The government which this order afterwards established was a mixture of monarchy and aristocracy. The grand master exercised the rights of sovereignty over the peo ple of Malta and its dependencies. He coined money ; and had the disposal of the priories, bailiages, and com manderies attached to the order. All the knights, of what ever rank they might be, professed obedience to his com mands in every thing not contrary to the rules of the so ciety, or the obligations of religion. In all affairs, how ever, which respect religion in the interests of the knights, an absolute authority was exerted by the grand-Master and the council in conjunction ; the grand-master having no other prerogative than that of a casting vote. There were two councils. The ordinary council consisted of the grand master, the prior of the church, the conventual bailies, the grand priors, and the capitular bailies. The council complete was composed, in addition to these, of all the grand crosses, and of the two senior.knights of each lan guage.
These languages were those of the different nations of which the order was composed ; and these were in num ber eight, Provence, Auvergne, France, Italy, Arragon, Germany, Castile, and England. Of each of these lan guages, there were knights of different kinds, as, 1. Equites Justicier, who made proof of nobility at their entrance, of four descents in all other nations except Germany, where 16 quarters were held necessary.-2. Equites Gratis, who made no proof of nobility, but had the order conferred on them on account of merit. These were, however, inca pable of attaining the rank of bailie;grand prior, or grand master. Besides these, there were serving brothers of two kinds ; 1. those of arms, who took a part in :di the cus tomary duties of the knights ; and, 2. those of the church, who were priests entirely devoted to the services of reli gion in the different churches of the order.
The influence of this order was extended through every part of Europe. Their achievements were conspicuous, and they were long regarded as the most essential bul wark against the Turks. Ashmole is of opinion, that at one time their power was so great, that " they possessed an Christendom about 19,000 manors." In England, their prior sat in Parliament as the first baron of the king dom, by the title of " Prior hospitalis Sancti Johannis de Jerusalem." The knights of St. John made profession of poverty, obedience, and chastity, according to the rule of St. Au gustin, whose black habit they wore, originally with a plain white cross on the breast, but afterwards with one of eight points. In time of war they put the cross on a scar let cassock.
The order is now merely nominal, and the cross is con ferred by several sovereigns, who lay claim to the title of grand-master. Among others, Paul of Russia celebrated a mock election of himself, with the concurrence of a com pany of comedians, and sold the insignia.
Scarcely had the hospitallers succeeded in transforming their society into one, uniting within itself the profession of religion and that of arms, before certain canons regular of St. Augustin, who, during the reign of the Saracens, had been entrusted with the care of the holy sepulchre, be came desirous of imitating their example. Baldwin ac cordingly gratified them in this matter, and they assumed the title of knights of the holy sepulchre. They were conspicuous for their valour and filelity during the time of the Christian kings of Jerusalem ; but, on the loss of the Holy Land, took refuge in Perugia, and afterwards were incorporated with the knights of Rnodes. Their ensign was argent, a cross potent, or.
The origin of the order of the knights of the temple succeeded close on that of the sepulchre. Geoffrey of St. Omer, and Hugh de Pagan's, were its founders. These, along with a few other pious persons, animated with the de sire of serving God, and bearing with much impatience the insults which the Turks poured on the pilgrims, estab lished a society for the purpose of protecting the high ways to Jerusalem. Guarimond, patriarch of Jerusalem, and king Baldwin, willingly granted them their approba tion. They took vows of poverty, obedience, and chastity, and engaged to keep the high-ways free of robbers; to be hospitable to the poor, and to protect all who should be in clined to visit the holy sepulchre. Baldwin permitted them to build an hospital near the temple of the sepulchre, whence they derived their name ; and they established themselves, in all respects conforming to the rule of St. Basil. The services which they rendered by their care, as to the safety of the high-ways, soon spread their fame throughout Europe. and were the means of attracting to them great riches and splendid endowments. The wealth which they possessed was, indeed, in all probability, the chief cause of the destruction of their order, which was accomplished by the of Philip the Fair, in the year 1312. A council was held at Vienne, at which the Pope, (Clement V.) king Philip, and Louis of Navarre, his eldest son, were present. There the Templars were accused of drunkenness, incontinence, and blasphemy, which crimes were confessed by many of the knights on being put to the torture. The council ordered all their possessions to be confiscated, and bestowed on the knights of St. John of Jerusalem ; but the kings of France, Arra gon, Castile, and England, appropriated a great part of their possessions to their own use. The order contrived to get the decree of the council reversed, in so far as re garded Germany, where they remained long after, but with little power. Jacques de la Maude, their grand mas ter, was burnt in Parts along with many of the brethren; and the m hole body were in England declared convicts and felons by a statute of the first year of Edward II.