View source for Order of the Holy Sepulchre (Catholic)

{{Short description|Catholic order of knighthood}}
{{About|the order of chivalry of the Holy See|the Orthodox chivalric order|Order of the Holy Sepulchre (Orthodox)|the canons regular|Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{Use British English|date=August 2023}}
<!-- Please note that by the origins of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, this article uses Commonwealth, or British English spelling. Please do not change it. For Oxford English, please review MOS:RETAIN and MOS:TIES. -->
{{Infobox organization
| name                    = Order of the Holy Sepulchre
| full_name               = Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem
| native_name             = Ordo Equestris Sancti Sepulcri Hierosolymitani
| native_name_lang        = la
| logo                    = GA Ordre du Saint-Sépulcre.svg
| logo_size               = 
| logo_alt                = 
| logo_caption            = Coat of arms of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre
| image                   = 
| image_size              = 
| alt                     = 
| caption                 = 
| abbreviation            = OESSH
| named_after             = 
| formation               = {{circa}} {{Start date and age|1099}}
| founder                 = [[Godfrey of Bouillon]]
| founding_location       = [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]]
| dissolved               = 
| merger                  = 
| type                    = [[Order of chivalry]]
| status                  = 
| purpose                 = Support the [[Christianity in the Holy Land|Christian presence in the Holy Land]]
| headquarters            = [[Palazzo Della Rovere]]
| location_city           = [[Rome]]
| location_country        = Italy
| coordinates             = <!-- {{coord|LAT|LON|display=inline,title}} -->
| origins                 = 
| region_served           = Worldwide
| membership              = 30,000
| membership_year         = 
| language                = 
| leader_title            = [[Head of state|Sovereign]]
| leader_name             = {{Incumbent pope 2}}
| leader_title2           = [[Grand master (order)|Grand Master]]
| leader_name2            = [[Fernando Filoni|Fernando Cardinal Filoni]]
| leader_title3           = [[Grand Prior]]
| leader_name3            = [[Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem|Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem]] [[Pierbattista Pizzaballa|Pierbattista Cardinal Pizzaballa]]
| leader_title4           = Assessor
| leader_name4            = [[Tommaso Caputo]]
| leader_title5           = Chancellor
| leader_name5            = [[Alfredo Bastianelli]]
| main_organ              = Council Complete of State
| parent_organization     = [[Holy See]]
| affiliations            = {{plainlist|
* [[Kingdom of Jerusalem]]
* [[Custody of the Holy Land]]
* [[Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem]]
}}
| awards                  = {{plainlist|
* Knight/Dame of the Collar
* Knight/Dame Grand Cross (KGCHS/DGCHS)
* Knight/Dame Commander with Star (KC*HS/DC*HS)
* Knight/Dame Commander (KCHS/DCHS)
* Knight/Dame (KHS/DHS)
}}
| website                 = {{URL|https://www.oessh.va/|oessh.va}}
| formerly                = {{plainlist|
* {{lang|la|Milites Sancti Sepulcri}}
* [[Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre]]
* Sacred and [[Military order (society)|Military Order]] of the Holy Sepulchre
}}
| footnotes               = 
}}

The '''Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem''' ({{langx|la|Ordo Equestris Sancti Sepulcri Hierosolymitani|links=yes}}, '''OESSH'''), also called the '''Order of the Holy Sepulchre''' or '''Knights of the Holy Sepulchre''', is a [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] [[order of knighthood]] under the [[Fount of honour|protection]] of the [[Holy See]]. The [[pope]] is the [[sovereign]] of the order. The order creates canons as well as knights, with the primary mission to "support the Christian presence in the [[Holy Land]]".<ref name="vatican.va" /> It is an internationally recognised order of chivalry. The order today is estimated to have some 30,000 knights and dames in 60 lieutenancies around the world.<ref name=":0">{{cite web |title=About us |url=http://www.oessh.va/content/ordineequestresantosepolcro/en/chi-siamo.html |access-date=29 December 2023 |publisher=Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre}}</ref> The Catholic Order is distinct from the '''[[Order of the Holy Sepulchre (Orthodox)|Greek Orthodox "Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre"]]''', presided over by the [[Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem]].

The [[Grand Master (order)|Cardinal Grand Master]] has been [[Fernando Filoni]] since 2019, and the [[Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem|Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem]] is ''ex officio'' the Order's [[grand prior|Grand Prior]]. Its headquarters are situated at the [[Palazzo Della Rovere]] and its official church in [[Sant'Onofrio, Rome|Sant'Onofrio al Gianicolo]], both in [[Rome]], close to [[Vatican City]].<ref name="Official website page 1">{{cite web |title=History |url=http://www.oessh.va/content/ordineequestresantosepolcro/en/chi-siamo/histoire.html |url-status= |archive-url= |archive-date= |access-date=29 December 2023 |publisher=Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre}}</ref> In 1994, Pope [[John Paul II]] declared the [[Virgin Mary]] as the order's [[patron saint]] under the title "[[Deir Rafat|Blessed Virgin Mary, Queen of Palestine]]".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Blessed Vergin Mary Queen of Palestine |url=https://www.oessh.va/content/ordineequestresantosepolcro/en/gran-magistero/le-feste-dell-ordine/beata-vergine-maria-regina-di-palestina.html |access-date=2024-08-08 |website=www.oessh.va}}</ref>

==Name==
[[File:ChurchOfTheHolySepulcher1885.png|thumb|[[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]] (1885). Other than some restoration work, its appearance has essentially not changed since 1854.]]

The name of the knights and order varied over the centuries, including {{lang|la|Milites Sancti Sepulcri}} and ''The Sacred and Military Order of the Holy Sepulchre''. The current name was determined on 27 July 1931 as the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem (with ''of Jerusalem'' as honorary [[suffix]]) by [[decree]] of the [[Sacred Congregation of Ceremonies]] of the [[Holy See]]. The term ''equestrian'' in this context is consistent with its use for orders of knighthood of the Holy See, referring to the [[chivalric order|chivalric and knightly nature of order]]—by sovereign [[prerogative]] conferring [[knighthood]] on recipients—derived from the equestrians ({{langx|la|[[equites]]}}), a [[Social class in ancient Rome|social class in Ancient Rome]].

==History==
{{see also|Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre|Canonesses Regular of the Holy Sepulchre|Church of the Holy Sepulchre}}
[[File:Godfrey of Bouillon, holding a pollaxe. (Manta Castle, Cuneo, Italy).jpg|thumb|The Order of the Holy Sepulchre traces its roots to circa 1099 under the Frankish knight [[Godfrey of Bouillon]] (1060–1100), "advocate of the Holy Sepulchre" ({{langx|la|Advocatus Sancti Sepulchri}}), leader of the [[First Crusade]] and first ruler of the [[Kingdom of Jerusalem]]. [[Fresco]] by [[Giacomo Jaquerio]] in [[Saluzzo]], northern [[Italy]] (circa 1420).]]

The history of the Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem runs common and parallel to that of the religious [[Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre]], the order continuing after the Canons Regular ceased to exist at the end of the 15th century (except for their female counterpart, the [[Canonesses Regular of the Holy Sepulchre]]).

===Background===
Pilgrimages to the [[Holy Land]] were a common, if hazardous, practice from shortly after the [[crucifixion]] of Jesus<ref name="encyclopedia.com">{{Cite web |title=Pilgrimages to the Holy Land and Communities in the Holy Land {{!}} Encyclopedia.com |url=https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/pilgrimages-holy-land-and-communities-holy-land |access-date=2022-08-21 |website=www.encyclopedia.com}}</ref> to throughout the [[Middle Ages]]. Numerous detailed commentaries have survived as evidence of this early Christian devotion.<ref name="encyclopedia.com"/> While there were many places the pious visited during their travels, the one most cherished was the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]], first constructed by [[Constantine the Great]] in the 4th century AD.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Evidence of Earliest Christian Pilgrimage to the Holy Land Comes to Light in Holy Sepulchre Church |url=https://library.biblicalarchaeology.org/article/evidence-of-earliest-christian-pilgrimage-to-the-holy-land-comes-to-light-in-holy-sepulchre-church/ |access-date=2024-01-31 |website=The BAS Library |language=en-US}}</ref>

During the era of the [[Islamic expansion]], Emperor [[Charlemagne]] ({{circa|742}}–814) sent two embassies to the [[caliph of Baghdad]], asking [[Franks|Frankish]] protectorate over the Holy Land. An epic {{lang|fr|[[chanson de geste]]}} recounts his legendary adventures in the [[Mediterranean]] and pilgrimage to Jerusalem.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Shepard |first=W. P. |date=1921 |title=Chansons de Geste and the Homeric Problem |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/289581 |journal=The American Journal of Philology |volume=42 |issue=3 |pages=193–233 |doi=10.2307/289581 |jstor=289581 |issn=0002-9475}}</ref>

By virtue of its defining characteristic of [[subinfeudation]], in [[feudalism]] it was common practice for knights commanders to confer knighthoods upon their finest [[man-at-arms|soldiers]], who in turn had the right to confer knighthood on others upon attaining command.<ref>{{cite book |last=Gautier |first=Léon |translator-first=Henry |translator-last=Frith |title=Chivalry |year=1891 |publisher=G. Routledge and Sons |location=Glasgow |page=[https://archive.org/details/chivalry00gautgoog/page/n250 223] |isbn=9780517686355 |access-date=21 June 2019 |quote=Every knight has the power to create knights | url = https://archive.org/details/chivalry00gautgoog }}</ref> Tradition maintains, that long before the [[Crusades]], a form of [[knighthood]] was bestowed upon worthy men at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. In any case, during the 11th century, prior to the Crusades, the "{{lang|la|Milites Sancti Petri}}" were established to protect Christians and Christian premises in [[the Occident]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Mastnak |first=Tomaž |url=https://academic.oup.com/california-scholarship-online/book/28553/chapter/238385183 |title=Crusading Peace: Christendom, the Muslim World, and Western Political Order |year=2002 |publisher=University of California Press |chapter=From Holy Peace to Holy War |pages=1–54 |doi=10.1525/california/9780520226357.003.0001 |isbn=978-0-520-22635-7 |access-date=2024-01-31}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Bachrach |first=David Stewart |date=2015 |title="Milites" and Warfare in Pre-Crusade Germany |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26098395 |journal=War in History |volume=22 |issue=3 |pages=298–343 |doi=10.1177/0968344514524938 |jstor=26098395 |s2cid=159106757 |issn=0968-3445}}</ref>

[[Persecution of Christians]] in the Holy Land intensified and relations with Christian rulers were further strained when Caliph [[Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah]] ordered the [[destruction of the Church of the Holy Sepulchre]] in 1009.<ref>Lev (1995), pp. 203, 205–208</ref>

===Crusades===
[[File:Philippe Auguste arrivant en Palestine.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Detail of a miniature of King [[Philip II of France]] arriving in the [[Holy Land]].]]
{{main|Crusades}}

The crusades coincided with a renewed concern in [[Europe]] for the holy places, with the Church of the Holy Sepulchre as one of the most important places. According to an undocumented tradition, Girolamo Gabrielli of the Italian [[Gabrielli (Gabrielli di Gubbio)|Gabrielli family]], who was the leader of 1000 knights from [[Gubbio]], [[Umbria]], during the [[First Crusade]], was the first crusader to enter the Church of the Holy Sepulchre after Jerusalem was seized in 1099.<ref>{{Cite book |last=McCracken |first=Laura |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=T1RU2bv4olcC&q=girolamo+gabrielli+holy+sepulchre |title=Gubbio, Past & Present |date=1905 |publisher=D. Nutt |pages=26 |language=en}}</ref>

===Kingdom of Jerusalem (1099–1291)===
{{see also|Kingdom of Jerusalem}}
[[File:BnF ms. 854 fol. 191 - Tomier (1).jpg|thumb|left|The ''Vida'' (text in red) of the medieval [[troubadour]]s [[Tomier and Palaizi]], who exclusively advocated defence of the Holy Sepulchre, consequently—in contrast to [[Lanfranc Cigala]]—criticising the [[Albigensian Crusades]] as distractions, even to the point of resulting in marks of [[heresy]].]]

After the [[Siege of Jerusalem (1099)|capture of Jerusalem]] at the end of the [[First Crusade]] in 1099, the [[Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre]] were established to take care of the church. The men in charge of securing its defence and its community of canons were called '''{{lang|la|Milites Sancti Sepulcri}}'''.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.histoiredumonde.net/Les-debuts-de-l-ordre-du-Temple.html |title=Histoire du monde.net }}</ref> Together, the canons and the milites formed part of the structure of which evolved into the modern Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem. [[Baldwin I of Jerusalem|Baldwin I]], the first [[king of Jerusalem]], laid the foundations of the kingdom and established its main institutions on the French pattern as a centralised feudal state. He also drew up the first constitution of the order in 1103, modelled on the chapter of canons that he founded in [[Antwerp]] prior to his departure, under which the [[Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem]] (who had supplanted the Greek Orthodox [[Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem|patriarch]]) appointed knights in Jerusalem at the direct service of the crown, similar to the organisation of [[third order]]s. Adopting the [[rule of Saint Augustine]], with recognition in 1113 by [[Papal Bull]] of [[Pope Paschal II]], with the {{lang|la|Milites Sancti Sepulcri}} attached, it is considered among the oldest of the chivalric orders.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eohsjwa.org.au/?page_id=91|title=History of the order form the Western Australia Lieutenancy website|access-date=9 March 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170218053614/http://www.eohsjwa.org.au/?page_id=91|archive-date=18 February 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="vatican.va"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.khs.org.uk/index.php/origins|title=Origins|access-date=9 March 2015|archive-date=11 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160111043825/http://www.khs.org.uk/index.php/origins|url-status=dead}}</ref> Indications suggest that [[Hugues de Payens]] (c. 1070–1136) was among the Milites Sancti Sepulcri during his second time in Jerusalem in 1114–16, before being appointed "Magister Militum Templi", establishing the [[Knights Templar]].<ref>Alain Demurger, The Knights Templar, a Christian chivalry in the Middle Ages, Paris, Seuil, coll. "Points History"2008(1 st ed. 2005), pocket, 664 p. 26 ({{ISBN|978-2-7578-1122-1}})</ref>

Between {{circa|1119}}–{{circa|1125}}, [[Gerard (prior)|Gerard]] ({{langx|la|Girardus|link=no}}), the [[Prior (ecclesiastical)|Prior]] of the Holy Sepulchre, along with [[Patriarch Warmund of Jerusalem]], wrote a significant letter to [[Diego Gelmírez]], [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela|Archbishop of Santiago de Compostela]] citing crop failures and being threatened by their enemies; they requested food, money, and military aid in order to maintain the [[Kingdom of Jerusalem]].<ref>Malcolm Barber, A. K. Bate, ''Letters from the East: Crusaders, Pilgrims and Settlers in the 12th–13th Centuries'' (Farnham, Surrey, England; Burlington, VT: Ashgate, 2010), p. 43</ref> Gerard consequently participated among others in the [[Council of Nablus]], 16 January 1120. In it, Canons 20–21 deal with clerics. Canon 20 says a cleric should not be held guilty if he takes up arms in self-defense, but he cannot take up arms for any other reason nor can he act like a knight. This was an important concern for the crusader states; clerics were generally forbidden from participating in warfare in European law, but the crusaders needed all the manpower they could find and, only one year before, [[Antioch]] had been defended by the [[Latin patriarch of Antioch]] following the [[Battle of Ager Sanguinis]], one of the calamities referred to in the introduction to the canons. Canon 21 says that a [[monk]] or [[canon regular]] who [[apostatize]]s should either return to his order or go into exile.

In 1121, [[Pope Callixtus II]] issued a bull formally erecting the Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre with specific responsibilities to defend the [[Church Universal]], protect the City of Jerusalem, guard the Basilica of the Holy Sepulchre and pilgrims, and fight in the defence of Christianity.<ref>{{Cite journal |journal=Zenodo |title=The Latin Religious Houses in Crusader Palestine: An Inventory |date=2020 |url=https://zenodo.org/records/3960485 |language=en |doi=10.5281/zenodo.3960485 |last1=Smet |first1=Joachim }}</ref>

In total, as a result of these military needs, five major [[chivalric order|chivalric communities]] were established in the Kingdom of Jerusalem between the late 11th century and the early 12th century: the [[Knights Hospitaller]] (Order of Saint John) (circa 1099), the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre (circa 1099), the Knights Templar (circa 1118), the [[Knights of Saint Lazarus]] (1123), and the Knights of the Hospital of Saint Mary of Jerusalem ([[Teutonic Knights]]) (1190).<ref>{{Cite web |title=Crusades - Holy War, Jerusalem, Reconquest {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Crusades/The-institutions-of-the-First-Kingdom |access-date=2024-01-31 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Borowski |first1=Tomasz |last2=Gerrard |first2=Christopher |date=2017 |title=Constructing Identity in the Middle Ages: Relics, Religiosity, and the Military Orders |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/26583619 |journal=Speculum |volume=92 |issue=4 |pages=1056–1100 |doi=10.1086/693395 |jstor=26583619 |s2cid=164251969 |issn=0038-7134}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |date=1994-03-13 |title=Chivalry Is Not Dead (Published 1994) |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1994/03/13/books/chivalry-is-not-dead.html |access-date=2024-01-31 |language=en |last1=Kennedy |first1=Hugh }}</ref>

Today,
* the Order of Knights Templar no longer exists (other than its successor in Portugal – the [[Military Order of Christ|Order of Christ]]),
* the [[Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus]] is recognised as the successor to the medieval Order of Saint Lazarus,
* the successor to the [[Teutonic Order]] is a purely religious order of the Catholic Church,
* but both the [[Order of Malta]] and the Order of the Holy Sepulchre continue as chivalric orders recognised by the [[Holy See]].

The {{lang|la|[[Pactum Warmundi]]}}, establishing in 1123 an alliance of the Kingdom of Jerusalem with the [[Republic of Venice]], was later signed by Patriarch Warmund and Prior Gerard of the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre|Holy Sepulchre]], along with Archbishop [[Ehremar]] of [[Caesarea in Palaestina (diocese)|Caesarea]], Bishop Bernard of [[Roman Catholic Archbishopric of Nazareth|Nazareth]], Bishop [[Aschetinus]] of [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Bethlehem in the Holy Land|Bethlehem]], Bishop Roger of [[Lydda (titular see)|Bishop of Lydda]], Guildin the [[Abbot]] of St. Mary of [[Valley of Josaphat|Josaphat]], Prior Aicard of the [[Templum Domini]], Prior Arnold of [[Mount Zion]], William Buris, and Chancellor Pagan. Aside from William and Pagan, no secular authorities witnessed the treaty, perhaps indicating that the allied Venetians considered Jerusalem a papal [[fief]].

Meanwhile, beyond the Holy Land, in [[Spain]], during the [[Reconquista]], [[Military order (society)|military orders]] built their own monasteries which also served as fortresses of defence, though otherwise the houses followed monastic premises. A typical example of this type of monastery is the [[Calatrava la Nueva]], headquarters of the [[Order of Calatrava]], founded by the [[Abbot of Fitero]], Raymond, at the behest of King [[Sancho III of Castile]], to protect the area restored to the [[Islamic]] rulers. Other orders such as the [[Order of Santiago]], [[Knight Templars]] and the Holy Sepulchre devoted much of their efforts to protect and care for pilgrims on the [[Camino de Santiago]]. Furthermore, at the [[Siege of Bayonne (1130–31)|Siege of Bayonne]] in October 1131, three years before his death, King [[Alfonso I of Aragon]], having no children, bequeathed his kingdom to three autonomous religious orders based in the Holy Land and politically largely independent – the [[Knights Templars]], the [[Knights Hospitallers]] and the Knights of the [[Holy Sepulchre]] – whose influences might have been expected to cancel one another out. The will has greatly puzzled historians, who have read it as a bizarre gesture of extreme piety uncharacteristic of Alfonso that effectively undid his life's work. [[Elena Lourie]] (1975) suggested instead that it was Alfonso's attempt to neutralize the papacy's interest in a disputed succession – Aragon had been a fief of the Papacy since 1068 – and to fend off his stepson, [[Alfonso VII of Castile]], for the Papacy would be bound to press the terms of such a pious testament.<ref>[[Pope Innocent II]] indeed did write Alfonso VII to just this effect, 10 June 1135 or 36 (Lourie 1995:645).</ref>

On 15 July 1149 in the Holy Land, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in [[Jerusalem]] was [[consecrated]] after reconstruction.
[[File:Aedicule which supposedly encloses the tomb of Jesus-LR1.jpg|thumb|The [[Aedicule]] inside the church, said to enclose the tomb of [[Jesus Christ]].]]

Crusade [[vows]] meant that even if a person wasn't able to make the journey to Holy Sepulchre himself, sometimes his [[cloak]] was taken there, as was the case with King [[Henry the Young King|Henry the Young]] of [[England]] (1155–1183). [[Robert the Bruce]] and [[James Douglas, Lord of Douglas]] even asked to have their [[heart]]s taken to the Holy Sepulchre after death.

{{blockquote|I will that as soone as I am trespassed out of this worlde that ye take my harte owte of my body, and embawme it, and take of my treasoure as ye shall thynke sufficient for that enterprise, both for your selfe and suche company as ye wyll take with you, and present my hart to the holy Sepulchre where as our Lorde laye, seyng my body can nat come there.|[[Robert the Bruce]]<ref>from Froissart's Chronicles, translated by John Bourchier, Lord Berners (1467–1533), E M Brougham, News Out Of Scotland, London 1926</ref>}}

Besides [[pilgrimages]] and the creation of [[knight]]s, even [[coronation]]s took place at the Holy Sepulchre. Shortly before his death in 1185, [[Baldwin IV]] ordered a formal crown-wearing by his nephew, [[Baldwin V]], at the Church of the Holy Sepulchre.

The official arrival of the Franciscan [[Friars Minor]] in [[Syria]] dates from the [[papal bull]] addressed by [[Pope Gregory IX]] to the clergy of the Holy Land in 1230, charging them to welcome the Friars Minor, and to allow them to preach to the faithful and hold [[oratories]] and [[cemeteries]] of their own. In the ten years' truce of 1229 concluded between King [[Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor|Frederick of Sicily]] and the [[Sultan]] [[Al-Kamil]], the Franciscans were permitted to enter Jerusalem, but they were also the first victims of the violent invasion of the [[Khwarezmia]]ns in 1244.

===Franciscan Custody of the Holy Land (1291–1489)===
{{see also|Custody of the Holy Land}}
[[File:Catholic monks in Jerusalem 2006.jpg|thumb|Contemporary [[Franciscan]] [[friars]] during the [[procession]] on the [[Calvary]] in the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]] (2006).]]

The ultimate fall of the [[Kingdom of Jerusalem]] to the Muslims in 1291 did not suspend pilgrimages to the tomb of Christ or the custom of receiving knighthood there, and when the [[Custody of the Holy Land]] was entrusted to the [[Franciscan Order]] they continued this pious custom and gave the order its first [[Grandmaster (order)|grand master]] after the death of the last king of Jerusalem.<ref>{{Cite web |title=History - Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem |url=https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/institutions_connected/oessh/en/cenni_storici_en.html |access-date=2024-01-31 |website=www.vatican.va}}</ref>

The friars quickly resumed possession of their convent of Mount Zion at Jerusalem. The Turks tolerated the veneration paid to the tomb of Christ and derived revenue from the taxes levied upon pilgrims. In 1342, in his bull {{lang|la|[[Gratiam agimus]]}}, [[Pope Clement VI]] officially committed the care of the Holy Land to the Franciscans;<ref>{{Citation |title=The Order of the Holy Sepulcher |date=2021 |work=The Holy Land and the Early Modern Reinvention of Catholicism |pages=121–181 |editor-last=Armstrong |editor-first=Megan C. |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/holy-land-and-the-early-modern-reinvention-of-catholicism/order-of-the-holy-sepulcher/400B0949B20673B19611E56844664665 |access-date=2024-01-31 |place=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |doi=10.1017/9781108957946.004 |isbn=978-1-108-83247-2|s2cid=238052679 }}</ref> only the restoration of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem by [[Pius IX]] in 1847 superseded the Franciscans.<ref>{{Citation |last=Rioli |first=Maria Chiara |title=Nostalgia for an Invented Past and Concern for the Future: the Latin Diocese of Jerusalem from Its Reestablishment to the Second World War (1847–1945) |date=2020-08-14 |work=A Liminal Church |pages=24–29 |url=https://brill.com/display/book/9789004423718/BP000011.xml |access-date=2024-01-31 |publisher=Brill |language=en |doi=10.1163/9789004423718_003 |isbn=978-90-04-42371-8|doi-access=free }}</ref>

With the emergence of the [[code of conduct]] of [[chivalry]] during the [[Middle Ages]], conferring of knighthoods was pursued also at the Holy Sepulchre. From the period 1291 to 1847, the [[Franciscan]] [[Custodian of Mount Sion]] was the only authority representing the [[Holy See]] in the Holy Land.<ref name="ReferenceA">[[Peter Bander van Duren]], ''Orders of Knighthood and of Merit''</ref>

Documented from 1335, the Franciscan Custody enrolled applicants as Knights of the Holy Sepulchre in ceremonies frequently mentioned in the itineraries of pilgrims. Those pilgrims deemed worthy received the honour in a solemn ceremony of ancient chivalry. However, in the ceremonial of reception at the time, the role of the clergy was limited to the {{lang|la|[[benedictio militis]]}}, the dubbing with the sword being reserved to a professional knight, since the carrying of the sword was incompatible with the sacerdotal character, and reserved to previous knights.
{{Verse translation |lang=la
|Post misam feci duos milites nobiles supra selpulchram gladios accingendo et alia observando, quae in professione militaris ordinis fieri consueverunt.
|After Mass, I made two [of my companions] noble knights of the Sepulchre by [[accolade|girding them with swords]] and by observing those other things, which in the profession of the knightly order have been accustomed to be done.<ref>{{Cite thesis |title="Wenn einer eine Reise tut, dann kann er was erzählen." (Matthias Claudius) das Heilige Land in spätmittelalterlichen Reiseberichten |first=Maria Christine |last=Meindl |url=https://utheses.univie.ac.at/detail/7518# |page=22 |degree=Master of Philosophy |access-date=29 December 2023 }}</ref>
|attr1=[[Wilhelm von Boldensele]] ({{circa|1285}}–1338)}}
[[File:900-101 Eberhard im Bart.jpg|thumb|upright|left|[[Eberhard I, Duke of Württemberg]] (1492). The [[Duke]] chose a [[Arecaceae|palm]] as his personal symbol in commemoration of his [[pilgrimage]] to [[Jerusalem]] in 1468 when he became a knight of the Holy Sepulchre.]]
In 1346, King [[Valdemar IV of Denmark]] went on a pilgrimage to [[Jerusalem]] and was made a knight of the Holy Sepulchre. This increased the prestige of Valdemar, who had difficulty in effectively ruling over his kingdom.<ref>Janus Møller Jensen. Denmark and the Crusades. 2007 p.41</ref> [[Saint]] [[Bridget of Sweden]], one of the future [[patron saints of Europe]], made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land in 1371–1373 along with her sons. The oldest, Karl, died prior in [[Naples]], but [[Birger Ulfsson]] became a knight of the Holy Sepulchre, followed by [[Hugo von Montfort]] (1395) and more to come.

Duke [[Albert IV of Austria]] was made a knight in 1400, followed by his brother [[Ernest, Duke of Austria|Ernest]] (1414) and by the [[Kalmar Union|Kalmar]] ruler [[Eric of Pomerania]] (1420s) and later by [[Holy Roman Emperor Frederick III]] (1436), accompanied by [[Georg von Ehingen]] and numerous other knighted nobles; later were Count [[Otto II of Mosbach-Neumarkt]] (1460), Landgrave [[William III of Thuringia]] (1461) and [[Heinrich Reuß von Plauen]] (1461) who was also grand master of the [[Teutonic Order]].<ref>Johann Georg Kohl: Pilgerfahrt des Landgrafen Wilhelm des Tapferen von Thüringen zum heiligen Lande im Jahre 1461, Müller 1868, page 70</ref>
[[File:Innenraum der Jerusalemkirche (Brügge).jpg|thumb|Interior of the 15th-century Jeruzalemkerk (Bruges), 2011]]

The significance of the pilgrimages is indicated by various commemorations of the knights. The [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre of Görlitz]] in [[Saxony]] was built by [[Georg Emmerich]], who was knighted in 1465. Of the medieval Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, notably, Emmerich, although a [[mayor]] and a wealthy merchant, was neither a monarch nor a nobleman. [[Eberhard I, Duke of Württemberg|Eberhard I of Württemberg]], knighted together with [[Christoph I of Baden]] in 1468, chose a [[Arecaceae|palm]] as his personal symbol, including in the [[crest (heraldry)]] of his [[coat of arms]]. Others built church buildings in their hometowns, such as the chapel in [[Pratteln]], [[Switzerland]], by [[Hans Bernhard von Eptingen]] (knighted 1460),<ref>{{Cite web|title=Geschichtsquellen: Werk/2208|url=http://www.geschichtsquellen.de/werk/2208|website=www.geschichtsquellen.de|access-date=2020-05-05}}</ref> and [[Jeruzalemkerk]] in [[Bruges]], Belgium, built by [[Anselm Adornes]] (knighted 1470). The latter still stands to this day, modelled on the Church of the Holy Sepulchre and today adorned with the heraldry of the order.

Some property of the Knights in Italy was transferred to the newly established [[Order of Our Lady of Bethlehem]] in 1459, but the merger proved a failure.<ref>Allgemeine encyclopädie der wissenschaften und künste in alphabetischer folge von genannten schrifts bearbeitet und herausgegeben von J. S. Ersch und J. G. Gruber, J. f. Gleditsch, 1828, S. 158&nbsp;f.</ref> The Order of Our Lady of Bethlehem was suppressed almost as soon as it was founded and those orders whose goods the pope had transmitted to it were re-established.<ref name=Besse>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02534b.htm Besse, Jean. "Bethlehemites." The Catholic Encyclopedia] Vol. 2. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907. 23 June 2015</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z_ICAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA238|title=An encyclopædia ecclesiastica; or, A complete history of the Church|first=Thomas Anthony|last=Trollope|date=2 December 1834|via=Google Books}}</ref>

The [[accolade]]s continued: Counts [[Enno I of East Frisia|Enno I]] and [[Edzard I of East Frisia]] (1489), followed by Elector [[Frederick III of Saxony]] (1493) who was also recipient of the papal honour of the [[Golden Rose]], together with [[Christoph the Strong|Christoph the Strong of Bavaria]],<ref>Georg Spalatin, Christian Gotthold Neudecker, Ludwig Preller: Historischer nachlass und briefe, 1851, page 89</ref> then [[Frederick II of Legnica]] (1507),<ref>Jan Harasimowicz: Adel in Schlesien 01: Herrschaft- Kultur- Selbstdarstellung, Oldenbourg Wissenschaftsverlag 2009, {{ISBN|348658877X}}, S. 177</ref> and others.

====Franciscan Grand Magistry====
From 1480 to 1495, [[John of Prussia]], a Knight of the Holy Sepulchre, acted as [[steward (office)|Steward]] for the [[Convent]] and regularly discharged the act of [[accolade]]. It was a frequent occurrence that a foreign Knight present among the crowds of pilgrims would assist at this ceremony. However, without other assistance, it was the Superior who had to act instead of a Knight, although such a course was deemed irregular. Around this time, the Superior of the Convent assumed the title of [[Grand Master (order)|Grand Master]] of the Knights, a title acknowledged by various pontifical diplomas.

When the [[Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre]] were suppressed in 1489, [[Pope Innocent VIII]] attempted to merge the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre into the [[Knights Hospitaller]], but this was not successful. The Franciscan province of the Holy Land continued to exist, with [[Acre (city)|Acre]] as its seat. In the territory of the [[Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem]], reinstituted in 1847, the Franciscans still have 24 convents, and 15 parishes.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06281a.htm|title=CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Order of Friars Minor}}</ref>

===Papal Grand Magistry (1496–1847)===
[[File:Portrait of Pope Alexander VI Borgia (Vatican Museums - Musei Vaticani, Vatican).jpg|thumb|[[Pope Alexander VI]] restored the Order of Holy Sepulchre to independent status in 1496, and reserved its title of [[Grand Master (order)|Grand Master]] for himself and his successors.]]

In 1496, [[Pope Alexander VI]] restored the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre to independent status, organised as an Order. He decreed that the Knights would no longer be governed by the Custody of the Holy Land, but that the senior post of the Order would henceforth be raised to the rank of [[Grand Master (order)|Grand Master]], reserving this title for himself and his successors.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.order-of-the-holy-sepulchre.org/hist1.html|title=Official website of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120419014301/http://www.order-of-the-holy-sepulchre.org/hist1.html|archive-date=19 April 2012}}</ref>

The [[prerogative]] of dubbing Knights of the Holy Sepulchre was repeatedly confirmed by the Holy See; by [[Pope Leo X]] on 4 May 1515, by [[Pope Clement VII]] in 1527 and by [[Pope Pius IV]] on 1 August 1561.

The privileges of the order, recorded by its guardian in 1553 and approved by successive popes, included powers to:<ref name="ReferenceA"/>
* Legitimise bastards
* Change a name given in baptism
* Pardon prisoners they might meet on the way to the [[gallows|scaffold]]
* Possess goods belonging to the Church even though they were [[laymen]]
* Be exempt from taxes
* Cut a man down from the [[gallows]] and to order him to be given a Christian burial
* Wear brocaded silk garments
* Enter a church on horseback
* Fight against the [[infidel]]

[[File:Portrait of Pope Leo X and his cousins, cardinals Giulio de' Medici and Luigi de' Rossi (by Raphael).jpg|thumb|[[Pope Leo X]] with his [[Cardinal-cousin]] Giulio de' Medici (left), future [[Pope Clement VII]], in painting by [[Raphael]] (1519). Both endorsed the dubbing of knights.]]

In France, King [[Henry IV of France]] purchased its French possessions and incorporated them into his newly established [[Order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel]], formally established by [[Pope Paul V]] through the bull ''Romanus Pontificus'' on 16 February 1608 and expanded through ''Militantium ordinum'' dated 26 February 1608, along with possessions of other orders which apparently were all deemed extinct and abolished, indicating reduced regional activity.<ref name=Carlisle>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HblTAAAAcAAJ&pg=PA578|title=A Concise Account of the Several Foreign Orders of Knighthood, and Other Marks of Honourable Distinctions, Especially of Such as Have Been Conferred Upon British Subjects, Together with the Names and Achievements of Those Galant Men, who Have Been Presented with Honorary Swords Or Plate, by the Patriotic Fund Institution|first=Nicholas|last=Carlisle|date=2 December 1839|publisher=John Hearne|via=Google Books}}</ref>

Nonetheless, the dubbing and the privileges enjoyed continued confirmation, by [[Pope Alexander VII]] on 3 August 1665, by [[Pope Benedict XIII]] on 3 March 1727,<ref name="schulze">H. Schulze: ''Chronik sämmtlicher bekannten Ritter-Orden und Ehrenzeichen, welche von Souverainen und Regierungen verliehen werden, nebst Abb. der Decorationen.'' Moeser 1855, S. 566&nbsp;f.</ref> and by Pope [[Benedict XIV]] (1675–1758) who approved all but the last of the privileges of the order, and also stated that it should enjoy precedence over all orders except the [[Order of the Golden Fleece]] and the Pontifical Orders.

Knights of the Holy Sepulchre dubbed during this era include [[:de:Hieronymus von Dorne (Stadthauptmann)|Hieronymus von Dorne]] (circa 1634) and [[François-René de Chateaubriand]] (1806).

===Restoration of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem (1847)===
{{main|Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem}}
[[Pius IX]] re-established the [[Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem]] in 1847, and re-organized the Order of the Holy Sepulchre as the {{lang|la|Milites Sancti Sepulcri}}, whereby the grand master of the order was to be the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, and the order ceased to be a pontifical order for a period. Initially, the [[Sovereign Military Order of Malta]] opposed the decision and claimed rights to its legacy, probably based on the papal decision of 1489. However, in 1868 it was named {{lang|la|Equestris Ordo Sancti Sepulcri Hierosolymitani}} (Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem).

Pope [[Pius X]] assumed the title of grand master for the papacy again in 1907, but in 1928 this was again relinquished by Pope [[Pius XI]] in favour of the patriarch of Jerusalem, and for a time the order again ceased to be a papal order.

In 1932, Pius XI approved a new constitution and permitted investiture in the places of origin and not only in Jerusalem.<ref name=oesshWEB>{{cite web|url=http://www.oessh.va/content/ordineequestresantosepolcro/en/chi-siamo/histoire.html|title= How has the Order of the Holy Sepulchre evolved over time?| access-date=26 July 2019}}</ref>

===Protection of the Holy See (from 1945)===
{{main|Holy See}}
In 1945, Pope [[Pius XII]] placed the order again under the sovereignty, patronage and protection of the Holy See, and in 1949 he approved a new constitution for the order, which included that the grand master be a [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|cardinal]] of the [[Roman Curia]], and that the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem be the Grand Prior of the order. In 1962 the Constitution of the Order was again reformed and the order was recognized as a juridical person in canon law.

The current Constitution of the Order was approved by Pope [[Paul VI]] in 1977, and it maintains those arrangements. The order's status was further enhanced by [[Pope John Paul II]] in 1996, when, in addition to its canonical legal personality, it was given civil legal personality in Vatican City State, where it is headquartered. An amendment to the Constitution of the Order was approved by Pope John Paul II simultaneously with the concession of Vatican legal personality for the order.<ref name="vatican.va">{{cite web |url=https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/institutions_connected/oessh/en/cenni_storici_en.html |title=History - Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem }}</ref>

==Organisation==
[[File:Edwin Frederick O'Brien.jpg|thumb|[[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinal]] [[Edwin Frederick O'Brien]], [[Grand Master (order)|Grand Master]] of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre 2011–2019, during a [[pilgrimage]] in [[Rome]] (2013).]]

The order today remains an order of chivalry and is an association of the faithful with a legal canonical and public personality, constituted by the [[Holy See]] under [[Canon Law]] 312, paragraph 1:1,<ref name="vatican.va"/> represented by 60 lieutenancies in more than 40 countries around the world: 24 in [[Europe]], 15 in the [[United States]] and [[Canada]], 5 in [[Latin America]] and 6 in [[Australia]] and [[Asia]].<ref name=":0" /> It is recognised internationally as a legitimate order of knighthood, headquartered in Vatican City State under papal sovereignty and having the protection of the Holy See.

===Purpose and activities===
Its principal mission is to reinforce the practice of Christian life by its members in absolute fidelity to the pope; to sustain and assist the religious, spiritual, charitable and social works and rights of the [[Catholic Church in the Holy Land|Catholic Church]] and the [[Christians in the Holy Land]], particularly of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem which receives some 10 million [[dollar]]s annually in donations from members of the order.<ref name="oessh.no">oessh.no</ref> Other activities around the world are connected to their original functions.

Regional activities include participation in local [[procession]]s and religious ceremonies, such as during [[Holy Week]].

In [[France]], the [[French Revolution]] resulted in a ban on conserving [[relics]] and all other sacred symbols linked to the monarchy, though pieces judged to be of high artistic quality were exempt. These relics were handed over to the [[archbishop of Paris]] in 1804 and are still held in the [[cathedral treasury]] of [[Notre Dame de Paris]], cared for by the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre and the cathedral [[chapter (religion)|chapter]]. On the first Friday of every month at 3:00{{nbsp}}pm, guarded by the Knights, the [[Relics of Sainte-Chapelle]] are exposed for [[veneration]] and adoration by the faithful before the cathedral's [[high altar]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.notredamedeparis.fr/spip.php?article339|title=Accueil - Notre Dame de Paris|access-date=19 December 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130926102824/http://notredamedeparis.fr/spip.php?article339|archive-date=26 September 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref> Every [[Good Friday]], this adoration lasts all day, punctuated by the liturgical offices. An exhibition entitled {{lang|fr|Le trésor de la Sainte-Chapelle}} was mounted at the [[Louvre]] in 2001.

===Grand Masters and Grand Magisterium===
{{main|Grand Masters and Lieutenancies of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre}}
[[File:Borgo - palazzo dei Penitenzieri 1150682.JPG|thumb|The [[Palazzo Della Rovere]], the order's international headquarters where its Grand Magisterium is situated.]]

In 1496, [[Pope Alexander VI]] vested the office of Grand Master in the papacy where it remained until 1949.<ref name="Official website page 1"/> Since 1949, cardinals have held the office. The incumbent Cardinal Grand Master has been [[Fernando Filoni]] since 2019.

The Grand Magisterium also includes:
*[[Pierbattista Pizzaballa]], [[Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem]] and [[Sant'Onofrio, Rome|Cardinal-Priest of Sant'Onofrio al Gianicolo]], Grand Prior of the Order<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=The Grand Magisterium of the Order - Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem |url=https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/institutions_connected/oessh/gran_magistero_en.html |access-date=2023-11-03 |website=www.vatican.va}}</ref>
*[[Tommaso Caputo]], Prelate of the [[Roman Catholic Territorial Prelature of Pompei|Territorial Prelature of Pompei]], Assessor of the Order<ref name=":2" />
*Count Leonardo Visconti di Modrone, Governor General<ref name=":2" />
*[[P. Thomas Pogge]], Vice-Governor General for North America<ref name=":2" />
*[[Jean-Pierre Glutz-Ruchti]], Vice-Governor General for Europe<ref name=":2" />
*John Secker, Vice-Governor General for Asia and the Pacific region<ref name=":2" />
*Enric Mas, Vice-Governor General for Latin America<ref name=":2" />
*[[Alfredo Bastianelli]], Chancellor of the Order
*Adriano Paccanelli, Master of Ceremonies of the Order<ref name=":1">{{Cite web |title=The Grand Magisterium of the Order - Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem |url=https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/institutions_connected/oessh/gran_magistero_en.html |access-date=2024-07-18 |website=www.vatican.va}}</ref>
*Severio Petrillo, Treasurer of the Order<ref name=":1" />
*[[Antonio Franco (diplomat)|Antonio Franco]], Assessor of Honour<ref name=":1" />
*[[Giuseppe Lazzarotto]], Assessor of Honour<ref name=":1" />
The offices of the Grand Magisterium are in the headquarters in [[Rome]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/institutions_connected/oessh/gran_magistero.html|title=Il Gran Magistero dell'Ordine Equestre del Santo Sepolcro di Gerusalemme}}</ref>

===Headquarters===
Its headquarters are situated at the Palazzo Della Rovere in [[Rome]], the 15th-century palace of Pope [[Julius II]], immediately adjacent to the Vatican on the [[Via della Conciliazione]]. It was given to the order by Pope [[Pius XII]].<ref name="Official website page 1"/> Its official church is the [[Sant'Onofrio, Rome|Sant'Onofrio al Gianicolo]] in Rome, also given to the order by Pius XII.<ref name="Official website page 1" /> In 1307, after the suppression of the [[Knights Templars]], the [[Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre]], whose main priory was at [[San Luca]], acquired the complex of [[San Manno]]. [[Francesco della Rovere]], the future [[Pope Sixtus IV]], was Arch-Prior there 1460–1471.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Key to Umbria: Perugia |url=http://www.keytoumbria.com/Perugia/S_Luca.html |access-date=2023-12-29 |website=Key to Umbria}}</ref>

==Insignia==
[[File:Blason Royaume de Jérusalem.svg|thumb|150px|[[Coat of arms]] of the [[Kingdom of Jerusalem]].]]

===Heraldry===
{{see also|Grand Magistry and Lieutenancies of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre}}
By ancient tradition, the order uses the arms attributed to the [[Kingdom of Jerusalem]] – a gold [[Jerusalem Cross]] on a silver/white background – but enamelled with red, the colour of blood, to signify the five wounds of Christ.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Constitution |url=https://www.eohssouthwest.com/documents/OfficialDocuments/EOHSJ_Constitution_1978_Final-PDF_.pdf |access-date=29 December 2023 |website=EOHSJ ~ Southwestern USA |language=en}}</ref> Prior use of the symbol is in the 1573 Constitution of the Order.
[[Conrad Grünenberg]] already shows a red Jerusalem cross (with the central cross as [[cross crosslet]] rather than cross potent) as the emblem of the order in his 1486 travelogue.

Above the shield of the armorial bearings is a sovereign's gold helmet upon which are a crown of thorns and a terrestrial globe surmounted by a cross, flanked by two white standards bearing a red Jerusalem cross. The supporters are two angels wearing [[dalmatic]] tunics of red, the one on the dexter bearing a crusader flag, and the one on the sinister bearing a pilgrim's staff and shell: representing the military/crusading and pilgrim natures of the order.

The motto is ''[[Deus lo Vult]]'' ("God Wills It"). The seal of the order is in the shape of an almond and portrays, within a frame of a crown of thorns, a representation of Christ rising from the Sepulchre.

The Order of the Holy Sepulchre and the [[Sovereign Military Order of Malta]] are the only two institutions whose insignia may be displayed in a clerical [[coat of arms]].<ref>''Acta Apostolicae Sedis,'' 20 April 1915, extending and clarifying the Apostolic Constitution ''Militantis Ecclesiae'' of Innocent X, 19 December 1644, cited in {{cite journal |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=July 1915 |title=A Decree on Ecclesiastical Heraldry |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pJQoAAAAYAAJ |journal=The Ecclesiastical Review |volume=53 |pages=75 (Latin), 82–83 (English) |access-date=13 December 2019 }}</ref>

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto; width:60%;"
|-
!colspan=4|[[Heraldic]] representation in [[coat of arms]] of members of the order
|-
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|<br />[[File:Grand Maitre Saint-Sépulcre.svg|110px|center]]<br />'''Cardinal Grand Master'''<br />Arms are [[quartering (heraldry)|quartered]] with those of the Order
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:Patriarches grand-prieur et Assesseur.svg|150px|center]]'''[[Patriarch]] [[Grand Prior]] and [[Assessor (law)|Assessor]]'''<br />bear a [[Chief (heraldry)|chief]] of the Order
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:Blason Chevalier de Collier et Grand-Magistère.svg|150px|center]]'''Knights or Dames of the Collar, Lieutenants, Grand Magisterium, and [[Grand Prior]]s'''<br />Arms are [[Impalement (heraldry)|impaled]] by those of the Order
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:Blason Laïcs.svg|150px|center]]'''[[Nobility|Noble]] (with title) [[Lay member]]s'''<br />Arms are placed on the cross of the Order (not transmissible)
|}

===Vestments===
[[File:Grabesritter5.jpg|thumb|right|Members and [[regalia]] during a ceremony of [[investiture]] in [[Fulda]], [[Germany]], in 2009.]]
The order has a predominantly white-coloured [[court Uniform|levée dress court uniform]], and a more modern, military-style uniform, both of which are now only occasionally used in some jurisdictions. Pope [[Pius X]] ordained that the usual modern choir (i.e. church) dress of knights be the order's cape or mantle: a "white cloak with the [[cross of Jerusalem]] in red", as worn by the original knights.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.holysepulchre.net/insignia_uniform/dress.html|title=EOHSJ — Ceremonial Dress}}</ref> Female members wear a black cape with a red Jerusalem cross bordered with gold.

The [[Choir dress|choir vestments]] of Canons of the Holy Sepulchre include a black [[cassock]] with [[magenta]] piping, magenta [[Fascia (sash)|fascia]], and a white [[Mozzetta|mozetta]] with the red Jerusalem cross.

==Membership==
The order today is estimated to have some 30,000 knights and dames in 60 Lieutenancies around the world, including [[monarch]]s, [[crown prince]]s and their consorts, and [[heads of state]] from countries such as [[Spain]], [[Belgium]], [[Monaco]], [[Luxembourg]] and [[Liechtenstein]].<ref name=":0" /><ref name="oessh.no"/>

Membership of the order is by invitation only, to practicing Catholic men and women – laity and clergy – of good character, minimum 25 years of age,<ref name="oessh.no"/> who have distinguished themselves by concern for the Christians of the Holy Land. Aspirant members must be recommended by their local [[Bishops in the Catholic Church|bishop]] with the support of several members of the order, and are required to make a generous donation as a "[[passage fee]]", echoing the ancient practice of crusaders paying their passage to the Holy Land, as well as an annual financial offering for works undertaken in the [[Holy Land]], particularly in the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, throughout their life. There is a provision for the grand master to admit members by ''[[motu proprio]]'' in exceptional circumstances and also for the officers of the Grand Magistery to occasionally recommend candidates to the grand master.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://chivalricorders.org/vatican/holysep.htm|title=Almanach de la Cour|access-date=11 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110806140852/http://www.chivalricorders.org/vatican/holysep.htm|archive-date=6 August 2011|url-status=dead}}</ref>

The honour of [[knighthood]] and any subsequent promotions are conferred by the [[Holy See]] – through [[diploma]] sealed and signed by the assessor for general affairs of the [[Secretariat of State (Holy See)|Secretariat of State]] in [[Rome]] as well as the cardinal grand master – which approves each person, in the name of and by the authority of the pope. The candidate is then knighted or promoted in a solemn ceremony with a cardinal or major [[prelate]] presiding.<ref name=":3" />

Knights and dames of the order may not join, or attend the events of, any other order that is not recognised by the Holy See or by a sovereign state, and must renounce any membership in such organisations before being appointed a knight or dame of the Holy Sepulchre. Knights and dames may be expelled from the order in circumstances where they breach its [[code of conduct]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |title=Constitution |url=http://www.oessh.va/content/ordineequestresantosepolcro/en/media/le-nostre-pubblicazioni/constitution.html |access-date=2024-01-31 |website=www.oessh.va |language=en}}</ref>

===Ranks===
There are several grades of knighthood. These are open to both men and women. While [[laity]] may be promoted to any rank, the ranks of the [[clergy]] are as follows: [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|cardinals]] are knights [[grand cross]], bishops are [[Commander (order)|commanders]] with star, and priests and transitional deacons start with the rank of knight but may be promoted to commander. Permanent deacons are treated the same as the lay knights. Female members may wear chest ribbons rather than neck crosses, and the military trophies in insignia and heraldic additaments are replaced by bows.

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto; width:80%;"
|-
!colspan=5|Rank insignia (knights)
|-
| colspan="5" style="text-align:center;"|[[File:Wearing of the insignia of OESSJ (gentlemens).svg|750px|center]]
|-
!colspan=5|[[Heraldry]] (Knights)
|-
|  style="width:15%; text-align:center;"|[[File:Blason Chevalier.svg|150px|center]]
|  style="width:15%; text-align:center;"|[[File:Blason Commandeur.svg|150px|center]]
|  style="width:15%; text-align:center;"|[[File:Blason Grand-Officier.svg|150px|center]]
|  style="width:15%; text-align:center;"|[[File:Blason Grand-Croix.svg|150px|center]]
|  style="width:15%; text-align:center;"|[[File:Blason Chevalier de collier.svg|150px|center]]
|-
!colspan=5|<small>In the above depictions, the cross behind the shield should only be borne by [[archbishop]]s, bishops, prelates and those with a title of nobility.</small>
|-
!colspan=5|Ribbons by rank
|-
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Cavaliere BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>Knight / Dame</small>
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Commendatore BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>Knight / Dame Commander</small>
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Commendatore con Placca BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>Knight / Dame Commander with Star</small>
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Cavaliere di Gran Croce BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>Knight / Dame Grand Cross</small>
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Cavaliere di Collare BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>Knight / Dame of the Collar</small>
|}

Below are shown the official titles of the ranks in English<ref>[http://www.oessh.va/content/ordineequestresantosepolcro/en/chi-siamo/chi-sono-i-membri-dell-ordine-.html Ranks in the Order of the Holy Sepulchre] - official website of the OESSH</ref> (''Italian, French, German, Spanish''):<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/institutions_connected/oessh/gradi-cavallereschi.html|title=Congregazione per l'Educazione Cattolica}}</ref>
* '''Knight / Dame of the Collar'''<br />({{lang|it|Cavaliere/Dama di Collare}}, {{lang|fr|Chevalier/Dame de Collier}}, {{lang|de|Kollar-Ritter/-Dame}}, {{lang|es|Caballero/Dama de Collar}})
* '''Knight / Dame Grand Cross''' (KGCHS / DGCHS / GCHS)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.eohsj.com/members-of-the-order|title=Members of the Order|website=EOHSJ Toronto|language=en-US|access-date=18 April 2019}}</ref><br />({{lang|it|Cavaliere/Dama di Gran Croce}}, {{lang|fr|Chevalier/Dame de Grand Croix}}, {{lang|de|Großkreuz-Ritter/-Dame}}, {{lang|es|Caballero/Dama de Gran Cruz}})
* '''Knight Commander with Star / Dame Commander with Star''' (KC*HS / DC*HS) <br />({{lang|it|Grand'Ufficiale}}, {{lang|fr|Grand Officier}}, {{lang|de|Großoffizier}}, {{lang|es|Commendator Grand Oficiale}}) <br />({{lang|it|Dama di Commenda con placca}}, {{lang|fr|Dame de Commande avec plaque}}, {{lang|de|Komtur-Dame mit Stern}}, {{lang|es|Dama de Encomenienda con Placa}})
* '''Knight / Dame Commander''' (KCHS / DCHS)<br />({{lang|it|Commendatore}}, {{lang|fr|Commandeur}}, {{lang|de|Komtur}}, {{lang|es|Comendator}})<br />({{lang|it|Dama di Commenda}}, {{lang|fr|Dame de Commande}}, {{lang|de|Komtur-Dame, Dama di Ecomendienda}})
* '''Knight / Dame''' (KHS / DHS)<br />({{lang|it|Cavaliere/Dama}}, {{lang|fr|Chevalier/Dame}}, {{lang|de|Ordensritter/Dame}}, {{lang|es|Caballero/Dama}})

In English, a female member of this order is sometimes called "[[lady]]" in reaction to the US [[slang]] use of the term "dame" to refer to any woman. However, in accordance with standard chivalric practice in English, female members are called "[[dame]]" (from the Latin title {{lang|la|Domina}}, Italian {{lang|it|Dama}}, etc.) and this is the usual practice in most lieutenancies.{{efn|"Dame" is the usual English title of a female member of an order of chivalry; a "lady" in terms of [[orders of chivalry]] is usually the wife of a member although there are exceptions: for example female members of the British [[Order of the Garter]] may be called either "Lady (Royal and/or Supernumerary) Companion" (but not simply "Lady") or "Knight (Royal and/or Supernumerary) Companion".
There is no provision in the constitution to use other titles in English, such as "[[sir]]", for knights although this is occasionally used. 
In some English-speaking lieutenancies, and consistent with the constitution and diplomatic practice of using French, a knight is addressed as {{lang|fr|chevalier}}, abbreviated {{lang|fr|Chev.}} The Diploma of Investiture of the Order, written in Latin, uses the term "Equitem" and the corresponding certificate for the Pilgrim Shell uses the Latin title "Dominum".|name=|group=}}

===Canons===
{{see also|Canons Regular of the Holy Sepulchre}}
In accordance with the origins of the order, and considered more consistent with ordained ministry than the military title of knight, [[investiture|invested]] [[clergy]] are ''[[ipso facto]]'' Titular Canons of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre, though Grand Master [[John Patrick Foley]] argued that this would be better applied to clergy with the rank of [[Commander (orders)|commander]].<ref>Canon 1898, Ordo S. Sepulchre, Romae,1894.</ref> Additionally, deacons, priests and bishops may also be given the distinguished honorary title of canon of the Holy Sepulchre personally by the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://en.lpj.org/2012/09/13/new-honorary-canon-of-the-holy-sepulchre-in-brescia/|title=New honorary Canon of the Holy Sepulchre in Brescia|date=13 September 2012|access-date=6 July 2013|archive-date=4 November 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131104030446/http://en.lpj.org/2012/09/13/new-honorary-canon-of-the-holy-sepulchre-in-brescia/|url-status=dead}}</ref> Both titular canons of the Holy Sepulchre (EOHSJ) and Honorary Canons of the Holy Sepulchre of the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem are entitled to identical insignia, i.e. white mozetta with red Jerusalem cross and choir dress including the black cassock with magenta piping and magenta fascia.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.barbiconi.it/schedabis.asp?idProdotto=260|title=Barbiconi Sartoria ecclesiastica}}{{Dead link|date=October 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref>

===Saints and beatified members===
[[File:Blessed Bartolo Longo at Pompei.jpeg|thumb|200px|The remains of [[Beatification|Blessed]] [[Bartolo Longo]] (1841–1926), inside the [[Shrine of the Virgin of the Rosary of Pompei]] in [[Italy]].]]
*[[Saint Contardo of Este]] (1216 - 16 April 1249)
* [[Pope Pius X|Pope St Pius X]] (2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914)
* Blessed [[Giuseppe Benedetto Dusmet]] (15 August 1818 – 4 April 1894)
* Blessed [[Andrea Carlo Ferrari]] (13 August 1850 – 2 February 1921)
* Blessed [[Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster]] (18 January 1880 – 30 August 1954)
* Blessed [[Bartolo Longo]]<ref name="eohs">{{cite web |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |date=2023 |title=Saints of the Order – Middle Atlantic Lieutenancy |url=https://www.midatlanticeohs.com/saints-of-the-order/ |url-status=live |website=www.midatlanticeohs.com |location=[[Washington, D.C.]] |publisher=Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230202104421/https://www.midatlanticeohs.com/saints-of-the-order/ |archive-date=2 February 2023 |access-date=30 April 2023}}</ref> (10 February 1841 – 5 October 1926)
* Blessed [[Aloysius Stepinac|Aloysius Viktor Stepinac]] (8 May 1898 – 10 February 1960)

==Awards and distinctions==
Reserved to members, the [[Palm of Jerusalem]] is the decoration of distinction, in three classes. Additionally, knights and dames who made a [[pilgrimage]] to the [[Holy Land]] receive the [[Pilgrim Shell]], a reference to the shells used as a cup by the pilgrims in the [[Middle Ages]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/526414/scallop|title=scallop - bivalve|date=20 May 2023 }}</ref> Both of these distinctions were created in 1949.<ref name= kuenkpalm>{{cite web| url= https://www.kuenker.de/de/archiv/stueck/58392 |title=Palme von Jerusalem [Palma Hierosolymitani] |website= Künker Münzauktionen und Goldhandel| language =de |access-date=17 August 2019}}</ref>{{efn|Bander van Duren wrongly states that they were introduced in 1977: {{cite book|author=Bander van Duren|title=The Cross on the Sword|location=Gerrards Cross|year=1987|publisher=Colin Smythe Limited|page=[https://archive.org/details/crossonswordsupp0000band/page/156 156]|language=EN|isbn=978-0-905715-32-2|url=https://archive.org/details/crossonswordsupp0000band/page/156}}|name=|group=}} They are generally awarded by the [[grand prior]] of the order, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem.<ref name= kuenkpalm/>

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto; width:60%;"
|-
| colspan="4" style="text-align:center;"|'''Awards of Special Distinction'''
|-
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Distinzione Speciale - Conchiglia del Pellegrino BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>Pilgrim Shell</small>
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Distinzione Speciale - Palma di Gerusalemme di Bronzo BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>[[Palm of Jerusalem]] of [[Bronze]]</small>
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Distinzione Speciale - Palma di Gerusalemme d'Argento BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>[[Palm of Jerusalem]] of [[Silver]]</small>
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Distinzione Speciale - Palma di Gerusalemme d'Oro BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>[[Palm of Jerusalem]] of [[Gold]]</small>
|}

Since 1949, the Cross of Merit of the Order may also be conferred on meritorious non-members of the order, for example non-Catholics.<ref name="BvD156">{{cite book|author=Bander van Duren|title=The Cross on the Sword|location=Gerrards Cross|year=1987|publisher=Colin Smythe Limited|page=[https://archive.org/details/crossonswordsupp0000band/page/156 156]|language=EN|isbn=978-0-905715-32-2|url=https://archive.org/details/crossonswordsupp0000band/page/156}}</ref> The original five classes were reduced to three in 1977.<ref name="BvD156"/> Obtaining the Cross of Merit does not imply membership of the Order.<ref name="BvD156"/>

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto; width:60%;"
|-
| colspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|'''Decorations of Merit'''
|-
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Decorazione di Merito - Croce al Merito del SSG BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>Cross of Merit</small>
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Decorazione di Merito - Croce con Placca d'Argento al Merito del SSG BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>Cross of Merit with Silver Star</small>
|  style="vertical-align:top; width:20%; text-align:center;"|[[File:OESSG Decorazione di Merito - Croce con Placca d'Oro al Merito del SSG BAR.jpg|150px|center]]<small>Cross of Merit with Gold Star</small>
|}

Although it shares the same symbol, the [[Jerusalem Pilgrim's Cross]] is not a decoration of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre. [[Pope Leo XIII]] created the award in 1901 but the Franciscan custodian of the Holy Land presents it to certain pilgrims in the name of the pope.<ref name=CUSTODIA>{{cite web |url= https://www.custodia.org/en/decoration-created-leon-xiii |title= The Decoration created by Leon XIII |access-date=17 August 2019 |publisher= Custodia Terrae Sanctae }}</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery mode="packed">
File:The_Church_of_the_Holy_Sepulchre-Jerusalem.JPG|Entrance of the [[Church of the Holy Sepulchre]].
File:Flag_of_the_Order_of_the_Holy_Sepulchre_over_the_Palazzo_della_Rovere.jpg|Flag of the Order of the Holy Sepulchre over the [[Palazzo della Rovere]].
File:Trastevere_-_sant%27Onofrio_-_chiostro_esterno_3108-10.JPG|The convent of [[Sant'Onofrio al Gianicolo]] contains the official church of the order.
File:Chiesa_di_San_Cataldo_palermo.JPG|The [[Arab-Norman]] [[Chiesa di San Cataldo]], local church to the order in [[Palermo]], [[Sicily]], since 1937.
File:Notre_Dame_de_Paris.JPG|[[Notre Dame de Paris]] in [[France]], where the [[Relics of Sainte-Chapelle]] are exposed by the Knights of the Holy Sepulchre.
File:Investitur2010-Dresden2.jpg|[[Investiture]] in [[Dresden]], [[Germany]], in 2010.
File:Investitur2010-Dresden5.jpg|Inside [[Dresden Cathedral]], 9 October 2010.
File:Grabesritter_bei_der_Liboriprozession.jpg|[[Procession]] in honour of Saint [[Liborius of Le Mans]] with Knights of the Holy Sepulchre together with [[Teutonic Order|Teutonic Knights]] in [[Paderborn]], [[Germany]].
</gallery>

==See also==
{{Portal|Catholicism|Christianity}}
* [[Catholic Church in the Middle East]]
** [[Latin Church in the Middle East]]
*** [[Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem]]
* [[Catholic Church in Israel]]
* [[Catholic Church in Palestine]]
* [[Catholic Church in Jordan]]
* [[Catholic Church in Cyprus]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

===Citations===
{{Reflist|30em}}

===Sources===
{{div col|colwidth=30em}}
* {{cite book |last=Blasco | first=Alfred J. |title=The Modern Crusaders |year=1998 |publisher=PenRose |isbn = 0-9632687-7-5}}
* {{cite book | last=Noonan | first=James Charles Jr. |title=The Church Visible: The Ceremonial Life and Protocol of the Roman Catholic Church |year=1996 |publisher=Viking |isbn=0-670-86745-4 |page=[https://archive.org/details/churchvisiblecer0000noon/page/196 196] |url=https://archive.org/details/churchvisiblecer0000noon/page/196 }}
* {{cite book |last=Noonan, Jr. |first=James-Charles |title = The Church Visible: The Ceremonial Life and Protocol of the Roman Catholic Church Revised Edition |year=2012 |publisher=Sterling-Ethos |isbn = 978-1-4027-8730-0 |page=139}}
* Bander van Duren, Peter ''Orders of Knighthood and of Merit''
* Sainty, Guy Stair. Order of the Holy Sepulchre [https://web.archive.org/web/20120330214036/http://www.chivalricorders.org/vatican/holysep.htm The Order of the Holy Sepulcher]
* Sainty, G. 2006. Order of the Holy Sepulchre. World Orders of Knighthood & Merit. Guy Stair Sainty (editor) and Rafal Heydel-Mankoo (deputy editor). United Kingdom: Burke's Peerage & Gentry. 2 Vol. (2100 pp).
{{div col end}}

==Further reading==
* ''De perenni Cultu Terra Sancta'' (1555), Venice 1572, by [[Boniface of Ragusa]]
* ''Liber De perenni Cultu Terrae Sanctae Et De Fructuosa eius Peregrinatione'', Venice 1573, by [[Boniface of Ragusa]]
* ''Discours du voyage d'Outre Mer au Sainct Sépulcre de Iérusalem, et autres lieux de la terre Saincte'', [[Lyon]] 1573, by [[Antoine Régnault]]
* Csordás Eörs, editor, ''Miles Christi'', Budapest: Szent István Társulat, 2001, 963361189X

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* {{Official website}}

{{Crusader sites}}
{{Orders of Italian States before unification}}
{{Papal orders of knighthood}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Holy Sepulchre}}
[[Category:Orders, decorations, and medals of the Holy See]]
[[Category:11th-century establishments in the Kingdom of Jerusalem]]
[[Category:1099 establishments in Asia]]
[[Category:Order of the Holy Sepulchre| ]]
[[Category:Church of the Holy Sepulchre]]