Knights Templar (Freemasonry)

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The Knights Templar, full name The United Religious, Military and Masonic Orders of the Temple and of St John of Jerusalem, Palestine, Rhodes and Malta, is a

The earliest documented link between Freemasonry and the Crusades is the 1737 oration of the Chevalier Ramsay. He claimed, without supporting historical evidence, that European Freemasonry came about from an interaction between 'crusader masons' and the Knights Hospitaller.^[3] This is repeated in the earliest known "Moderns" ritual, the Berne manuscript, written in French between 1740 and 1744.^[4] Ramsay was initiated as a Templar by his mentor François Fénelon into the non-Masonic French Ordre du Temple with his friend Philippe II, Duke of Orleans as Grandmaster around 1710.^[5] After the death of Fenelon and the Duke of Orleans, Ramsay was initiated into Freemasonry around 1730. Since Ramsay's Templarism predated his relationship with Freemasonry by some 20 years, this is the likely source for the introduction of Templarism into Freemasonry.^[5]

In 1751

In 1779 the High Knights Templar of Ireland Lodge, Kilwinning, obtained a charter from Lodge Mother Kilwinning in Scotland. This lodge now began to grant dispensations to other lodges to confer the Knights Templar Degree. Some time around 1790 the Early Grand Encampment of Ireland was formed, which began to warrant Templar Lodges, and evolved into the Supreme Grand Encampment in 1836.^[8] The Early Grand Encampment chartered several Scottish "encampments" one of which, having been chartered in 1805 as the "Edinburgh Encampment No. 31", then became the"Grand Assembly of Knights Templar in Edinburgh". who then sought a charter from the Duke of Kent, Grand Master of the Order in England.^[9] It seems that the Templar degree had filtered into the lodges of the Antients from Ireland about 1780, and was recorded at York about the same time.^[10] In the five degree system developed by the York Masons, the Knights Templar degree sat between the Master Mason and the Sublime Degree of Royal Arch.^[11]

Grand Conclave of England

Templar masonry in England entered a new era in 1791, with the formation of its first Grand Conclave, with

Depending upon the geographical jurisdiction, the Knights Templar exist either as part of the York Rite or as an independent organization. Though the York Rite and the independent versions share many similarities there are key differences which are described below.

Outside the York Rite, membership is by invitation only. Candidates are required to be Master Masons, and Royal Arch Masons, and to sign a declaration that they profess the Doctrine of the Holy and Undivided Trinity. In some Australian States, the requirement of being a Royal Arch Mason no longer applies.

Within the British Federation of Le Droit Humain, candidates must be a Holy Royal Arch Mason for at least twelve months. Crucially, they do not have to profess the Doctrine of the Holy and Undivided Trinity, as this goes against the principles of the wider international Order.^[14]

Local bodies of Knights Templar are known as

In England and Wales, the "Great Priory of England and Wales" for the Masonic Knights Templar is administered from Mark Masons' Hall, London.

The Degrees or Orders

York Rite only: The Illustrious Order of the Red Cross

Teachings

The Order of the Red Cross continues or reverts to the period of the Royal Arch Degree when the Israelites were returning from Babylon to Jerusalem to rebuild the

The ritual places the candidate in the role of Zerubbabel and follows him through his journey to King Darius in Persia and his role in the Immemorial Discussion, as found in the apocryphal book, 1 Esdras. The purpose is to bridge the gap between Royal Arch Masonry and the Chivalric Orders as well as between the Old Testament and the New Testament. The Illustrious Order of the Red Cross teaches the lessons of the triumph of truth.

The Degree of Knight of St Paul (or Mediterranean Pass)

This degree is conferred as a prerequisite to becoming a Knight of Malta, in both the York Rite and independent 'stand-alone' versions of Knight Templar Freemasonry. The "Preliminary Declarations" of the Order of Malta ritual in England state of a candidate for the Order of Malta: "He must also have received the Degree of Knight of St Paul, including the Mediterranean Pass". The exact status of the 'Mediterranean Pass' has at times led to confusion as to whether this is the 'stub' of a separate degree. The English ritual book clarified this in its 1989 edition (and subsequent editions) by stating: "The Mediterranean Pass is one of the secrets of the Degree of Knight of St Paul".^[15]

This degree is close to being a true 'side degree', in that a small group (usually three) of members of the degree take the candidate "to one side" (i.e. apart on his own) and simply communicate the secrets of the degree to him, without actually working the ceremonial ritual of the degree. The only respect in which the degree fails to meet the definition of a true 'side degree' is that a Chapter of the Order would be formally opened and closed by the presiding officer, on either side of the secrets being communicated.

The Degree of Knight of Malta (Order of Malta)

This degree is universally associated with the Masonic Knights Templar. In the York Rite system it is conferred before the Templar Degree; in the 'stand-alone' tradition it is conferred subsequently to the Templar Degree. It is known by varying degrees of formality as the Order of Malta, or the Order of Knights of Malta, or the Ancient and Masonic Order of St John of Jerusalem, Palestine, Rhodes, and Malta. In practice this last and fullest version of the name tends to be reserved to letterheads, rituals, and formal documents.

The ceremony for conferring the degree (which is always worked in full) contains a mixture of masonic tradition, historical accounts of the Order of St John, moral teaching, and the communication of modes of recognition between members. A series of banners is employed in the ceremony, each representing one of the great battles of the historic medieval Order of St John, whose story is the basis of the moral teachings of the degree.

The Degree of Knight of the Temple (Order of the Temple)

The original medieval Order of Knights Templar was established after the

The Knight Templar degree is associated with elaborate regalia (costume) the precise detail of which varies between nations. The ritual draws upon the traditions of medieval Knights Templar, using them to impart moral instruction consistent with the biblical teachings of the Christian tradition.

Organization

In England and Wales, the teachings of the Order of the Red Cross feature in the Red Cross of Babylon which forms part of the Allied Masonic Degrees.

The Order of the Red Cross is often considered a compressed version of the Red Cross Degrees or Green Degrees which make up the Order of Knight Masons.

The Order of the Red Cross should not be confused with the Red Cross of Constantine.

Other Rites

Degrees of the York Rite in the United States

In the United States, a Knights Templar

While a chapter bestows the Royal Arch degrees, and a council bestows the Cryptic degrees, a Knights Templar commandery bestows three orders and one preparatory degree onto its members. This is opposed to the standard degree system found elsewhere in Freemasonry, and they are the only ones not to deal with the Hiramic Legend.^[18] The York Rite orders are:

• The Illustrious Order of the Red Cross
• The Degree of Saint Paul (or the Mediterranean Pass)
• The Order of the Knights of Malta (or simply Order of Malta)
• The Order of the Temple

Templar degrees in the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite

History and legend concerning the historical Knights Templar also play an important role in the degrees of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry, notably in the Rite's 30th Degree, Knight Kadosh. Other Scottish Rite degrees sometimes styled "Templar Degrees" include the 28th Degree (Knight Commander of the Temple, formerly denominated the 27th Degree in the Southern Jurisdiction of United States), the 29th Degree (Scottish Knight of Saint Andrew), the 32nd Degree (Master of the Royal Secret), and the 33rd Degree (Inspector General).^[19]

Templar themes in wider Freemasonry

Despite Freemasonry's general disclaimer that no one Masonic organization claims a direct heritage to the medieval Knights Templar, certain degrees and orders are obviously patterned after the medieval Order. These are best described as "commemorative orders" or degrees. Nevertheless, in spite of the fraternity's official disclaimers, some Masons, non-Masons and even anti-Masons insist that certain Masonic rites or degrees originally had direct Templar influence.

• American Masonic
  Order of DeMolay for young men are named after the last Grand Master Templar Jacques de Molay
  who was executed in the final suppression of the Templar order in the early 14th century.
• The Knight of Rose-Croix Degree in the "Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite", and honorary Orders like the Royal Order of Scotland are interpreted as evidence of a historical Templar-Masonic connection, though there is no factual basis for this belief.
• Freemasons due to reliefs combining Templar and Freemason symbolism. Historian Dr. Louise Yeoman, along with other mediaeval scholars, says the Knights Templar connection is false, and points out that Rosslyn Chapel was built by William Sinclair so that Mass could be said for the souls of his family.^[20] In addition, Rosslyn Chapel's connection to Freemasonry, as well as to the Templars, has been vigorously disputed by Robert L. D. Cooper, the Curator of the Grand Lodge of Scotland Museum and Library.^[21][22][23] It is postulated that any existing Masonic imagery was likely added at a later date, probably in the 1860s when James St Clair-Erskine, 3rd Earl of Rosslyn instructed Edinburgh architect David Bryce, a known Freemason, to undertake restoration work on areas of the church including many of the carvings.^[24]
• Legends in certain degrees recount that Knights under the command of Sir John De Bermingham, first and last Earl of Louth, aided Scottish King Robert the Bruce, who had been excommunicated, at the Battle of Bannockburn;^[25] but this account is based on an 18th-century romance and is not supported by any evidence. This story is the basis for the degrees in the Royal Order of Scotland, an invitational Masonic honorary organization.
• Templar connections have also been suggested through the Earls of
  Grand Master of the Grand Lodge of Scotland
  .
• Many other old and new organizations are called "Knights Templar". However, organizations like the Order of the Solar Temple, Militi Templi Scotia, Ordo Templi Orientis, or the Sovereign Military Order of the Temple of Jerusalem (OSMTJ), are in no way related to Masonic Knights Templar, and share little or no relationship with it in history, hierarchy, or ritual.

See also

• Red Cross of Constantine
• York Rite
• Freemasonry

Original chivalric orders

• Knights Templar
• Sovereign Military Order of Malta

References

Bibliography

• The History Channel
  , Decoding the Past: The Templar Code, 2005, video documentary
• The History Channel
  , Mysteries of the Freemasons, 2006 video documentary
• Stephen Dafoe, The Compasses and the Cross, 2008.
  ISBN 0-85318-298-1
• ISBN 978-2-84668-253-4
  .
• ISBN 0-470-12765-1
• Sean Martin, The Knights Templar: History & Myths, 2005.
  ISBN 1-56025-645-1
• ISSN 1874-6691
  .

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Knights Templar (Freemasonry).

• What are the Knights Templar up to now?

Masonic Knights Templar organizations

• Grand Encampment of Knights Templar of the United States of America
• Sovereign Great Priory of the Knights Templar of Canada
• Order of the Temple - Great Priory of Scotland
• Order of the Temple - Great Priory of Ireland
• Knights Templar Eye Foundation
• The Web of Hiram Archived 30 October 2007 at the Wayback Machine Section on The Royal Exalted Religious and Military Order of Masonic Knights Templar of England and Wales at Bradford University

Preceded by Holy Royal Arch

Knights Templar

Succeeded by Order of Knights Beneficent of the Holy City