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.