| |
| The Hospitaller Rule |
|
| |
| Summary
Like all religious and military orders, the Hospitallers were governed by a rule which dictated the activities and coduct of those who belonged to the Order. Although there is some speculation about whether the Hospitallers initially followed the Benedictine rule, it is clear that by the mid-twelfth century, a new rule for the Hospitallers was created to reflect their new status as defenders of the Holy Land. The rule was first conceived as a Latin text, but the final version appears in French, in deference to the linguistic preferences of the Knights Hospitaller who were less proficient in Latin than the vernacular. The earliest written rule is known as the Rule of Raymond le Puy, because it appeared during the time when he served as grand master. It was approved by Pope Eugene III sometime before 1153.
Several changes and additions were made to the Rule over the course of the Order's history, all of which appeared in French and at times were translated into other languages for the benefit of the Order's western chapters. There are therefore many forms of the Rule, published in editions that reflect the changes made to the Rule or variations that were made by local chapters. Some of these versions, which correspond to the re-location of the Order from Jerusalem to Acre to Cyprus, are listed below;
| MSS |
|
See description of each version below for corresponding manuscripts
|
Secondary Literature
Delavaux de la Roulx, “Les Statuts de l'Ordre de L'Hopital de Saint-Jean de Jérusalem,” Bibliothèque de l'Ecole de Chartes, 48 (1887), 341-356.
|
| |
Rule Of Raymond le Puy
Summary: Also called the rule of "Raymond du Puy," after the Master of the Order from 1120-1160, the first version of the rule was produced in both Latin and Old French, and was amended to include new rules and statutes over the course of the order's history.
MSS: Paris, Bibliotheque Nationale de Paris, fr. 7909-03
Turin, Biblioteca dell"Universita, ms. G. II, 36
Malta, Archives of the Order, ms. no number
Editions:
Cartulaire Générale de l’ordre des Hospitaliers de Saint Jean de Jérusalem (1100-1310). d. J. Delaville Le Roulx, 4. vols. Paris: 1894-1906.
English translation: E. J. King, The Rule, Statutes and Customs of the Hospitallers 1099-1310. London: Metheun, 1934. Reprint: 1981.
Back to top
Anglo-Norman Version
Summary: For an interesting example of an Anglo-Norman version of the Rule, composed in rhyming couplets in later 12th-century Britain, see:
Edition: K.V. Sinclair,The Hospitallers Riwle. London: Anglo Norman Text Society, 1984.
Manuscript:
Secondary Literature:
See Fordham's French of England site for background on works such as this.
Back to top
Statutes of Roger of Moulins
Summary: Written in Acre between 1278 and 1283, these statutes are further additions to the Hospitaller Rule.
MS: Rome, Vatican Lat, 4852
Edition: S. Edgington, "Administrative Regulations for the Hospital of St. John in Jerusalem dating from the 1180s," Crusade 4 (2005), 21-37.
Secondary Literature:
Back to top
Statutes FROM cyprus
|
