Fraters Armigeri Hospitalis

The Fraters Armigeri Hospitalis, are also known under the names: "The Brotherhood Esquires of the Sovereign Military order of Malta" or just as "Serjeants-at-Arms".

Introduction

The Fraters Armigeri Hospitalis, also known as the brotherhood esquires of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, is an initiative to honour those families and their ancestors who served the knights of Malta (Knights Hospitaller) for century´s as Esquires. On the Commanderies of the military order of Malta or Knightly order of Saint John, excisted all across Europe a certain class of people that served those Knights in their daily life. Although their social class would be equal to a yeoman in old England, by their given rights and duties they ranked as an Esquire. Inside the Order of Malta they would take the lowest Military rank of a Grade VI. If such a duty of Esquire continued inside a family for 3 generations of more, it became an Hereditary Squireship. In the Sovereign Militairy Order of Malta, these Esquires are still known today under the class of the `Donats of Devotion`.

Their aim

The aim of the Brotherhood is to defend their ancestral rights and combine strength as an Entity, find Worldwide recognision by the different Order Assemblies, to give support as Esquires Hospitaller to these Orders and follow the old motto: Defence of the faith and assistance to the poor.

The Brotherhood of Esquires recognizes two classes:

Esquires of Justice, those who can give proof of descent that their ancestors for 3 generations gave support to the Order as Esquires.

Esquires of Devotion, any new member who can subscribe to their Aim and is willing to give support to their Motto.

History of the Fraters Armigeri Hospitalis

The Knights Hospitaller (also known as the Sovereign Order of Saint John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta, Knights of Malta, Knights of Rhodes, and Chevaliers of Malta; French: Ordre des Hospitaliers) is a Christian organization that began as an Amalfitan hospital founded in Jerusalem in 1080 to provide care for poor and sick pilgrims to the Holy Land by Gerard. After the Christian conquest of Jerusalem in 1099 during the First Crusade it became a religious military order under its own charter, and was charged with the care and defense of the Holy Land. From the start of their existence these Knights were assisted by Esquires.

The English word squire comes from the Old French escuier (modern French écuyer), itself derived from the Late Latin scutarius ("shield bearer"). The Classical Latin equivalent was armiger, 'arms bearer'. A squire was originally a young man who aspired to the rank of knighthood and who, as part of his development to that end, served an existing knight as his attendant or shield carrier. However, during the Middle Ages the rank of esquire came to be recognized in its own right.

Following the loss of the Holy Land by Christian forces, the Order operated since 1310 from Rhodes. In this year the members of the Order were divided into three principal classes.

First the knights, who provided the core of the Order and would ultimately make profession by taking the monastic vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. They alone could be appointed Bailifss of the Convent.

Secondly the Chaplains, who were priest-brothers exempted from fighting but whose responsibility was to serve the spiritual needs of the knights and those living in areas under their rule. The Prior was chosen from among their ranks.

Thirdly the Serjeant-at-Arms, later Serving Brothers, divided into Brothers of Arms who could, until 1364, become knights, and Brothers of Office, who fulfilled a more lowly role. Until the loss of Malta the Serving-Brothers of Arms could make full profession as religious-brothers and were no less members of the Order than the knights of Justice. They were called to the elections of the Grand Masters, to which they could contribute their votes, although they were excluded from any senior executive responsibility. To this VI class in the Military Order the Esquires were counted and allowed to wear the black robe with a 6 pointed Maltese Cross.

Regarding other historic sources the group of the Serjeants-at-Arms was established by the Knights Templar, and it was in the order of the Temple that the word freres serjens or fratres servientes signified an honorary title or degree, and denoted a powerful privileged class of men. The fratres servientes armigeri or freres serjens des armes, of the chivalry of the Temple, were of the rank of gentlemen. They united in their own persons the monastic and the military character, they were allotted one horse each, they wore the red cross of the order of the Temple on their breasts, they participated in all the privileges of the brotherhood, and were eligible to the dignity of Preceptor. Large sums of money were frequently given by seculars who had not been advanced to the honour of knighthood, to be admitted amongst this highly-esteemed order of men. Apparently introduced at the time of the Conquest, the serjeants developed from the narratores.

In 1275 there was already a serjeant-counter in England, and by 1310 that office had evolved into serjeants-at-law. Later, the sheriffs were usually serjeants-at-law. From the early fourteenth century the English Crown conferred the degree of serjeant-at-law upon a few outstanding barristers, on the advice of the Lord Chancellor, who acted on the advice of the Chief Justice of Common Pleas. By the time of English King Richard II, the serjeants were a rank.

When the Knights Templar were dissolved in 1312, much of their property was given to the Hospitallers. The holdings were organized into eight tongues (one each in Aragon, Auvergne, Castile, England, France, Germany, Italy, and Provence). Each was administered by a Prior or, if there was more than one priory in the tongue, by a Grand Prior. At Rhodes and later Malta, the resident knights of each tongue were headed by a Baillif. This event changed the Military Order completely as in one night they became rich Landlords over an extreme large property all over Europe. In this there was a need of an active representive of their authority in law and order and to regulate the Economic life on the different Estates. For this duty the Serjeants-at-Arms were named on those places and received an inherited right on a main farm that should provide in their daily needs and fromout they would regulate as an steward economic life in the rural society.

By the inherited right on such a main farm and bounded to it, a son would follow his father up in the rights and duties as such an Serjeants-at-Arms and by this even the function as an Esquire itself became hereditary. This process ended at the end of the 14th century by what a new group or class was created that ranked to the lower nobility in the different countries, known in Germany under the name "Ministerialen". A class of people who were considered in their rural society "Folkfree" (Free in the eyes of the people but bounded to their grounds) with certain rights and duties to perform that separated them from the rest of their society and who were only to be judged by their own class of people. A own independent Brotherhood of Esquires was formed by this time and a fact. A Brotherhood whose members were known under many names all over Europe; Ere mann, Welgeborene, Schildboortige, Gentry, Gens de Arms (from what the French word Gendarme came from), Homme de lineage, Waffengenosse with their own rights and duties.

From these rights we would like to name the right to inherited the farm and the right of ownership. The right to function every 6 years as an alderman in the rural district courts under supervision of the Commander of the Knights of Malta. The right to function as Corporal during the archer festivity. The right to sitt on the table of the Knights at the Commandry and even in some cases the right of some tax freedom and some hunting rights.

Regarding the duties we first can mention the duty to pay rent or taxes and to deliver two sheep to the Commandery when a new Commander of the Knights of Malta was installed in his Duty. Also the service duties should be mentioned. Such a duty started with the age of 14 years and lasted for only half a year during the summer season, by what it would have to been repeated every seven years. With the age of 14 a boy started to work as a herd of the pigs, while a girl would herd the cows, at the age of 21 the boy would work as an middleservant while a girl would work as an maidservant in the Commandry. At last the boy would start than with the age of 28 years as an Porter, Gatekeeper, Guard on the bridge or as an Constable.

Due to the Reformation the Military Order of Malta already lost parts of their Estates all over Europe, when Napoleon captured Malta in 1798 the Knights ceased to be associated with any one place or own territory. By this the Brotherhood of Esquires lost their connection to their former Sovereigns and the Military Order of Malta as they were bounded to the grounds they were seated on. Still they could separate themselves by the functions and inherited rights they had in rural districts and by what they were considered to be some kind of farmers Aristocracy. Due to the process of liberalisation and Democrazy other people with not such a heritable right or background could follow in the same possitions as it openend these opportunities for them as individuals. In 1848 this process was closed and nothing separated our Brotherhood anymore from civilions, only the Historic proof and the remembrance to this Brotherhood of Esquires Hospitaler remained

Reestablishment of the Fraters Armigeri Hospitalis

Since 1994 a few descendants of this Brotherhood were seeking independently from each other recognition to this inheritable right of Esquire by different Entities like the High Council of Nobility (Hoge Raad van Adel) in the Netherlands, the Holy See in Rome, the Sovereign Military Order of Malta and different Protestant Military Orders of Saint John. Although such a "right" was not recognised, neither was it denied. The main conclusion to their question and certain application was an "probably" inherited right of Squireship by the High Council of Nobility and a recognition of "vassal" to the Military Order of their ancestors by one of the Protestants Knights of this Order. Answers from Malta on 5 of our letters were not received, neither the Holy See gave an reaction.

This did lead in 2006 to the reestablishment of this old Brotherhood of Esquires Hospitaler after an 150 years silence with the aim to combine forces as an Entity and to find the recognition of the heritable rights of their forefathers and fromout this recognition as Entity take an active part again in the aid to the poor like their ancestors did before us.

Today the members of this Brotherhood are busy with the historic research of all those families that are entitled to this inherited right all over Europe.

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