Keele Preceptory

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Keele Preceptory
Monastery information
Order Knights Templar
Established 1223
Disestablished 1538
Site
Location Keele, Staffordshire, England

Keele Preceptory was a preceptory (the headquarters of the order within a given geographical area), in Keele, Staffordshire, England. Owned by the Knights Templar until their suppression in the early 14th century, it then passed through a number of owners before falling into the hands of the Knights Hospitaller.

A preceptor is a teacher responsible to uphold a certain law or tradition, a precept.

Keele village in United Kingdom

Keele is a village and civil parish in northern Staffordshire, England. It is approximately three miles (5 km) west of Newcastle-under-Lyme, and is close to the village of Silverdale. Keele lies on the A53 road from Newcastle-under-Lyme to Market Drayton and Shrewsbury. The village is the location of Keele University and Keele Services, a motorway service area on the M6.

Staffordshire County of England

Staffordshire is a landlocked county in the West Midlands of England. It borders with Cheshire to the northwest, Derbyshire and Leicestershire to the east, Warwickshire to the southeast, West Midlands and Worcestershire to the south, and Shropshire to the west.

Contents

History

Foundation

The estate was granted to the Knights Templar sometime between 1168-69 by King Henry II. The grant was further increased by Henry in 1185 with gifts of land in Onneley, near Madeley, worth some 2 shillings. [1] The estate became a preceptory sometime in the 13th century and by 1308 they were collecting rents from property held in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Onneley, Stanton, and Nantwich. [1]

Knights Templar Western Christian military order; medieval Catholic military order

The Poor Fellow-Soldiers of Christ and of the Temple of Solomon, also known as the Order of Solomon's Temple, the Knights Templar or simply the Templars, were a Catholic military order recognised in 1139 by the papal bull Omne datum optimum. The order was founded in 1119 and was active until 1312 when it was perpetually suppressed by Pope Clement V by the bull Vox in excelso.

Henry II of England 12th-century King of England, Duke of Aquitaine, and ruler of other European lands

Henry II, also known as Henry Curtmantle, Henry FitzEmpress or Henry Plantagenet, ruled as King of England, Duke of Normandy and Aquitaine, Count of Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and Lord of Ireland; at various times, he also partially controlled Scotland, Wales and the Duchy of Brittany. Before he was 40 he controlled England, large parts of Wales, the eastern half of Ireland and the western half of France—an area that would later come to be called the Angevin Empire.

Onneley human settlement in United Kingdom

Onneley is a hamlet in the Borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire.

Suppression

In 1307, Pope Clement V issued the papal bull Pastoralis Praeeminentiae calling on all European monarchs to arrest members of the Templar order. [2] In response, the English Crown seized the order's property, including that belonging to Keele Preceptory. The land was first claimed by Thomas, 2nd Earl of Lancaster, in his capacity as lord of Newcastle-under-Lyme. Following his execution in 1322 it reverted to the Crown and was granted to the Knights Hospitaller in 1342, who combined it with their commandry in Halston, Shropshire. [1]

Pope Clement V pope

Pope Clement V, born Raymond Bertrand de Got, was Pope from 5 June 1305 to his death in 1314. He is remembered for suppressing the order of the Knights Templar and allowing the execution of many of its members, and as the Pope who moved the Papacy from Rome to Avignon, ushering in the period known as the Avignon Papacy.

Papal bull type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church

A papal bull is a type of public decree, letters patent, or charter issued by a pope of the Roman Catholic Church. It is named after the leaden seal (bulla) that was traditionally appended to the end in order to authenticate it.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 M W Greenslade, R B Pugh (Editors), G C Baugh, L W Cowie, J C Dickinson, A P Duggan, A K B Evans, R H Evans, Una C Hannam, P Heath, D A Johnston, Professor Hilda Johnstone, Ann J Kettle, J L Kirby, R Mansfield, Professor A Saltman (1970). "House of Knights Templar: The preceptory of Keele". A History of the County of Stafford: Volume 3. Institute of Historical Research. Retrieved 9 September 2014.
  2. ↑ Martin, Sean (2005). The Knights Templar: The History & Myths of the Legendary Military Order. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press. ISBN   1-56025-645-1.


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