Fig. 146.—Knight of Malta.
Fig. 147.—Templar in Travelling Dress.
Fac-similes of Woodcuts by Jost Amman, in his work entitled “Cleri totius Romanæ ecclesiæ ... habitus;” 4to., Frankfort, 1585.
The unbelievers dreaded no enemy so much as these poor soldiers of Christ, of whom it was said that they possessed the gentleness of the lamb and the patience of the hermit, united to the courage of the hero and the strength of the lion. Their standard, termed Beaucéant, was half black and half white, and inscribed with these words: Non nobis, Domine, non nobis, sed nomini tuo da gloriam.[12]
According to the rules of St. Bernard, the Order of the Temple was composed of milites, or knights commanders, of serving brothers, called armigeri, or men bearing arms, and of clientes, or clients, whose duty it was to attend to domestic matters. Their oaths were similar to those of St. John of Jerusalem. They swore to live in chastity, poverty, and obedience. Some of their number obtained permission to marry, but on condition of their no longer wearing the white dress, and of their bequeathing a portion of their property to the order. The distinctive mark of the Templars was, according to some, a broad red patriarchal cross; according to others, a red Maltese cross embroidered with gold. As they all made public profession of extreme poverty, they were forbidden to use valuable articles of furniture, or gold or silver utensils; to wear velvet trappings in the field, helmets with armorial bearings, silken sashes, or other superfluous articles of clothing; and they were only permitted to wear an under doublet of white wool.
The Order of the Temple had only been established fifty years when its knights held at Jerusalem its first general chapter, attended by three hundred gentlemen, and as many serving brothers, most of whom were French. The chapter elected a grand master, Gérard de Rederfort, and in so doing freed themselves from the jurisdiction of the patriarch of Jerusalem. The new grand master transferred the seat of the order to St. Jean d’Acre, and manifested the prowess of his knights on several occasions against the troops of Saladin, who attempted shortly afterwards to capture the town, but who was obliged to abandon the task.
The resources of the Knights Templars increased, in a very short space, in such a remarkable manner, by donations and legacies, that some historians declare that the revenue of the order amounted to four and a half millions sterling; others merely observe that the Templars possessed enormous wealth in Christendom, one item being nine thousand houses. In 1129 they already had several establishments in the Low Countries; six years later the King of Navarre and of Aragon, Alphonso I., bequeathed his states to the order; but it was with great difficulty that the knights obtained possession of even a few of his towns. At that time, however, they possessed seventeen strongholds in the kingdom of Valencia. In their quarters in London were deposited most of the treasures of the English crown, and King Philip Augustus, on the eve of his departure for the Holy Land, entrusted them with the care of his jewels and archives.
