They founded states and dictated their will to European monarchs. The history of knightly orders began in the Middle Ages and is not finished yet.

Templar Order

Date of foundation of the Order: 1119
Interesting facts: The Templars are the most famous knightly order, the history and mysteries of which are the subject of many books and films. The topic of the “curse of Jacques de Molay” is still actively discussed by conspiracy theorists.

After being expelled from Palestine, the Templars switched to financial activities and became the richest order in history. They invented checks, carried out profitable usurious activities, and were the main lenders and economists in Europe.

On Friday, October 13, 1307, by order of King Philip IV the Fair of France, all French Templars were arrested. The order was officially banned.
The Templars were accused of heresy - of denying Jesus Christ, of spitting on the crucifix, kissing each other indecently and practicing sodomy. To “prove” the last point, it is still customary to mention one of the emblems of the Templars - two poor knights sitting on one horse, which served as a symbol of the non-covetousness of the knights of the order.

Teutonic Order

Date of foundation of the order: 1190
Interesting facts: The Teutonic motto is “Help-Protect-Heal.” Initially, this is what the order was doing - helping the sick and protecting German knights, but at the beginning of the 13th century the military history of the order began, it was connected with an attempt to expand the Baltic states and Russian lands. These attempts, as we know, ended unsuccessfully. The “black day” of the Teutons was the Battle of Grunwald in 1410, in which the combined forces of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania inflicted a crushing defeat on the Order.
Deprived of its former military ambitions, the Teutonic Order was restored in 1809. Today he is involved in charity work and treating the sick. The headquarters of the modern Teutons is in Vienna.

Order of the Dragon

Date of foundation of the order: 1408
Interesting facts: Officially, the Order of the Dragon was founded by the King of Hungary, Sigismund I of Luxembourg, but in the Serbian folklore tradition, the legendary hero Milos Obilic is considered its founder.
The knights of the order wore medallions and pendants with images of a golden dragon with a scarlet cross curled into a ring. In the family coats of arms of the nobles who were members of the order, the image of a dragon was usually framed by the coat of arms.
The Order of the Dragon included the father of the legendary Vlad the Impaler, Vlad II Dracul, who received his nickname precisely because of his membership in the order - dracul means “dragon” in Romanian.

Order of Calatrava

Date of foundation of the order: 1158
Interesting facts: The first Catholic order founded in Spain was created to defend the Calatrava fortress. In the 13th century it became the most powerful military force in Spain, capable of fielding between 1,200 and 2,000 knights. At its peak, under Chiron and his son, the order controlled 56 commanderies and 16 priories. Up to 200,000 peasants worked for the order, its net annual income was estimated at 50,000 ducats. However, the order did not have complete independence. The title of grandmaster, starting from the time of Ferdinand and Isabella, has always been borne by Spanish kings.

Hospitallers

Date of foundation of the order: around 1099.
Interesting facts: The Hospice Order, the Hospitallers, the Knights of Malta, or the Johannites, is the oldest spiritual order of knighthood, which received its unofficial name in honor of the hospital and church of St. John the Baptist. Unlike other orders, the Hospitallers accepted female novices into their ranks, and all men who joined the order were required to have a noble title.

The order was international, and its members were divided according to linguistic principles into seven langes in the Middle Ages. Interestingly, the Slavic languages ​​belonged to the Germanic language. The 72nd Grand Master of the order was Russian Emperor Paul the First.

Despite the vow of non-covetousness, the Hospitallers were one of the richest orders of knighthood. During Napoleon's capture of Malta, the French army caused almost three tens of millions of lire worth of damage to the order.

Order of the Holy Sepulcher

Date of foundation of the order: 1099
Interesting facts: This powerful order was created during the First Crusade and the emergence of the Kingdom of Jerusalem. Its king stood at the head of the order. The order's mission was to protect the Holy Sepulcher and other holy places in Palestine.

For a long time, the Grand Masters of the order were the Popes. It was not until 1949 that the title was transferred to members of the Vatican Curia.
The order still exists today. Its members around the world include representatives of royal families, influential businessmen, and the political and scientific elite. According to a 2010 report, the order's membership exceeded 28,000. Its headquarters are located in Rome. More than $50 million was spent on the order's charitable projects between 2000 and 2007.

Order of Alcantara

Date of foundation of the order: 1156
Interesting facts: The Order was originally created as a partnership to defend the frontier fortress of San Julian de Peral in Spain against the Moors. In 1177 the partnership was elevated to an order of knighthood; he pledged to wage perpetual war against the Moors and defend the Christian faith.
King Alfonso IX in 1218 donated the city of Alcantara to the order, where it settled under a new name. Before the occupation of Spain by the French in 1808, the order controlled 37 counties with 53 towns and villages. The history of the order was full of vicissitudes. It grew richer and poorer, it was abolished and restored several times.

Order of Christ

Date of foundation of the order: 1318
Interesting facts: The Order of Christ was the successor to the Templars in Portugal. The Order is also called Tomar - after the name of the Tomar Castle, which became the residence of the Master. The most famous Tomarese was Vasco da Gama. On the sails of his ships there is a red cross, which was the emblem of the Order of Christ.
The Tomarians were one of the main pillars of royal power in Portugal, and the order was secularized, which, of course, did not suit the Vatican, which began to award its own Supreme Order of Christ. In 1789 the order was finally secularized. In 1834, the nationalization of his property took place.

Order of the Sword

Date of foundation of the order: 1202
Interesting facts: The official name of the order is “Brotherhood of the Warriors of Christ.” The knights of the order received the nickname “sword bearers” because of the swords depicted on their cloaks under the clawed Templar cross. Their main goal was to capture the Eastern Baltic. According to the agreement of 1207, 2/3 of the captured lands became the property of the order.
The plans of the eastern expansion of the Swordsmen were thwarted by the Russian princes. In 1234, in the battle of Omovzha, the knights suffered a crushing defeat from the Novgorod prince Yaroslav Vsevolodovich, after which Lithuania, together with the Russian princes, began campaigns on the lands of the order. In 1237, after the unsuccessful Crusade against Lithuania, the Swordsmen joined the Teutonic Order and became the Livonian Order. It was defeated by Russian troops in the Livonian War in 1561.

Order of Saint Lazarus

Date of foundation of the order: 1098
Interesting facts: The Order of Saint Lazarus is notable for the fact that initially all its members, including the Grand Master, were lepers. The order received its name from the place of its founding - from the name of the hospital of St. Lazarus, located near the walls of Jerusalem.
It is from the name of this order that the name “infirmary” comes from. The knights of the order were also called “Lazarites”. Their symbol was a green cross on a black cassock or cloak.
At first, the order was not military and was engaged exclusively in charitable activities, helping lepers, but from October 1187 the Lazarites began to participate in hostilities. They went into battle without helmets, their faces, disfigured by leprosy, terrified their enemies. Leprosy in those years was considered incurable and the Lazarites were called “the living dead.”
In the Battle of Forbia on October 17, 1244, the order lost almost all of its personnel, and after the expulsion of the crusaders from Palestine, it settled in France, where it is still engaged in charity work today.

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The modern official name is the Sovereign Military, Hospitable Order of St. John, Jerusalem, Rhodes and Malta. The official residence is in Rome (Italy).
It got its name from the hospital and church of St. John the Baptist, where the monastic order created in 1113 was located, which over time turned into a military-spiritual organization. In terms of their fighting qualities and military prowess, the Ioanites were rightfully considered the best warriors in Europe. After the Crusaders were expelled from Palestine, the Hospitallers crossed to Cyprus, where they built a fleet and captured the island of Rhodes in 1309. In 1522, after a six-month siege of Rhodes by the Turks, the fleet of knights moved to the island of Malta, where the order ruled until 1798. At the present time, the order is engaged in charitable and merciful activities.

2

The official name is the Order of the Knights of Solomon's Temple, also the Order of the Knights of Christ. It arose in 1119 in Jerusalem from knights who had previously served at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher. Along with the Hospitallers, he was engaged in the protection of pilgrims and the protection of Christian possessions in Palestine. He was also engaged in trade, usury and banking, due to which he accumulated enormous wealth. After the expulsion from Palestine, the order almost completely switched to financial activities. In 1307, by order of Pope Clement V and the French King Philip IV, arrests of members of the order on charges of heresy and confiscation of property began. After the execution of several members, including the Grand Master, the order was dissolved by papal bull in 1312.

3

The official name is Fratrum Theutonicorum ecclesiae S. Mariae Hiersolymitanae. Founded in 1190 on the basis of a hospital founded by German pilgrims in Acre. In 1196 it was reorganized into a spiritual knightly order headed by a master. Goals: protecting German knights, treating the sick, fighting the enemies of the Catholic Church. At the beginning of the 13th century, he transferred his activities to Prussia and the Baltic states, where he took part in the crusades against the Slavs and Balts. In fact, the state of the Teutonic Knights, Livonia, was formed on the conquered lands. The decline of the order began after the defeat in the Battle of Grunwald in 1410. Currently, the order is engaged in charity and treatment of the sick. The headquarters is located in Vienna.

4

The spiritual knightly order of Calatrava (Calatrava la Vieja) was founded in Spain in 1158 by the monk Raymond de Fetero. Pope Alexander III approved the charter of the order in 1164. The knightly order got its name from the Calatrava fortress conquered from the Arabs. The distinctive sign of the members of the order was white and black clothing with a red cross. The Order took an active part in the reconquest of lands captured by the Moors on the Iberian Peninsula (Reconquista). Ceased to exist in 1873.

5

The official name is the Grand Military Order of the Sword of St. James of Compostela. Founded in Spain around 1160. Named after the patron saint of Spain. He took part in the crusades and wars with Muslims. It operates to this day as a civil order of knighthood under the patronage of the King of Spain.

6

The spiritual knightly order of Alcantara was founded in 1156 in Spain. Initially it was a military-religious brotherhood of knights, bearing the name San Julian de Pereiro. In 1217, the Knights of the Order of Calatrava, with the permission of the king, transferred the city of Alcantara and all the possessions of the Order of Calatrava in Leon to the Order of San Julian de Pereiro. After which the Order of San Julian de Pereiro was renamed the Knightly Order of Alcantara. The Order took part in the Reconquista. In the 1830s. the order was nationalized and ceased to exist.

7

The official name is the Order of St. Bennett of Avish. The order was created in 1147 to protect the city of Evora, which had recently been recaptured from the Moors. In 1223
The residence of the order was moved to the city of Avis, donated by the King of Portugal and fortified by the knights. The Order took part in the Portuguese part of the Reconquista and the colonization of the African coast. Dissolved in 1910, but in 1917 restored as a purely civilian body, headed by the President of Portugal.

8

The Order of the Sword is a German Catholic spiritual-knightly order, officially called the "Brothers of Christ's Host". It was created in 1202 on the initiative of the Bremen canon Albert, who became the first bishop of Riga. The goal was to capture the Eastern Baltic, carried out crusades against the Baltic peoples, while a third of the captured lands were assigned to the order. After a series of defeats from the Russian princes and Lithuania, the remnants of the order joined the Teutonic Order in 1237.

9

Spiritually - a knightly order, the successor of the Templars in Portugal. Established in 1318 by the Portuguese king Dinis to continue the fight against Muslims begun by the Templars. Pope John XXII allowed all the possessions of the Portuguese Templars to be transferred to the order, including the castle of Tomar, which in 1347 became the residence of the Grand Master. Hence the second name of the order - Tomarsky. The Tomar knights, like their Avis brothers, took an active part in the overseas travels of Portuguese sailors. Vasco da Gama and other Tomar knights-errant sailed with the emblem of the order. Like the Order of Aviz, it was dissolved in 1910, but in 1917 it was restored as a purely civilian one, headed by the President of Portugal.

10

The official name is the Military and Hospitaller Order of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem. Founded by the Crusaders in Palestine in 1098 on the basis of a hospital for lepers, which existed under the jurisdiction of the Greek Patriarchate. The Order accepted into its ranks knights who fell ill with leprosy. The symbol of the order was a green cross on a white cloak. After Saladin's capture of Jerusalem in October 1187, the order saw action, particularly during the Third Crusade. In the Battle of Forbia on October 17, 1244, the order lost all its personnel (both healthy and leper knights along with the master). After the expulsion of the crusaders from Palestine, the order settled in France, where it continued its hospital activities. The modern Order of Saint Lazarus has branches in 24 countries around the world and continues its charitable activities.

N.F. Uskov

Dictionary of medieval culture. M., 2003, p. 320-331

Monasticism(from the Greek monachos - “hermit”) - one of the forms of implementation of the ascetic ideal, characteristic of a number of “religions of salvation”, which require their followers to fully or partially systematize behavior in order to gain both “spiritual participation in the divine” during life and salvation after death (M. Weber). In medieval monasticism one should not see the expression of the aspirations of the Haskets alone: ​​it was an indispensable component of society’s ideas about itself, its value guidelines and tasks.

The transition from asceticism to monasticism

The texts of the New Testament do not contain any developed system of Christian asceticism; monks are not mentioned there either. However, Jesus taught about the vanity of everything worldly and called for people to follow themselves, leaving property and relatives in the name of a hundredfold reward (Matthew 19:10-12, 27-28; Mark 6:7-9; 10, 17-31; Luke 12 ,
22-31). The affirmation of the frailty of the “image of this world” coexisted in Scripture with the warning that the end of the world is near (1 Cor. 7:29,31). Denying the dualism of soul and body, seeing in them the one creation of God, Christianity recognized that man must overcome not the flesh, but his pride and self-love in the name of love for God. In fact, Christianity borrowed from various dualistic teachings of late antiquity forms of frantic struggle with the flesh, which subsequently often prevailed in the practice of monasticism, especially in a situation of heightened eschatological expectations. This, in particular, led to the identification of ascetics, and then monks, with the martyrs of the “peacetime” (when the persecution of Christians had already ceased) and determined the high authority of monasticism among the laity and in the church.

The desire to follow Christ, understood primarily as a way out of the system of traditional social ties for the sake of connection (Latin religio) with the sacred (hence the frequent designation of monks as religiosi), with the growth of Christian communities in the 3rd-4th centuries, led to the break of ascetics with the community (in which it is inevitable there was a homogenization of the Christian ideal) and departure, following the example of Christ, into the desert (Matthew 4), where monasticism was established as an institution isolated from the rest of the church. Even the authors of the lives of the first monks emphasized the peculiar selfishness of ascetics, who sought to find personal salvation by leaving the community. “pay attention only to yourself alone” (St. Athanasius), without participating in the performance of certain social functions. This desire was expressed in concentrated form by one of the greatest Western fathers of monasticism, John Cassian (d. 435): “A monk must do everything in all ways. run away from the bishop and the woman."

OK. 275 St. Anthony the Great (c. 250-356), who is called the “ancestor” of monasticism, joined one of the ascetics who lived in the desert of Lower Egypt. Egyptian colonies of hermits, which soon appeared under the influence of the exploits of St. Anthony and laid the foundation of heremitism (from the Greek “desert dwelling”), also nurtured another form of MA - the cinnamon form (from the Greek “coenobitic”), which imitated the community of the apostles: “The multitude... there was one heart and one soul... “They had everything in common” (Acts 4:32-35), Constant prayer (lat. laus perennis) and physical labor (lat. orera manuum), according to 1 Thess. 4, 11; 5, 17, were charged to members of the community and became the main occupations of the Cenobites. The founder of cinema is St. Pachomius the Great (c. 292-348), who wrote the first charter (rule), along with the power of the abbot (abbot, from the Syrian “father”) regulating the life of the community. In the 4th century. monasticism spreads in Palestine, Syria, Asia Minor, Armenia, Georgia and Western Europe. In the 10th century From Byzantium, monasticism penetrated Bulgaria and Serbia, and in the 11th century. to Rus'.

Monasticism in the early Middle Ages:

between the church, nobility and royalty

The first centers of monasticism in the West known to us appeared in the most Romanized, and, accordingly, Christianized regions: Italy and Gaul. The oldest monasteries in Western Europe were founded in Aquitaine by St. Martin of Tours (336-401). Regardless of him in the U-U1 centuries. in the southeast of Gaul a whole family of monasteries developed, with the center in Lerens near Cannes. The largest of them included the monasteries of Jura (Konda, Lokon, Balma). The experience of Eastern ascetics, summarized in the works of John Cassian - “Conversations” and “Institutions”, had a significant influence on South Gaulish monasticism. In the vicinity of Rome in the beginning. VI century, apparently, not without the influence of the traditions of Leren, the “Rule of the Teacher” (lat. Regula Magistri) was compiled, which formed the basis of the Regula Benedicti - a charter written by St. Benedict of Nursia (d. 555/560) for the foundation he founded c. 530 of the monastery of Monte Cassino near Naples.

With the advent of the cinnamon, significant changes occurred in the psychology of monasticism. What was required of the cenobite was not so much the desire to leave the world and lead an ascetic lifestyle for Christ’s sake, but rather a readiness for obedience and humility, up to the point of dissolving his will in the will of the leaders of the monastic community with its strict discipline, vigilant control and system of punishments. In the Rule of Benedict, monks are defined as “soldiers of heaven,” fighting in “brotherly formation” under the leadership of the abbot. Life in a monastery is preparation for the higher world, protected from the wiles of the devil, which are dangerous for a free hermit. Only after undergoing training in a monastery - “a school of serving the Lord”, unquestioningly obeying the teacher-abbot as the “vicar of Christ”, could a monk become a hermit. Benedict viewed pilgrimage as a perverted version of monasticism, which could not provide education in monastic humility.

The spontaneous ascetic impulse was replaced by imitation, the reproduction in everyday life of those norms that were tested by the more holy men of antiquity on the way to the “heights of perfection.” With the advent of Cassian's compendiums and written regulations, the study of such norms seemed more important than searching for a suitable desert or obtaining "Egyptian roots." Reading (Latin: lectio divina), primarily a correct understanding of the Bible, along with prayer and physical labor, comes to the fore in the life of the community. The foundation of monastic learning was laid in Italy in the 6th century. Cassiodorus, founder of Vivarium, and Pope Gregory the Great, author of Moralia in Job - the main medieval code of monastic spirituality. The heroic feat of the ascetic was replaced by the routine of the “workshop”, in which the brothers master the “tools of spiritual craft” (Benedict has 72 of them), ascend 12 steps of humility from “unquestioning obedience” to elders to a deep experience of the inescapable sinfulness of their “I”, the urge to love God alone . A monk must lead not a contemplative, but an active life, “build” himself and thus create the heavenly Jerusalem, the “citizens” of which medieval sources often call monks. Therefore, construction motifs in didactic monastic literature, fine and applied arts are not accidental. What remained of the requirement to leave the world was the “closedness of the monastery” and the vow of “settled life” (lat. stabilitas loci), first mentioned in the U-I centuries. in the monastic texts of Lerain's circle and recorded in the Rule of Benedict.

Benedict's Rule, like other monastic rules, proposed a new system of social connections, conceived as the antithesis of the relationships existing in the world. Entry into a monastery was equated to a new birth and was recorded by a special legal act that had virtually no retroactive effect. This was symbolized by a change of clothing, the renunciation of the previous name, all property and family relationships, and later the renunciation of hair and beard, which personified social status and gender in the world. The monk had to become neutrum, that is, like the angels, neither male nor female. The entire hierarchy within the brethren was built in accordance with the age of conversion, and at its head was the new “father” of the monks - the abbot, who was charged with taking care of all the needs of the brothers, instructing and punishing disobedient “children”.

The growing internal regulation of monastic life was also matched externally. monasticism, which originated outside the church and represented a “free” form of life for the laity, according to the canons of the Council of Chalcedon in 451, turned into an institution of public and church law. To found a monastery, the consent of the bishop was now required, which was approved
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The right of control and care over the lives of monks. This decision, supported by the Gallic councils, was due to the growth of the secular and spiritual power of the episcopate in the context of the disintegration of the municipal system in cities and the creation of the imperial church in Byzantium and royal churches in the barbarian states. The desire to ensure a monopoly of the episcopate in spiritual life, a monopoly on “holiness” that legitimized the secular power of the prelate, sometimes became the reason for a disdainful and jealous attitude towards monasticism, as in the case of the hermit and stylite Wulfilaich of the 6th century, ridiculed, according to Gregory of Tours, by the bishops who then destroyed his pillar.

Along with the responsibilities for intensifying religious life, including participation in pastoral service, the bishop also assigned the tasks of representing his own power to the monasteries subordinate to him from now on. Thus, in the V-VI centuries. The spontaneous growth of monasticism, caused only by ascetic motives, gave way to a strictly regulated process, initiated by
There were mainly prelates who assigned special functions to the monasteries in the sphere of church organization. This ultimately predetermined the emergence and long-term existence of various forms of “monastic-clerical symbiosis” (R. Schiffer), which Alcuin (c. 735-804) in due time designated as tertius gradus (Latin “third rank”), i.e. something between monasticism and clergy. The rapprochement between the clergy and monasticism was facilitated, on the one hand, by the growing importance of the Mass in the life of monks (and, accordingly, by an increase in the number of monks ordained), the development of the cult of saints, the regular veneration of which, coupled with the pastoral care of pilgrims, becomes a constitutive element of many monasteries, and with the other is the idea of ​​the desirability of “cult purity” for the clergy who come into contact with the holy gifts, which implied not only celibacy, but also vita communis (Latin “community life”), following the example of the apostles, whose successor the clergy is considered.

Irish monasticism, which arose in the 8th-11th centuries, followed a different path of clericalization. In Ireland there were no cities in the Roman sense of the word, and the episcopate, which did not have secular power, turned out to be much weaker than the monasteries, which were an important link in the clan organization of ancient Irish society. A monastic church developed in Ireland: the largest monasteries (Kildare, Clonard, Clonmacnoise, Bangor, Iona, etc.) became the centers of dioceses (paruchia), and their abbots or abbesses themselves appointed bishops. The monasteries largely earned their authority through the incredible severity of asceticism. One of its forms was a pilgrimage for Christ’s sake, understood as a voluntary separation from one’s homeland in order to find a secluded abode far from it. In con. VI century St. arrived in Gaul. Columban (d. 615), under whose influence the number of monasteries doubled. Along with the deepening Christianization of the Franks, and accordingly the complication of their spiritual needs, an important role in the success of the mission of St. Columban also played a role in the attractiveness of the model of Irish monasticism, which declared independence from the power of the episcopate.

In the first half of the 7th century. the desire for autonomy of the monasteries found support at the Frankish court, in whose policy there was a clear desire to strengthen the influence of royal power on the episcopate, which concentrated extensive powers in its hands, which in some regions led to the creation of “episcopal republics” (O. Evig). The privilege of ekhemptio (Latin for “seizure”), which removed the internal organization of the monastery, as well as its property from the jurisdiction of the episcopate, became widespread. At the same time, it was not possible to create a monastic church similar to the Irish one on the continent that was completely independent of the diocese.

The change in funeral rites in the 7th century, expressed in the almost universal disappearance of funerary goods and the rapid growth of burials ad sanctos (Latin for “with the saints,” i.e. near the tomb of a saint), coincides with the first wave of the founding of “private” monasteries. In hagiography since the 7th-9th centuries. a hermit is, for the most part, no longer a solitary enthusiast: in the matter of founding a cell or monastery, he acts together with pious laymen who care about the good of their own souls,
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What is expressed in the charters is the universal motivation for foundations or donations - pro remedio animae (Latin “for the salvation of the soul”). In the 8th century. in monasteries, memorial books of the living and the dead are recorded (Durham, England; St. Petersburg, Salzburg, etc.), and the very participation in the monastic prayer community during life or after death acquires considerable spiritual significance. “The right of a private church,” crystallized in the process of increasing centrifugal tendencies in the Merovingian state, lay at the basis of many monasteries that arose in the UP-USH century. outside the authority of both the king and the local bishop. A “private” or domain monastery provided not so much for the ascetic needs of its inhabitants, but rather guaranteed the personal and ancestral well-being of the owner, served as a guarantee of his earthly success, as well as afterlife rewards, while at the same time providing the magnate’s authority with the proper spiritual sanction.

Majordomos, and then kings from the Carolingian dynasty at the end. 7th-8th centuries, trying to strengthen the power verticals in the fight against local separatism, including the “episcopal republics”, they founded on their lands, and later on the lands of the fiscus, many private monasteries, the abbots of which took an oath of allegiance to the dynasty. Later they demanded such an oath from all private monasteries in the kingdom, while at the same time allowing the existence of private monasteries among those faithful to the dynasty of bishops. Only with the weakening of central power in the second half of the 9th century. again, private monasteries of individual magnates arose in large numbers, which, to one degree or another, retained, even after the ban on the institution of the “private church” in 1095, dependence on their lords on the basis of the right of patronage.

Carolingian monasteries received a set of privileges: the kings guaranteed them security and patronage, which meant legal independence from the bishop of local lords, as well as tax and judicial immunity, and later the right to freely choose an abbot with his subsequent approval by the monarch. The Carolingians contributed to the transformation of monasteries into the largest and most privileged landowners in Europe. The monasteries were obliged to serve the king (servitium regis), primarily military, placing warriors on their lands; They prayed for the well-being of the empire, helped the sovereign with advice, provided him with hospitality, made various monetary contributions, and finally, organized schools for the laity and clergy and printed books. Thanks to the Carolingian policy, monasteries became the largest centers of early medieval literature and learning.

The fact that monasticism to the beginning. 9th century became one of the most important pillars of the imperial church system, not only added political significance to the rank of abbot, introducing the abbots of monasteries into the highest aristocracy, but made it possible to transfer this rank to the laity as a reward for service. The social composition of the monasteries changed: representatives of the nobility prevailed in them, who did not choose monastic life voluntarily, at a conscious age, but were destined for it from childhood as pueri oblati (Latin “children brought as a gift”). Their transfer to monasteries was motivated by the desire to increase the spiritual authority of the family, but sometimes also its social status, to ensure the maintenance and future of children not participating in the inheritance, to acquire their own prayer book before God or a popular saint.

Back in the 7th century. in the monasteries of St. Columbania and his followers were propagated by a “mixed rule” based on Irish traditions and the Rule of Benedict. Columbanus may have received it from Rome from Pope Gregory the Great (590-604), who also wrote the life of Benedict - which is why, north of the Alps, the Rule of Benedict soon began to be perceived as “Roman”, pleasing to the “Prince of the Apostles” Peter, the owner of the keys of the heavenly fatherhood; which means that following such a charter should have guaranteed the acquisition of salvation to the greatest extent.

The popularity of Benedict's Rule was brought about by Anglo-Saxon missionaries at the end of the century. VII - first half of the VIII century. The Charter, consecrated in the name of Pope Gregory the Great, the founder of the English Church, has already been established since the end. VII century prevailed in English monasteries. The reform of the Frankish church, carried out by the Anglo-Saxon St. Boniface (672/75 - 754) with the support of the Carolingians,
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Provided for the establishment of “uniformity and subordination to Rome.” The introduction of the Rule of Benedict in all monasteries of the Frankish kingdom, the displacement of other rules, became an important component of the universalist policy of the Carolingians, which pursued the goal of internal consolidation of a vast multi-ethnic state and legitimation, primarily of spiritual, usurped royal power (751). The emerging new ethos of the Christian sovereign, the ruler of the imperium Christianum (Latin for the “Christian empire” - Alcuin), demanded from the Carolingians the patronage of not only religion and the church, but also care for monasticism.

Finally, the Rule of Benedict, as the only one pleasing to God and therefore permissible in the monasteries of the Frankish empire, was approved at the Council in Aachen in 816, which also strictly separated monasticism from the communal forms of organization of the white clergy. Initiator of the council, advisor to Louis the Pious (814-840) St. Benedict of Anian (d. 821), trying to unify even the interpretation of the statute, prepared at the same time a legislative approval of a single and obligatory “custom” for all monasteries (una regula - una consuetudo - Latin “one rule - one custom”), a kind of expanded and more detailed Rule of Benedict.

At the same time, one should not exaggerate the degree of unification of monasticism in the Frankish empire on this basis. Effectiveness of the Aachen decrees of 816 was as limited as the effectiveness of other Carolingian capitularies, which served rather as a manifestation of the general principles of power. The Rule of Benedict was for the monasteries a kind of symbol of loyalty to the Carolingian dynasty, which interpreted the ordo monasticus (Latin for “monastic class”) only as ordo benedictinus (Latin for “Benedictine class”). This idea, having lost connection with the specific ideological and political circumstances of its origin, was adopted over time and monasticism, and was preserved as a whole until the 12th century. Benedict's Charter was layered with numerous local customs and legal regulations of individual abbots, which in practice were regula viva. (Lat. “living rule”). Naturally, the acquisition by monasteries of various non-ascetic functions, the change in the status of the abbot and the composition of the monasteries, could not but affect the appearance of monasticism. Prayers before God and especially solemn veneration of saints, commemoration of the living and the dead, education, science, fulfillment of servitium regis (or duties to the monastery’s superior) , demanded by society, occupy a central place in the daily practice of monasticism, pushing into the background the tasks of unity with God, achieving individual salvation, etc.

Monastic reforms. Clunians

The evolution of monasticism in the early Middle Ages reflected the growth of its spiritual authority and the social significance of the sector of medieval society it occupied. At the same time, the “image of monasticism” that had developed in the minds of the laity and clergy (L.P. Karsavin) to a certain extent existed independently of its real incarnation. The desire to achieve the internal homogeneity of monasticism, its identity with the ideal, gave rise to the well-known formula: “The monastery must always be reformed.” The term reforma in its medieval usage meant a return to some primordial, and therefore authentic, forma. For Benedict of Anian, and in the 10th-11th centuries. For the Clunians and other monastic movements, this “only correct” form, and therefore obligatory for each monastery, was the Rule of Benedict. These “revivers of monasticism” (L.P. Karsavin), essentially traditionalists, trying to return monasticism to its “origins,” saw in unreformed monasteries only “secularization” and “corruption” and sought, by breaking the isolation of the monasteries, to impose their own on them, in a generally utopian understanding of the goals and image of monastic service. The artificiality of the form of monastic life was reflected in the “customs” compiled by the reformers (usually to tighten the requirements of the Rule of Benedict), and designed to describe in the smallest detail the imaginary social practice of the monastery. Thus, the Benedictine vow of silence was continued among the Clunians in the form of an expanded dictionary of gestures. The consequence of the reforms was therefore the further ritualization of monastic everyday life.
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It is necessary to distinguish the reform of Benedict of Anian, which was determined by ideological and political factors, carried out from above and limited by the Frankish empire, from the unification monastic movements of the 10th-11th centuries, which were part of a mass religious upsurge, fueled by eschatological expectations on the eve of the millennium
Christmas, and then the passion of Christ. Appearing in the 10th-11th centuries. The transition from formal piety to the search for individual ways of communicating with God became evident primarily in the sphere of monastic life. During this period, there was not only criticism of the practice of transferring children to the monastery, but also a massive, conscious conversion of the laity. Contemporaries believed that monks not only had greater chances of salvation than laity and clergy, but also in heaven, not bishops, would lead the body of the righteous and, together with God, would then carry out the Last Judgment on the world.

The transformations of monasticism in the German Empire under the Ottones and the first Salii (936-1054), as well as in England under King Edgar (after 970), were similar to the Carolingian reform. In contrast, the Cluny movement, centered in the Burgundian Abbey of Cluny, founded in 910, came from among monasticism, and the monastic association that developed around Cluny was not determined by any political boundaries. Cluny was outside the sphere of the private and royal church, as well as the authority of the bishop, having been transferred by its founder, Duke William of Aquitaine, under the protection of the pope. During the reign of Abbot Odon (927-942), Cluny became the center of monastic reform, aimed at liberating monasticism from outside influence, from a bishop or secular lord, which was interpreted as a consistent renunciation from the world, a condition for the fulfillment of the Rule of Benedict and at the same time a guarantee of fidelity to it. The desire for independence of monasticism found visible expression in special, black robes, first introduced among the Benedictines precisely by the Clunians. The Clunians, however, did not seek the abolition of the right of a private church. On the contrary, the Onis themselves used this right to implement the reform of monasteries, receiving them
as a gift for the salvation of the soul, buying or entering into joint ownership with the lord - so that the reform rather went not from monastery to monastery, but from castle to castle. If the Clunians saw the church as predominantly monastic, as, in their opinion, it was in the time of the apostles, then the lord, ideally, even while remaining in the world, should have hidden his tonsure under a helmet.

The Clunians considered prayer before God for the salvation of themselves and the world to be the center of monastic life. Built in 1088-1125. the new abbey church (the so-called Cluny III) was the most grandiose temple in the Catholic world; On its numerous altars, divine services practically did not stop, the pomp and solemnity of which earned contemporaries the ironic nickname - “the lead mass.” Part of the liturgical cycle of Cluny was the commemoration of the living and the dead, which reached unprecedented proportions. Abbot Odilon (993-1049) established a special holiday for all departed souls (November 2), which over time became a general church holiday. The priority of worship determined that most monks had a priestly rank.

The Cluny association included hundreds of monasteries in Western Europe, so contemporaries could call its head “king” and even “August”, i.e. emperor. At the same time, the Clunians failed to achieve a strict unification of the monasteries, many of which, as the popularity of Cluny grew, unification was driven rather by considerations of social prestige or the belief that the posthumous commemoration of the Clunian monks would ensure their salvation.

The movement of the Hermits in the 10th-11th centuries.

Part of the religious upsurge of the 10th-11th centuries. there was also a movement of heremits. Heremitisms previously existed in Western Europe, however, only as a phenomenon, although deeply revered, but still marginal in comparison with Cenonic monasticism. The “Golden Age” of heremitism was largely a reaction to the spread from the end. 9th century simony and marriages of clergy, the secularization of the white clergy, who pushed ascetic-minded laywomen into a radical escape from the world. The special fervor of the movement in Italy suggests some influence of Greek monasticism (with its characteristic hermitage cult), which survived in the south of the peninsula since Byzantine rule. A carefully developed method of asceticism, even competition in the emaciation of the flesh against the backdrop of the dangers of the forests of gambling steeps undeveloped by man, constituted the main content of the heroic feat. At the same time, the hermits, sometimes in search of role models, and sometimes because of self-doubt and fear of temptation, very soon united into communities and even congregations, consisting of several colonies and, along with the texts of their mentors, were guided by the Charter Benedict, thus combining the rigors of individual asceticism with the communal way of life. Such associations formed in Italy around St. Romuald (950-1027) in Camaldoli (Order of the Camaldulens), John Gualbert (990-1073) in Vallumbrosa (Order of the Vallumbrasians), in France around Bruno of Cologne (1030/35-1101), who founded the monastery of Chartreuse (order of Carthusians).

Creation of orders. Cistercians

Over time, the monks of the reformed monasteries began to join the movement of the Hermits, dissatisfied with both the growth in the number of brethren and the enrichment of the monasteries, the luxury of their churches and worship, which gave rise to longing for the original simplicity of the Rule of Benedict. In such monasteries, it seemed increasingly difficult to find saving union with God, especially considering that the great fame of the Cluny monasteries often attracted people there who were trying to move up the social ladder. In 1098, a group of ascetic monks left their monasteries and retired to the secluded area of ​​Citeaux (lat. Cistercium) in Burgundy. This monastery gave its name to the Cistercian order, founded in 1118. Thanks to the efforts of St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) the Cistercian order spread to the middle. XII century throughout Western Europe, and a contemporary could exclaim: “The world has become Cistercian!”

The Cistercians did not reform the old monasteries, but founded new ones, sharply contrasting themselves with the previous monasticism, which was institutionalized by the created imin form of organization of monasticism - the order. They believed that the old monasteries, with their long traditions, privileges and connections, land holdings and vassals, were not suitable for “authentic” monasticism. In heremo (Latin “in the desert”), in places not yet inhabited by man, in simplicity and poverty, the Cistercians hoped to fully implement the Charter of Benedict. The ideal of poverty was visibly reflected in white (without dye), cheap “angelic” robes, as well as in the austere, no-frills architecture and interior decoration of Cistercian monasteries.

The order was based on the principle of filiation (Latin filiatio - clan continuity): upon achieving stability and maturity of the convention, the abbot, so that the severity of the monastic ideal did not soften, sent some of the brothers to found a new, daughter monastery, which the abbot of the mother monastery from now on regularly visited. Unlike the Cluny association, the head of which was the Abbot of Cluny, the supreme power in the Cistercian order was held by the general chapter - the annual meeting of all the abbots of the Cistercian monasteries. Their way of life was regulated by the statutes of the order, approved by the General Chapter, while the Cluny “customs” were primarily the customs of Cluny itself and in other monasteries of the Cluny association were layered on local monastic traditions. Also, the legal status of the Cistercian monasteries was determined by the general order privileges granted by the papacy, and not the private ones of each monastery, as in the previous monasticism. Subsequently, following the model of the Cistercians, all monasticism, including Cluny, was organized into various orders. Independence, as a rule, was retained only by the ancient royal (imperial) abbeys, periodic attempts to reform which followed throughout the Middle Ages. The confrontation between monasteries and unifying monastic movements was thus replaced by the confrontation of orders, within which unification reached the commonality of patron saints and uniformity in the architectural appearance of individual monasteries.
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The Cistercians considered physical labor to be a condition of monastic service, in which they saw a means of instilling humility and curbing the “spirit of temptation,” as well as guaranteeing the monastery’s independence from the world. Unlike previous monasticism, the Cistercians were not allowed to live on the labor of others or have dependent peasants and vassals. As a result, they spent more time in the field, in the barnyard or in the vineyard than in the scriptorium, school or temple for worship. Soon, however, manual labor was transferred to the converse (Latin for “converts”), who, being from the rural poor, although they took monastic vows, they lived separately from the main brethren. Intensive, highly profitable commercial farming became a source of rapid enrichment for the order. Contemporaries ironically said that Cistercian monasteries were like Noah’s Ark, for which the brothers gathered
all the riches, leaving desolation outside.

The Cistercian cult of labor, the intensive development of forests and wastelands, the introduction of all kinds of technical innovations allow us to consider the Cistercian movement within the framework of internal colonization in Western Europe in the 12th century, and also partially attribute to it the merit in the “rehabilitation of labor” (A.Ya. Gurevich). Exactly how much social significance does active labor activity have? in the conditions of a relatively overpopulated Europe influenced the rapid success of the order, it is difficult to judge, although in zones of military colonization, in the West Slavic lands and Spain, Cistercian monasteries were indeed desirable, and their foundation was supported by various secular and spiritual institutions, and the influx of inhabitants was ensured, among other things, by high authority missionary service combined with the hope of the laurels of martyrdom. And yet, the growth of the order was largely determined by: dissatisfaction with the results of monastic reforms in the 10th-11th centuries. and the church in the second half of the 11th - first quarter of the 12th century, the increase in social conflicts in connection with the development of commodity-money relations (hence the Cistercian cult of poverty) and at the same time changes in the religious consciousness of society, primarily its radicalization, expressed, among other things, in crusades, the creation of spiritual knightly orders, the massive, from the second half of the 12th century, dissemination of heretical teachings.

"Return" to the world

As cities grew in the 11th-12th centuries and their role in economic, intellectual and political life strengthened, monasticism, rooted in the agrarian sphere, lost its importance, and the idea of ​​the wealth of monasteries, the effeminacy, idleness and greed of their inhabitants gained more and more space in the public consciousness . The Church sought to maintain its control over the cities, its monopoly in the spiritual life of society. The papacy, which even in the era of reforms actively relied on monastic movements and sought, by distributing the privileges of apostolic patronage to monasteries, to strengthen the hierarchical principle of church organization, in the 20s. XII century refuses to support monasticism in its struggle for autonomy within the church, expands the prerogatives of bishops.

Indicative in this regard is the metamorphosis of the regular canons, which arose in the second half of the 11th century. among the city clergy, who sought to become like the then spiritually attractive monasticism in their organization and contrast the purity of communal life with the vices of the rest of the clergy. In the beginning. XII century there is a demarcation between regular canons and monasticism. As a rule of community, they chose not the Rule of Benedict, but the rule attributed to Augustine, the oldest list of which dates back to the 6th-7th centuries. Since the IV Lateran Council of 1215 prohibited the creation of orders on the basis of new statutes, almost all spiritual orders of the 12th-13th centuries, including mendicants (except the Franciscan), accepted the statutes. Augustine. It was based on a special mystical category of Christian doctrine - love (lat. caritas). The highest love for God required sacrificial love for one's neighbor, which was expressed in active pastoral activity in the world, in responsibility for the salvation of all Christian souls. It was in this sense that the ideal of vita apostolica (Latin “apostolic life”) began to be interpreted, in which they were now seen not so much as following Christ following the example of the apostolic communities, leaving the world and the cenonic way of life, but rather likening them to the apostles who carried the good news to people.
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In the practice of the Order of Premonstratensians (lat. Praemonstratum - “Fore-Ordained”, as the first monastery in the vicinity of Reims was called), founded in 1120 by Canon Norbert of Xanten (c. 1082-1132), for the first time the ideal of apostolic preaching and pastoral service in the world was combined with the requirements of monastic asceticism , which is freed from external conventions (solitude in the “desert”, seclusion, sedentary life), is spiritualized, transferred to the sphere of internal spiritual work. This evolution was facilitated by the mystical definition of monks in Augustine’s Rule as “lovers of spiritual beauty.”

Mendicant Order

The emergence of mendicant monasticism (lat. mendicantes) in the 13th century. is closely connected with the development of new views on monastic asceticism, going back to the ideals of the regular canons and Premonstratensians, as well as those formed under the influence of heretical and other mass religious movements of the second half of the 12th - early. XIII century The ideology of mendicant monasticism bore the imprint of acute social conflicts of the era caused by the intensive development of the monetary economy and growing social polarization, especially noticeable in cities. The novelty, swiftness and ruthlessness of these processes gave rise to a crisis in the traditional Christian worldview and increased the expectation of the end of the world. Following Christ was now understood as the renunciation of all property and even a roof over one’s head for the sake of preaching universal repentance. From the very beginning, mendicant monasticism was supported by the papacy, which sought to rely on it in the fight against heretical movements, strengthen pastoral ministry in cities and increase the authority of the church. In addition, the mendicants, more mobile than the previous monasticism and not associated with local interests, strengthened the vertical of papal power.

The organization of mendicant monasticism was based on the idea of ​​“apostolic life”, the evolution of the understanding of which was reflected by the rejection of the kenobia and the replacement by mendicants of the traditional name “monks”, i.e. "hermits", to "brothers". Mendicant monasticism focused on preaching in cities, confession, and missionary work, which presupposed the acceptance of all brothers into the priesthood. The organization of preaching in the mendicant orders differed significantly from the territorial one practiced in the church, and was based on the experience of heretics - the Cathars and Waldenses. The preacher did not wait for the flock to gather in his church, but he himself looked for it, went to the people, “with all humility,” “on foot, without gold and silver, in a word, imitating the apostles in everything.” If for the Cistercians the ideal of poverty was associated with the desire to gain independence from the world, which implied reasonable enrichment, then the mendicant brothers initially proceeded from the impossibility of owning any property; They preferred alms as an irregular income to work, and they saw long-term residence as a threat to the soul.

The number of mendicant orders increased so much over several decades that the Second Council of Lyon in 1274 was forced to establish only the four largest (Dominicans, Franciscans, Augustinian-Jeremites and Carmelites), and dissolve the rest. In the XIII-XIV centuries. the authorized orders spread widely in all countries of Western Europe, penetrated beyond its borders - into Palestine, Egypt, Transcaucasia, Crimea, the Mongol Empire in Central Asia, China, had a female branch - the “second order”, and patronized numerous spiritual brotherhoods of the laity, united in the “third order."

Despite a number of common features, the most important of the mendicant orders, the Dominicans and Franciscans, had their own distinct specifics, due to the personalities of the founding fathers, which in turn reflected the growing individualization of religious practice. And in the orders they founded, which abandoned the strictures of the cinnov, the emphasis was subsequently placed on the individual efforts and responsibility of brother preachers, theologians, and inquisitors.

St. Dominic (c. 1170-1221), Spanish Augustinian canon, early. XIII century found himself in the south of France, engulfed in the Albigensian heresy. He saw his task primarily as organizing effective preaching in order to preserve the integrity of the Catholic Church. The official name of the Dominicans, expressing the specificity of the order, is Friars Preachers. Apostolic restlessness and asceticism seemed to Dominic as tools for achieving holiness, the main condition for successful preaching, which was supposed to introduce people to the “fruits of contemplation.” The needs of competent preaching also determined another important area of ​​activity for the Dominicans - the study of theology. The centers of the order were Paris and Bologna, the two largest university cities of medieval Europe. The Dominicans created an extensive network of theological teaching, which also included the study of languages ​​necessary for theologians and preachers. Soon it was the Dominicans who largely determined what true Christian teaching was. From among them came St. Thomas Aquinas (1225/26-1274) is the greatest authority on Catholic theology. It is symptomatic that most of the inquisitors were Dominicans, and their fury in the fight for the purity of the faith earned them the nickname Domini canes (Latin “dogs of the Lord”).

St. Francis (1181-1226), the son of an Assisi merchant, in his youth renounced his family and inheritance in order to belong to Christ alone, to become like him, who died a beggar on the cross. The cornerstone of Franciscan teaching was “Lady Poverty,” understood as the highest degree of humility, which was expressed by the official name of the order - Friars Minor (Latin Minorites). Francis, arguing that “a person cannot own, for only God owns,” forbade the brothers to seek even minimal comforts for themselves, ordered them to wear rags, girded with a rope, and allowed only literate brothers to have books, and then only for liturgical ones. For Francis, following Christ, the embodiment of love, also meant an all-consuming love for one’s neighbor, expressed in the preaching of salvation. Over time, the Franciscans created their own system of theological education, which, in contrast to the Aristotelianism of the Dominicans, was mainly based on the teachings of Augustine.

As mendicant orders transformed into extensive and influential organizations, previous attitudes toward poverty were revised. The Dominicans, who from the very beginning needed separate cells, extensive libraries, and significant financial resources to practice theology, quickly agreed to a relaxation of the requirements of non-covetousness (1228). The first permanent monasteries were founded by St. Dominic. On the contrary, among the Franciscans, the desire, despite the growth of the order, to remain faithful to the “Lady of Poverty” gave rise to complex legal structures designed, without any visible deviation from Francis’ will, to ensure the viability of the Minority monasteries. Attempts to soften the demands of poverty caused, however, in the second half of the 13th century. the split of the order into supporters of strict adherence to the precepts of Francis - spiritualists and those who
condemned excessive passion for poverty, advocated the development of large monastic communities (conventions) - conventuals. Their ideologist, St. Bonaventure, general of the order (1257-1274), in the life of St. Francis (Legenda major), recognized as the official biography of the founding father, mythologized the image of the saint, calling him “the new Christ,” “the angel of the seventh seal,” thereby introducing into the consciousness of the brothers the idea that mere mortals are not able to imitate St. Francis.

To the beginning XIV century In the theological discussion of poverty generated by the radicalism of spiritualists, the central place was occupied by the question of whether Christ had property. Ultimately, the statement about the poverty of Christ and his apostles cast doubt not only on the entire existing system of social relations, but also prompted a revision of previous theological and canonical theories that substantiated church property. According to the then popular teaching of Joachim of Flora (d. 1202), the rule of the white clergy was just about to be replaced by the era of the Holy Spirit, the rule of monks who did not have property. The disgusting image of the “thin” she-wolf of greed, which haunted Dante, a contemporary of the polemics on poverty, was often identified in the minds of spiritualists with the Avignon popes. In 1322, Pope John XXII (1316-1334) declared poverty to be heresy
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Christ, and the distinction between the concepts of “ownership” and “use” is a legal fiction, renouncing the right of ownership of minority property. Soon the spiritualists were also excommunicated from the church (1329), which, however, did not stop the further polarization of the order, within which already in the second half of the 14th century. a movement of observants (from Latin observare, “to observe”) appeared, advocating for the observance of altissima paupertas (Latin “greatest poverty”). The return of the minority property to the ownership of the Apostolic See in 1428 did not prevent the final split of the order in 1517, and then the splitting off in 1528 from the Observant Order of the Capuchin Order, approved in 1560.

Mendicant monasticism, presenting an undoubted challenge to the monetary economy of the growing cities, was at the same time inseparable from city life and could not even, due to the “privilege of poverty,” count on long-term success in the countryside, which was unable to provide it with the necessary subsidies and premises. Moreover, cities with their high density and circulation of population guaranteed maximum preaching effect. Even if the orientation of the mendicants only towards the lower and middle strata of the urban population is not unconditional, it is obvious that the openness of the conventions of mendicant monasticism to the city, their competition in the performance of siga ashtagit (pastoral functions) with the clergy, which reached open conflicts, pushing them towards rapprochement with the city authorities, served to strengthen the spiritual and political identity of urban communities.

Female monasticism

Relatively little is known about female monasticism in the Middle Ages, which developed in the shadow of male monasticism and largely adopted its characteristic forms of internal organization. Obviously, from the very beginning it was closely connected with the idea of ​​​​the importance of virginity, which likened the virgins to the virgin Mary and conveyed an advantage over men in achieving salvation. The adoption of a monastic veil (velamen), symbolizing a woman’s entry into a monastery, turned her into Christ’s bride, which over time contributed to the spiritualization of the idea of ​​virginity, extending it also to widowed women. For the latter, solitude in the monastery was even considered as the most morally preferable form of life, which brought relief to the deceased spouse through prayers in his afterlife. monasticism was for a woman the only socially attractive alternative to the usual model of life, which included marriage, motherhood and housekeeping.

Female monasticism was charged with even stricter closure from the outside world, designed to guarantee the precious gift of chastity and the purity of marriage with the Almighty. This initially presupposed the presence of permanent property and income sufficient to live in a monastery without communication with the world, and therefore the social composition of female monasticism was generally limited either to representatives of the nobility, or, as was the case in the cities of the high and late Middle Ages, to the urban patriciate. The founding of women's monasteries often pursued the goal of ensuring a proper and pious existence for unmarried daughters who could not find a worthy match, widows, and relatives of clergy.

Women who were forbidden to take the priestly rank, secluded in a monastery, needed the spiritual care of male priests. Therefore, women's monasteries have always gravitated either to episcopal residences or to male monasteries. In the early Middle Ages, there were dual monasteries, but their experience did not take root then. The motif of kindred disembodied love or spiritual friendship dominated the understanding of the relationships that united nuns with their male shepherds. For example, St. Boniface even bequeathed to be buried together with his student and follower, St. Lyoboy, so that death, having united their bodies, would not separate their souls.

In con. XI-XP centuries. As the women's ascetic movement spread massively, the problem of strengthening regular life in numerous women's monasteries and organizing pastoral care over them through primarily male monasticism became acutely felt. OK. 1100, the French preacher Robert d'Arbrissel (d. ca. 1114) founded a double monastery in Fontevrault, which was headed by an abbess. The Order of Fontevrault then spread to France, Spain and England. In turn, St. Dominic and St. Francis realized the need for care over the female ascetic movement. Thus, the Proville convent near Toulouse was even the first stronghold of the group of followers that formed around Dominic. Clara of Assisi (1194-1253), the founder of the female branch of the Minorite order - the Clarisses - was in close contact with St. Francis. , which existed under the tutelage of the mendicant orders, remained generally closer to traditional monasticism, especially since most of them arose independently of the mendicant movement. The nuns were prescribed rigid sedentarism; they, of course, could not engage in pastoral service, and also collect alms. Women constituted a significant part. the mentioned “third order” of the Mendicants. Due to its relatively free form, it allowed them, without fear of accusations of debauchery and heresy, to realize the popular ideal of poverty and active pious activity in the world. Numerous orders operated independently of men from the 11th to 12th centuries. semi-monastic associations of women: while remaining in the world or living in small communities, their members were engaged in helping the disadvantaged, caring for the sick, preparing the dead for burial, etc. They gained greatest fame in the 12th-12th centuries. Beguines.

Literature:

Karsavin L.P. Essays on religious life in Italy 12th-12th centuries. St. Petersburg, 1912; It's him. Monasticism in the Middle Ages. 2nd ed. M., 1992; Culture of the Abbey of St. Gallen / Ed. V. Vogler. Baden-Baden, 1996

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The monastic and knightly orders of Western Europe are perhaps the most attractive topic of the Middle Ages. Probably, in terms of popularity, it is on a par with. The theme of knightly orders is attractive for its mystical meaning, which many contemporaries surrounded it with. Knightly and monastic orders later became the prototype for the creation of various secret organizations in Europe.

The most famous order is the Knights Templar. He has already been mystified to such an extent that many curses and murders have been attributed to him. Not everything is so simple. This topic is not entirely purely historical. It is more like a more philosophical topic that requires deep understanding. Understanding is needed in order to understand what a medieval order is, whether mysticism is inherent in it, and whether all the secrets of these organizations have been unraveled.

The emergence of knightly orders

Traditionally, the time of origin of the orders of knights is attributed to the period - this is approximately the beginning of the 12th century. If you remember, in Clermont in 1096, Pope Urban II convened a council and proclaimed the idea of ​​​​committing a crusade. It was necessary to recapture the holy lands in Jerusalem, which were captured by the Muslims, where the main shrines of Christians were located. The participants of the campaign had to forgive all their sins.

In the course of the movement, knightly orders were born, which retained their monastic rules. The very word “order” literally means to obey. This is how half-monks and half-warriors appeared in the Early Middle Ages. Moreover, this was not very typical for that period. At the same time, members of the order could shed blood and pray, while they protected pilgrims () on the way to Jerusalem.

If we go into more detail, the monastic orders had their own humane prehistory. Orders were formed gradually starting from the 7th century. At that time there was a hospital for pilgrims. This is a place where pilgrims could rest and heal. It was located in Jerusalem. There, believers could take a break before heading home. The hospital existed on donations from Christian countries and wealthy pilgrims. After civil strife in the Arab Caliphate, the hospital was closed, but in 1023, by order of the Egyptian Caliph, it was reopened.

How did a simple hospital become related to monastic orders? The fact is that the provision of medical care was associated with the activities of monasteries. The monks were obliged to provide shelter and assistance to wanderers and pilgrims. So the hospital named after St. John the Baptist in Jerusalem soon became monastic. Those monks were called Ionites, or Hospitallers.

Transformation of a monastic order into a knightly one

In order for a monastic order to become a military or knightly order, only one step had to be taken. The military at that time was needed to protect pilgrims on the caravan routes on the way to Jerusalem. Initially, these soldiers were even recruited from among local Muslim Arabs. In principle, this did not matter much. They were simply people who accompanied caravans of pilgrims.

In 1096 everything changed, in 1099 the first was successful and they took Jerusalem. Pilgrims (crusaders) and their military guards entered the city. The establishment of the Kingdom of Jerusalem begins. Gradually, some of the knights, from among the crusaders, entered service at John's Hospital in Jerusalem.

1099-1113 This is a period of hidden development of the hospital. At that time it was not yet clear what kind of organization this was. Either this is a hospital with a small military guard, or it is still a knightly military organization. Further, the activities of this hospital intersect with the activities of another knightly organization. It will become, along with the Hospitallers, the most famous knightly monastic order. And her activities will attract the attention of historians and other scientists.

The emergence of a new knightly monastic order

Hugh de Payen and other knights and servants organized a detachment that was supposed to guard the pilgrims who were traveling to Jerusalem along the dry route. Arriving in Jerusalem, the knights turned to the king with a request to appoint them officially as guards of pilgrims and to provide premises for the placement of the order. So they promised to defend the Christian faith and bring income to the local treasury.

The knights were given premises in former stables, which were located in a previously existing Jewish temple. Later they received their name from the French language - Templars. This is how the next knightly monastic order appears, which does not yet have official status. There are no rules yet, no charter. Initially, it was simply an organization of people who decided to devote themselves to such activities - that is, to wage war against the infidels and protect the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

Gradually another new order appears. There in Jerusalem, at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, that is, in the center of the Christian faith. This is the guard of the Holy Sepulchre. Now they are called the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher and are often confused with the Order of the Templars. First of all, their emblems are similar at first glance. Unlike other orders, these knights do not have a leader (master). And they report directly to the king of Jerusalem. As part of the king's personal army, the Knights of the Holy Sepulcher received various privileges from him.

The Knights of the Holy Sepulcher received payment from the King of Jerusalem. However, their respect in society was somewhat less than that of the Hospitallers and Templars. These two orders lived off donations from pilgrims and merchants. The Templars were also respected and received donations from church communities and other people who were not directly involved in the campaign. However, these people wanted to receive the Pope's blessing and have their sins absolved.

Registration of the status of knightly orders

Only 20 years after the start of the activities of these orders, a monk and a very revered man, Saint Bernard wrote a treatise or charter of the knightly monastic order. In it, he clearly defined that the knight-monk is a completely new, elite and prestigious, holy and formidable social stratum. The presence of such status in a person sharply elevated him in society.

A member of the order - he is a monk, that's why

1. Must be restrained;
2. Observe all fasts;
3. Pray daily;
4. He has no right to touch women;
5. Cannot have his own property.

In exchange for such obedience, he receives good food, clothing, and weapons. They fought and were considered the military elite of that time. It was for such knights that the modern concept of pension provision subsequently appeared. A wounded or maimed warrior still continued to be a member of the order and received food and other benefits. The spiritual aspect was also important - a representative of the order could count on the salvation of his soul. Even if he committed some misdeeds, the war with the Muslims atoned for everything.

Such knightly organizations represented a microstate. They were subordinate to the master, subject to discipline. This made it an important part of the military structure. For them there was no term of service in a year, as was the case, for example, with ordinary knights. They must always be ready to go into battle at the first call.

The structure and life of knightly monastic orders

The Templars and other orders were always ready. Even when there was no military action, the knight had to engage in daily military training:

1. Workout;
2. Education;
3. taking care of your horse;
4. caring for your weapon;

All these are the main occupations of a member of the order. If you take a Knight Hospitaller, he also serves in a hospital, that is, he receives medical skills. At the same time, it doesn’t matter what family the knight belongs to and what his rank is, he must do this.

It can be assumed that in this way the military elite became more and more disciplined and moderate. Everyone in the order must understand that they serve a higher purpose and must submit to it. The main goal is more important than any humiliation and misfortune, it is above all.

Knightly monastic orders become over time a new militia, a new elite of the military hierarchy. And many subsequent victories are connected precisely with the actions of the orders. Any successes increased the status of the orders and elevated them among other military units. Attempts were made to found new orders; several dozen of them were founded later. The largest orders have been studied by historians, some of them have survived to this day in one form or another, mainly as charitable organizations.

When joining the ranks of the order, the knight renounced his property and all material benefits. He passed it on to his relatives. Very often, knights donated their wealth to the order. Over time, many knightly organizations became rich in this way, mainly through plots of land. These were feudal plots inhabited by serfs. They fulfilled all feudal duties, and the income went to the benefit of the order.

The rise of spiritual orders

With all the wealth that the orders received as donations, they did not stop there. By having overall management of their properties, they streamlined their farms and made them more productive. Thus their wealth increased even more. It can be assumed that religious orders became the first capitalist organizations in Europe.

Over time, the economy of such orders began to play an even greater role than their military component. They continued to protect pilgrims and religious sites in the same way. At the same time, they did this in small detachments. Only a noble person could become a member of the order. Usually these were the younger sons of feudal lords, who could no longer claim to inherit a land plot.

Thus, knightly organizations arose from the beginning. Over time, they turned into a powerful military organization that had its own charter and was very disciplined. During their heyday, they had extensive economic activities, from which they received income for the benefit of the order.

Knightly orders video

Organized into congregations and brotherhoods occupies important positions. Currently there are about 140 monastic orders, whose activities are led by the Vatican Congregation for Sanctified Life and Societies of Apostolic Life. The most influential monastic orders are the Dominicans, Franciscans and Jesuits. Each of them has its own specifics and its own history of development.

Benedictines

Founder of the Benedictine monastery - Benedict of Nursia(480-547) became the founder of the first monastic rule. He founded a monastery in Monte in 530 Cassino, in which he established strict rules. This charter became the basis and example for the monks of other monasteries. The main rule was community life away from the bustle of the world. Monasteries were built in remote places, away from the influence of the world. Initially, there was no central organization; each monastery had independence. Monasteries became centers of education and training. The Benedictines were engaged in missionary activities in the Slavic lands and the Baltic states. Currently, the Benedictine Order unites over 10 thousand monks and 20 thousand nuns.

Monastic orders appeared in 910, after the abbot About from the monastery Cluny undertook a reform of the monastic organization. He proposed to unite many monasteries performing common tasks into orders, which should submit to the central government. The purpose of such a unification was a return to strict observance of the rules, the deprivation of monasteries of autonomy and subordination to the pope, bypassing bishops, and the independence of the church from secular power.

Carmelites

Founder - Berthold of Calabria, leader of the crusaders. The order was founded in 1155 after the victorious Crusade. It got its name from its location - at the foot of the mountain Carmel in Palestine. After the crusaders were defeated, in the 13th century. The order moved to Western Europe. In the 16th century The Carmelite Order split into several movements. A women's order arose in Spain Barefoot Carmelites, and then male. The peculiarities of the order include a reclusive lifestyle and living on alms. Carmelite monks are mainly engaged in missionary activities, raising and educating children and youth.

Carthusians

The monastery was founded in 1084 in the province Chartreuse(lat. - Cartusia). It was officially approved in 1176. There is a female branch of the order, which was formed in 1234. A special feature of the monastery is the presence of large land property. The main source of wealth is the production and sale of Chartreuse liqueur.

Cistercians

First appeared in 1098 in a desert area Sieve (Cito). Since the 14th century There are nunnery monasteries. In 1115 the order was reformed Bernard of Clairvaux and received the name Bernardine. The monks of the order actively participated in, supported the pope in his struggle with the secular authorities.

Franciscans

The monastery organized Francis of Assisi in 1207-1209 in Italy near Assisi. Francis of Assisi spoke out against the acquisitiveness of the papal hierarchs, against the distribution of positions by the pope to his relatives, and against simony (the buying and selling of church positions). He preached the benevolence of poverty, the renunciation of all property, sympathy for the poor, and a cheerful, poetic attitude towards nature. His mysticism was permeated with love for people. These ideas became very popular and in a short time gained recognition in other European countries. Francis of Assisi created "Order of Friars Minor" - religious and moral community. Minorities- “the least of all people” - lived not in monasteries, but in the world, traveled, preached in the language of the common people, and were engaged in charity.

The renunciation of property aroused suspicion among the pope. At first, Francis of Assisi was forbidden to preach, then in 1210 he was allowed, but demanded to abandon the call to poverty. Francis did not comply. After his death, the order split. Extreme followers of Francis fratinelli(brothers) were declared heretics, many were burned. The remaining moderate followers became the pope's support. In 1525, the Franciscans separated capuchins(pointed hoods) to counteract. Since 1619, the Capuchins became an independent order.

Dominicans

The order was founded in 1216 by a Spaniard Dominic de Guzman. The purpose of the order was to fight heresy Albigensians, which spread to France, Germany and Italy. The Albigensians opposed the Catholic Church, which hindered the development of cities. A crusade was declared against the Albigensians, which ended in the defeat of the heretics. The Dominicans also fought the heresy of the Cathars and other movements opposed to the Catholic Church, showing particular cruelty and uncompromisingness.

Dominicans take a vow of poverty, abstinence and obedience, and they are forbidden to eat. The requirement of poverty applies only to individuals, not to congregations. The emblem of the order is a dog with a lit torch in its teeth. They call themselves “dogs of the Lord” (lat. - dominicanes). In 1232 they were given leadership of the Inquisition. They become censors of Catholic orthodoxy. In their activities, the Dominicans used torture, executions, and prisons. They abandoned physical labor in favor of teaching and scientific work. Prominent Catholic theologians emerged from the ranks of the order, including Thomas Aquinas, as well as several popes.

Knight brotherhoods

Spiritual knightly orders began to emerge in the territory of Palestine, conquered during the first Crusade, to protect the conquered lands. The knights took three monastic vows: chastity, poverty and obedience. Unlike ordinary monks, members of the orders had to fight for the faith with weapons in their hands. They obeyed only the pope and the order authorities - the chapter and the grand masters.

Hospitallers

Around 1070 a hospice house was built in Jerusalem ( hospitalis) for wounded and sick pilgrims. The house was given the name of St. John the Merciful, Patriarch of Alexandria. Soon the monks caring for the wounded began to take part in the fighting themselves. In 1113, the pope approved the order's charter, according to which the Hospitallers, or Johannites, were called upon to fight the infidels. After the conquest of Palestine by the Muslims in 1309, the Johannites took possession of the island of Rhodes, and then, when the Ottomans captured it in 1522, they moved to the island of Malta, after which the order received the name Maltese. The distinctive feature of the order was a red cloak with a white cross.

Templars or Templars

The Order of the Templars or Templars arose at the beginning of the 12th century. It was named for the location of his residence near King Solomon's Temple. The distinctive feature of the order was a white cloak with a red cross. The Order accumulated significant funds. After the fall of Jerusalem, the order moved to Cyprus, then to France. King Philip IV the Fair, seeking to seize the wealth of the order, accused the Templars of Manichaeism (a synthesis of Zoroastrianism and Christianity). In 1310, the knights were burned, the property passed to the king, and the order was abolished.

Teutonic Order

In the 12th century. In 1190, German crusaders created a military monastic order in Palestine, based on the hospital of the Holy Virgin Mary - the Teutonic Order - after the name of the German tribe. At the beginning of the 13th century. he was transferred to the Baltic states, where he launched military activities in Prussia. The Order carried out a policy of feudal-Catholic expansion in the Baltic states and the northwestern Russian principalities. The difference between the Teutons was a white cloak with a black cross.

Jesuits

The name comes from Lat. SocietasJesu- "Society of Jesus" The order was formed in 1534, approved by the pope in 1540. The founder was a Spanish Basque, a nobleman, a former brave officer, crippled in battle, Ignatius of Loyola(1491-1556). The purpose of the order is to fight the Reformation, spread Catholicism, and unquestioning submission to the pope. The Jesuits are characterized by a strictly hierarchical structure, headed by a general subordinate to the pope. The Order is engaged in worldwide missionary activities.