Knights Templar

Knights Templar

The original title of the order has varied somewhat especially as there were at one time Precepories and priories working under three different constitutions in New Zealand. Under the Great Priory of England the order was called The United Religious, Military and Masonic Orders of the Temple and of St John of Jerusalem, Palestine, Rhodes and Malta, in England and Wales and Provinces Overseas. With a name like that was it any wonder that the United Great Priory in New Zealand was anxious to get started!

The earliest references to the order are to be found in Ireland in the 18th century and the first written records so far found in England date from 1777. Expansion of the order was slow in the first part of the 19th century but from 1845 there was steady growth. It should be noted that while the order is based on the knights of the crusader period no Masonic connection may be claimed to them. The ceremonials, then, are based on the activities of the Knights Templar who worked first in Palestine then Rhodes and Malta and finally in Europe and cover the period from 1118 to the 14th century when the order was suppressed and many of its members martyred.

Candidates for the order must be Royal Arch Masons and profess Christianity. There are two degrees worked, the second being in two parts. They are Knight of the Temple and (a) Knight of St Paul or the Mediterranean Pass and (b) Knight of Malta. The United Great Priory in New Zealand was constituted in 1986 and brought together the various constitutions working in New Zealand at that time. The regalia worn is a replica of that worn by the original Knights Templar and consists of a white tunic with a large red cross thereon and a white mantle over the top and a cap. Swords are generally worn but some officers do not, for example the chaplain.

Holy Royal Arch Knights Templar Priests

This degree is considered to have had its origin in Ireland and written records exist there from the late 18th century. It appears that in England from early times Knights Templar from various Craft lodges joined together to work the degrees but there seems to have been no controlling authority. In 1895 the Royal Kent Tabernacle of Knight Templar Priests was erected and from about this time the degrees were also worked, or came under the control of, the Allied Masonic Degrees previously mentioned. The present Grand College of the order was set up in 1923 and this gave rise to steady growth. There are now tabernacles in Australia, Hong Kong, Canada, South Africa and New Zealand. The senior officer in each tabernacle is called the High Priest and the members the Knight Priests. 

Again entry is by invitation and a candidate must be an Installed Master in the Craft, a Royal Arch mason and a Knight Templar. The regalia is similar to, but not the same as that of a Knight Templar. 

The difference in the uniform is that while a Knight Templar tunic is worn the mantle is solely white with no badges of any kind and instead of a cap a mitre is worn. The ceremonial is of a highly religious nature and a large number of degrees are conferred by name upon candidates. 

St Thomas of Acon

The Commemorative Order of Saint Thomas of Acon is an independent British Christian Masonic organisation. Membership is restricted to those who are subscribing members of a Preceptory (Commandery) in amity with the Great Priory of the United Religious, Military and Masonic Order of the Temple of England and Wales and Provinces Overseas (commonly referred to as the Knights Templar).  Membership is by invitation only. The basic organisation of the Order is a Chapel.

The Order of St. Thomas of Acon was established in 1974 as a result of twenty years’ research in the Guildhall Library in London by John E. N. Walker, who for many years was the Secretary General of the Societas Rosicruciana in Anglia. 

The ancient records of the Order, written in medieval French and Latin, had been deposited in the London Guildhall Library and escaped the Great Fire of 1666. The Order now operates under the official title of The Commemorative Order of St Thomas of Acon. 
As of July 2015 there were 112 Chapels of the Order in England, Wales, Spain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States of America.

Holy Order of Wisdom 

The Order is based on the historic records of the life and the legend of King Athelstan. The focus of the Order is to show how this early reference to the importance of Masonry in English history was significant for the development of speculative Freemasonry.

The ceremonial of the Masonic Order of Athelstan portrays the story of a Master Mason being summoned to York in 926 AD to receive the Ancient Charges.

The Order, in England and Wales, is structured so that its Provinces, wherever possible, reflect and represent ancient kingdoms of the Anglo-Saxon period. Our Provinces do not therefore correlate directly with the English County divisions.

The aim of the Masonic Order of Athelstan is to encourage and prompt its members into further study and research. Candidates are carefully chosen with regard to their interest in Masonic history and are said to be ‘Instructed’ into the Order.

Membership of our Order is strictly invitational, and members are expected to take a wide and committed interest in all aspects of freemasonry, there are therefore mandatory requirements for each member to have current, active and ongoing membership of both Craft and Royal Arch Chapter Masonry. To this end we are fully committed to supporting the United Grand Lodge of England and expect all members of the Order to give full support and allegiance to the UGLE.