Order of Saint Lazarus

The Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem
Abbreviation	OSLJ
Motto	With ancestors and arms (Atavis et armis)
Formation	1098
Type	Chivalric order
Purpose/focus	To uphold and defend the Christian faith, to assist and help the sick and vulnerable, to promote and uphold the Christian principles of chivalry and to work for Christian unity
Location	Jerusalem
Region served	Worldwide
Membership	On invitation only, ecumenical
Main organ	Grand Magistry, Governing Council, Chapter General
Website	http://www.st-lazarus.net (Malta) http://www.orderofsaintlazarus.com (Orléans) http://www.oslj.org (Paris)

The Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem (Ordo Militaris et Hospitalis Sancti Lazari Hierosolymitani) is an order of chivalry which originated in a leper hospital founded by the Knights Hospitaller in 1098 by the crusaders of the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem. The order is one of the most ancient of the European orders of chivalry. It was originally established to treat the virulent disease of leprosy, its knights originally being lepers themselves.^[1] It is one of the less-known and less-documented orders.

History

In the Holy Land

From its foundation in the 11th century, members of the Order of Saint Lazarus were dedicated to two ideals: aid to those suffering from the disease of leprosy and the defense of the Christian faith.^[2] The first mention of the order in surviving sources was in 1142. The order was initially founded as a leper hospital outside the city walls of Jerusalem, but hospitals were established all across the Holy Land dependant on the Jerusalem hospital, notably in Acre. It is unknown when the order became militarised but militarisation occurred before the end of the twelfth century due to the large numbers of Templars and Hospitallers sent to the leper hospitals to be treated. The order established ‘Lazar houses’ across Europe to care for lepers, and was well supported by other military orders which compelled lazar brethren in their rule to join the order on contracting leprosy.^[3]

The order remained primarily a hospitaller order but it did take part in a number of battles including the Battle of La Forbie on 17 October 1244 where all of the lazar brethren who fought died and the Battle of Al Mansurah on 8–11 February 1250. The leper knights were protected by a number of able-bodied knights but in times of crisis the leper knights themselves would take up arms. The order quickly abandoned their military activities after the fall of Acre in 1291 and the dissolution of the Templars due to expense, being a relatively poor order.^[4]

Royal House of France

Louis XVIII (1755–1824) with the Order of Saint Lazarus grand cross

Peter Ludwig von der Pahlen (1745–1826) with the Order of Saint Lazarus knight cross

In 1154, King Louis VII of France gave the Order of Saint Lazarus a property at Boigny near Orléans which was to become the headquarters of the Order outside of the Holy Land. Later, after the fall of Acre in 1291 the Knights of St. Lazarus left the Holy Land and moved first to Cyprus, then Sicily and finally back to Boigny which had been raised to a barony in 1288. In 1308 King Philip IV of France established the order under his temporal protection. Again, in 1604 Henry IV of France declared protectorate of French Crown over the French branch and in 1608 the order was merged in union with Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel into Royal, Military,and Hospitaller Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and St. Lazarus of Jerusalem. During the French Revolution a decree of 30 July 1791 suppressed all royal and knightly orders. Another decree the following year confiscated all the order's properties. Louis, Count of Provence, Grand Master of the Order, who later became Louis XVIII, continued to function in exile.^[5]

Scholars differ in their views regarding the extent to which the order remained intact after the French Revolution. In fact, in different museums there are preserved number of paintings of Russian and Baltic nobles, adopted to the Order after 1791. In this list are general John Lamb, prince Suvorov, count Pahlen, count Sievers etc. Some of new knights are even listed in Almanach Royal from 1814 to 1830. King Louis XVIII, the order's late protector, and the duc de Châtre, the order's lieutenant-general, both died in 1824. These were followed by Charles X and Henry V as protectors of the order until 1830 but after this period the order did not enjoy the explicit protection of the French crown until 2004 when the fons honorum was renewed by HRH prince Henri d'Orléans, count of Paris, duke of France as head of the Royal House of France.^[6][7]

Royal House of Savoy

In 1572, Pope Gregory XIII merged the Italian foundation of the Order of Saint Lazarus with the Order of Saint Maurice (founded in 1434) as the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus. This became a national order of chivalry on the unification of Italy in 1861, but has been suppressed by law since the foundation of the Republic in 1946. King Umberto II did not abdicate his position as fons honorum however, and the head of the former Royal House of Savoy remains the Grand Master of the Italian foundation of the order today.

The Order after 1830

After 1830 the French foundation of the Order of Saint Lazarus continued under the governance of a council of officers^[8] who in 1841 invited the Patriarch of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church Maximos III Mazloum to become Spiritual Protector of the order, thence re-establishing a tangible connection with the Order's early roots in Jerusalem. Regardless of whether the order continued or was revived, by 1850, under the authority of the patriarch the order had consolidated and numbered about twenty knights. In the years that followed new knights were admitted including in 1853 admiral Ferdinand-Alphonse Hamelin and admiral Louis Édouard Bouët-Willaumez; in 1863 comte Louis François du Mesnil de Maricourt (d. 1865), comte Paul de Poudenx (d.1894); in 1865 the Order admitted comte Jules Marie d'Anselme de Puisaye who was followed in 1875 by the vicomte de Boisbaudry; baron Yves de Constancin in 1896, who was later to become commander of the Hospitaller Nobles of Saint Lazarus, a knight of the Order of Isabella the Catholic and of Order of Saint Anna of Russia. In 1880 comte Jules Marie d'Anselme de Puisaye was admitted to the order as a hospitaller while living in Tunisia. The order continued to attract members from the French nobility and by the early 20th century it was attracting knights from further afield notably Spain and Poland. In 1930 don Francisco de Borbón y de La Torre, Duke of Seville, Grand Bailiff of the Order in Spain was appointed as lieutenant-general of the Grand Magistracy and in 1935 he was elected as Grand Master re-establishing the office, vacant since 1814.^[9]

In 1961 Col. Robert Gayre of Gayre and Nigg, was appointed Bailiff and Commissioner-General for the Order in the English-speaking world with responsibility for expanding the Order's membership in that area. Up to then, non-Catholic Christians had been accepted only as affiliate members of the order. Gayre accepted the appointment on condition that henceforth Protestants would be eligible for full membership. The Paris authorities reluctantly agreed and Gayre, took as a model to emulate the Most Venerable Order of St. John. ^[10]From this time the Order began to identify itself as an Oecumenical Order of Chivalry although the majority of its members and clergy remained Roman Catholic.

The Order today

Purpose

The purpose of the order is to uphold and defend the Christian faith, to assist and help the sick and vulnerable, to promote and uphold the Christian principles of chivalry and to work for Christian unity. The Order of Saint Lazarus is divided into three main obediences (Malta, Orléans and Paris) with own grand masters, and participate in worldwide humanitarian efforts. For example, it has been engaged in a major charitable program to revive Christianity in Eastern Europe: Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Georgia, and the Near East: Lebanon, Syria, and the Palestinian territories. Millions of dollars worth of food, clothing, medical equipment and supplies have been distributed in Poland, Hungary, Romania and Croatia. Because of this experience, the European Community commissioned the order to transport more than 21.000 tons in food to the hungry in Russia. The order organized food-aid and managed reconstruction-projects after the Tsunami Catastrophe in Indonesia.^[11][12][13]

Recognition

The Order of Saint Lazarus has the protection of HRH prince Henri d'Orléans, count of Paris, duke of France, head of the Royal House of France.^[14][15][16] In 2004, the count of Paris allowed his nephew prince Charles Philippe, duke of Anjou to take the position of 49th Grand Master of the order (Paris/Orléans obedience).

In Spain the order has received recognition from the State through a number of legal documents.^[17][18][19] king Juan Carlos I of Spain allowed his kinsman don Carlos Gereda y de Borbon to accept the position of Grand Master of the order (Malta obedience) in 2008. Within the Kingdom of Spain many nobles are members of the order and the Cronista de Armas de Castile y León allows the use of the oross and insignia of the Order of Saint Lazarus when certifying coats of arms to members of the order.

The Vatican can only formally recognise orders of chivalry that have the Pope as their sovereign. However, a number of prominent Catholic prelates have acted as chaplains to the order. Most notably cardinal Paskai of Hungary who is the spiritual protector to the Paris/Orléans obedience of the order.^[20] Previously cardinal Basil Hume was a member of the order in England as is his successor cardinal Murphy O'Connor. The catholic archbishop of Sydney cardinal George Pell^[21][22] is a former national chaplain and member of the order in Australia. The Malta obedience enjoys the spiritual protection of the Melchite Patriarch of Jerusalem. The order has also been recognised by the catholic primate of Spain.^[23]

In the United Kingdom the order has counted several senior aristocrats among its membership. The Rt. Hon. Earl Ferrers was the grand prior of England and Wales (Malta obedience) until March 2012 when he was replaced by the 22nd Earl of Shrewsbury. The Baron of Fetternear is grand prior of Great Britain (Orléans obedience). In Scotland Viscount Gough is head of the grand bailiwick of Scotland. The grand priory of Australia is under the patronage of the governor general Quentin Bryce.^[24] In New Zealand the governor general sir Jerry Mateparae, is both a knight and patron of the order and the Maori King Te Arikinui of The Kīngitanga is a knight commander of the order. In 2007, king Kigeli V Ndahindurwa of Rwanda accepted the honour of knight grand cross in the order.

In Ireland, the O'Conor Don, Prince of Connacht, successor to the High Kingship of Ireland is a knight of justice in the Order as well as Juge d'Armes of the Grand Priory of Ireland.^[25] Other noble families are also represented among the Order's membership in Ireland including O'Morchoe, Bunbury and Guinness.

In Austria the order enjoys the favour of the Royal House of Habsburg. Until his death HRH prince Otto von Habsburg (1912–2011) held the title of protector of the grand priory of Austria. The grand prioress of Austria is countess Éva Nyáry.

The Order is also recognised by the governments of the Czech Republic,^[26] the Republic of Croatia, the Republic of Hungary and South Africa.^[27]

Membership

Membership of the Order of Saint Lazarus is by invitation only and is an honour granted by the Grand Magistry of the order. The order include among their members people of the European nobility, academics, politicians and senior clergy. Membership in the order is divided into two classes, knights of justice and knights of magistral grace, the former is restricted to members of families with noble titles. All members of the order are invested in one of the following ranks, regardless of whether they qualify for justice or magistral grace:

• Knight (GCLJ) or dame (GCLJ) grand cross
• Knight (KCLJ) or dame (DCLJ) commander
• Knight (KLJ) or dame(DLJ)
• Paris/Orléans: serving brother (SBLJ) or serving sister (SSLJ), Malta: commander (CLJ)
• Paris/Orléans: brother (BLJ) or Sister (SLJ), Malta: officer (OLJ)
• Malta: member (MLJ)

Gentlemen who are invested in the rank of knight (KLJ) or higher are entitled to the pronominal Chevalier and women invested in the rank of Dame or higher are entitled to the pronominal Dame. Clergy may be admitted into the Order in one of the ranks as assistant chaplain, chaplain, senior chaplain, ecclesial commander and ecclesial grand cross. There is also a companionate which is often used to honour individuals who have supported the work of the order or who have made a significant contribution to society.^[28][29]

Vestments and insignia

For the Order of Saint Lazarus ceremonial occasions, such as investitures, the members wear distinctive vestments and insignia. The mantle of the order is a black cloak with a green velvet collar and the cross of the order sewn onto the left side. The mantle is always worn at religious ceremonies. In addition to the mantle and insignia members of the order normally wear white gloves and ladies may also wear a mantilla in church.

The insignia of a knight is a badge with military trophy pendant from a green neck ribbon, and a golden breast star. Dames of the order wear the badge with wreath of laurel and oak springs from a ribbon bow and a golden breast star. A green button hole rosette may also be worn on a business suit by gentlemen of the order.^[30]

Other Lazarus Organizations

Apart from The Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem there are other organisations based on the Lazarus tradition. These include The Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem (United Grandpriories) founded 1995 inspired by the original order ^[31] and the Corps Saint Lazarus International (CSLI).^[32] While these organizations also have a well recognized charity work they are not recognised by the Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem and do not enjoy the protection of the Royal House of France or the Royal House of Savoy.

Gallery

• 

  Arms of the order

• 

  Cross of the order

• 

  Flag of the order

• 

  Insignia of the order

• 

  Blessed Gerard, founder of the order

• 

  HE Francisco de Paula de Borbon y de la Torre, duke of Seville, 44th Grand master 1935 - 1952

• 

  HRH prince Henri d'Orléans, count of Paris, duke of France, temporal protector of the order

• 

  Prince Charles Philippe, 49th Grand master (Paris/Orléans) wearing the church uniform of the order

• 

  Don Carlos Gereda y de Borbon, marques de Almazan, 49th Grand master (Malta) wearing the gala uniform of the order

• 

  Lord St John of Fawsley wearing the mantle of the order

References

Footnotes

Bibliography

• Bander van Duren, Peter (1995) Orders of Knighthood and of Merit-The Pontifical, Religious and Secularised Catholic-founded Orders and their relationship to the Apostolic See, Buckinghamshire, ss. 495-513, XLV-XLVII
• Burgtorf, Jochen (2006). ”Acre, Siege of (1291)”. i Alan V. Murray. The Crusades: An Encyclopedia. 1. Santa Barbara: ABC-CLIO. ss. 13–14. OCLC 70122512.
• Coutant de Saisseval, Guy, Les Chevaliers de Saint Lazare de 1789 à 1930, Drukkerij Weimar by the Hague, undated
• Environ (1295), Constitution, règlements et nécrologie de Seedorf (Suisse).
• Marcombe, David (2003). Leper Knights. Boydell Press. ISBN 1-84383-067-1.
• Morris of Balgonie, Stuart H., Ygr., The Insignia and Decorations of the Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem, Perthshire, 1986
• Sainty, Guy Stair, ed. (2006) World Orders of Knighthood and Merit.

Further reading

• Algrant y Cañete, James J. / Beaugourdon, Jean de St. Vincent de, Armorial of the Military and Hospitaller Order of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem, Delft, 1983
• A more measured view of The Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem by James J. Algrant
• Belloy, Pierre de, De l'origine et institution des divers ordres de chevalerie tant ecclésiastiques que prophanes, Paris, 1604, 2nd edition Toulouse, 1622
• Elphinstone, Francis The Opponents of St Lazarus which appeared, The Armorial, vol.III, no.4, November 1962, Edinburgh
• Gautier de Sibert, History of The Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem, Paris, 1772
• Military History Online - Order of St.Lazarus in the Latin East
•  "Order of St. Lazarus of Jerusalem". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company. 1913. 
• Savona-Ventura, CharlesThe Knight Hospitallers of Saint Lazarus, Malta, 2006
• Seward, D. The Monks of War: The Military Religious Orders (London: Penguin Group, 1995).
• Statement by Gregorios III Patriarch of the Melkite-Greek Catholic Church and Spiritual Protector of the Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem
• The Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus of Jerusalem from the book: Orders of Knighthood and Merit : The Pontifical, Religious and Secularised Catholic-founded Orders and their relationship to the Apostolic See by Peter Bander van Buren. (Gerrards Cross : Colin Smythe, 1995)
• The origins of the Military and Hospitaller Order of Saint Lazarus
• The Order of St. Lazarus by Guy Stair Sainty