The Military Order of Christ[a] is the former order of Knights Templar as it was reconstituted in Portugal. Before 1910, it was known as the Royal Military Order of Our Lord Jesus Christ,[b] and the Order of the Knights of Our Lord Jesus Christ.[c] It was founded in 1319,[1][2] with the protection of King Denis of Portugal, after the Templars were abolished on 22 March 1312 by the papal bull, Vox in excelso, issued by Pope Clement V.[3][4] King Denis refused to pursue and persecute the former knights as had occurred in most of the other sovereign states under the political influence of the Catholic Church.
Heavily swayed by Philip IV of France, Pope Clement had the Knights Templar annihilated throughout France and most of Europe on charges of heresy, but Denis revived the Templars of Tomar as the Order of Christ, largely for their aid during the Reconquista and in the reconstruction of Portugal after the wars. Denis negotiated with Clement's successor, John XXII, for recognition of the new order and its right to inherit the Templar assets and property. This was granted in a papal bull, Ad ea ex quibus, on 14 March 1319.[5]
In 1789, Queen Maria I of Portugal secularized the order.[7] In 1910, with the end of the Portuguese monarchy, the order was extinguished. However, in 1917, the order was revived, with its Grand Master to be the President of Portugal. The Military Order of Christ, together with the Military Orders of Aviz and of St. James of the Sword, formed the group of the "Ancient Military Orders", governed by a chancellor and a council of eight members, and appointed by the President of the Republic to assist him as Grand Master in all the order's administrative matters. The Order can be conferred for outstanding services to the Republic on military officers, and, despite its name, on civilians (including foreigners as well as Portuguese citizens) and on members of: Parliament or other branches of government, the diplomatic corps, the Courts of Justice, the Civil Service, and other public authorities.[8]
Grades and badges
The Order of Christ, as awarded by the Portuguese government today, comes in six classes:[9]
Grand Collar (GCol), which wears grand collar, the badge of the Order on a sash on the right shoulder, and the star of the Order in gold on the left chest. This rank was introduced in 2021.[10][11]
Grand Cross (GCC), which wears the badge of the Order on a sash on the right shoulder, and the star of the Order in gold on the left chest;
Grand Officer (GOC), which wears the badge of the Order on a necklet, and the star of the Order in gold on the left chest;
Commander (ComC), which wears the badge of the Order on a necklet, and the star of the Order in silver on the left chest;
Officer (OC), which wears the badge of the Order on a ribbon with rosette on the left chest;
Knight (CvC) or Dame (DmC), which wears the badge of the Order on a plain ribbon on the left chest.
Insignia
The grand collar is formed by simple crosses of the Order, alternating and linked with armillary spheres, gilded, suspended by a double chain of simple links, gilded; in the center, two interlocked branches of quercus coccifera, gilded; the necklace, all in gold, has the cross of the Order hanging, profiled in gold, surrounded by a festoon, of open cut, of laurel leaves with its fruits, tied with crossed ribbons on the tops and sides, also in gold.
The badge of the Order is a gilt cross with enamel, similar to the Order's emblem illustrated here, but with a longer lower arm. During the monarchy there were separate badges for civil and military knights: civil knights wore a badge similar to the modern version, but with the Sacred Heart of Christ above it; military knights had a completely different insignia, this being a gilt, blue and white enamelled Maltese Cross with white enamelled oval shields (each bearing a design similar to the Coat of arms of Portugal minus the red border) between the arms of the cross, the whole surrounded by a wreath of palm; the central disc was in white enamel, with a miniature of the modern badge in it; the badge was topped by a gilt crown.[9]
The star of the Order has 22 asymmetrical arms of rays, in gilt for Grand Cross and Grand Officer, and in silver for Commander. The central disc is in white enamel, with a miniature of the modern badge in it. During the monarchy the Sacred Heart of Christ was placed at the top of the star.[9]
^F. A. Dutra, "Dinis, King of Portugal", in Medieval Iberia: An Encyclopedia (Routledge, 2003), p. 285.
^Curto, José C.; Lovejoy, Paul E. (2004). Enslaving Connections: Changing Cultures of Africa and Brazil During the Era of Slavery. Humanity Books. p. 261. ISBN978-1-59102-153-7.
^"ANTIGAS ORDENS MILITARES". Bem-vindo a pagina oficial do Grao-Mestre das Ordens Honorificas Portuguesas (in Portuguese). Presidência da República Portuguesa. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
^ abcd"GRAUS E INSÍGNIAS DA ORDEM MILITAR DE CRISTO". Bem-vindo a pagina oficial do Grao-Mestre das Ordens Honorificas Portuguesas (in Portuguese). Presidência da República Portuguesa. Retrieved 21 March 2013.
Guimarães, J. Vieira, A Ordem de Cristo, Lisboa, I.N., 1936
Olival, Fernanda, The Military Orders and the Portuguese Expansion (15th to 17th Centuries), Portuguese Studies Review Monographs, Vol. 3, Peterborough: Baywolf Press and The Portuguese Studies Review, 2018.
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