Knights of the Holy Sepulchre

Dangerous Men in Shining Armor

Out of the tradition of being “knighted” at the Holy Sepulchre, the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem was founded.

After the last actual crusaders, following the surrender of Acre in the year 1291, were forced to withdraw from the Holy Land, Pope Nicholas IV persuaded the Muslim Sultan Al-Khalil to allow canons and monks belonging to the Franciscan Order to continue their work in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem. From the mid-14th century onward, it was therefore the Franciscans who maintained the Latin Christian tradition in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and throughout the Holy Land.

Pilgrims received their knighthood inside the tomb chamber (Sanctum Sanctorum).

The pilgrims thus became Knights of the Holy Sepulchre.

In the year 1342, through the papal bulls Gratias Agimus and Nuper Carissimae, the Pope officially granted the Franciscans permission to become Custodians (Custos) of the Catholic traditions in the Holy Land. In 1348, a mandate from Sultan Al-Mozaffa in Cairo authorized the establishment of a monastic congregation (an association of monasteries). This meant, among other things, that the liturgy was to be maintained in the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The Franciscans purchased the ownership rights to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre from the Sultan, though the King of Naples paid for the acquisition.

The Franciscan abbot (head of the monastery, literally meaning “father”), in his role as Custos, came to hold a dominant position after the crusaders departed from the Holy Land in 1291. The Custos became the protector of the Christians in Jerusalem. In this atmosphere, a tradition arose whereby Christian pilgrims (including those who traveled to a foreign place for spiritual reasons) received knighthood at the Holy Sepulchre.

This began after the Franciscans had established themselves in Jerusalem in the mid-14th century and continued the same traditions as the earlier military orders had practiced when they were present in Jerusalem. These knightly orders had been driven out of Jerusalem in 1187 and from the rest of the Holy Land in 1291.

The Most Important Act

The knighting at the Holy Sepulchre was initially performed by another knight present, as he had the authority to carry out this act in that most sacred place.

When the Saxon Wilhelm von Bodensel, during his pilgrimage to Jerusalem in 1336, received knighthood at the Holy Sepulchre, two of his companions were also knighted. In his documents, he described that he followed the customs and rules previously used for admission into the Militaris Ordinis. Thus, we know today what took place when, for example, a Templar soldier was knighted at the Holy Sepulchre.

After the Mass dedicated to the knights’ patron saint, St. George, had concluded, the highest-ranking knight fastened a golden belt and sword to the new knight’s hip. The new knight then drew the golden sword from its scabbard and handed it to the celebrant, who, with the unsheathed sword, touched both shoulders of the new knight (the dubbing), after which the new knight returned the sword to its scabbard.

He then placed his right foot upon the Holy Sepulchre itself, and a golden spur was fastened to one boot. Next, he placed his left foot upon the Holy Sepulchre, and another knight fastened the final spur to his other boot. There are examples where the knight who fastened the golden spur to the new knight’s left boot was a Knight Hospitaller.

It is interesting that the new knight first places his right foot, then his left. This is a sign of loyalty and defense of the Holy Sepulchre and all that it represents.

There are strong indications that knighthood was already being conferred at the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem in the 11th century. At that time, Duke Godfrey of Bouillon was the supreme leader of the vast territories over which the Templars would later rule. He refused the royal title and instead called himself Protector of the Holy Sepulchre. Initially, the Crusades—of which the first began in 1098—were entirely a French enterprise.