Knights Templar in Britain by Lord Evelyn

Author:Lord, Evelyn.
Language: eng
Format: epub, pdf
ISBN: 9781317866411
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd

The Templars in Ireland

The first documentary evidence for the Templars in Ireland is dated 1177 when Matthew the Templar witnessed an Irish charter, but the first known grant of land was made in c. 118 5 by Henry II who gave the Templars the vills of Clontarf and Crook, and ten carucates of land, later adding to this a marsh at Waterford, and a church dedicated to St Barry. This was followed by numerous other grants of land from members of the Anglo-Norman aristocracy, for example the Lacies and Montfichets, so that by 1308 the Irish lands were the third most valuable of all the Templar holdings and worth over £400 a year. Most of these lands were concentrated on the eastern seaboard of the country. These included lands and manors in Carlow, Louth, Kilkenny, Sligo and many other places. Where formerly there had been cattle grazing, the Templars started to grow wheat and soon had so much surplus that in 1225 they were given a licence to sell this wherever they wished in Ireland.

The tenants on their manors were mostly Irish, as shown in a plea roll from the time of Edward I. They were obliged to render service and to plough up lands that had formerly been pasture, leading to these manors being described as ‘colonising manors’ that imposed the conqueror's way of agriculture on the native population.

The Masters of the Temple in Ireland do not appear to have had a fixed residence, but as they are recorded as acting for the king in Dublin, this must have been their principal house. Elected from England most of them bear English or Anglo-Norman names.

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