the Order of Christ

The Templars were founded in 1118, and in 1160 Gualdin Pais, master of the Templars in Portugal built the castle at Tomar.  Over the next 200 years the Templars became both rich and powerful, and their centre from the twelfth century had been Tomar in Portugal.  In 1307, Philip of France ordered the arrest of all the Templars in France, and finally the Pope Clement dissolved the Order of the Templars in 1312.  King Dinis of Portugal founded 'The Order of the Knighthood of Our Lord Jesus Christ' , which was confirmed in the bull Ad ea exquibus by Pope John XXII on March 14, 1319. The Order had its headquarters in Tomar.  The Convento de Cristo in Toamar was extended, and property of the Templars passed to the Order of Christ. At the age of 26, the Infante dom Henrique (Henry the Navigator, third son of king John I) became Governor of the Order of Christ until his death in 1460.  Salvador SoaresCotrim records (1724) that he named the English man, James Cottrell (Jaime Cotrim) as his Monteiro-mór.

For a bibliography of the Order of Christ see http://www.thorn1.demon.co.uk/kchrist/biblio.html

In 1420 the master of the Order of Christ, Dom Lopo Dias de Sousa, died. On 25 May 1420, Pope Martin V issued a bull "In Apostolice dignitatis specula", in response to a petition from King João, naming Prince Henry the administrator of the Order of Christ. He was 26 at the time.

The Order of Christ was involved with Henry's expeditions of discovery. Henry invested a considerable part of the Order's revenue in the Discoveries. The implications are that brothers of the Order colonised Madeira and the Canaries in 1425, and then the Azores in 1445.

After the first profitable expeditions - from 1441 onwards - African goods filled Lisbon's markets and swelled the coffers of the order of Christ. Trading posts were established, defended by the brethren, while the Templar's red cross continued to sail south. The Order of Christ grew steadily richer. Henry obtained the Cape Verde islands, and his brethren introduced sugar to their Madeira estates.

In 1449 Prince Henry reformed the order's rule.

In 1454 Pope Nicholas V recognised the claims of Afonso V to all newly discovered lands on or near the west coast of Africa and forbade all Christians to visit them without the permission of the King of Portugal. In 1456, Calixtus III confirmed this in the bull Inter Caetera , and granted to the Order of Christ spiritual jurisdiction over all the 'islands, towns, ports, countries and states, from the Capes of Bojador and Nao, throughout all Guinea, and beyond that southern region as far as the Indies.' The Grand Prior of the Order would be empowered to nominate incumbents to all benefices both of secular and of regular clergy, to impose censures and other ecclesiastical penalties, and to exercise the powers of an Ordinary within the limits of his jurisdiction. All these regions were declared nullius diocesis (belonging to no diocese).

In 1460, the year of Henry's death, King Afonso V granted the Knights of Christ a 5% levy on all merchandise from the new African lands.

Henry extended the Convento de Cristo at Tomar, adding two courtyards to the Templar chapel.

Prince Henry died at Sagres on 13th November 1460. His principal heir was D. Fernão, King Afonso's younger brother, who became the governor of the Order of Christ. Henry granted two of the Azores to D. Fernão, and handed over the spiritual jurisdiction of these islands to the Order of Christ.

The first Masters of the order were: