital antedates the former by a few years, inasmuch as the -Hospitallers were organized in the year 1112. However, at first -they were an order of charity and only gradually did they develop -into a military order during the reign of the second master, -Raymond du Puy (1120-60), whereas the Templars were organized -from the outset as a military order. For that reason the -Temple can be said to be the prototype of all orders of knighthood.</p> -<p>Although the leaders of the first Crusade had defeated the -infidels in the Holy Land and captured Jerusalem, July 15, 1099, -still many bands of Saracens were left which held several mountain -strongholds and were roving around the countryside, harassing -the Christian pilgrims on their way to the holy places. In view of -this state of affairs, Hugh de Payns, a knight from Champagne, -in 1119, twenty years after the capture of Jerusalem, gathered -around him in that city seven companions and formed with these -knights a religious community. In contrast with the ordinary -religious groups, this community had a special character, for the -knights not only took the usual vows of obedience, poverty and -chastity, but they added a fourth vow of a decidedly military -nature. In virtue of this vow the knights became a kind of transport -troops, providing the Christian pilgrims with police escort. -Later, the vow assumed a more general character, namely that of -defending the Holy Land. The knights called themselves <i>Milites -Christi</i>, soldiers of Christ, but because their first Convent was a -part of the palace of the king of Jerusalem, which was supposed -to have been built close by the place where once Solomon’s temple -stood, they became traditionally known as the Knights of the -Temple, or the Templars.</p> -<p>In the first few years of their existence, they followed the -Augustinian rule, but later adopted a rule written for them by St. -Bernard of Clairvaux, the great promoter of the second crusade -and admirer of the Templar’s ideal. This rule was based on the -rule of the Cistercians but adapted to the way of life of the -knights. Because of this connection with St. Bernard’s order, -the knights wore over their armature a white mantle to which -Pope Eugenius III added a red cross. The members of the Temple -<span class="pb" id="Page_44">44</span> -were divided into three classes: the knights, the sergeants-at-arms -and priests who acted as chaplains for the order.</p> -<p>In the space allotted it is not possible to discuss in detail the -development, the activities and the decline of the Templars. They -proved themselves real heroes in the battles against the enemies -of the Cross, although at times they were imprudent and reckless, -and needlessly sacrificed their men. Occasionally, they were in arms -against their Christian brothers, especially the Hospitallers of -St. John. They had the reputation of being proud, even to the -point of arrogance. Great wealth they accumulated, but—unlike -the Hospitallers—they were little engaged in works of charity -and thus left themselves open to charges of selfishness and greed -as launched against them by their enemies.</p> -<p>After the fall of Acre (1291) the Templars gave up the fight -against the Crescent. The Knights of St. John kept on fighting at -sea while the “Soldiers of Christ” (Knights Templar) retired to -Western Europe, and became bankers as well as financial administrators -of kings and merchants.</p> -<p>These financial enterprises—so different from the original objectives -as envisaged by St. Bernard—did not last long. Twenty-one -years after they had left the Orient, the Templars were suppressed -on April 3, 1312, by Pope Clement V who acted under pressure -from the French king Philip the Fair. The merits of the trial, -in which the charges against the Templars were weighed is still -a matter of debate among historians, the majority of whom, however, -believe that these charges were false in general. There is the -curious note that the Pope in his formula of suppression stated -that the act of extinction was not to be taken as a condemnation -of the Templars; also, that Philip the Fair had the last Grand -Master, Jacques de Molay, burned at the stake (March 18, 1314), -before the three cardinals whom the Pope had ordered to investigate -his case had a chance to bring the trial to an end. It is -true, nonetheless, that the Order of the Templars outlived its usefulness -for the Church—except in Portugal and Spain.<a class="fn" id="fr_33" href="#fn_33">[33]</a></p> -<p>That exception was to have far-flung consequences. The Templars -in Portugal and Spain had not become mere bankers, but still -lived up to the purpose for which they were founded, namely -<span class="pb" id="Page_45">45</span> -the fight against the infidel. Hence, King Denis I of Portugal—husband -of St. Elizabeth—and James II of Aragon were quite -satisfied with the services of the Templars in their countries and -refused to believe the charges of idolatry and heresy brought -against them. They therefore failed to obey the directives of the -papal decree of suppression. Of course, they could not possibly -allow the Templars to continue under their old name, for such -a flagrant act of disobedience might well have merited excommunication. -In their countries, they allowed the Templars to -reorganize as a new military order of knighthood. Thus the Order -of Christ came into existence in Portugal (1318) and the Order -of Our Lady of Monteza in Spain; the latter was used for the -defense of the coastal areas against the Saracens.<a class="fn" id="fr_34" href="#fn_34">[34]</a></p> -<p>One year after King Denis had established the Order of Christ -and had assigned them the defense of Algarvia, a portion of his -kingdom then threatened by the Moors, the Pope gave his blessing -to the “new” institution. John XXII, successor of Clement V, in -the Constitution <i>Ad ea, e quibus</i> of March 14, 1319<a class="fn" id="fr_35" href="#fn_35">[35]</a> gave the -approbation, stipulating that the Knights of Christ should assume -the rule of the Cistercians—as the Templars had done—but, in -addition, should follow some of the customs then in vogue in -the Order of Calatrava. Besides, the Pope gave them all the -properties of “the erstwhile Order of the Temple” (<i>Ordo quondam -Templi</i>).</p> -<p>The vicissitudes of the Order of Christ in Portugal do not -concern us here. Suffice it to say that they followed the usual -pattern. The knights assisted the kings in their fight against the -Moors, had their inevitable quarrels about jurisdictions and -possessions and lost their religious character before the close of -the 15th century. In 1499 Alexander VI freed them from their -solemn vows and allowed them to marry. Eventually, the Order -of Christ, like the other military orders in Portugal, became an -order of merit. When the Republic was proclaimed in 1910, the -order was abolished, but was re-established in 1918, with the -President of the Republic assuming the office of grand master.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_46">46</div> -<p>Of more importance is that the Order of Christ entered into -an intimate relationship with the papacy. When John XXII -approved the Order of Christ, he did so with the proviso that the -Holy See had the right to appoint knights of that order. This -regulation has been interpreted in a two-fold way. Some historians -hold that there was originally only one order of which the Pope -was the real head and that the kings of Portugal were his hereditary -lieutenants in that kingdom. Others, however, believe that -ever since 1319 there were two distinct Orders of Christ, one -Portuguese and one Pontifical. The fact is that the Popes, since -the time of John XXII, have conferred the knighthood of Christ. -Besides, the Popes introduced a new element in the concept of -knighthood. Instead of creating the knights by the usual ceremony -of dubbing, the Pope appointed them by “letters patent,” that is to -say by issuing a decree whereby he conferred the rights and -privileges of the knighthood upon those he designated. The purpose -of the papal Order of Christ was the defense of the interests -of the Holy See. It was throughout most of its history quite -exclusive.</p> -<p>Pope St. Pius X in the Brief <i>Multum ad excitandos</i> decreed -not only that the Order of Christ is the highest Pontifical order -of knighthood but also specified with greater precision its insignia -and the uniform of the members. The former consists in a red -Latin cross surrounding a white cross and surmounted by a -crown, pending from a double golden chain, an ornamental brooch, -called the “plaque” or star and a sword. The uniform consists of -a red tunic, white trousers and a white mantle.</p> -<p>The Pontifical Order of Christ consists of one class only: membership -is reserved mostly to sovereigns and heads of state. In -the year 1954 there were, according to the <i>Annuario Pontificio</i>, -only five Knights of the Order of Christ in the world.</p> -<p>Although the Pontifical Order of Christ is an order of merit, -its ancient religious origin is reflected in the fact that its members -must be Catholic, and also in its ritual of investiture. After receiving -the apostolic Brief of nomination (letters patent), the new -knight presents himself with two witnesses before a cardinal of -his choice or, if that is not possible, before the bishop of his -diocese to whom he shows the Brief. He promises obedience to -His Holiness the Pope and recites the profession of faith, whereupon -<span class="pb" id="Page_47">47</span> -the presiding dignitary invests him with the collar of the -order.</p> -<h3 id="c9">ORDER OF THE GOLDEN SPUR -<br />MILITIA AURATA</h3> -<p>In the Middle Ages, the spur was the symbol of knighthood, -and in that sense all knights could be said to belong to the “Order -of the Spur.” When the Order of the Golden Spur was established -is unknown. Pope St. Pius X in his Brief <i>Multum ad -excitandos</i> maintains that it is among the oldest orders of knighthood -and refers to the tradition which would have Pope St. -Sylvester (314-35) the founder: “Neminem latet Ordinem Militiae -auratae, sive ab aureo calcari, inter vetustissimos jure esse -enumerandum: Constantino enim Magno Imperatore, Silvester -PP. I sanctae memoriae decessor Noster, auctor illius fuisse -dicitur.” Be that as it may, the Pope expresses regret that in the -course of time “the order has lost its ancient splendor and dignity -because of human weaknesses and the vicissitudes of the times.”</p> -<p>In the 16th century, for one thing, the right to confer this -knighthood was no longer reserved to the Holy See. In 1539 -Paul III Farnese (1534-49) granted high dignitaries of the papal -court and the Roman princely families the privilege of conferring -the Golden Spur. From that time on the order was so freely -bestowed that it fell into disrepute.</p> -<p>To make matters worse, one of the Medici Popes, Pius IV -(1559-65), decreed that membership of the Golden Spur entailed -automatically the personal title of Roman Count for the titulary -and hereditary nobility for his descendents. All this depreciated -not only the distinctiveness of the Order of the Golden Spur but -also of the Roman nobility.</p> -<p>Additional confusion was created when the Knights of the -Golden Spur began to wear the coveted eight-pointed white cross -of the Knights of the Order of Jerusalem. Pope Benedict XIV -by a Brief of Sept. 7, 1747, abolished this abuse and ordered that -the badge of the Order of the Golden Spur be an octagonal gilded -cross with a small spur hanging from it.</p> -<p>At long last Pope Gregory XVI took the reformation of the -Golden Spur in hand—a reformation which proved to be quite -radical. In a Brief <i>Cum hominum mentes</i> of Oct. 31, 1841,<a class="fn" id="fr_36" href="#fn_36">[36]</a> the -<span class="pb" id="Page_48">48</span> -Pope practically suppressed the Order of the Golden Spur and -established in its place the Order of St. Sylvester, presumably -the founder of the old order. In remembrance of the latter, the Pope -decreed that the accompanying title of the new order be <i>Militia -Aurata</i>. The Pope reserved the right of conferring this new knighthood -to the Holy See exclusively, revoking all delegated rights -once given by his predecessors and abolished the privilege of conferring -nobility. The membership of the order was reduced to 150 -commanders and 300 knights and confined within the Papal States.</p> -<p>In 1905 another radical change occurred in the history of the -Golden Spur. Pope St. Pius X by the Brief <i>Multum ad excitandos</i> -separated the Order of the Golden Spur from that of St. Sylvester, -making them two distinct orders from that time on.</p> -<p>In recognition of the 50th anniversary of the proclamation of -the dogma of the Immaculate Conception, the restored <i>Militia -Aurata</i> was put under the protection of the Immaculate Mother -of Christ. Moreover, Pius ordered that the gilded cross of the -order should in its centre carry a medal with a crowned monogram -of Mary. This cross hangs from a trophy which in turn is -attached to a red ribbon with white edgings to be worn around the -neck. The knights also wear a plaque in the form of a silver star -on which the same cross and medal are superimposed; their -uniform is a red tunic and black trousers.</p> -<p>Pope Pius emphatically reiterated that membership does not -entail personal nobility and still less hereditary nobility. The order -comprises only one class, namely that of knights. The number of -knights may not exceed 100, “lest the honor be decreased by too -large a number,” as the Brief states. Actually, in 1954, there were -only ten Knights of the Golden Spur in the entire world. This -knighthood is conferred upon men, “qui vel armis, vel scriptis, -vel praeclaris operibus rem catholicam auxerint, et Ecclesiam Dei -virtute tutarint, aut doctrina illustraverint.” Membership is not -limited to Catholics; the sentence just quoted leaves sufficient -room for the candidacy of non-Catholics, inasmuch as they, too, -may help the cause of Catholicism, as in signing a concordat with -the Church or by giving freedom to the Catholic missions. In fact, -four out of the ten existing knights are non-Catholics: one Greek -Orthodox and three Mohammedans, among them the Shah of Iran.<a class="fn" id="fr_37" href="#fn_37">[37]</a></p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_49">49</div> -<h3 id="c10">THE ORDER OF PIUS -<br />ORDO PIANUS</h3> -<p>The Order of Pius is the third in rank of the Pontifical Orders -of Knighthood. It was erected by Pope Pius IX by the Brief -<i>Romanis Pontificibus</i>, and was called after the founder, but -also to honor the memory of Pius IV (1559-65) who in 1559 had -instituted an Ordo Pianus. Since the latter had ceased to exist -in the course of time, the order established by Pius IX could -not be considered a continuation of it. However, the Pope stated -specifically that he wished to “revive the ancient appellation introduced -by his predecessor.”</p> -<p>The order consisted of two degrees: knights of the first and -knights of the second class. At the moment of nomination, they -received title to personal nobility; in the case of the knights of the -first class, the title was transmissible to their sons. The decoration -of the order is an eight-pointed blue star surrounding a -medal with the inscription “Pius IX” and “Virtuti et Merito”; -the reverse bears the date of the foundation of the order, 1847. -The decoration hangs from a blue ribbon with red edgings. The -uniform is blue. The knights of the second degree were to wear -the emblem on the left chest, those of the first degree had the -privilege to wear it hanging from a blue ribbon around the neck. -The latter could also wear a silver emblem similar to the badge -but of larger dimensions on the left chest; only, however, after -obtaining the special and expressed authorization of the Holy See.</p> -<p>Several of the stipulations made by Pius IX were changed -within the next hundred years. One might speak of these changes -as the story of the <i>minutiae</i> of an order of knighthood. In the first -place there was the plaque. Two years after the founding of his -order, Pius IX issued at Gaeta, in exile, the Brief <i>Cum hominum -mentes</i> (June 17, 1849), wherein he ordered that from that date -on all knights of the first class enjoyed the privilege of the emblem, -but that a special permission of the Holy See was needed to wear -a jewelled emblem. Moreover, knights of the first class should no -longer wear the star of the order pendent from a collar around -the neck, but from the grand cordon. This rule made them Knights -of the Grand Cross.</p> -<p>By the Brief <i>In ipso</i> of Nov. 11, 1856, issued from the palace -of the Quirinal, Pope Pius IX extended the number of degrees -<span class="pb" id="Page_50">50</span> -to three: (1) Knights of the Grand Cross, wearing the grand -cordon emblem; (2) Knights of the Second Class or Commanders, -wearing the collar; (3) Knights of the Third Class, wearing the -emblem on a small ribbon on the chest.</p> -<p>Pope Pius X in his Brief <i>Multum ad excitandos</i> reintroduced -the famous emblem and instituted an intermediary degree by -dividing the commanders into two classes: those with the emblem -and those without.</p> -<p>Finally, Pope Pius XII in the Brief <i>Litteris suis</i> issued at St. -Peter’s, Nov. 11, 1939,<a class="fn" id="fr_38" href="#fn_38">[38]</a> abolished the title to nobility of all knights -to be nominated in the future. In giving the reason for this rule, -the Pope reiterated the words of his predecessor, namely that the -order was not instituted to encourage vanity and ambition, but -only to reward personal merit.</p> -<h3 id="c11">ORDER OF ST. GREGORY THE GREAT -<br />ORDO GREGORIANUS</h3> -<p>In the United States probably the best known of all the Pontifical -Orders of Knighthood is the Order of St. Gregory, although it -was originally instituted to honor the citizens of the erstwhile -Papal States. When the energetic general of the Camaldulese -became Pope under the name of Gregory XVI (1830-46), the -Papal States were frequently troubled with political uprisings. In -suppressing these rebellious movements, the Pope was aided not -only by Austrian troops but also by many of his own faithful -subjects.</p> -<p>To honor those who had distinguished themselves in the defense -of the temporal power of the Holy See, Gregory erected an order -of knighthood which he named after the first Pope who bore -his own name, Saint Gregory I (590-604), and who is considered -by several historians as the real founder of the temporal power -of the Popes. However, the Brief <i>Quod summis quibusque</i>, issued -at St. Mary Major (Sept. 1, 1831), whereby Gregory XVI -erected this new pontifical order, does not restrict its membership -explicitly to his own subjects, but extends it to those -persons who have shown “incontrovertible loyalty to the Holy -See,” and to those who have distinguished themselves by their -virtue and piety, by their social position, by the zeal evidenced -<span class="pb" id="Page_51">51</span> -in fulfilling high office, or, in general, by the excellent reputation -in which they are held.</p> -<p>The Pope decreed that the emblem of the order should be an -eight-pointed red cross, having a little white medal in the center -engraved with a picture of Saint Gregory the Great, the reverse -of the medal carrying the motto <i>Pro Deo et Principe</i>. The cross -hangs from a red ribbon with yellow borders, the colors of the -order.</p> -<p>As originally instituted the order consisted of four degrees: -(1) the Knights Grand Cross of the first class, who wore the -cross on the grand cordon, and who were also entitled to wear -a large cross in the form of a jewelled star on the chest; -(2) Knights Grand Cross of the second class, who wore the same -large ribbon but only a small single plaque on the left chest; -(3) Knights Commanders whose cross hung from a ribbon around -the neck; (4) Knights who wore the cross on the left chest.</p> -<p>In the Brief <i>Cum amplissimo honorum</i>, issued at St. Peter’s, -May 30, 1834, Pope Gregory reduced the order to three degrees. -The two degrees of Knights Grand Cross were combined and -the right to wear a jewelled emblem required special permission -from the Holy See. This decree also specified the maximum number -of Knights of St. Gregory for the residents of the Papal -States. The Knights Grand Cross should be no more than 30, -the Commanders no more than 70, the Knights no more than 300. -However, the Pope reserved the right to nominate also persons -residing outside the Pontifical States; the number of these nominees -was unlimited.</p> -<p>There are two classes of Gregorian Knights, a civilian and -military.<a class="fn" id="fr_39" href="#fn_39">[39]</a> The difference is that the former wear the cross hanging -from a green crown of laurel, whereas the latter have the cross -hanging from a trophy. It is interesting to note that neither of -the two documents issued by Gregory XVI says a word about a -special uniform for the Knights of St. Gregory. The green uniform -was later prescribed by Pope Pius IX.</p> -<h3 id="c12">THE ORDER OF SAINT SYLVESTER, POPE</h3> -<p>This order—as we saw previously—was instituted by Pope -Gregory XVI in 1841 to replace the Order of the Golden Spur, -<span class="pb" id="Page_52">52</span> -but since the name of “Militia Aurata” was perpetuated, the order -was spoken of as a combination of the two. In 1905 Pope St. -Pius X “separated” the two orders and made the Order of Saint -Sylvester the lowest ranking of the Pontifical Orders of Knighthood.</p> -<p>The order has three degrees, the second being subdivided into -two classes: Knights of the Grand Cross; Knight Commanders -with and without emblem; simple Knights. The emblem is an -eight-pointed white cross with a medal of St. Sylvester in the -center, the reverse side of the medal bearing the dates 1841-1905 -in Roman figures to commemorate the order’s founding by -Gregory XVI and its renovation by St. Pius X. The emblem is -a silver star with the cross of the order superimposed. The colors -of the grand cordon, collar and ribbon on which the cross hangs, -according to the different degrees, are three bands of red and -two of black. The uniform of the order is black.</p> -<h3 id="c13">THE PAPAL DECORATIONS</h3> -<p>The decorations bestowed by the Holy See at the present time -are the Cross “Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice” and the medal -“Benemerenti.” These decorations do not confer knighthood upon -the recipient, but are medals of honor (<i>distintivi di onore</i>) given -to both men and women who merit public token of gratitude from -the Pope for their services. The conferring takes place by means -of a diploma issued from the Secretariate of State.</p> -<h4><i>Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice</i></h4> -<p>Pope Leo XIII instituted this cross by the Apostolic Letter -<i>Quod singulari Dei concessu</i> of July 17, 1888,<a class="fn" id="fr_40" href="#fn_40">[40]</a> to commemorate -the fiftieth anniversary of his ordination to the priesthood. -Originally it was intended to reward those persons who had distinguished -themselves in organizing the Vatican exposition in -which were exhibited the gifts which Leo had received from every -part of the world on the occasion of his golden jubilee. Later, the -bestowal was extended to those who were eminent in their devotion -toward the Church and the Papacy. The cross was initially -issued in three degrees, gold, silver and bronze; Pope St. Pius X -in 1908 decreed that the cross should come only in gold. The four -arms of the cross are decorated with a comet and in between the -<span class="pb" id="Page_53">53</span> -arms are found four lilies: these embellishments are meant to -recall the coat of arms of the Pecci family from which Leo derived. -In the center of the cross is placed a medal bearing the bust of -the founding Pope with the inscription “Leo XIII, P.M. Ann. X” -(the tenth year of Leo’s pontificate). The medal bears on the -reverse side the tiara and the papal keys with the inscription -“Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice.” On the reverse side of the arms of -the cross are found these words “Prid. Cal. Ian. 1888.” The cross -hangs from a red, white, and yellow ribbon, to be worn on the -left chest.</p> -<h4><i>Benemerenti</i></h4> -<p>This is the name of a series of medals issued by several Popes -in order to reward distinguished services at special occasions. -Pius VIII was the first to grant such a Benemerenti medal. The -practice was continued by Gregory XVI in 1831 when he had a -medal coined to reward those of his subjects who had shown -themselves particularly faithful to the Pope during that troublesome -year. Pope Pius IX did the same in gratitude to the soldiers -who fought for him during the revolution of 1848 and 1849. -St. Pius X, too, issued in 1910 a Benemerenti medal which was -preferably granted for military services. A special medal is given -to the Palatine guards after some years of faithful service. Pius -XI created a Benemerenti medal to remunerate persons as well -as groups who distinguished themselves in the organization of -the Holy Year 1925 and of the missionary exhibition which was -held in the Vatican in the same year.</p> -<p>Besides these special medals there is a Benemerenti medal of a -more general character. It comes in gold, silver and bronze and -it bears the effigy and the name of the reigning Pope, and on the -reverse side a crown of laurel and the letter “B” (“Benemerenti”). -The medal hangs from a yellow ribbon edged with white, to be -worn on the left chest.</p> -<p>Hardly an institution in the world today has the equivalent -of honors parallel to that of the Roman Catholic Church. In an -age when initiative and ability tend to become lost in the overwhelming -social changes that are so universal, these honors stand -out as another instance of the timelessness of that Church. They -salvage values and ideals from the past. Chivalry is more than -romance; it is one of the graces of human dignity. Those who -<span class="pb" id="Page_54">54</span> -would spurn the past cannot build the future. These honors are -enshrined in a morality and code that is rooted in the love and -charity of Christ made visible through human compassion and -effort. They envision the kingdom of heaven as their perspective -quite in the way of the parable Our Lord so earnestly preached -when He tenderly uttered the words: “Well done, good and -faithful servant.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_55">55</div> -<h2 id="c14"><span class="small">ILLUSTRATIONS</span></h2> -<h3 id="c15">MILITARY ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD</h3> -<div class="img" id="fig1"> -<img src="images/p01.jpg" alt="" width="289" height="569" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Teutonic Order</span> -<br />Black cross with white borders, black ribbon.</p> -</div> -<div class="img" id="fig2"> -<img src="images/p01a.jpg" alt="" width="357" height="542" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Order of the Holy Sepulchre</span> -<br />Red cross of Godfrey de Bouillon, military trophy, black ribbon.</p> -</div> -<div class="img" id="fig3"> -<img src="images/p01c.jpg" alt="" width="433" height="615" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Order of Malta</span> -<br />Grand Cross of Professed Bailiff: White cross, crown, military trophy and black ribbon with two gold designs, representing crown of thorns.</p> -</div> -<div class="img" id="fig4"> -<img src="images/p01d.jpg" alt="" width="328" height="327" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Order of Calatrava</span> -<br />Red Cross fleury. -<br /><span class="sc">Order of Alcantara</span> -<br />Green cross fleury. -<br /><span class="sc">Order of Monteza</span> -<br />Red Cross and black fleur-de-lis.</p> -</div> -<div class="img" id="fig5"> -<img src="images/p01e.jpg" alt="" width="251" height="365" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Order of Santiago</span> -<br />Lily-hilted sword in red.</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_56">56</div> -<h3 id="c16">PONTIFICAL ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD</h3> -<div class="img" id="fig6"> -<img src="images/p02.jpg" alt="" width="469" height="594" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Order of the Golden Spur</span> -<br />Gold cross with golden spur pendent from it, white medal, military trophy, red ribbon bordered with white.</p> -</div> -<div class="img" id="fig7"> -<img src="images/p02a.jpg" alt="" width="319" height="535" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Order of St. Gregory</span> -<br />Civil division: red cross, blue medallion, golden crown, oak leaves, red ribbon with orange borders.</p> -</div> -<div class="img" id="fig8"> -<img src="images/p02c.jpg" alt="" width="410" height="566" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Order of St. Sylvester</span> -<br />White cross on gold rays, medal of St. Sylvester, ribbon with five strands, three red, two black.</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_57">57</div> -<div class="img" id="fig9"> -<img src="images/p02h.jpg" alt="" width="837" height="773" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Order of Christ</span> -<br />White Latin cross, imposed on red cross, crown, military trophy and golden chain.</p> -</div> -<div class="img" id="fig10"> -<img src="images/p02k.jpg" alt="" width="453" height="495" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Order of Pius</span> -<br />Eight-pointed blue star, white medallion, rays of golden flames, blue ribbon bordered with red.</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_58">58</div> -<h3 id="c17">PONTIFICAL DECORATIONS</h3> -<div class="img" id="fig11"> -<img src="images/p03.jpg" alt="" width="242" height="546" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice</span> -<br />Gold cross, fleur-de-lis, medal with image of Leo XIII, purple ribbon with white and yellow line on each border.</p> -</div> -<div class="img" id="fig12"> -<img src="images/p03b.jpg" alt="" width="277" height="542" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Benemerenti Medal</span> -<br />Gold, silver or bronze medal with image of reigning Pontiff, yellow ribbon edged with white.</p> -</div> -<div class="img" id="fig13"> -<img src="images/p03c.jpg" alt="" width="226" height="541" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Lateran Cross</span> -<br />Gold or silver cross, medallions of the Saviour, St. Peter, St. Paul, St. John the Baptist and St. John the Apostle, red ribbon with two blue stripes.</p> -</div> -<h2 id="c18"><span class="small">FOOTNOTES</span></h2> -<div class="fnblock"><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_1" href="#fr_1">[1]</a><i>The American Ecclesiastical Review</i>, XXXVII (1907), 497-503, carried -an article by Joseph J. Murphy under the title, “Pontifical Decorations,” as -they were reorganized by Pope Pius X. In the same volume (pp. 324-26) a -correspondent criticized the Pope for being “exceedingly lavish in his bestowal” -of knighthood and other such honors and he felt that the spirit of a -republican community “is entirely against their bestowal.” Three years later -(“Roman Curial Honors and American Republican Sentiment,” <i>AER</i>, -XLII [1910], 341-44), another (or the same?) correspondent expressed -the conviction that the Papal appointments to “knights, marquises, monsignori -and the like ... are entirely out of place in America and even -contrary to the spirit of our people, if not also to the letter of the Constitution.” -In both cases the editor’s equivocal comment left no doubt that he -wished to run with the hares and hold with the hounds, and his statement -that “such decorations as go with these titles are of much the same character -as the secret society emblems and titles used in our numerous American -fraternities” was, if not startling, at least amusing. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_2" href="#fr_2">[2]</a>Pio Paschini, “Ordini Equestri,” <i>Enciclopedia Cattolica</i>, IX, col. 252. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_3" href="#fr_3">[3]</a>Cf. Wm. F. Stadelman, “The Royal Order of the Saint Esprit” (<i>AER</i>, -LIV [1916], 641-61). There was an older Order of the Holy Ghost, established -in Naples in 1352 by Louis of Taranto, but it hardly survived the -death of its founder. Cf. Stadelman, “The Knights of the Holy Ghost of -the Good Intention” (<i>AER</i>, LIV [1914], 652-69). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_4" href="#fr_4">[4]</a>F. Giraud, <i>Le Bienheureux Gérard</i> (Aix, 1919); Carlo Guarmani, <i>Gli -Italiani in Terra Santa, reminiscenze e ricerche storiche</i> (Bologna, 1872), -pp. 28-29. E. J. King, <i>The Knights Hospitallers in the Holy Land</i> (London: -Methuen, 1939, p. 20), says that the theory that Gerard’s surname was Tonce -or that he hailed from Tonco is based on “the error of some copyist of a -Latin text, who seeing the words ‘Gerardus tunc’ mistook the adverb for -a surname.” -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_5" href="#fr_5">[5]</a>See C. Fedeli, <i>L’ordine di Malta e le scienze mediche</i> (Pisa, 1913); Hans -Karl von Zwehl, <i>Ueber die Caritas im Johanniter-Malteser Orden seit seiner -Gründung</i> (Essen: Fredebeul und Koenen, 1929); Edgar Erskine Hume, -<i>Medieval Work of the Knights Hospitallers of St. John of Jerusalem</i> (Baltimore: -The Johns Hopkins Press, 1940). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_6" href="#fr_6">[6]</a>For a description of the provincial organization of the Hospitallers see -Elizabeth Wheeler Schermerhorn, <i>On the Trail of the Eight-pointed Cross</i> -(New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1940). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_7" href="#fr_7">[7]</a>A. Bosio, <i>Les vies des Saints de l’Ordre de St. Jean de Jéruzalem</i> (Paris: -Baudoin, 1631); Mathieu de Goussancourt, <i>Martyrologe des Chevaliers de -St. Jean, dits de Malte</i>, 2 vols. (Paris: F. Noel, 1643). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_8" href="#fr_8">[8]</a>E. Rossi, <i>Riassunto storico del S. M. Ordine San Giovanni in Gerusalemme, -di Rodi e di Malta</i> (Rome, 1926); C. Bottarelli-M. Monterisi, -<i>Storia politica e militare del Sovrano Ordine di S. Giovanni di Gerusalemme</i>, -2 Vols. (Milan, 1940); Giacomo C. Bascapé, “Historic Summary -of the Sovereign Military Order of St. John of Jerusalem and Malta,” in: -<i>The Official General Roll of the Grand Magistery</i> (Milan: Ciarrocca, 1949), -pp. 17-61. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_9" href="#fr_9">[9]</a>For this period see Edwin J. King, <i>The Knights Hospitallers in the Holy -Land</i> (London: Methuen, 1930). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_10" href="#fr_10">[10]</a>Hans Prutz, “Die Anfänge der Hospitaler auf Rhodes,” <i>Sitzungsbericht -der Königlichen Bayerischen Akademie der Wissenschaften</i>, Jg. 1908, Abh. 1. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_11" href="#fr_11">[11]</a>Giacomo C. Bascapé, <i>L’ordine Sovrano di Malta e gli Ordini Equestri -della Chiesa nella storia e nel diritto</i> (Milan, 1941). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_12" href="#fr_12">[12]</a>Michel de Pierredon, <i>Histoire politique de l’Ordre Souverain des Hospitaliers -de Saint-Jean de Jéruzalem, dit de Malta, depuis la chute de Malte -jusqu’à nos jours</i> (Poitiers: Imprimérie du Poiton, 1926). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_13" href="#fr_13">[13]</a>E. Nasalli Rocca di Corneliano, “Lineamenti dell’organizzazione regionale -e della funzione assistenziale dell’Ordine,” in: <i>Studi in onore di C. -Calisse</i> (Milan, 1939). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_14" href="#fr_14">[14]</a>For an excellent survey in five languages of the division, degrees, emblems -and uniforms of the order see Rudolf Prokopowski, <i>Ordre Souverain -et Militaire Jéroselymitain de Malte</i> (Vatican City: Éditions “Ecclesia,” -1950). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_15" href="#fr_15">[15]</a>See for membership of the order: <i>The Official General Roll of the -Grand Magistery</i> (Milan: Ciarrocca, 1949). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_16" href="#fr_16">[16]</a>A. Visconti, “La sovranità dell’Ordine di Malta nel diritto italiano,” -<i>Rivista di diritto privato</i>, VI (1936), 195-205. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_17" href="#fr_17">[17]</a><i>AAS</i>, XXXV (1953), 765-67. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_18" href="#fr_18">[18]</a><i>Codex juris canonici</i>, can. 4 and 5; can. 25-30; can. 63-79. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_19" href="#fr_19">[19]</a>One of the most extensive collections in the United States dealing with -the Knights of Malta is to be found in the Library of The Catholic University -of America. The collection was assembled by Mr. Foster Stearns who -in 1955 entrusted it to The Catholic University. The Library has prepared -a catalog classifying the 281 titles which include imprints from 1480 to the -present day. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_20" href="#fr_20">[20]</a>For the history of the Teutonic Order, see Arbogast Reiterer, O.T., -<i>Das Deutsche Kreuz, Geschichte des Deutschen Ritterorders</i> (Graz, 1922). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_21" href="#fr_21">[21]</a>E. Joachim, <i>Die Politik des letzten Hochmeisters in Preuszen, Albrecht -van Brandenburg</i>, 3 Vols. (Publikationen aus dem K. Preuszichen Staatsarchive, -1892-1895). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_22" href="#fr_22">[22]</a>M. Guillamas, <i>De los Ordenes militares de Calatrava, Santiago, Alcantara -y Montesa</i> (Madrid, 1852). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_23" href="#fr_23">[23]</a>An interesting account on the vows and obligations of the Spanish Military -Orders can be found in: Alonso Peñafiel y Araugo, <i>Obligaciones y -excellentias de los tres ordenes militares Santiago, Calatrava y Alcantara</i> -(Madrid: Diego Dias de la Carrera, 1643)—Microfilm in the Library of -Congress. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_24" href="#fr_24">[24]</a><i>AAS</i>, XXXV (1953), 625-56. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_25" href="#fr_25">[25]</a>Guido A. Quarti, <i>I Cavalieri del Santo Sepulcro di Gerusalemme</i> (Milano: -Enrico Gualdoni, s.d.). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_26" href="#fr_26">[26]</a>Pierre Verduc, <i>La vie du bienheureux Théodore de Celles, restaurateur -du très-ancien ordre canonial militaire et hospitalier de Ste-Croix</i> (Périgneux, -1681), pp. 40-42; 79-101; Odoardo Fialetti, <i>Degli habiti delle religioni -con le armi e breve descrizione loro</i> (Venezia, 1626). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_27" href="#fr_27">[27]</a><i>ASS</i>, XL (1907), 324-25. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_28" href="#fr_28">[28]</a><i>Statuto dell Ordine Equestre del Santo Sepolcro de Gerusalemme</i> (Rome: -Tipografia Poliglotta Vaticana, 1950). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_29" href="#fr_29">[29]</a>Albert de Mauroy, <i>La croix de Jérusalem et son origine</i> (Rome, 1914). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_30" href="#fr_30">[30]</a><i>A.S.S.</i>, XXXVII (1904-1905), 565-71. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_31" href="#fr_31">[31]</a><i>Pii P.M. IX Acta</i>, I, 1, (Rome, 1854), 43-45. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_32" href="#fr_32">[32]</a>F. Guigue de Champvans de Farémont, <i>Histoire et législation des ordres -de chevalerie, marques d’honneur et médailles du Saint-Siège</i> (Paris, 1932); -M. Gorino, <i>Causa, titoli nobiliari e Ordini equestri pontifici</i> (Turin, 1933); -S. Felice y Quadremy, <i>Ordenes de Caballeria Pontificias</i> (Mallorca, 1950). -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_33" href="#fr_33">[33]</a>Cf. G. Mollat, <i>Les Papes d’Avignon</i>, 9th ed. (Paris, 1950), pp. 562-65. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_34" href="#fr_34">[34]</a>According to a tradition among Free Masons, a number of French -Templars went into hiding and formed a lodge of masonry. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_35" href="#fr_35">[35]</a><i>Bullarium Romanum</i>, IV (Rome, 1644), 277-84. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_36" href="#fr_36">[36]</a><i>Acta Gregorii PP., XVI</i>, III (Rome, 1903), 178-80. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_37" href="#fr_37">[37]</a><i>Annuario Pontificio</i> (1954), p. 998. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_38" href="#fr_38">[38]</a><i>A.A.S.</i>, XXXII (1940), 41. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_39" href="#fr_39">[39]</a><i>Notificatio Cancellariae Ordinum Equestrium</i> (<i>A.S.S.</i>, XXXVII -[1905]), 565. -</div><div class="fndef"><a class="fn" id="fn_40" href="#fr_40">[40]</a><i>Acta Leonis XIII</i>, VIII (1889), 259. -</div> -</div> -<h2>Transcriber’s Notes</h2> -<ul> -<li>Silently corrected a few typos.</li> -<li>Retained publication information from the printed edition: this eBook is public-domain in the country of publication.</li> -<li>In the text versions only, text in <i>italics</i> is delimited by _underscores_.</li> -</ul> - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Ecclesiastical Orders of Knighthood, by -James Van der Veldt - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK ORDERS OF KNIGHTHOOD *** - -***** This file should be named 61799-h.htm or 61799-h.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/1/7/9/61799/ - -Produced by Stephen Hutcheson and the Online Distributed -Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net - - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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