Templars of North East England

Research into the presence of the Templars in the North East is sparse and lacks detail. In the beginnings of the Templars existence there was detailed knowledge of the main Templar holdings throughout England. This was due to a survey carried out sometime between 1185 and 1190 which utilised local juries to ascertain a fairly detailed account of their many holdings¹.

At the end of the Templars existence they were still active at keeping their network of holdings alive and expanding their influence, either through continued donations of land from the gentry or through the acquisition of land through purchase. However knowledge of these holdings in the North-East seems to have been unnoticed by Historians investigating the Templars in this area.

Background

After the success of the Latin West in the First Crusade in conquering Jerusalem on 17th July 1099, noble men and pilgrims sought out the holy places of Christendom. This became dangerous as many Pilgrims were easy targets for the Muslim marauders who were numerous throughout the land. Even though the Latin West had seemed to occupy this land they only had authority in the main cities and towns, such as Antioch, and on some of the main roads that connected them.

Out of this necessity to protect the Pilgrims and police the newly conquered Holy Lands the Order of the Knights Templar was born.

In 1118 the Chronicler William of Tyre stated ‘certain noble men of knightly order, devoted to God, pious and God and God-fearing’² , most notably the French nobles Hugh of Paynes and Godfrey of Saint-Omer, gave obedience to the Patriarch of Jerusalem (Warmund of Picquigny, 1118-28) and took vows of poverty and chastity in order to serve Christ. This order of knights was created under the premise of carrying out their duties in much the same way as regular canons but also maintaining their roles as knights. Although it is unclear who specifically wished to use the Templars for both a Spiritual and Military purpose together, it seemed to serve both the king and the Patriarchs purposes in protecting pilgrims with a new force of this kind and their official sanction by the authorities of the Outremer came in 1120³ .

King Baldwin II of Jerusalem gave them a base in his palace to the south side of the Temple of the Lord, the site originally believed to be Solomon’s Temple, from which the Templars derived their name. Certain other benefices were given to the newly created order by the King, the Patriarch and other Church officials to maintain the order by feeding and clothing them.

This was followed by the support of individuals such as Hugh, Count of Champagne and Fulk V, Count of Anjou as well as their most important supporter was Bernard of Clairvaux, who later became a saint and was a prominent figure in the church, and wrote “In praise of the New Knighthood”, describing the benevolent activities of the Order⁴ . This led to the recognition of the Knights Templar as an official Military Order by the Church at the Council of Troyes in 1129, which was subsequently confirmed by Pope Honorius II⁵ .

After the Papacy’s approval Christian Europe showed favour towards the Templars. This came after a successful recruiting campaign by the leading Knights Hugh of Paynes and Godfrey of Saint-Omer with the help of the Fulk V, of Anjou and Hugh the Count of Champagne. Thousands of estates were given to the Order of the Temple especially in France, England and Spain, as well as other smaller holdings throughout Europe⁶ .

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