Military Orders
General Characteristics
I will concentrate from here out upon the two most influential orders in Outremêr: the Templars and the Hospitallers. Both orders shared a similar structure, but we know more about the Templars so I will speak mostly of them.
Every knight took the monastic vows of simplicity, obedience, silence, prayer, and a common life. Their Rule was modelled on the Cistercian rule, which was a modification of the Benedictine. The brothers wore a white habit with a red cross. Where a traditional monk had the duty of work and study, the Templar substituted military service.
The brothers took an oath never to pay ransom, nor to ask to be ransomed. They also swore to ask no quarter in combat, nor to give it. Both were on occasion ignored, but by and large this made the Templar or Hospitaller a very different sort of foe than the average Frankish knight. They swore further to absolute obedience to their commander, so in theory all brothers of the Order could be mobilized by a single command.
General Characteristics A. Monastic Rule -- the members of the Orders were monks. 1. Poverty 2. Chastity 3. Obedience B. The Defense of Outre-Mer 1. Their primary purpose was protecting the pilgrims, but this became overshadowed by the goal of fighting Saracens. 2. They were given castles. The earliest was Beth Gibelin, to the Hospitallers in 1136. 3. Absolute obedience to the Master of the Order 4. Independent of all feudal obligations. C. Privileges 1. Tax exempt 2. Directly under the pope, which gave them ecclesiastical independence as well as worldly independence. 3. Political independence meant they were free to make wars and treaties and peace apart from the actions of Crusaders and barons alike. D. Finance and Manpower 1. Fiefs in Europe (exempt) provided income 2. Administrative hierarchy in Europe drummed up recruits 3. Some knights served only in Europe 4. Lay brothers provided auxiliaries 5. The Orders were tremendously attractive religiously, practically and romantically