HISTORY OF
THE RELIGIOUS AND MILITARY ORDER OF KNIGHTS OF THE HOLY SEPULCHRE OF JERUSALEM
PART 2
An Important Tradition of the 13th-15th Centuries
In the 13th century began a tradition that continued for 300 years and that would be important for a modern Order, The Religious and Military Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, whose Prince Grand Master is H.S.H. Prince Lloyd, the Duke of Maxalla. The tradition was this: Knights who visited Jerusalem and prayed in the Sepulchre would assume the title of "Knight of the Holy Sepulchre." Upon their return to Europe, these Knights would dub, create, and appoint others as Knights of the Holy Sepulchre. While some modern Equestrian (Roman Catholic) Sepulchre Knights claim that these Investitures were "illegal" (an effort to invalidate the Eastern Orthodox Order) in fact, the procedure was accepted as perfectly proper and valid by Church and State of the time, and several valid European Orders of the Holy Sepulchre were founded during those centuries (e.g., 1081, 1174, 1291, 1534, and 1672), although none so founded have survived into modern times. However, the undisputed ancient practice was called upon for the founding in 1982 of The Religious and Military Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.
The Religious and Military Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem
In 1975, Orthodox Abbot-Bishop +George, Byzantine Abbot-Bishop of Holy Protection Orthodox Monastery (as seen on CBS' "60 Minutes," People Magazine, and many others) and Orthodox Brother Simeon visited Jerusalem, and, with permission of the Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, the marble stone that covers the ledge in the Holy Sepulchre where Christ's Body lay was raised for the veneration of the Bishop and the Brother who reverently placed their hands on the ledge. After prayer, they then placed upon the ledge a cloth which was sacramentally blessed by the Bishop. Then the cloth was reverently removed and safely stored as a Sacred Relic of the First Class of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.Seven years after his entry into the very heart of the Holy Sepulchre, following the well-established 300-year-old tradition of the 13th-15th centuries, the Abbot Bishop, having qualified himself to wear the Jerusalem Cross and, in Byzantine tradition and practice, having authority to confer the Cross, granted the right to bear the Jerusalem Cross to Duke Lloyd Douglas who also was authorized by this distinguished Orthodox Prelate to found The Religious and Military Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. The Patent of Authority was signed by the Abbot-Bishop and the Sovereign Grand Master and by some thirty witnesses during two simultaneous Celebrations of the Holy Eucharist (one Western Rite, one Eastern Rite) on March 10, 1982, as the great planetary alignment occurred which is now known to the Knights of this Order as The Day of the Great Sword of Heaven, a symbolic event which demonstrates the power and majesty of God. The Patent of Authority is held in the archives of the Order and has been examined many times by Knights of the Order and by many others.
Along with letters of authenticity, the Supulchre Cloth was entrusted to the care of the Sovereign Grand Master, and it is now in the archives of the RMOKHS. From it is prepared the Scapular Reliquary that is possessed by every true Sepulchre Knight. The RMOKHSJ is a traditional Order of Chivalry constituted by proper religious and episcopal authority. The Order is not a "chivalric re-creation," nor is it a "fraternal organization," and it holds in its archives letters of recognition from many other Orders of Chivalry, as well as many Noble and Royal Houses. The RMOKHSJ is a religious and sovereign (independent) Order of Chivalry, so founded and so conducted. While holding a Charter from an Eastern Orthodox authority, Investiture in the RMOKHSJ is available to worthy Christians of all denominations.
Arms
The Postulant who is accorded Chivalric status in the RMOKHSJ achieves an ancient tradition, honor, and recognition that carries with it the Knightly title, as well as the ancient and honorable right to bear a Coat of Arms.
Intercessor, Patron, and Sovereign Grand Master
The Intercessor of this Order of Knighthood is the Blessed Mary Theotokos. The Patron of this Order is St. Michael the Archangel, Patron of all Chivalry. The Superior of this Order is His Serene Highness Prince Lloyd, the Duke of Maxalla, Sovereign Grand Master ad vitam. The Supreme Council is the advisory body to the Sovereign Grand Master. The Bailiwick is the basic unit of this Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre.
Knightly Apparel
Sepulchre Knights, in honor of the middle Eastern warrior monk Knights of medieval days, wear to all informal and formal occasions the official uniform derived from the ancient monastic tradition of our Holy Sepulchre forebears. The uniform consists of the black cassock, red cincture, Order cross suspended from a red collar, black skullcap, and riassa (cape). Following ancient tradition, also worn on the cincture is the Relic of the Holy Sepulchre. The uniform also includes medals and breast stars as appropriate.
If the purposes and goals of this Order of Chivalry are also your goals, and if you are interested in determining your eligibility for Knighthood, you may write the Grand Magistry at
The Grand Magistry
OKHS
3620 W. 10th St. B-109
Greeley, CO 80634 USA
Or, if you prefer, you may contact the Order by submitting this FORM.
Note: inquiry by regular postal mail must include full name, full postal address where information can be sent, and a brief explanation as to one's interest in chivalry and knighthood.
About the Sovereign Grand Master
To see a photograph and brief biography of the Duke of Maxalla, the Prince Grand Master, click HERE
About Abbot-Bishop George
To see the Charter and read about the Abbot-Bishop, click here.
To continue to Part 3 of this History, click HERE
To return to Part 1 of this History, click HERE
To return to the main page, click HERE
© 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2003 The Religious and Military Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. All rights reserved. This article may not be reproduced in any manner or by any means, including electronic, without prior written permission of the copyright holder. The person who retrieves this article may archive the file and may print a single copy for archival purposes.
In the 13th century began a tradition that continued for 300 years and that would be important for a modern Order, The Religious and Military Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem, whose Prince Grand Master is H.S.H. Prince Lloyd, the Duke of Maxalla. The tradition was this: Knights who visited Jerusalem and prayed in the Sepulchre would assume the title of "Knight of the Holy Sepulchre." Upon their return to Europe, these Knights would dub, create, and appoint others as Knights of the Holy Sepulchre. While some modern Equestrian (Roman Catholic) Sepulchre Knights claim that these Investitures were "illegal" (an effort to invalidate the Eastern Orthodox Order) in fact, the procedure was accepted as perfectly proper and valid by Church and State of the time, and several valid European Orders of the Holy Sepulchre were founded during those centuries (e.g., 1081, 1174, 1291, 1534, and 1672), although none so founded have survived into modern times. However, the undisputed ancient practice was called upon for the founding in 1982 of The Religious and Military Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.
The Religious and Military Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem
In 1975, Orthodox Abbot-Bishop +George, Byzantine Abbot-Bishop of Holy Protection Orthodox Monastery (as seen on CBS' "60 Minutes," People Magazine, and many others) and Orthodox Brother Simeon visited Jerusalem, and, with permission of the Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem, the marble stone that covers the ledge in the Holy Sepulchre where Christ's Body lay was raised for the veneration of the Bishop and the Brother who reverently placed their hands on the ledge. After prayer, they then placed upon the ledge a cloth which was sacramentally blessed by the Bishop. Then the cloth was reverently removed and safely stored as a Sacred Relic of the First Class of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem.Seven years after his entry into the very heart of the Holy Sepulchre, following the well-established 300-year-old tradition of the 13th-15th centuries, the Abbot Bishop, having qualified himself to wear the Jerusalem Cross and, in Byzantine tradition and practice, having authority to confer the Cross, granted the right to bear the Jerusalem Cross to Duke Lloyd Douglas who also was authorized by this distinguished Orthodox Prelate to found The Religious and Military Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. The Patent of Authority was signed by the Abbot-Bishop and the Sovereign Grand Master and by some thirty witnesses during two simultaneous Celebrations of the Holy Eucharist (one Western Rite, one Eastern Rite) on March 10, 1982, as the great planetary alignment occurred which is now known to the Knights of this Order as The Day of the Great Sword of Heaven, a symbolic event which demonstrates the power and majesty of God. The Patent of Authority is held in the archives of the Order and has been examined many times by Knights of the Order and by many others.
Along with letters of authenticity, the Supulchre Cloth was entrusted to the care of the Sovereign Grand Master, and it is now in the archives of the RMOKHS. From it is prepared the Scapular Reliquary that is possessed by every true Sepulchre Knight. The RMOKHSJ is a traditional Order of Chivalry constituted by proper religious and episcopal authority. The Order is not a "chivalric re-creation," nor is it a "fraternal organization," and it holds in its archives letters of recognition from many other Orders of Chivalry, as well as many Noble and Royal Houses. The RMOKHSJ is a religious and sovereign (independent) Order of Chivalry, so founded and so conducted. While holding a Charter from an Eastern Orthodox authority, Investiture in the RMOKHSJ is available to worthy Christians of all denominations.
Arms
The Postulant who is accorded Chivalric status in the RMOKHSJ achieves an ancient tradition, honor, and recognition that carries with it the Knightly title, as well as the ancient and honorable right to bear a Coat of Arms.
Intercessor, Patron, and Sovereign Grand Master
The Intercessor of this Order of Knighthood is the Blessed Mary Theotokos. The Patron of this Order is St. Michael the Archangel, Patron of all Chivalry. The Superior of this Order is His Serene Highness Prince Lloyd, the Duke of Maxalla, Sovereign Grand Master ad vitam. The Supreme Council is the advisory body to the Sovereign Grand Master. The Bailiwick is the basic unit of this Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre.
Knightly Apparel
Sepulchre Knights, in honor of the middle Eastern warrior monk Knights of medieval days, wear to all informal and formal occasions the official uniform derived from the ancient monastic tradition of our Holy Sepulchre forebears. The uniform consists of the black cassock, red cincture, Order cross suspended from a red collar, black skullcap, and riassa (cape). Following ancient tradition, also worn on the cincture is the Relic of the Holy Sepulchre. The uniform also includes medals and breast stars as appropriate.
If the purposes and goals of this Order of Chivalry are also your goals, and if you are interested in determining your eligibility for Knighthood, you may write the Grand Magistry at
The Grand Magistry
OKHS
3620 W. 10th St. B-109
Greeley, CO 80634 USA
Or, if you prefer, you may contact the Order by submitting this FORM.
Note: inquiry by regular postal mail must include full name, full postal address where information can be sent, and a brief explanation as to one's interest in chivalry and knighthood.
About the Sovereign Grand Master
To see a photograph and brief biography of the Duke of Maxalla, the Prince Grand Master, click HERE
About Abbot-Bishop George
To see the Charter and read about the Abbot-Bishop, click here.
To continue to Part 3 of this History, click HERE
To return to Part 1 of this History, click HERE
To return to the main page, click HERE
© 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2003 The Religious and Military Order of Knights of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. All rights reserved. This article may not be reproduced in any manner or by any means, including electronic, without prior written permission of the copyright holder. The person who retrieves this article may archive the file and may print a single copy for archival purposes.